How Many Calories Are We Actually Consuming on Thanksgiving?
I know, I know. It's cruel to bring up these numbers a week before the big day.
Forget the saying that calories don't count on Thanksgiving. They totally count just like every other day that you're consuming them. In fact, they probably count more because you're consuming them in excess and then finding a nice place on the couch to sleep them away. It's almost impolite to talk about how many calories we consume on Turkey Day...
But we're doing it!
I found a list of average calorie counts in traditional Thanksgiving dishes. Things like turkey, green beans, cranberry sauce and, of course, pie. To add insult to injury, I decided to add all of those numbers up to find a grand total of glutto- er, I mean caloric intake on Thanksgiving. Keep in mind that these are average calorie counts (most likely not Paula Deen's recipes with extra butter) and they are for a single serving size (which you may consume more or less of on your first plate of food).
Here we go:
Turkey: 190
Stuffing: 355
Mashed potatoes: 238
Sweet potato casserole: 276
Green bean casserole: 143
Cranberry sauce: 209
Gravy: 178
Dinner roll: 100
Pumpkin pie: 323
Pecan pie: 456
Grand total: 2,468 calories
And if you're anything like me, you typically hit the kitchen buffet line a second time before calling it a night. Then there are the leftovers. Oh, and you still have a second Thanksgiving with the in-laws the following day. Just the sound of the word "resolution" makes me gag.