Adapting Thanksgiving dinner traditions to meet new tastes, healthier choices

Whether it be the stuffing, the cranberry sauce or the creamy mashed potatoes, few other family meals are steeped in tradition like the Thanksgiving meal.

But along with that tradition comes a higher-than-normal calorie consumption.

Mary Liz Wright, a nutrition and wellness educator with the Illinois Extension, said the average calorie consumption of a Thanksgiving meal can reach more than 4,000.

Even more troublesome, Wright said, is that for people who have diabetes, “the average carbohydrates in a Thanksgiving meal can be more than 550 grams. People with diabetes should be [eating] about 45 grams or less per meal.”

However, with some planning, the Thanksgiving meal can include a little bit of something for everyone to enjoy.

In considering the must-haves of the Thanksgiving meal, Wright said, “Go ahead and make two or three dishes that your family would form some sort of protest or strike if you didn’t include them. But add in a couple of side dishes that are unsauced and unaugmented, such as roasted vegetables over corn pudding or steamed broccoli over green bean casserole.

“I’m not advocating people have carrot sticks and water for Thanksgiving. However, we can make some small and incremental changes or additions.”

In considering Thanksgiving menus, Wright said she has had conversations with holiday hosts who are making accommodations for individuals who need vegan or gluten-free options.

“We need to remember the 12% of the population that has diabetes,” she said. “This is not their choice.”

Wright suggests hosts should offer one or two dishes that they have “lightened.”

This can be achieved by “replacing half the fat with applesauce,” she said.

“I’m not advocating people have carrot sticks and water for Thanksgiving. However, we can make some small and incremental changes or additions.”

—  Mary Liz Wright, a nutrition and wellness educator with the Illinois Extension

In addition, for most recipes such as quick breads and desserts, Wright said, bakers can eliminate about one-quarter to one-third of the sugar without having any repercussions.

Wright also suggests offering a salad at the Thanksgiving table and “not the mayonnaise, Cool Whip or cream cheese kind. One with a substantial number of veggies in it.”

In addition, for those interested in watching what they consume on Thanksgiving, Caroline Adrieansen, a clinical dietitian with Silver Cross Hospital, said, “It is important to think about portion size and how much you are eating.

“Keeping portions in control is one of the biggest things you can do.”

Not going to a Thanksgiving meal starving can ward off the urge to overeat, Adrieansen said.

Adrieansen recommended having a fresh vegetable tray as an appetizer.

“Staying away from heavy dips,” she added, can be an option.

In addition, Adrieansen said other tips to lower fat and calories include “cutting back on butter and sour cream or switching to light sour cream” in side dishes, or substituting “mashed cauliflower for mashed potatoes.”

Using a smaller amount of butter is another way to reduce the overall calorie count, Adrieansen said.

“Or use the margarine or olive oil,” she added.

For the star attraction – the turkey – she suggested sticking to the white meat.

“White meat will have less fat and calories,” she said. “Removing the skin before eating also will help with calorie control.”

In terms of side dishes, such as green bean casserole, “fresh is always best, or frozen is a second option,” Adrieansen said.

Plan an outdoor activity

After the meal, Adrieansen said, “engaging in some sort of physical activity can be good to do as a family and for exercise.”

Still, she said, “Remember that it is only one day. Yes, it is important to keep it healthy, but it is the other days of the year that are going to make the biggest impact on your health. You want to still enjoy your holiday and your family traditions and meals.”

With the increased price of groceries, Adrieansen said, “unfortunately, when you eat healthier, it is going to tend to cost more. However, the holiday also brings on sales – try to focus on the items that are on sale. Or shopping at grocery stores that are lower in price.”

Wright also suggested that hosts focus on how much food they make.

“Thinking back to last year,” she said, “after eating, we had half the food left.”

This year, Wright said, she will be making less, which will lower the overall cost of the Thanksgiving meal.

“Some sources say Americans are throwing away 40% of our food supply,” she said.

Healthy dessert recipes

The University of Illinois Extension offers these dessert recipe options that can be served and enjoyed throughout the holiday season.

The following recipes all have 300 calories or fewer, 10 grams of fat or less and ½ gram of trans fat or less per normal size serving.

Whenever possible, canola oil was used in place of partially hydrogenated fat and butter.

For the nutritional analysis, the following guidelines were used:

• When ingredient options appear in a recipe, the first ingredient choice is used for the analysis.
• “Optional” ingredients are omitted in the analysis.
• If a recipe gives optional serving sizes, the nutritional analysis is calculated using the first choice.
• All recipes were analyzed using Food Processor SQL software, Version 9.8.1

Pies

Better for You Pecan Pie

This recipe has all the wonderful flavors of traditional pecan pie but with about half the calories as most recipes. The trick is cutting back on the amount of pecans, skipping the melted butter and substituting one egg white for one of the three eggs in the original recipe.

1 cup dark corn syrup

¼ cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons flour

¼ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

1 large egg white

½ cup pecan halves

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 9-inch pie crust (analysis based on oil pie dough recipe)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine corn syrup, maple syrup, flour, salt and eggs until well blended. Stir in pecans and vanilla.

