Considering Thanksgiving is just a few days away I thought I would put together a few traditional recipes for a Thanksgiving feast. Each of the recipes is a healthy addition to a great meal that could also be made anytime throughout the year.

Thanksgiving can bring about lots of nostalgic memories of parents and grandparents cooking the meals in the kitchen as you wait in anticipation to eat your favorite dish. When you are young you have very little awareness of the nutritional value of food, all you care about is that it tastes good. Now, hopefully being more health conscience, you can take the recipes from your childhood and learn to make healthy changes to them.

My fiance loves green bean casserole. It seems like she would make a platefull of green bean casserole her entire meal, ignoring all of the other delicious foods available. I will always recommend eating as many vegetables as possible since they have many health benefits. If adding a little flavor to the vegetables makes them more enjoyable and adds a little variety, by all means go for it. Just make sure you avoid adding too many empty calories.

Green Bean Casserole

One can (10-3/4 ounces) reduced-fat cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

1/4 cup fat-free milk

1-1/4 pounds green beans, cut into

1-1/2-inch pieces, cooked until crisp-tender

1/2 cup canned French-fried onions
1. Mix soup, sour cream, and milk in two-quart casserole; stir in beans.

2. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees until mixture is bubbly, about 45 minutes.

3. Sprinkle onions on top during last five minutes of baking time.

Makes 6 servings

Per Serving: 81 calories, 2.9 g fat, 11.6 g carbohydrates, 3 g protein.

The next addition to a typical Thanksgiving meal is some kind of bread, like a roll. I would recommend limiting the intake of bread as much as possible because it provides little nutritional value. You would be better of eating more vegetables and meat. However, if you can’t live without some bread at least make it flavorful and healthy.

Healthy Cornbread

1 cup unbleached flour

1 cup cornmeal

1/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup plain non-fat yogurt

2 eggs, beaten

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Lightly grease an 8×8 inch baking pan.

3. In a large bowl, mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, soda, and salt. Stir in yogurt and eggs. Do not over mix, stir only until well blended.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan.

5. Bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until center of the bread springs back when gently pressed.

Makes 12 servings

Per serving: 109 calories, 1 g fat, 21 g carbohydrates, 4 g protein, 1 g fiber

Another staple at most Thanksgiving meals is some form of potatoes. Instead of eating traditional white potatoes, you are much better of eating sweet potatoes, which have more fiber and other vitamins and minerals. A lot of people seem to dislike the flavor of sweet potatoes, avoiding them altogether. With a little creativity you can turn any food into a tasty treat.

Smushed Apples and Sweet Potatoes

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 Granny Smith apple - peeled, cored and sliced

1/8 cup milk

1. Place the sweet potato in a medium saucepan and fill with enough water to cover the potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.

2. Melt butter over low heat in a small saucepan. Mix in the sugar, cinnamon and allspice. Add the apple slices, cover, and let simmer for 5 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Mix the apple mixture into the drained sweet potatoes along with the milk. Mix well using an electric mixer or just a fork until potatoes are mashed.

Makes 6 servings

Per serving: 126 calories, 4.1 g fat, 22.4 g carbohydrates, 1 g protein, 2 g fiber, 48 mg sodium

When it comes to turkey or whatever meat you decide to cook, there is generally only one rule I would suggest, don’t deep fry or fry the meat. Frying anything adds lots of unnecessary fat and in some cases trans fat, which is extremely bad for you. Other than that make the meat however you see fit. Use any empty calorie additives as sparingly as possible, like butter.

There are probably lots of other dishes that people like to prepare, I just listed a few. My recommendation for preparing any dish, as I have stated numerous times, is to keep the use of empty calories to a minimum. You can take an otherwise healthy dish and add lots of empty calories, increasing the potential to gain weight. Use a little common sense and self-control and you should be fine. ENJOY!

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