Don’t Get Too Stuffed for Thanksgiving!

Don’t Get Too Stuffed for Thanksgiving! 

The average American consumes 3,000 to 4,500 calories at their Thanksgiving meal. While Thanksgiving is one day a year, it’s not necessarily important to find healthier recipes, but focus on sensible portion sizes. If you consistently eat a healthy and well-balanced diet one day of the holiday meal is not going to derail your diet. However, if you are having several holiday meals, such as Friendsgiving, potluck at work and Thanksgiving at both sides of the family, you want to be more mindful of the number of calories you are ingesting and eating until you are satisfied not stuffed to try to avoid undesirable weight gain. 

While it’s tempting to skip breakfast to “save room” for the big meal, it’s important to eat breakfast to help satisfy your cravings and will be less likely to overeat later in the day. Start your Thanksgiving with a breakfast that includes whole grains, fruit, vegetables and lean protein. An example would be 2 eggs scrambled with ½ cup spinach and 1 cup oatmeal with 1 Tbsp. brown sugar, ½ cup berries, ¼ cup almond silvers. 

If you are having Thanksgiving dinner, have a higher protein snack between breakfast and the big meal, will also help satisfy cravings and prevent overeating. An example of this could be 3 oz. of ham or turkey if you have it ready to nibble on before the meal, or Greek yogurt parfait if you want something on the sweeter side. 

When eating your Thanksgiving meal, start with eating protein (i.e., turkey, ham, beef), and non-starchy vegetables (i.e., green beans, collard greens, Brussel sprouts, broccoli) before filling up on the carbohydrate options (i.e., mac & cheese, rice casserole, mashed potatoes, sweet potato or yam casserole). This will help you fill up on some of the healthier nutrient dense options and help control overeating some of the more calorie dense foods. 

Not sure what to do with all your leftovers? Try re-utilizing turkey leftovers into different recipes. One of my favorite recipes with the colder weather is turkey noodle soup. Below is the recipe: 

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

• 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

• 2 stalks of celery, chopped

• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped

• 1 tsp. salt

• 1 tsp. ground black pepper

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 4 cups of low-sodium chicken broth

• 3 cups water

• 3 cups cooked shredded turkey

• 1 (12 oz.) package of egg noodles

• 1 tsp. dried oregano

• 1 bay leaf

• Small bunch of fresh thyme

• Small bunch of fresh rosemary

Directions:

1.     In a large pot over medium heat, add olive oil to heat. Add carrots, celery and onion and cook for 5 minutes or until soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. 

2.     Add chicken broth, water, thyme, rosemary, bay leaf and oregano. Bring to a boil, then add egg noodles. Cover and cook for 7 minutes or until pasta is cooked through.

3.     Discard thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf. Add turkey and simmer for 5 minutes or until warmed. Then ready to serve and enjoy!  

*This yields 6 servings. Provides 390 calories 10g fat, 43g carbohydrates and 29g protein

What’s your favorite leftover recipe?