So much of our lives is wrapped up in tradition. Whether it is family game night on Tuesdays, the lucky socks worn to every home game, a penny in a shoe on your wedding day, or the annual friends trip to a new city on the map, we thrive on building relationships and knowing something special is on the way. Our traditions also generally have something in common—they revolve around food. Pizza on game night, wings for the home game, cake at the wedding, fancy last-night-of-vacay dinner: you get the picture.
One of the best things about traditions is that, for how much they stay the same, they are always changing. New people and places, funny stories that become fixtures of the day, and little twists added as someone new takes the seat at the head of the table. With Thanksgiving on the horizon, we can’t stop thinking about a few of our favorite things: tradition, food, and healthy living. With those favorites in mind, we are gearing up to make some health conscious changes to our traditional Thanksgiving dishes. Here’s what we’re thinking:
Cauliflower. What can it not do? Steam it up and it’s ready to take on whatever flavor you give it. Want to cut, or eliminate, the amount of bread in your stuffing? Cauliflower. Do your mashed potatoes end up more pasty than tasty? This year, save a tater and mash some cauliflower! It really is a great way to reduce your carb/bread intake on what will certainly be a carb-filled day.
The scoop plate. If your crew puts together a dinner like ours does, dishes will out number guests by a factor of 10! Enter the scoop plate. You are not magically hungrier or more internally spacious on Thanksgiving day than you were the day before. Don’t eat like it! The scoop plate means you get one plate with one scoop of… everything! A scoop here is about a bite, maybe two. Healthy? Well, comparatively so. There is not much we can do to make marshmallow-topped-sugar-glazed sweet potatoes healthy. But, only eating a bit of it instead of half a plate full? Winning.
Creative crunching. Sometimes, when you stare across the wide-open range that is the Thanksgiving dinner table, do you every think to yourself, “Wow, that’s a lot of mushy food.” Us too! So, let’s fancy it up a bit with a little more crunch! And not just any crunch will do—we want a healthy crunch. Tired of mushy fried onions topping your casserole? Add some crushed Sea Salt Biena Chickpea Snacks after the dish comes out of the oven. Is the sea of cracker crusts leaving you less than thankful? Crumble our delicious Aged White Cheddar Chickpea Puffs for a deliciously crunchy crust with fewer carbs, no grains, and some real plant protein! Now, again, no one can save those sugary, marshmallow-y sweet potatoes. But imagine replacing those marshmallows with roasted pecans and our Honey Roasted Biena Chickpea Snacks. We’ll take two scoops of that, please.
Enjoy your traditions with those you love most. Build new traditions into those you’ve treasured for years. And just as new friends pull up chairs to your table, Biena would love to help make your special day a little bit healthier and a little bit happier.
Find us on Instagram and let us know how you keep the holidays healthy or to tell us how you use Biena to change things up. And if you need more, or want to try them for the first time, check out all our great snacks here or check here for a retailer near you. Happy Holidays!