A Healthier Thanksgiving? Yes!

Thanksgiving is here again.  And so are those wonderful foods we save just for this time of year.

I have fond memories of Thanksgiving.  Every year, my Mom and Aunt would gather our families together for a day of laughter, food, beautiful weather, food, UT football and food.

Did I mention the food?  Ambrosia salad, sweet potatoes, cornbread dressing, homemade pies and roasted turkey - yum.

Today, I make some of those same dishes for my own Thanksgiving feast.  I just do it a bit healthier.  Instead of using the traditional heavy ingredients Mom used, I make a few key substitutions.  By doing this (instead of making over the entire recipe), I keep the wonderful tastes I remember – just without some of the unhealthy results.

Check out my tips on how to give your favorite Thanksgiving dishes a health boost without losing the flavor you love.

And one more thing.  Relax.  Go ahead - eat your favorite foods during this one-time-a-year meal.  Don't stress out about indulging a bit.  It is a special holiday, after all.

Have fun, be thankful and enjoy this time with family and friends.

Mashed Potatoes

Traditional: Lots of butter, whole milk and cream

New Way: In place of butter, try fat-free sour cream for rich flavor and texture (low-fat plain yogurt works great, too).  You can also use 2% milk or low-fat buttermilk in place of whole milk or cream (low fat, low sodium chicken broth also lends a nice flavor).  And don’t be shy about spices – garlic, parsley flakes and fresh pepper add dimension.

Sweet Potatoes

Traditional: Hands down, my favorite dish.  However, the amount of butter in the original recipe is ridiculous.

New Way: I cut the butter down to one tablespoon and go heavy with seasonal spices: nutmeg, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and cloves.  I also broil a few big marshmallows on top for a toasty taste.  The result? Fluffy and spicy, not heavy and buttery.  And still my favorite (and my kids’).

Green Bean Casserole

Traditional: Condensed soups and fried onion topping make this dish loaded with fat and salt (the onions alone contain more fat than you need for an entire day).

New Way: Switch to low fat/low sodium condensed soups – tastes exactly the same but at half the fat, sodium and calories.  Try 2% milk in place of cream.  And for the topping, ditch the fried onions and try caramelized onions topped with toasted, slivered almonds.  You’ll get that onion flavor with a nice, hearty crunch.

Cranberries

Traditional: Still using those jellied, canned cranberries (you know, the ones that slide out of the can, shaped like the can)?  Get this: one can contains as much sugar as three Cokes (not to mention other unnecessary additives).

New Way: Try fresh cranberries this year.  Combine one 12-oz package of berries (discard any green ones) with ½ cup each of sugar and apple cider, bring to a boil and simmer until berries start to pop (about 10 minutes).  Super easy and tastes refreshingly tart and sweet.  And it’s a great way to control sugar and reap the berry’s antioxidant benefits.

Gravy

Traditional: Turkey fat, flour and butter, anyone?

New Way: Use the flavorful turkey juices and bits, minus the fat.   Here’s an easy technique: Place a gallon-size, ziptop bag into a small bowl; pour all liquid from the roasting pan into the bag; seal and let sit for a few minutes.  Once the fat rises to the top, snip a corner of the bag and let the juices run into your bowl – remove the bag (and all the fat) and discard.  The result? Just the flavorful juices minus the fat.  Use to season your gravy and dressing.  And instead of thickening the gravy with butter and flour, try a little cornstarch instead.

Dessert

Traditional: Pies – pumpkin, apple, pecan, chocolate, you name it.

New Way: I don’t substitute desserts on holidays.  Seriously, if you wait around all year to have your favorite pumpkin pie, you don’t want some pie imposter.  Go for the real deal.

But if you truly desire a lower-fat pie, remember most of the unhealthy ingredients (trans and saturated fats) are in the pie crust.  Try crustless mini pies, puddings or mousses; or make cream pies with low-fat milk and sugar-free pudding mixes.  Seasonal apple or pear fruit crisps can be divine – use oatmeal for a healthy topping.  Check out www.eatingwell.com for easy recipes.

The Restaurant Critic's Diet

Imagine that you wake up one day completely sick of your overweight self - and you decide that this is it.  Today is the day you start losing weight.

Now imagine that you set a goal of losing 20 pounds in 20 weeks. And that you begin two weeks before Thanksgiving - right at the start of the holiday feeding frenzy.

And finally, imagine you are the restaurant critic for the Dallas Morning News - requiring you to eat out five to six nights every week, with no limitations on what you are eating.

Sound daunting?  Not to Leslie Brenner.  Prompted into action last year by her own health history and a visit from two old (but very svelte) friends, she faced each obstacle and ultimately met her goal.  

