With the big holiday right around the corner and so many of us are in the healthy mindset I have some helpful tips on how to the pick the perfect healthy Thanksgiving Turkey!!! I think you will be shocked on this article:)
When I think of turkey I always think of low fat and a good source of protein…but this is not always true:) Turkey lunch meat is a poor choice of protein due to fillers, sugar, and of course nitrates. How about our holiday turkeys…are they low fat?!?!?!? Many of the leading health food markets offer cooked turkey breast that you can shave for lunch meat during your week. A cheaper version is to bake your own and portion it out throughout the week for your lunch/suppers. I wanted to share this great information below from Keith Klein that offers a healthy holiday turkey. ENJOY:)
Recently I have received a ton of emails on how to make a low fat Thanksgiving. The art of making the perfect Martha Stewart turkey is sought after by my many food enthusiasts! The cooking magazines show the golden brown famous turkey! My brother Jason reminds me of the dad in the “Christmas Story” movie sneaking in the kitchen to cut tiny pieces of the famous turkey. He has this perfect blend of ingredients to make the perfect looking turkey. Jason has an art of making the master piece. Now that my stomach is growling I want to reveal some shocking regarding how unhealthy our famous turkey could be. Honestly, I did not know these facts about our turkey. If you combine this with all of the other high fat gravies, stuffings, pies,and potatoes, you could be on a gall bladder overload!
Actually, the “low fat” tukey breast might not be healthy or low fat after all! I recently read an email from Keith Klein, a leading nutritionist who has help thousands of fitness competitors. It revealed some shocking numbers of the “glorious” turkey!
Klein offered many low fat tips to make the store bought turkey healthier. If you choose a turkey that has been injected with any basting solution, the fat content of the turkey might be as high as 50%. Injected turkeys contain high amounts of lard, and if you combine this with the skin, this raises the fat content quite high. The best option is to buy a fresh turkey from a local butcher that has not been injected.
Now, I now you are thinking ,”Well we bought this turkey already and I am going to eat it!” Here are some tips on how to reduce overall fat content.
- If you bake the turkey with the skin then you remove it the overall fat is 30% for breast meat
- If you bake the turkey with no skin (cover with aluminum foil to prevent drying or in a cooking bag) the overall fat content is 9%
- Avoid the thighs…contains 45% fat
Klein recommends a healthy Martha Stewart looking turkey that contains the following nutritional breakdown!
- Breast meat no skin (32 oz): 100 cal/ fat 1gm/Fat 9%
- Breast meat cooked with skin then removed (32 oz): 195 cal/fat 6.5gm/Fat 30%
Klein recommends a butter flavored cooking spray to coat your turkey. He recommends reapplying every 30 minutes. He has a blend of herbs to apply on the inside and outside of the turkey.
- 2 tbsp fresh Rosemary
- 2 tbsp fresh Sage
- 2 tsp of ground black pepper
- 2 tsp of paprika
- 2 tsp of garlic salt
This recipe calls for a 15-20# turkey.
Use a roasting pan and place the turkey breast side down.
After washing the turkey pat dry with paper towels. Apply butter flavored cooking spray and blend of herbs on the inside and outside.
Cook at 325 degrees. A great way to tell if your turkey is done is by poking the legs. They should penetrate easily and the juices should flow clear. The recipe calls for the turkey to be covered with aluminum foil until the last 30 minutes.
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