Thanksgiving Menu Ideas for Dieters

Thanksgiving doesn't have to be another excuse to fall off your diet. A dieter's biggest downfall is usually in the thick carbs of Thanksgiving breads-biscuits or sugar breads. -as these contain most of the calories consumed on this day (besides the pumpkin pie, that is). Nevertheless, there are actually plenty of ways you can eat "well" without feeling guilty the next day. Here are some tried and tested menu ideas that are low in calories or fat, but not in flavor.

What's a good dinner without some popovers? Well, this recipe is more than some great popovers, but it is actually only about 140 calories for the full sized popover. If you are using muffin tins, the popovers will come out smaller and with only about 100 calories.

Low Fat Popovers

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup 1 % low-fat milk or Skim Milk
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon butter, melted
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1.Preheat oven to 375F

2.Add flour and salt to a mixing bowl.

3.Combine the milk and eggs in a separate bowl and whisk them together until well blended. You should let this stand for 30-40 minutes, as taking the cold out of these liquid ingredients will make the popovers expand more.

4.Add flour mixture and then melted butter, whisking them together well.

5.Coat popover or muffin cups with Pam. Place the tin in a 375 oven for about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully divide the batter into the cups. Bake this for 375F for 40 minutes (five minutes less for really small muffin cups). Don't open the oven door while they are cooking, or they may collapse while rising. They are done when they appear golden brown. As they do not store well, serve them straight from the oven. Yields about 9 popovers or 12 small popovers.

Next is a pumpkin bread recipe. This isn't the sugared type, but a real yeast bread that has just a pleasant hint of pumpkin. And the best part about it is that it makes two 'wreaths' that are attractive and satisfying for only 75 calories a slice!

Pumpkin wreaths

5 ¾ to 6 ½ cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup Splenda
1 ½ tsp. Salt
2 packages of regular active dry yeast (1 package if in high altitude)
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling mix)
¼ cup butter or margarine
1 ½ cups apple cider or apple juice

1 egg
1 tbsp water
2 tsp seasame seed
2 tsp poppy seed

1.In large bowl, stir 2 cups of flour, sugar, salt and yeast. In 2-quart saucepan, heat pumpkin, butter, and cider over medium heat. Add to flour mixture; beat on med. speed 3 minutes.

2.Stir in just enough of the remaining flour for a soft dough to form. On a floured surface, knead dough until smooth and elastic. Place dough in greased bowl (use cooking spray), turning to grease top. Cover it with a cloth towel (dishcloths work well). It should be double its size in about an hour or less.

3.Divide dough in half and then divide each half into 3 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece into a 24-inch or so long rope. On a greased cookie sheet, place three ropes close together. Braid them loosely, pinching ends together to form a circle. Repeat this process with the remaining dough. Cover both braids with a towel again and let them rise to double their size again.

4.Heat oven to 375F . In a small bowl or cup, beat egg and water until well blended. You can brush this mixture over the braids with a pastry brush or your fingers. Sprinkle with desired seeds.

5.Bake 18 to 24 mins or until golden brown (22 to 26 minutes in high altitude). Remove from cookie sheet to wire racks. Let cool before cutting.

And just in case you do like the sugary pumpkin loafs, here's one for you. This is about 110 calories for 1/16 of the loaf. And it's sure to spice up the dessert menu.

Spicy pumpkin bread

1 ½ C. Splenda
1 C. cooked pumpkin
2 eggs, beaten
½ C. applesauce
1/3 C. water
1 ¾ C. flour
¼ t. salt
1 t. baking soda
½ t. cinnamon
½ t. nutmeg
1 C. raisins

Combine sugar, pumpkin, eggs, applesauce, and water; mix well. Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg; beat into flour mixture. Stir in raisins. Pour batter into greased (cooking spray) loaf pan; bake at 350 F for about 1 hour. Allow to cool a little before serving.

So, don't dread self-control this holiday season, just ensure some guilt-free recipes that will keep you smiling when the year is out.