Pour filling into prepared crust and bake 50 minutes or until the edges puff and the center is set. Cool on a wire rack.

Yields: 9-inch pie; eight servings

Nutritional information per serving: 295 calories, 9 g fat, 0 g trans fat, 43 mg cholesterol, 194 mg sodium, 49 g carbohydrate, 4 g protein, 1 g dietary fiber

Crunchy Pumpkin Pie

For the pie crust:

1 cup quick cooking oats

¼ cup whole wheat flour

¼ cup ground almonds

2 tablespoons brown sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 tablespoon water

For the pie filling:

¼ cup packed brown sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon salt

1 egg, beaten

4 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin

⅔ cup evaporated skim milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix oats, flour, almonds, sugar and salt together in a small mixing bowl. Blend oil and water together in a measuring cup with a fork or small wire whisk until blended. Add the oil mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. If needed, add a small amount of water to hold the mixture together. Press into a 9-inch pie pan and bake for eight to 10 minutes or until light brown.

Turn oven down to 350 degrees. Mix brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together in a bowl. Add egg and vanilla and mix to blend the ingredients. Add pumpkin and evaporated skim milk, stirring to combine. Pour into a prepared pie shell and bake 45 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.

Yields: eight servings

Nutritional information per serving: 180 calories, 7 g fat, 0 g trans fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 260 mg sodium, 26 g carbohydrate, 5 g protein, 3 g fiber

Oil Pie Dough

This is a quick and easy better-for-you pie dough without saturated or trans fat.

2 cups flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup canola oil

6 tablespoons cold water

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Pour oil and water into a measuring cup but do not stir. Pour the mixture over the flour all at once. Stir these ingredients lightly with a fork until blended. The dough may be formed into a crust by patting it into a pan with a spoon or may be rolled between two sheets of wax paper.

Yields: 2- to 9-inch pie shells or 16 tarts

Nutritional information per ⅛ of a pie shell: 112 calories, 7 g fat, 0 g trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 67 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, 1 g protein

Eggnog Pie with Bourbon Cream

For the pie crust:

32 low-fat graham crackers

2 tablespoons sugar

1½ tablespoons butter, melted

1 large egg white

cooking spray

For the bourbon cream:

¾ cup frozen lite whipped topping, thawed

2 tablespoons eggnog

1 teaspoon bourbon

⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg

For the pie filling:

1/2 cup plain, fat-free yogurt

4 oz ⅓-less fat cream cheese, softened

4 oz fat-free cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large eggs

⅓ cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

⅛ teaspoon salt

⅔ cup eggnog

2 large egg whites

2 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To make the crust, place graham crackers in a food processor and process until crumbly. Add sugar, butter and egg white. Pulse five times or just until moist. Press crumb mixture evenly into a 9-inch pie plate that has been coated with cooking spray. Bake eight minutes and then cool on a wire rack while you prepare the pie filling.

Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. To prepare the filling, spoon yogurt onto several layers of white paper towels to ½-inch thickness. Cover with additional paper towels and let stand five minutes.

Scrape yogurt into a bowl using a rubber spatula. Place cream cheeses and vanilla into a separate bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Combine sugar, flour and salt in a separate bowl. Add sugar mixture to cheese mixture, mixing well. Add yogurt to cheese mixture followed by eggnog. Beat at low speed until combined.

Beat egg whites with a mixer at medium speed until soft peaks form. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until stiff peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into the eggnog mixture. Pour the filling into cooled crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool completely on a wire rack. Chill overnight.

To prepare the bourbon cream, place the whipped topping in a bowl. Gently fold in 2 tablespoons eggnog and bourbon; chill. Top each pie slice with bourbon cream; sprinkle with nutmeg before serving.

Yields: eight servings

Nutritional information per serving: 230 calories, 8 g fat, 0 g trans fat, 80 mg cholesterol, 310 mg sodium, 30 g carbohydrate, 9 g protein, 1 g fiber

Deep Dish Apple Pie

As a way to cut calories, the bottom crust was eliminated from a traditional apple pie recipe. All of the rich flavors are still present, but the calories have been sliced by almost half.

For the filling:

⅔ cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

8 cups thinly sliced and peeled cooking apples

For the crust:

1 cup flour

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup no trans fat shortening

2-3 tablespoons cold water

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add apple slices. Toss until apples are coated. Transfer apple mixture to a 2-quart casserole or deep dish pie pan.

For the pastry crust, combine the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Using a pastry blender or two forks, cut in the shortening until pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the water over the mixture and gently toss with a fork. Push moistened dough to the side of the bowl. Repeat using 1 tablespoon of the remaining water at a time until dough is moistened and can form a ball.

On a lightly floured surface, flatten the ball of dough and roll into a circle that is 1 inch larger than the top of the casserole. Place pastry atop apples; seal and flute to the rim of the casserole. Cut slits in the pastry. Cover the edges of the pie with foil and place on a baking sheet.

Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake 30 to 35 minutes more or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Serve warm or cool.

Yields: eight servings

Nutritional information per serving: 239 calories, 7 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 67 mg sodium, 45 g carbohydrate, 2 g protein, 3 g dietary fiber