The centerpiece of your Thursday feast will most likely involve some turkey.  Here are some ideas to make the main event as healthy as possible.

If you're not cooking for a big crowd, consider making a turkey breast rather than a whole bird.  The white meat on a turkey has the least fat.  And be sure to avoid "self-basting" turkeys and the "fried turkey" trend.  Stick to roasting or smoking the bird.

Gravy can really pile on the calories.  Be sure to let the turkey drippings sit and to skim off as much fat as possible before you make the gravy.  Remember you can make vegetarian or broth-based gravy, too.

Bake the stuffing outside of the bird; that way it won't absorb extra fat during cooking, and it's much less of a risk for food-borne illness than cooking the stuffing in the bird.  Don't use fatty additions like sausage or bacon in your stuffing; rice-based stuffing has mmore nutrition than bread stuffing.

Enjoy the holiday!

Photo courtesy of J Dolenga.