CrazyBusy Mama! (Dot Calm)

Thanksgiving really snuck up on me this year. It seems we’ve had so many things going on that I haven’t been able to keep track of them all and I’ve been forgetting things. (Kind of like my child on Halloween, swinging her candy bucket…something invariable falls out. My head’s like that.)

In fact, my family can be thankful this week for my iPhone. I used the alert function in the built-in calendar to remind me to take the turkey out the freezer to thaw on Monday. There’s no way I would have remembered that on my own. That phone is practically my personal assistant.

So, our turkey is thawing and I am in planning mode for what will make up the rest of our Thursday’s dinner. Here’s our very basic menu:

Turkey

Garlic mashed potatoes (a combo of russet and red)

Rosemary-sourdough stuffing (I might post that recipe, too)

Sweet potato casserole

Sauteed green beans

Cranberry sauce

Dinner rolls

Pumpkin pie

Annnnnd…I’m pretty sure I’m forgetting something.

Of course, I will do what I can to make each dish as healthy as possible. One thing I’ll be doing is substituting a healthier dish for an old, fattening, sodium-filled favorite. The old dish: Green bean casserole. The new: Sauteed green beans.

If you’d like to give my “new” dish a try, it’s very simple to throw together. Steam one package of thinly sliced green beans (the package may read “Italian cut,” “French cut,” or “French style”). In a skillet or similar pan, pour a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Let that heat for a few minutes, and add a quarter of a chopped white onion, a handful of sunflower seeds or pine nuts (sunflower seeds are cheaper), and a sprinkle of bacon bits (optional). When the onion is translucent, add the beans. Sprinkle with sea salt, black pepper, and dried garlic (or minced fresh garlic). Sautee for a few minutes longer until beans are heated through and everything is thoroughly mixed. Delicious!

Do you have plans to make your Thanksgiving dinner healthier this year? Do share!

©2010 Sally Dinius
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Sally Dinius is writer-in-chief here at CrazyBusyMama.com, a blog created to inspire and motivate busy mamas everywhere to feel healthy, fit, and in control of their lives. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/sdinius, and come join the CrazyBusy Mama Facebook page by clicking here.

By Peggy Baron

Thanksgiving can be a little stressful when you have company coming and you have to cook the whole meal. Sure the company is bringing a pie and will help with the dishes and clean up, but you’ve got a whole lot of work ahead of you when you wake up on that special Thursday morning. Don’t despair and stress – rally the troops!

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably got one or two or more children running around that house don’t you? Put them to work and give them all jobs. Just don’t mention the words “work” or “job.” Kids like to be helpful, especially when they see how much you appreciate it. Let them help!

First off, you need to have a plan. Take some time before Thursday morning to plot everything out. Of course you know what you want to prepare and serve – you do the same thing every year, don’t you? So that’s the easy part. Really look at each recipe and see what’s involved. You could probably do it in your sleep, but your kids can’t. Assign a recipe to each child, depending on their skill level. You may even want to find an easier version of the recipe. Go over the steps with your child and explain how it’s all going to work. Do kind of a foodless dress rehearsal with them.

If the child is too young to do a whole recipe, just give them certain tasks in a recipe and have them help you. Little ones can melt butter in the microwave, mash the potatoes, wash the vegetables, toss the salad, and put the marshmallows on the sweet potato casserole.

This is one meal where everything seems to happen at the same time. To help prevent this, the kids can mash the potatoes ahead and keep them warm in the crockpot, ditto with the sweet potato casserole and veggies. If you don’t have a way to keep them warm, time them to come out before the mad rush, put a lid on them and wrap them in several towels. They can stay quite warm that way. The salad can definitely be made earlier in the day or even the night before.

Try to schedule the prep time so there aren’t too many people walking around the kitchen with sharp knives at once.

What about the pies? Kids love to make the pies! Go with the pre-made pie crusts if their pastry skills aren’t quite up to snuff. Maybe they could pick the pies they want this year and shake tradition up a bit. I’m sure a Chocolate Dream pie is a tradition in someone’s home even if it isn’t (yet) in yours.

