Spotlight
Healthy Holiday Eating
The holiday season is a time to share with family and friends. These gatherings often involve foods that are high in fat, sugar and calories and short on nutrition. For many it can be difficult to continue healthy eating. By following a few simple tips you can stay healthy through the holiday season.
Healthy Holiday Meal Tips
• Substitute evaporated milk or reduced fat milk in place of cream in pumpkin pie or white sauce dishes
• Remove visible fat
• Increase vegetable content of meals, side dishes, and stuffing
• Substitute ½ of butter in recipes for olive oil
• Use whole grains in place of refined grains (example: whole grain bread for stuffing)
• Try substituting at least ½ of white flour for whole grain flour (may need to add applesauce for moisture)
• Use fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables in place of canned produce.
• Offer fresh cut vegetables with low-fat dip as an appetizer
• Minimize the butter in stuffing by moistening with chicken broth; for added health boost use whole grain breads, add celery, onions, diced apples, dried cranberries, and nuts to the mix.
• Pass gravy through a skimmer; or chill and skim the fat off the top before serving
• Substitute natural sweeteners in place of refined sugar
Recipe Conversion Tips
• Use natural sweeteners
o Substitute with Stevia, honey, molasses, sugar in the raw, fructose, maple syrup
• Increase fiber
o Leave skins on fruit and vegetables
o Decrease portion sizes
o Add flaxseed, hemp hearts, wheat germ
o Substitute at least ½ grains with whole grains
o Add pulp to recipes, especially when juicing
• Reduce/eliminate refined carbohydrates
o Substitute ½ grains with whole grains
o Experiment with quinoa, spelt, barley
• Reduce fat
o Use low fat or fat free where possible
o Use lean cuts of meat in place of fatty meats
o Reduce portion sizes
o Substitute saturated fats for unsaturated fats
• Reduce salt
o Use herbs and spices
o Reduce canned food usage
o Use low sodium products when available
• Increase protein
o Increase plant based proteins
o Add protein powder
o Increase portion size