FIT THANKSGIVING FIXINS’ WITH THE FIT FOODY, MAREYA IBRAHIM

FIT THANKSGIVING FIXINS’ WITH THE FIT FOODY, MAREYA IBRAHIM

Mareya is the founder of eatcleaner.com, helping families everywhere lighten up their plates while still keeping them tasting great. 
An average Thanksgiving meal can weigh in at more than 4,500 calories and 229 grams of fat. That’s more than twice the number of calories most of us should eat in an entire day, and enough dietary fat for more than three days!  By making a few adjustments, you can keep still keep all the great taste without the bellyache. 

Stuffing : 
One 1/2-cup serving typically contains 180 calories and 9 grams of fat.  

– Make a stuffing out of quinoa.  High fiber and protein, lower carbs 
– Use low-sodium chicken broth instead of butter and cut the fat in half. 
– Add more vegetables to your stuffing 
– Use whole-wheat or multigrain bread instead of the traditional white bread.  

Mashed potatoes : 
One cup delivers about 220 calories and 8 grams with lots of butter, cream, whole milk, and lots of salt.  

– Use skim milk or nonfat rice milk instead of cream 
– Use cauliflower instead of potatoes and save almost 100 calories a cup.   
– Use non-fat yogurt and Earth Balance buttery spread to save on saturated fat and calories 

Gravy :
100 calories and 4 grams of fat for a 1/4-cup serving, most of which comes from grease. 

– Skim the drippings from your roasting pan when cooking the turkey and blot fat with a paper towel and use low sodium chicken or vegetable broth 
– Thicken sauce with cornstarch and mushrooms and forego the butter 
– Try Pacific Foods organic turkey gravy.  Only 40 calories and 2 g of fat per serving. 

Pie : 
1 slice of apple pie averages over 500 calories and 20 grams of fat.  
My apple pie is less than 200 and 3 g of fat – without skimping on flavor. 

– Make a crust out of high fiber oats, low-fat Grahams, and egg whites  
– Use a sweeter apple and plenty of spices to reduce sugar – only 2T brown sugar in the whole recipe 
– Eliminate butter and white flour from the recipe; top with nonfat whipped topping 

General cooking tips :

  • Use nonfat dairy and sugar-free options whenever possible.  Stevia and Xylitol are good alternatives to sugar. 
  • Use egg whites or egg substitutes instead of whole eggs in your pies. Remember 2 egg whites equals one whole egg. You’ll save 30-40 calories and 4 grams of fat per egg.
  • For your turkey, opt for white meat over dark for less than half the fat.  Remove the skin to save another 2-3 calories.  And always let turkey rest for at least 30 minutes so all the juices don’t run out and dry the bird

 

MAREYA’S APPLE OATMEAL CRUMB PIE WITH WHIPPED TOPPING
SERVES 8: MAKES 1 PIE   

 

GET MORE RECIPES AND GREAT TIPS AT WWW.EATCLEANER.COM 


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