Recipes add health twist to Thanksgiving meal

We've searched far and wide to bring you some of the more interesting and healthful Thanksgiving recipes. Cook, eat, enjoy and be healthy.

Healthy recipe by Jackie Keller of NutriFit (www.NutriFitonline.com) and author of Body After Baby (Avery/Penguin, 2006). Serves 6.

3 cups sliced carrots

2 (10.75-ounce) cans fat-free, reduced sodium chicken broth

3 cups canned pumpkin

12 ounces fat-free evaporated milk

¼ cup water

1 tablespoon sugar

1½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground white pepper

•Combine carrots and 1 cup broth in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool slightly. Transfer carrots and liquid to an electric blender; cover and process until smooth. Transfer to a 3-quart saucepan; add remaining broth, pumpkin, evaporated milk, water, sugar, pumpkin spice, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until hot; ladle into bowls.

•Nutrition per serving: (1 cup) 123 calories, 0.4 g fat, 7.8 g protein, 23.6 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 379 mg sodium.

Healthy recipe by Christine Merlo, chef and professor at the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management, Newbury College, Boston. Serves 6 to 8.

12 ounces (1½ cups) fresh cranberries

½ cup orange juice

1 navel orange, ends removed, unpeeled, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon honey

Julienned orange peel or very thin slice of orange, for garnish, optional (see below)

•Wash and dry the cranberries. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 cup of cranberries and the orange juice. Cook until the cranberries have burst and leaked their juices. Remove from heat and cool.

•In a food processor, combine the remaining ½ cup of fresh cranberries and the orange. Blend until well minced. Add to the cooled cranberries and stir. Taste and adjust the flavor by adding some or all of the honey. Refrigerate until serving.

•Optional garnish: Top with julienned orange peel or with a thin round of orange (with peel). Cut a notch and twist the orange round into a curl and place it on top.

•Nutrition per serving: (1 tablespoon) 32 calories, 0.8 g fat, 0.5g protein, 10 g carbs, 1.1 g fiber, 0 g cholesterol, 0.7 mg sodium.

Healthy recipe by Dr. Barry Sears, founder of the Zone Diet ( www.zoneliving.com). Serves 5 to 8.

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons minced scallions (green onions)

1 teaspoon crumbled dried rosemary

Poultry seasoning, to taste

3 cups chicken, beef or vegetable broth

2 cups uncooked Goya pearl barley

•In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Saute the mushrooms and garlic in the oil until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Add the scallions, rosemary, poultry seasoning, broth, and barley and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook, stirring occasionally, 45 minutes or until the barley is tender and the liquid is absorbed.

•Nutrition per serving: (½ cup) 113 calories, 0.25 g fat, 2.5 g protein, 19.5 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 90.5 mg sodium.

Healthy recipe by dietitian Janet Bond Brill, author of "Cholesterol Down” (Three Rivers Press, 2006). Serves 6.

2 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 (15.5-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 cup light soy milk

½ cup reduced-sodium chicken brot