Lighter Thanksgiving Favorites

I dont use the Holidays as an excuse to over eat. I eat a normal plate during Thanksgiving. This year will be different as I have been vegan since the middle of July. My mom is accommodating me by using vegetable stock and earth balance in her cooking. I know there are certain

things I wont be able to eat and I am ok with that. I am bringing Brussel sprouts or green beans and a vegan pumpkin pie.

As always, thanks! Snack Girl you rock!

Kim

I'm with Kim on not using the day as an excuse to over eat. I sample things and eat my favorites - but not everything on the table is a favorite so that helps to limit. I also keep to my regular exercise schedule during the holidays so it all feels like normal.

De

That is one good thing about my traditional Southern family - we don't drink at Thanksgiving or Christmas, because it's not culturally part of our celebration. My grandparents were teetotallers, and while the rest of the family enjoys a limited amount of alcohol sometimes, we're not accustomed to having it at family gatherings. I stopped drinking altogether when I decided to lose some weight, and it has helped a lot.

Otherwise, I think portion control is key. You can try to scrape all the fat and sugar out of holiday foods, but that scrapes out most of the flavor, too, and I don't think it's worth it. Better to have a small amount of the real thing than more of a pale imitation, in my opinion. I will probably avoid the biscuits and otherwise have two tablespoons to a quarter cup of everything else I like, so I get the enjoyment of tasting the foods I don't get to have often but without making myself uncomfortably overfull.

For those of you who eat meat, turkey is not inherently fatty or bad for you, as long as you don't deep fry it. Brining and broiling works great. I don't eat meat, so I will mostly be enjoying side dishes, and I have no intention of skipping or artificializing the cranberry sauce.

Happy holidays, y'all. I think the other important point to remember is not to let food or obsessing over it control the holiday. The point is to enjoy being with people you love and to give thanks for what you have. Not to shovel food in indiscriminately and not to micromanage every shred of joy out of it, either.

LWB

With tongue totally in cheek, I have often said I would be fine with Thanksgiving Dinner consisting only of stuffing, followed by the pies; especially pecan and pumpkin. THAT would be a an extraordinary feast!

marlene

Add healthy fats to your Thanksgiving meal! This means, yes, put REAL butter in your mashed potatoes! Fat doesn't make you fat, instead it wll make you feel full with the right kind of nutriets.

Cristina @ An Organic Wife

What are the ingredients for a vegan pumpkin pie?

Barbara Henry