Thanksgiving food for thought…

Happy almost Thanksgiving, lovely readers. I’m back in the States and gearing up for my Thanksgiving trek to Pennsylvania. Camille will be celebrating in Michigan. All day yesterday, I was stewing over what best to blog about for the season. Diet talk, Web roundup–an actual recipe…I couldn’t decide. Luckily, I’d scheduled the coziest of coffee dates with Svelte nutrition consultant extraordinaire, Stephanie Middleberg. All on its own, our conversation wound toward and around all three topics in such a way that when I got home, I knew exactly what to write.

We’ll begin with some solid Thanksgiving feasting advice from Stephanie. First up, how to pre-game: The thing to do, she says, is to try to mince on carbs early in the day. Don’t starve yourself, or you’ll overdo it at the main event, but do start off with lighter things. Greek yogurt (rich in protein), salad, apples (lots of fiber) are all good choices. Also, as you’re waiting for the meal, go easy on the snacks and appetizers. Crackers, nuts, cheese–those are things you can get anytime, after all.

Now, on to the plate: Reserve about half the space for healthy vegetables and salad. (This was how I made it through endless buffets in Kenya. Before I did anything else, I served myself a huge pile of lettuce.) An additional quarter can go to proteins and the last to carbs. Allot yourself a maximum total of two tablespoons of dips and sauces.

As dinner continues: Try to stick to a single complete serving. If you truly loved an item or two, take a little more of just those things rather than going for a whole other round. It’s also worth noting that hunger can easily be confused with thirst, so drink two full glasses of water during the course of the meal.

A few words on mindful eating: This one always sounds so good in theory, but in practice–especially amidst the chaos of Thanksgiving–it can feel weird and abstract. For that reason, I especially appreciated Stephanie’s ideas for how to tap in. Wear something fitted (your expanding belly will tell you right away if you’re overloading), she says, and strive to not be the first one done (just keeping that in mind will slow you down).

Lastly, dessert: If you like it, don’t deprive yourself! Thanksgiving comes but once a year. Be choosy, savor what you pick, and keep it down to one portion size.

Onward! Here’s some inspiration for what to cook/eat/procrastinate over:

*If you’re on the hunt for easy, last-minute menu items, Mark Bittman’s 101 Head Starts on the Day (originally published in 2009) is a cornucopia of good ideas.

*Stephanie alerted me to the fact that Whole Foods has a great selection of holiday recipes. The fun thing here is that for each one you want to make, you can click on a nifty Add to Shopping List icon. When you’re done, you’re ready to just print the whole thing out. If you’re perusing, take a look at this mashed cauliflower. We thought it might be good with a little buttermilk (to make it really creamy) and garlic added in.

*Another place I like to look for recipes is food52. I’m all about baking right now–and was pretty set on making a pie on Thursday. But then this spread on Thanksgiving desserts caught my eye. While on the site, I couldn’t resist checking in with the piglet’s Tournament of Cookbooks. The judge’s write-ups are delicious, mouthwatering reads. Check out this entry, where Francis Lam weighs in on Darina Allen’s Forgotten Skills of Cooking versus Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table.

*To round things some more–and shake them up a little–here’s a link that will lead you to some decidedly non-traditional holiday recipes developed for More magazine by our good friend Monica Bhide.

*Finally (because why not!) a few fun (and fun-to-read) Thanksgiving wine suggestions, courtesy of the New York Times Dining Section.

…And with that, my friends, have an incredible holiday. The opportunity to write this blog–and get so much feedback and inspiration from you–is definitely something we feel very, very thankful for! We’ll be back on Monday…