Skip to content
How do you feel each year when you indulge in a huge plate (or two) of the Thanksgiving classics?
I’m going to guess your answer is over-stuffed, bloated, and tired.
Traditional Thanksgiving foods are notorious for being full of bad fats, sugar, and sodium. And what you may not realize is that they are also full of acid.
All of that acid is the reason you feel so lousy about an hour after your meal!
This holiday is all about gratitude and enjoying the cornucopia of traditional American foods, and you should allow yourself a few treats throughout the day, but many Turkey Day classics such as green bean casserole, yams, and cranberry sauce are loaded with acidic ingredients and you may not even realize it.
So today I want to share how you can have an alkaline holiday by opting for these healthier Thanksgiving alternatives instead. And by the end of the day, you’ll thank me for how much better you feel!
Acidic Thanksgiving Classic: Hearty Meats
Although it’s a Thanksgiving tradition and considered a “lean protein,” turkey is acidic and may be harming your health. Turkey, like all poultry, is high in the inflammatory type of fatty acid, Omega-6, that Americans already get far too much of.
Not only will cutting out turkey keep you lean throughout the indulgent holiday, but it will also help you balance your body’s pH.
And if you want to stick with the Thanksgiving tradition, no worries – just be sure to make the turkey the side show, not the main event. This means the turkey should make up no more than 20% of your plate, with the other 80% being loaded with dark, green, leafy and cruciferous vegetables. Think moderation, not deprivation!
The BIGGEST No-No when it comes to food-combining is eating a PROTEIN like turkey with a STARCHY food like mashed potatoes. The protein will be digested by ACID in the stomach, and whole the mashed potatoes are broken down in the stomach, they are digested by ALKALINE chemicals in the small intestine.
The way these two foods digest is COMPLETELY opposing, and they cancel each other out. As a result, the foods will sit there, putrefying, fermenting, and rotting, making you feel bloated, over-full, tired, and exhausted.
So again, IF you really want the turkey, skip the mashed potatoes and go with the vegetables instead – your gut will thank you for it!
Acidic Thanksgiving Classic: Stuffing, Cornbread, and Rolls
Full of butter, gluten, and refined sugars, these classics may be more detrimental than you realize and in the case of stuffing, all of that acid counteracts the alkaline properties of the vegetables.
It’s best to avoid these when you can and pick and choose your battles. Skip the breadbasket altogether and you’ll be glad you did.
Try This Instead: Sweet Potatoes
Use almond or coconut milk and avocado instead of whole milk and eggs in your sweet potato casserole. Don’t get rid of this side dish completely. Sweet potatoes are full of nutrients and give you a taste of starch without most of the acid. Add some cinnamon, and you will have one healthy, sweet Thanksgiving dish!
Acidic Thanksgiving Classic: Traditional Gravy
Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to gravy. Its ingredients, which include chicken broth, bread flour, and turkey giblets are high in sodium (the bad salt) and of course, ACID.
Try This Instead: Create Alkaline Basics
By creating multipurpose alkaline bread and broth, you can replace fatty, acidic foods with healthy alternatives. Buy organic vegetable broth, or better yet, make your own broth. Add pepper, sage, onion powder, dill, garlic, and oregano to boiling water for an acid-free soup stock. From there, you can use it in your turkey-free gravy and stuffing.
Bake a gluten-free oat bread using almond flour and bee pollen to replace traditional flour and sugar for an alkaline indulgence that can replace cornbread, be added to stuffing, and even crumbled into gravy.
Acidic Thanksgiving Classic: Green Bean Casserole and Other Casseroles
While vegetable-based, these casserole options are stuffed with bad fats and unhealthy additives, like monoglycerides and diglycerides, that come hidden in common processed foods like breadcrumbs and fried onions.
Try This Instead: Swap This For That
By simply switching some ingredients in your favorite foods, you can create culinary masterpieces without all the acidity.
Instead of a baked green bean casserole, opt instead for green beans mixed with diced onion, celery, and a little olive oil.
Use fresh pumpkin and almond milk for a pumpkin puree. Add texture with quinoa instead of mushrooms in your stuffing.
Acidic Thanksgiving Classic: Cranberry Sauce
Thanksgiving cranberry sauce is both acidic and notorious for containing copious amounts of white sugar. What little its vitamins do to improve your health is counteracted by all of that addictive, acidic sugar.
Try This Instead: Fix Your Fruit
Replace sugary cranberry sauce with a homemade fig and pomegranate sauce. Figs are loaded with vitamins and pomegranates are a great source of antioxidants. Puree them with some almond butter and you’ve got a great alkaline alternative to canned cranberry sugar, oops – I mean sauce.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving, but remember this – every time you put a piece of food in your mouth, you are choosing to fight disease or fuel it, and the quality of your choices will determine how much energy you feel.
And don’t forget to start and end your day the alkaline way. Right now, take a minute to load up on 5 whole servings of organic, alkaline super foods in one little scoop of Alkamind Daily Greens that will fight inflammation and give you all day energy.
You’ll also want to be sure to take Alkamind Daily Minerals tonight before bed to help ensure your liver and kidneys filter out toxins and ensure a good night’s sleep.
