the PLENTITUDE of foods at the Thanksgiving meal serve as a reminder of abundance by sharing the bounty of the year’s harvest

Tradition prompts a comfortable feeling when thinking of the holidays. Oh, the aromas that fill the air.

Thoughts dash to your mother’s kitchen at Thanksgiving time as you remember her crafting a grand succession of delicious dishes for your indulgence. The necessities are there: turkey, potatoes and gravy, stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie — all soon to become leftovers, leftovers, leftovers.

For many, those recollections of culinary delight come with a large grumbling sound, because no part of the body knows the dangers of this kind of feasting quite as well as the stomach. Opportunities to change your stomach’s attitude toward the holidays are becoming popular trends. But it’s nothing as dramatic as erasing the traditional tasty tidbits from your Thanksgiving meal.

Instead, it’s about supplementing traditional dishes with healthful ingredients and, perhaps, maybe eating a bit less than usual — at least at one sitting.

shifting seasons

Some think of the holiday meal as a point of transition into the winter season and a good way to prepare for the cold. It is a time to celebrate the harvest and an opportunity to prepare meals with healthful foods that are fresh and local.

There is a cornucopia of fresh choices in the Northwest, providing diverse foods year after year. Joe’s Place Farm manager Dani Bender says this is true of the fruits and vegetables available at Thanksgiving time as mushrooms, squash, sweet potatoes, apples and cranberries are ripe and ready. “When it’s fresh, it’s a lot better than when it comes from a can,” she says.

Chef Peter Leigh Gallin of Applewood Northwest Cuisine and Catering says Northwest residents are lucky to have the variety of fresh produce available to them. Having such a wide selection can encourage people to take a new approach to cooking, he adds.

“The beauty of the Northwest is that it’s such a melting pot,” Gallin says. “It helps you become comfortable enough as a chef to be eclectic and not be tied into just one type of cuisine.”

This frees up those who will be cooking during Thanksgiving to explore new ideas with their menu and accentuate the basics of a traditional meal. Gallin says he does this with his own holiday dinner, trying out inventive items such as sweet potato and jalapeno soup.

“You always just have too much on the table, and it’s good to throw something fun like that on before the meal,” he says.

wild about turkey

While an abundantly healthful and appetizing meal can be compiled with fruits and vegetables alone, most families celebrate with the most sumptuous tradition of all: the turkey.

It’s easy to drive down to the local grocer to pick up a frozen bird just days before Thanksgiving. In recent years, however, there has been an increase in buying natural or range turkeys supplied from nearby farms, and shoppers are not deterred by the extra cost.

Peter Kurfurst, manager of Butcher Boys Custom Curing, says more people are showing interest in purchasing meats that were raised within 200 miles of their home. Kurfurst’s business offers natural Northwest turkeys to shoppers, and knowing how the animal was raised gives him, and the shopper, a better idea of how it will taste, he says.

“It gives us a little bit better control on what we’re purchasing because we can see what’s going on, then pick and choose with that knowledge,” he says.

The availability of range turkeys is becoming more common in today’s grocery and natural food stores. And in some cases where they are not routinely stocked your grocer may be able to special order one in time for the holidays. Wild Oats, Trader Joe’s and other grocers are good local resources.

Graf Century Farm co-owner Nita Wilton, who raises range turkey on her farm in Corbett, says the demand for free-range poultry is a positive move toward healthier eating and is good for the local economy, too.

“People might not be able to raise their own turkeys, but they can support their local farmer by selecting one of their turkeys instead,” she says.

Wilton said she and her husband chose to use grass-range feed for their turkeys 10 years ago when the rise in grain prices didn’t sit well with their attitude toward sustainability.

The feed, comprised of corn, soybean, kelp and various stable minerals, provide the turkeys with a healthy alternative, she says.

By offering a more organic feed, the Wiltons’ turkeys plump up nicely, making them naturally delicious for the holiday meal, she explains, adding that it’s a holistic approach to farming.

This practice of raising turkeys follows through to the way the family views organizing the November meal. “We started thinking, ‘For Thanksgiving, let’s just eat what we grew this year,’” Wilton says. “It’s a meal that represents the harvest, a time to celebrate all the hard work you’ve done.”

make it beautiful

Food is not the only thing that can be energized at the holidays with a fresh and local touch. Another staple of the holidays and the meal table, crucial for the host to remember, is the way flowers and plants can be situated throughout the home. Placing the arrangements in just the right spot can help bring a room to life, says Flowers Washougal designer Julie Meyer.

“This time of year, it’s dark and dreary, so when people come home to freshness it completely changes their mood,” Meyers says. “We’re blessed to live in the Northwest where anything local can be chosen to adorn the room.”

Flowers Washougal is making a name for itself as an environmentally-friendly flower shop, where materials are composted, everything worth recycling is reused and, often times, plants are supplied from the employees’ backyards.

When the holidays come around, Meyers says those at the shop are quick to use evergreens th at others want to clear from their property, working to avoid cutting a tree still in the ground. Meyers also selects fallen branches and pinecones from her own trees to use in decorative pieces for the shop. “We don’t want to kill anything that’s already fabulous,” she says. “If they’re going to cut it down, why not reuse it?”

Employing a healthy attitude toward the holidays can be as rewarding as the friends and family sitting at the Thanksgiving table.

By adjusting the meal to include more meats and vegetables grown locally, both the area economy and your body can be well-nourished.

Sprucing up the home with fresh fauna adds a finishing touch and offers a visual and aromatic treat for you and your guests.

select an elegant wine

At times, a bottle of wine can make or break a meal.

It can be an exceptionally crucial component of holiday feasts, but also tends to be present to accentuate the foods rather than dominate them.

While cooler temperatures direct sippers toward a darker red, it’s often better to select a lighter one for the Thanksgiving meal, says Nona Slover, wine steward for Mill Plain Wild Oats Natural Marketplace.

Slover points to Riesling and pinot noir as two that are crafted to perfection in the Northwest and go well with the traditional holiday dinner.

As lighter wines, they enhance the foods rather than take away from them, she says.

Pacific Northwest Wine Club owner Dan Paynter says vintners in the Northwest are lucky to have a climate similar to that of France because pinot noir, pinot gris and Riesling grapes flourish here.

Paynter agrees that Thanksgiving is a tricky holiday to choose the perfect bottle of wine. He encourages people to pick up an extra bottle or two for variety or to use as backup.

“It’s such a varied meal, making it tough to pair with a certain wine,” he says. “Having a good bottle of wine at this time is great to share with family and friends.”

plan early

Don’t forget to get started early on your Thanksgiving plans, though, because today’s naturally local amenities have become hot commodities.

After following a healthy plan for this year’s holiday eating, it’s unlikely your stomach will be grumbling fearfully this time next year.

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