Stuff the turkey – not yourself this Thanksgiving! Tips for Feasting Well on Turkey Day

It’s no secret that most people end Thanksgiving Day feeling too full to stand up and too tired to keep their eyes open. If you don’t want to end your day feeling this way, we’ve pulled together some useful tips to help you do less of the gobble gobble and make sure the turkey is the only thing getting stuffed this year.

• Start off your meal with a large salad. This will help fill your stomach so you can be satisfied with less of the other rich foods such as casseroles and desserts. Try to minimize the amount of salad dressing you use, but still maximizing that flavor, by keeping the dressing on the side and dipping your fork in it before each bite.
• Replace some of your canned vegetables with either fresh or frozen options that won’t be loaded with sodium. Try using seasonal veggies such as butternut squash, mirlitons, and cauliflower as side dishes
• Trim off unnecessary calories and fat when you have the option to do so. Opt for light turkey meat instead of the dark meat and skim off the top layer of fat off your drippings before making them into a gravy. Cut back on added salt by using fresh herbs such as sage, rosemary or thyme
• Substitute low-fat plain yogurt for recipes that call for butter, sour cream, cream soup or cream cheese. When making baked goods, replace half of the oil or butter with either applesauce, mashed bananas or pumpkin puree – it’ll taste so great you won’t even realize the butter is missing. Bake or serve mini desserts
• To boost the fiber in your baked goods, replace half of the flour with 100% whole wheat flour. You can also use 100% whole wheat bread for a healthier stuffing.
• Keep well hydrated! Try sparkling water with fresh cranberries and a couple of mint leaves for a holiday sparkle

The above suggestions are creative ways to improve the health of your holiday meal without sacrificing the tastes that everyone enjoys.