Can you name a better holiday meal than a Thanksgiving lunch or dinner?
Don’t worry—we can’t either.
But, just because Thanksgiving revolves around eating and drinking, it doesn’t mean that you can’t also keep your health goals in mind.
Swearing off of your favorite foods is neither enjoyable nor sustainable. So instead, we encourage Noomers to enjoy the foods they love (without a side of guilt), while also exploring healthy and delicious swaps where they can. To help you find your healthy balance, we’ve rounded up eight nutritious takes on your favorite Thanksgiving recipes.
(Yes, you’ll want to add these to the list of things you’re thankful for this year.)
Turkey
Instead of cooking your bird in butter, marinate it in a delicious mixture of balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and dried herbs of your choosing. Roast it and let the flavors come to life.
Gravy
If you’re like us, you like to douse your turkey in the good stuff. This healthier-for-you, vegetarian-friendly version skips the meat drippings and adds mushrooms for an umami flavor and serving of veggies. Who said you can’t have your gravy and enjoy green foods, too?
Mashed potatoes
Have you ever thought to put Greek yogurt in your mashed potatoes? Well, now you will with this recipe. Instead of all of the butter and full-fat ingredients, you’ll sub in Greek yogurt, olive oil, chicken broth, and nonfat milk. (Don’t worry, there’s still a little butter in this recipe).
Stuffing
Swapping cauliflower and mushrooms for the bread? Genius. Because cauliflower soaks up any flavor you cook with, this recipe goes heavy on the herbs (think: parsley, rosemary, and sage). Your guests won’t even miss the classic stuffing. Try it here.
Green bean casserole
This recipe suggests swapping canned cream of mushroom soup for a homemade mushroom gravy and fried onions for sautéed, panko-crusted onions. (Though, we wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to keep the fried onions.)
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Butternut squash soup
This recipe nixes the heavy cream and adds—wait for it—honeycrisp apple for flavor. Who would’ve thought? It also recommends adding herbs and spices like sage, cayenne pepper, or cinnamon and nutmeg for an extra kick.
Candied yams
Greek yogurt for the win again. Instead of adding the classic marshmallows on top, this version has you sweetening up some plain greek yogurt with pure maple syrup, light brown sugar, and ground cinnamon.
Pumpkin pie
It’s pumpkin pie in cupcake form. All the taste of the dessert you love without dairy, eggs, or refined sugars. Plus, this will appeal to everyone at the table like your vegan cousin, your aunt who has a lot of dietary restrictions, and your sister who has very specific preferences.
Looking for more nutritious recipes for Thanksgiving (or any time of year for that matter)? The Noom Weight program has hundreds of recipes to pick and choose from.
Other articles you might like:
- So you gained 2 pounds overnight. Now what? Everything you need to know about weight fluctuations.
- The most common weight loss mistake, according to a Noom dietitian. Read this before you consider eliminating foods.