And she did it without pills, surgery or crazy diets.  In her words, she did it by "burning more calories than I consumed" every day.   

Simple, but true.

Check out her story in the News, cleverly dubbed "The Restaurant Critic's Diet".  To Leslie, however, it's clear her success is more than just a cute name. It's a lifestyle change motivated by an epiphany to "take responsibility" for her own health.

Here are some points I love about this story:

* She knew when she was absolutely ready to lose weight, and she acted on it with no holds barred (even in the face of the holiday season)

* Her goal was realistic and doable - losing one pound per week over a sensible period of time

* She is a self-proclaimed food lover with a passion for her food-centric career - but she didn't let those facts give her an excuse to quit

* Thinking ahead and planning became a part of life - if she was eating out at night for instance, she would compensate with a light lunch during the day

* She embraced help that she could relate to: she used an iPhone app called Lose it! to choose food, track calories and log exercise

So a hearty congratulations to Leslie; you show that it can be done and done the right way.  I hope her story gives inspiration to anyone out there who wants to lose weight but just needs that little extra reinforcement.

Yummy Pun'kin Seeds

Have you ever eaten a home-made roasted pumpkin seed?

When I was a kid, I remember digging the goo out of the big, huge jack-o-lantern pumpkin every Halloween while my mom stood over us ordering, "Save the seeds!"  She would then clean them, pat them dry and roast them in the oven, with just a hint of salt.

And they were so good.  I mean really, eat-the-entire-bowl good.

We aren't big pumpkin carvers here at our house (but we're working on it) so I never really have had the opportunity to roast seeds directly from a pumpkin.  And while I have tried the prepacked and bulk roasted seeds in the past - they just don't have that fresh-from-the-oven taste like my mom's did. 

So the other day, I bought bulk raw, untouched pumpkin seeds - green as can be (and surprisingly inexpensive, by the way).  My kids and I then proceeded to ceremoniously prepare and roast them.  

And guess what?  They tasted exactly the same as I remember - they were so good.  Crunchy, roasty and spicy with just a hint of sweet.  We (including my husband) ate that entire bowl in just one day.  

But the best thing?  Pumpkin seeds are healthy.  

Just one ounce provides a good source of iron and protein; as well as a good amount of your daily need for magnesium (essential for heart, bone and teeth health) and zinc (essential for growth in children) - not to mention they contain heart-healthy fats.   

Inexpensive, easy to make and a good-for-you snack.  What more do you want? And did I mention my kids loved them?

Check out the recipe below for simple, roasted seeds.  No need to boil or precook them; and no need for butter or other unnecessary ingredients.  

And if you missed out on saving your jack-o-lantern seeds, try bulk raw seeds.  They are available year-round and are super cheap (I bought more than half a pound for just $1.50).

Crunchy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds (just like Mom's)

Ingredients:

- Raw pumpkin seeds

- Olive oil spray

- Salt

Prep:

1. If you're carving a pumpkin, separate the seeds from the stringy goo by rinsing in a colander.  Don't worry if there are some pieces left; they'll cook up tasty, too.  Just get the big chunky stuff off.  Pat the seeds dry.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

3. Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on the sheet.  Spray a little olive oil spray over them.  Sprinkle with a pinch of salt. 

4. Bake at 400 degrees until seeds begin to brown and pop (about 10 to 15 minutes - keep your eye on them).

5. Let cool completely. Savor and enjoy.

Optional seasonings: 

You can also dress up your seeds with spicy, savory or sweet spices.  Try a cinnamon/nutmeg/ginger combo for sweet.  Or cayenne, chili powder and garlic for spicy.  Italian seasoning with garlic and a bit of Parmesan make a good savory option.  Experiment and find your favorite.

Carrot of the Week: Donate Food

I read an article in the Dallas Morning News today about the declining donations to local food banks, most notably the North Texas Food Bank (NTFB).  Not surprisingly, both financial and food donations have dropped significantly.

It's not new news to anyone, of course.  Donations have been declining steadily since 2008.  

But for many local shelters and community food banks around here, it truly means trouble.  Many of these small food banks depend on the NTFB partially as a supplier.  So declining donations to the NTFB means declining items at the local shelters, leading to less on the shelves and less folks that can be helped.

And I am certain food banks in your local area are experiencing the same problems.

So, for my Carrot of the Week:

Please, if you can, donate today to your local food bank or needy community shelter.  Even a few items can make a difference. 

Canned items are great to catch on sale - some even as low as $0.25 per can.  Buy a few extra each time and donate today. 

If you can't do it alone, get others involved.  Anoint yourself Head of Neighborhood Donations and gather items from your friends and neighbors; or get your kids' schools involved as a class project.

We can all help, even in the smallest of ways.