November is the start of the holiday season and National Diabetes Month. While Thanksgiving dinner and other celebrations of the season are often not balanced, those living with diabetes can enjoy traditional dishes while incorporating a few ideas to balance out some high fat and high carbohydrate plates. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Health Specialist, David Leal, has some tips to help make our holiday meals healthier without skipping our family favorites.

Add Balance with Fruits and Vegetables

If you imagine your Thanksgiving plate, you will notice that vegetables are likely scarce. While sweet potatoes and green beans are present, they are prepared with marshmallow, butter, bacon, or sauces, which add sugar, sodium, and fat. “The idea is that we have some vegetables or fruit on our plate that are prepared with minimal fat and sodium so that we can balance traditional high calorie foods”, Leal states. “The fiber in fruits and vegetables helps us feel satisfied and they also add variety in texture and color”, he continued.

When family arrives to your holiday, you can start with crispy raw vegetables for an appetizer; those can be paired with a low-fat ranch dip, salsa, or a delicious bean dip like hummus.

For the main meal, cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, or brussels sprouts are very filling, while dark green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, or mustard greens pair well with sweeter dishes like sweet potatoes, corn, and cranberries.

Provide Light Drink Options

You can think of sugary drinks like soft drinks, punch, or fruit juice as a celebration drink and enjoy them on your holiday, especially if you abstain from them throughout the year. However, these beverages contain sugar and are very often consumed in larger portions.

Remember that two cans of regular soda will contain around 300 calories and the equivalent of about nineteen teaspoons of sugar. Also, juice contains nutrients like vitamin C and calcium, but a portion of juice is only four ounces.

There are numerous options for a drink with little to no sugar. Iced tea with an artificial sweetener, diet sodas, sugar-free drinks, and water, are all good options when we decide to reserve our dinner calories for what’s on the plate instead of in our glass.

Top Off Dessert

Pecan pie is a staple during the fall and winter and there is a reason it tastes so good, it is made with sugar, butter, and of course pecans. While pecans provide a healthy fat, they are still very calorie dense. One strategy to achieve balance in our desserts is to choose a traditional dessert, like pecan pie, and be very mindful of the portion size. Low-fat or sugar free dessert topping is light and makes any mindful portion decadent. It can also be used to top a fruit salad. Also remember that pumpkin pie is a Thanksgiving mainstay for which numerous lighter recipes have been developed. Fortunately, our Dinner Tonight website has several options for desserts featuring pumpkin. You can also sign up for weekly newsletters discussing recipes, healthy eating tips, and food safety at dinnertonight.tamu.edu.

For more information about a Healthy Thanksgiving, Contact your County Extension Office at 325-646-0386