Keep one step ahead of total chaos by having someone wash the dirty dishes that are accumulating. Perhaps those who are watching football on TV could lend a hand! Not only will there be fewer dishes to do at the end, but it leaves lots more room for the cooks to prepare the grand feast.

If you give it some thought and plan ahead of time, this Thanksgiving could be a lot easier on you and a heck of a lot more fun for the whole family. Have a good attitude and lots of patience and just enjoy yourself. Your kitchen will be filled with those you love, and that’s something to be thankful for.

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Peggy is the editor of the popular Cookin’ Kids Newsletter. Interesting themes, fun facts, silly clip art, easy recipes, kid jokes, cooking terms, and safety tips make this newsletter a hit with kids! Learn more about it at cookinkids.com.

This past weekend has been a particularly trying one for my family. While shopping yesterday, I decided to bypass my health-conscious conscience and bring home a dessert we could all “emotionally eat” that evening…nurturer that I am. And because it’s October, what naturally came to mind was…what else? Pumpkin pie.

I made my way over to the store’s bakery and quickly found the pies. In the past, I’d bought pumpkin pies without so much as a glance at the calorie declaration. Not anymore. Holding one of the pies over my head so I could read the nutrition panel, I almost dropped it when I saw the number: 350 calories per 1/8 of the pie. In other words, if you cut it into eight pieces, the slices are 350 calories each.

(Admittedly, my shock at that number didn’t register nearly as high as it did when I discovered the caloric intake in one little Hostess fruit pie: around 500 calories, give or take, depending on the pie. I haven’t bought one since.)

So, truth be sheepishly told…I bought the pumpkin pie. But because it’s something I bring home so rarely, I flicked the dancing Richard Simmons off my shoulder and put the pie in the cart…determined to find a recipe for a healthy alternative stat.

I think I succeeded, along with a couple other recipes I’ll be trying this week:

	Pumpkin Pie with Pecan Crust from Care2. After a little searching, I found a recipe I just might try. Not only is the calorie count less than half of the pie I bought the other night (just 125 calories per slice for this one), but it’s healthier. The crust is made up of graham crackers and ground pecans (low-fat graham crackers are available), and 1/4 apple juice concentrate combined with 1/4 brown sugar sweetens it. Definitely sounds better for my family than the 1 cup of sugar used in another “healthy” pumpkin pie recipe I found (and quickly discarded) today.
Apple Scones I’m not much of a fair-goer, so when I hear the word “scones,” I think of fall or cottages dotting the English countryside rather than cotton candy, rides, and petting zoos. To me, a good, healthy scone paired with a hot mug of coffee is a perfect way to begin a frosty morning. I liked this particular recipe because, while it uses white sugar, it only calls for 1/4 cup, and wheat germ is one of the ingredients (don’t bypass that one!). The recipe also includes 1/2 cup of buttermilk, but it makes eight scones, so it’s not like each person will be getting all of that fat. (And I think I saw low-fat buttermilk recently…wonders never cease!) No word on the calories in this recipe — just stick to one scone.
	Banana Crunch Muffins Tell ya what — if I make these, I’m hiding them! I go weak in the knees for banana muffins, and it looks like this recipe’s a keeper. Shrink the calorie count even more by using low-fat buttermilk and substituting the chocolate chips for walnuts (okay, okay — keep the chocolate…but do add some walnuts for extra fiber).

*Note: If you can’t imagine going for a “healthy” version of pumpkin pie, at least use Libby’s recipe for their Famous Pumpkin Pie. While it’s still a big 280 calories per slice, that’s 70 calories less than the store-made pie I brought home this weekend. (And if you can’t forego that dollop of whipped cream, at least buy the “light” version.)

I RECOMMEND:

With The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger (host of Food Network’s Healthy Appetite), you can eat that comfort food you’ve been thinking of…without all the guilt. Go ahead…indulge! 320 pages and over 200 recipes. Check it out!

©2009 Sally Dinius
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