With Christmas and New Year's Eve just around the corner, you probably are already planning feasts for you, your family and friends. Remember that the holidays don't have to equate overeating, even if they involves sumptuous foods.

Try these tips for enjoying the meals, while not worrying about your waistline:

•  Turkey and ham. Roast the turkey or ham on a rack so that fat drips through and the meat doesn't reabsorb the drippings.

•  Stuffing. Bake the stuffing in a separate covered dish. Stuffing inside the turkey absorbs fat. Use less oil, butter or margarine when sauting the onions and celery or use low-fat chicken broth instead.

•  Gravy. Skim fat from the top of the turkey drippings or use a fat separator.

•  Mashed potatoes. Skip the butter when you mash potatoes. Instead, use skim milk or low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth.

•  Pie. With most baked goods, you can reduce by half the sugar in a recipe. Use skim or low-fat dairy products in place of whole milk products. You can use two eggs whites instead of a whole egg, without affecting texture or taste.

More tips for holiday cooking - and beyond  

Of course, the worries tend to mount over holiday weight gain. According to most studies on the subject, the average person gains one to two pounds from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day. In fact, 75 percent of the 1.05 pounds people gain between October and February come between Thanksgiving and Jan. 1.

Naturally, those people who exercise and stay active gain the least amount of weight, while those who were already overweight gain the most. So to limit the pounds you gain over the holidays, use the tips above and then pass on the salt, cut back on the sugar, and you'll find these easy adjustments in your recipes just the tickets for healthier cooking.

For instance, in most baked goods, you can leave out half the sugar without significantly affecting texture or taste. This way, you'll cut about 360 calories from an entire recipe. But because sugar increases moisture in baked goods, make sure you use at least 1/4 cup of sugar, honey or molasses for every cup of flour.

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