Healthy Thanksgiving Eating: 20 Ways to Feast and Be Healthy

In this article:

• A traditional Thanksgiving feast can have 2,000-4,500 calories, or enough for two days.
• With portion control, mindful eating, and simple swaps, you can reduce your calorie intake and feel less bloated after Thanksgiving. 
• Here are 20 easy swaps for healthier Thanksgiving choices from appetizers through dessert. They preserve classic flavors but add nutrients to the meal.
• Every day of the year, Lark can support you and provide tools to help you achieve your health and weight loss goals.

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How thankful would you be if you could get through Thanksgiving feeling satisfied but not regretful? Thanksgiving celebrations usually center around food, and a typical Thanksgiving meal can have 2,000-4,000 calories, but you can change that. Here are 20 simple changes you can make to Thanksgiving dinner so that you can add a healthier meal to your list of things to feel grateful for. 

1. Drink more water. 

Drink more water throughout the day to reduce hunger and prevent symptoms of mild dehydration, like headache and fatigue. You may need more water than usual if you’re spending time in a hot kitchen or you’re working hard to clean your home, prepare the dining room for the feast, or clean up afterward. 

2. Stick to a single plate before dinner. 

Eating often starts when guests arrive, which can be early in the day. If you graze for hours before dinner starts, you can consume hundreds or thousands of calories before sitting at the table for your main meal. A smarter choice is to fill a single plate and enjoy its contents. Then wait until dinner before you eat again.

3. Crunch vegetables before dinner. 

Nuts and cheese can be healthy, but a few handfuls can add up to 1,000 calories before dinner. Fried foods and crackers are also calorie-dense. Instead, serve or bring raw vegetables to crunch on. Make a beautiful vegetable platter with colorful options like bell peppers, carrot sticks, celery sticks, snow peas, grape tomatoes, and broccoli florets. Several cups of those will add up to only 200 calories, and they’ll help fill you up. 

4. Try a yogurt or vegetable-based dip.

Just a few spoonfuls of creamy dips with sour cream, mayonnaise, and cream cheese can add enough calories for a small meal. Instead, stick to a dip with a cottage cheese or Greek yogurt base. Another option is a seasonally inspired dip with pureed butternut squash and sage. 

5. Include fiber and lean protein on a charcuterie board. 

Raw vegetables are lowest in calories, but if you’re going to serve a charcuterie board, lighten it up. A healthier charcuterie board for the holidays can include grapes and other fruit, grape tomatoes and other vegetables, lean meats like turkey, and cheese. Nuts and whole-grain crackers add fiber and antioxidants. 

6. Have an undressed green salad on the table.

It’s always a good idea to have a green salad available, especially when you’re sitting down to a large meal with lots of people. The salad gives you something to fill your plate with without adding many calories. On the side, serve dressing made with olive oil, vinegar, dijon mustard, a splash of maple syrup, and pepper, or try raspberry vinaigrette or balsamic vinaigrette. For guests who want something more exciting, serve toppings on the side. Ideas include toasted nuts, dried cherries, clementine wedges, blue cheese, pear slices, whole-grain croutons, and pomegranate seeds. 

7. Remove skin from turkey.

This small swap can cut the calories in turkey in half for nearly the same size serving. You’ll still get as much protein and plenty of flavor. 

8. Thicken broth with pureed vegetables.

Gravy made with pan drippings and flour can be high in calories and fat. Try making a broth from the turkey giblets. Then thicken it by pureeing it with cooked carrots or mushrooms. 

9. Mash potatoes with buttermilk and broth. 

Mashed potatoes with butter and gravy are unnecessarily high in calories and fat. Use turkey broth for flavor and buttermilk for creaminess. If you don’t want to purchase buttermilk, make your own by combining 1 tablespoon of vinegar with 1 cup of milk. Add your preferred seasonings like nutmeg and black pepper, and garnishes like parsley.

10. Add whole grains to stuffing.

Swap whole-wheat bread for white bread or brown or wild rice for white rice in your stuffing. You can also make whole-grain cornbread a few days before and let it get stale before using it instead of regular cornbread. Season it the way you normally do, such as with sage and thyme. 

11. Lighten stuffing with vegetables and broth.

Cut the calories in half per serving by using broth instead of butter to moisten the stuffing. If you saute onions, celery, and other vegetables before adding them to the stuffing, add cooking spray or a bit of broth to the pan instead of butter. Sliced mushrooms and shredded kale are also great additions for flavor, texture, and to reduce calorie density.

12. Savor the natural sweetness of yams.

Orange yams can be naturally sweet and creamy. There’s no need to add a load of sugar by topping them with marshmallows or mixing them with brown sugar. Bake yams or sweet potatoes, and puree them with or without peel. Top them with chopped pecans and cinnamon if desired. Here are ideas for savory or sweet yams. 

13. Add nutrients to mac and cheese.

If mac and cheese is a “must-have” on your Thanksgiving table, try adding fiber and antioxidants. Use whole-grain elbows, add pureed butternut or acorn squash, and use less butter and low-fat cheese. Here’s a recipe.

14. Enjoy cranberries’ natural flavor. 

Why try to hide the flavor of cranberries with sugar and pay the price of 100 calories per quarter cup of sauce? Embrace the naturally tart taste of cranberries. For a twist, add orange zest and swap some orange juice for water when making cranberry sauce. You can also take advantage of pears’ natural sweetness by blending poached pears into cranberries when making sauce. 

15. Roast vegetables.

As long as the oven’s on to bake the turkey, add a pan of vegetables. If you fill most of your plate with vegetables, salad, and skinless turkey, you’ll have a nutritious meal with a reasonable calorie content. Here are some options for roasting vegetables.

16. Make mustard your friend.

Non-creamy mustards like Dijon, spicy brown, and yellow mustard go well with turkey, and they’re low in calories. Hot sauce, chimichurri, and salsa are non-traditional but delicious choices that are also lower in calories than mayo and creamy mustards. 

17. Serve fresh fruit.

Seasonal fruits can be sweet and delicious this time of year, and they can be worthy of being on your dessert table. They also make great gifts for the host and hostess. Persimmons, pears, apples, clementines, and  

18. Skip pie crust. 

Pie crust is typically a blend of white flour and shortening. It’s low in nutrients and high in refined carbs and saturated fat. Try crustless pumpkin pie cups, baked apples with walnut topping, or another favorite pie without crust. If you love crust, make a healthier one with olive oil and almond meal or whole-grain flour, or skip the top crust. 

19. Add whipped topping. 

Plain dessert is best, but if you need to top it, use whipped topping instead of ice cream. A quarter-cup of whipped cream or whipped topping has 40-60 calories, while a scoop of ice cream has 100-200 calories. 

20. Sip tea or coffee. 

A cup of hot tea or coffee can be relaxing, especially if it’s decaf. Sip on it with dessert to slow your eating, or have a cup after dinner to signal to yourself that the meal is over. Have a splash of milk or almond milk and only a bit of low-calorie sweetener or a sprinkle of sugar to keep it low in calories. 

How Lark Can Help

Small swaps at Thanksgiving can add to your gratitude and make you feel better afterward. Lark can help you make more small changes to improve heart health, lose weight, and manage or prevent chronic conditions. Your Lark coach is available 24/7 for encouragement, nutrition and physical activity coaching, and habit tracking. Lark can help you make healthy choices and establish habits that fit into your lifestyle so you can lose weight and keep it off with or without GLP-1 medications. 

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