Healthy Sage Recipes

When making a whole, slow-cooker chicken, it's best to buy a better-quality chicken such as one from a farm stand. The flavor and texture of the bird will hold up best over the long cook time. Also, leaving the skin on during cooking will ensure that the chicken stays moist. If you have leftover chicken, use it for a chicken soup or in a chicken salad sandwich. For a beautiful presentation, serve the chicken surrounded by fresh sage leaves and roasted, halved lemons and garlic heads.

Italian seasoning is easy to make homemade: just combine a few classic Italian dried herbs--like oregano and basil--and you're on your way to sprinkling flavor on anything you cook. It's not just for Italian food! It works just as well sprinkled into scrambled eggs as it does in pasta sauce.

Our usual problem with turkey burgers is the dry, chewy texture of the cooked meat. The usual solution is to add fat, but a little sautéed onion, dried cranberries and soaked couscous work even better without larding down this healthy main course. With sage and thyme, call it a summery answer to Thanksgiving dinner. If you like, serve with homemade Blueberry Ketchup.

This distinctive loaf boasts a beautiful bouquet of herbs baked into the crust. Flavored with more herbs, it's a fine accompaniment to savory dishes, but is also delicious toasted, with honey.

Roasted rutabagas become rich and creamy when roasted whole. Then we halve and pan-fry them for a delectable textural juxtaposition. These root vegetables are often waxed to maintain freshness--you'll be able to feel it. It's easy to remove the wax with a quick dip in boiling water, making the skin edible again. Serve the rutabagas as a side or vegetarian appetizer for a special meal, such as Thanksgiving dinner.

Serve this low-carb side dish with roast pork, roast chicken or a firm white fish, like halibut or cod. No microwave? Bake squash halves cut-side down at 400 degrees F until tender, 40 to 50 minutes.

This healthy cornbread stuffing recipe is a favorite, thanks to the flavor from herbs, shallots, celery and apples. For perfect texture--a little soft, a little crispy--bake the cornbread at least a day ahead. To save time, you can use 12 cups (about 2 pounds) of crumbled day-old store-bought cornbread.

When you season roast chicken under the skin, as in this recipe, the meat itself gets flavored and the skin becomes nicely browned and crisp. Here, the chicken is roasted on a bed of carrots, turnips and celeriac--but any mixture of root vegetables will work. You'll need about 8 cups of chopped or cubed vegetables.

This honeynut squash recipe is bound to satisfy anyone at your Thanksgiving table. Once only available to chefs, honeynut squash (think: super-sweet butternuts) are now sold at farmers' markets and some grocery stores in the fall.

This sophisticated dish of braised summer vegetables--beans, tomatoes, bell pepper, carrots and more--drizzled with a pestolike sauce made from garden-fresh herbs was inspired by a stroll through the farmers' market. Feel free to mix up the produce based on what you have on hand, and make extra sauce since it freezes well and is perfect for tossing with pasta or swirling into soups. If they're available, try adding fresh fava beans or other shell beans to bump up the protein in this quintessential summer dish.

This pork roast is coated in a generous mustardy-mixture of parsley, thyme, rosemary and sage. As the meat cooks on the grill, the mustard and herbs form a divine crust which smells amazing and tastes even better.

The pungent herb sage is quite versatile, pairing well with pork, chicken, citrus and here with wild mushrooms on this earthy-flavored pizza. Dried sage will do, but is not as aromatic as fresh. Try this pizza as a light main course or cut into wedges and serve as an appetizer.

Fat-free sour cream adds extra richness without a lot of calories and fat to this quick turkey and pasta dinner for two.

Avocado and black beans pump up the nutrients and fiber in this main-dish pork salad recipe.

Make use of your entire grill surface the next time you're grilling chicken, fish, or pork. These vegetables are simple to prepare and cook on the grill alongside your main dish. They're topped with a delicious herbed vinaigrette and make a wonderful low-calorie side dish.

Bay leaves in the dry rub and fresh sage guarantee that this easy turkey recipe has tons of flavor. Leaving the turkey uncovered in the fridge creates the crispiest skin. Look for a heritage, organic or natural turkey, which won't contain the sodium solution that's pumped into most conventional turkeys.

In this healthy mashed potato recipe, we flavor the mashed potatoes with an herb-infused olive oil. These green–specked mashed potatoes taste great with pan-seared pork chops or chicken.

A velvety puree of white beans makes a fiber-rich alternative to mashed potatoes. Serve with lamb chops or steak.

Why not add a little bit of island flair to your next holiday meal? This basic herb-rubbed turkey recipe is brushed with a sweet orange and sage sauce and served with a Jamaican jerk seasoned sweet potato stuffing. Your guests may just request a side of reggae music!

Russets are the creamiest, best potatoes for mashed potatoes. A drizzle of browned butter on top adds a nutty flavor that mingles nicely with tangy yogurt and fragrant sage.

Customize these muffins by using your favorite herb, and then pair them with a frittata or omelet.

Turn lower-carb cauliflower gnocchi into a complete and satisfying meal with this riff on classic brown butter and sage gnocchi. We added beans to amp up the fiber and protein for a fast and healthy dinner.

A crunchy crust of crumbs and minced herbs seals in the natural juices.

Once you "melt" sweet potatoes, you won't want to make them any other way. These roasted sweet potatoes soak up broth to turn the interior into a creamy, melt-in-your-mouth texture. A sage-brown butter sauce finishes these potatoes for a truly stunning side dish.