|
|
|
|
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/3/2009 1:17:38 PM | Every year I try to prepare a thanksgiving dinner I don't have to feel terrible about. Do any of you have any low-calorie ideas? The following is a rough menu outline:
Appetizers:
- Deviled Eggs (stuffed w/regular deviled egg mix using olive oil mayo AND hummus)
- Zucchini Cakes (recipe found here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Zucchini-Cakes/Detail.aspx)
- Stuffed Mushrooms
- Pickle & Olive Tray
- Trail Mix
Dinner:
- Turkey
- Gravy
- Apple & Sage Stuffing (low cal recipe found at: http://www.yummydietfood.com/2008/11/lighter-bread-stuffing-with-apples.html\)
- Mashed Potatoes (I always use skim milk, leave the skins on, and use very little butter. This year I'm considering mashing them with a few sweet potatoes to add a little healthy umph!)
- Green Beans Amondine
- Roasted Veggies with a wee bit of olive oil and some seasoning (carrots, caluiflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, squash,
- Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Low-cal Bran muffins (instead of pillsbury baked rolls... recipe found at this site: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=413870)
Maybe we can all throw in some ideas and help us all stay on track this holiday season!
:)
BTW, anyone have any wine suggestions? | |
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/3/2009 5:18:00 PM | Michelle...no..no..no...you have more fat and caleries packed in that meal that would choke a horse....check the ingredient statements on all that stuff...one instance...the low cal muffins...look at what is put into the muffins that is lo-cal to get the texture you want...if you cannot pronounce it...or know its abrivs....your headed down the wrong road...food is replaced with chemicals that are produced in a lab...our bodies were not designed to break down processed foods....there are hidden carcinigens in so many items you wouldnt eat much...ever...if it doesnt grow out of the ground..or breath and eat...dont use it...never by light-low-fat-or reduced fat items....use real milks,,real butter...those should only include one ingredient...i wont continue on ...but i think you get my drift...and for one day a year...if you cant treat yourself to a beautiful old fashioned thanksgiving dinner...your not eating correctly all year round..... Enjoy | |
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/3/2009 6:39:59 PM | think first Thanksgiving...eat the foods of the native and first Amricans...food from the new world...
Roasted turkey duck and venison
roasted potatos and corn
roasted and mashed pumpkin and squash
corn bread and corn bread dressing
tomato fresh green bean salads | |
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/3/2009 7:12:06 PM | Hello MichelleRenee,
My daughters name is Monica Michelle Renee _______, so of course, I love your name. I wasn't going to post here because I was concerned with hurting your feelings, but I would like to encourage you a little and hope you don't take it as a negative.
First I would say, follow what SA has said, he is right on for a most healthy meal.
Second, I hate to break it to you, but your menu isn't low cal.
Third, Spark People is a GREAT site, but I never once found a recipe on there that was correctly calculated nutrition-wise. Those people posting them are not at all honest about the calculations. If you add all that up, you will find much higher calories.
Fourth, if you knew how many calories were in hummos, you would fall over. It used to be a staple in my house, until I checked it out.
Fifth, anything with eggs, mayo, flour, bread, nuts, or sugar in it is going to be high calorie, that would mean 6-7 items on your menu.
It is important to know that just because something is pushed or talked about as healthy/healthier, etc... doesn't mean it is true, and certainly doesn't mean it is low calorie. I once had a very close family as friends and they went to purely vegetarian and supposedly all health food eating. They moved 2 hours away right after that and I didn't see them for 5 weeks. After seeing them again I about fell over with how fat they all got. After several hours at their house when it was only me and the woman, I asked what the hell happened. She said I was wondering what was taking you so long to ask. I said, well??? She looked me straight in the eye and said, there is a lot of very fattening healthy food. Then we laughed really hard after a moment of silence.
She had always eaten and cooked healthy, so I asked if she was ready to go back to normal, because she ate healthy before, she said, oh yes, we already have, you should have seen us a week ago.
I was floored at how fast they all gained weight and how much. They had all been very slim before. She said that eating all vegetarian and supposedly all health food she realized that they felt comfortable to eat more, so they were packing on the pounds before they realized and it seemed to multiply overnight. Together we went through her pantry and recipes she had been cooking and found that they had more than quadrupled their daily calorie intake, but had not all that much increased their food intake, as she had thought. You have to be sensible and pay attention. In this weight conscious society, many things are pushed as healthy, but are actually far from it. Also, a lot depends on your view too. Healthy as in low fat, low calorie, low carb, high in calcium/vitamins/minerals, sugar-less but chemical laden and on and on??? Which is best for your body?
I just concentrate on organic food, plenty of fish and lots of greens, everything else takes a back seat and is seen as a treat. It is working.
Good Luck and remember, most people watch what they eat all year, so Thanksgiving is a splurge day and a day for tradition. A day, not a season.
SS | |
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/4/2009 9:42:55 AM | Oh lord, 3 comments and not one recipe or meal idea, lol...Well, except SA (thanks for posting actual food ideas :)
Maybe the title is a little off, and shoulda been stated "lower" calorie rather than low-calorie...
Anyway, let me just say, I don't like to eat chemicals, either! Lol... I'm not dense when it comes to nutrition. I read nutrition info and ingredients on packages and eat whole foods as much as possible. And I don't mind splurging at Thanksgiving. That sample menu up there isn't an example of my daily diet. I love deviled eggs, but wouldn't eat the whole tray, but egg yolks are high in fat and, though there would be a few yolks in there, the eggs would be lower in fat and calories with more hummus mixed in the yolk (and have a similar taste and texture.) And the organic hummus I buy is 50 calories per 2 tablespoons. I'm not falling over that. The olive oil mayo is also only 50 calories per tablespoon... and contains olive oil which is good for ya! I'm not sure where all the chemicals that other posters mentioned come in...? I plan on making the food from scratch like I do most of the time... with bran and whole wheat bread (wegmans: 40 calories a slice) and, you know, whole ingredients.
Anyway, the idea is to replace other, fattier and higher-calorie foods with healthier options. (Green beans amondine instead of green bean casserole. Roasted veggies--which would've just been steamed if it were up to me, but family insists on roasted--instead of candied yams, creamed corn, yada yada. Mashed regular & sweet potatoes instead of just mashed potatoes. Bran muffins in place of pillsbury rolls.) If a recipe has a little too many calories or too much fat or whatever, I'll tweak it, balance it out with something else that's lighter.
Anyway, what I'm looking for here are *recipes*... anyone have any?  | |
|
| A Healthy, Low Calorie, Guilt-Free Thanksgiving...
Posted: 11/4/2009 5:46:25 PM | MichelleRenee,
Are you planning any desserts? When I was a child, I adored pumpkin pie filling but detested the crust. So, my long-suffering mother would bake part of the filling in a small greased pie plate. I still like that version, and that way you don't have additional calories with the crust. And, you can still make the regular filling with evaporated milk; fewer calories than light cream.
I haven't tried this recipe, but thought it sounded interesting. Hope it's what you are looking for.
Lite 'n Easy Crustless Pumpkin Pie
http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/detail.aspx?ID=28790 | |
|
|
|
Home
login 
