Eating For The Health Of It: Enjoying the holidays without guilt.
December 13, 2011
Connecticut got an early blast of winter this year, and many of us have had to deal with creative cooking, creative heating and stress reduction techniques as we faced cold and dark homes!!! That is now behind us and the holidays are right on our doorstep. As the temperature cools down, holiday eating is just beginning to heat up. The holiday season presents challenges for even the most disciplined eaters. From holiday parties, gatherings of family, friends and co-workers, treats and gift baskets at work and bags of homemade cookies, the focus seems to be food, food, food. Is it possible to eat well and get through to January without packing on the pounds? Absolutely...and here's how!
Enjoy your favorite holiday dishes in small portions...moderation is the key. Take a pass on foods that are less tempting.
Alcohol can be a source of excess calories AND it can stimulate your appetite. You can stretch your alcoholic beverage by adding club soda, fruit juice or diet soda OR avoid it altogether by having another beverage. Try to limit your alcohol to 0-1 drink/d for women and no more than 2/d for men. (1 drink=5 oz. wine, 1 ½ oz. hard alcohol, 12 oz. beer)
Try not to go to a party or family gathering if you are hungry...you'll just eat more! If you have a small meal or snack before, preferably one with fiber and protein (like high fiber cereal and yogurt, or a half sandwich on whole wheat bread) you will eat less at "party time"
Fill your plate with fruits, vegetables and salad and go easy on the rich entrees or side dishes. Watch out for large portions.
Omit trans fats from your menu by avoiding processed foods.
Recipes can be made healthier by modifying for calories and fats especially if you are the chef!
Help your host or hostess by offering to bring a dish...make it healthy AND delicious. You'll know that there will be at least ONE thing you can eat.
Exercise a little more than usual to stay in shape and burn off those extra calories and pounds.
Allow yourself to eat and enjoy your food, but try to stop when you are satisfied instead of stuffed.
Look around at the foods that are available and make some decisions about what choices would be best, before digging into the first thing you see.
Talk to everyone in the room. Make family and friends the main focus instead of food. Socialize....away from the table!
Happy and healthy holidays to you!
POPULAR HOLIDAY MAKEOVERS
EDAMAME HUMMUS WITH SPICED PITA CHIPS
Serves 12 as an appetizer
2 cups shelled Edamame, cooked according to package directions
1 cup silken tofu, drained excess fluid (you can substitute "lite" silken tofu)
½ teaspoon salt
3 cloves garlic
¼ cup olive oil
1/3 cup lemon juice, plus more to taste
1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin, plus more for garnish
Set 1 tablespoon edamame aside for a garnish. Place the rest of the Edamame, tofu, salt, garlic, oil, lemon juice and 1 ½ teaspoons cumin the bowl of a food processor and process until very smooth, about 2 minutes. Season with additional salt, pepper, and lemon juice, if desired. Remove to serving bowl and garnish with reserved edamame and cumin.
Adapted from Elie Krieger, Television Food Network
SPICED PITA CHIPS
Serves 6-12 as an appetizer with Edamame Hummus
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ (or less) cayenne pepper
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp (or less) ground black pepper
¼ tsp salt
2 whole wheat pitas, cut into 1/8's (may substitute white if whole wheat not available)
Preheat oven to 350
Combine olive oil and all spices in a large bowl. Add pita wedges and toss to coat.
Spread in 1 layer on a baking sheet and bake about 15 minutes, tossing once or until pita is brown and crisp.
Cool completely before serving
Serve with Edamame Hummus.
Adapted from Elie Krieger, Television Food Network
Pumpkin Maple Custards
Yield: 6 (½ cup) servings
Ingredients:
6 TBSP maple syrup
2 large eggs
3 large egg whites
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup unseasoned canned pumpkin puree
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup lowfat (1%) milk or soymilk
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put a kettle of water on to boil for the water bath. Line a roasting pan with a folded kitchen towel.
1) Spoon 1 TBSP maple syrup into each of 6 6-oz. (3/4 cup) custard cups.
2) Whisk eggs, egg whites and sugar in large bowl. Add pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, salt and vanilla; whisk until smooth and blended. Gently whisk in milk.
3) Divide pumpkin mixture among prepared custard cups.
4) Place custard cups in prepared roasting pan. Pour in enough boiling water to come one quarter of the way up sides of custard cups.
5) Place roasting pan in oven.
6) Bake uncovered until custards are set, 55-65 minutes. (Centers should not quiver when cups are shaken)
7) Transfer custard cups to a rack and let cool.
8) Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Serve custards in the cups or as follows: Run a knife around edges of custards. Invert a dessert plate over each custard. Grasping the plate and custard cup firmly, turn over and give custard cup a quick downward shake. The custard should slip onto plate. If it remains in the mold, shake again.
Adapted from Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter, November 2008
Cranberry Almond Biscotti
1 ¼ cup flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1 TBSP vanilla or almond extract
1 6-oz package cried cranberries
¾ cup sliced almonds
Preheat oven to 325. Combine dry ingredients in medium mixing bowl.
In electric mixer, combine eggs, egg whites and almond or vanilla extract. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture and beat on medium speed. Add dried cranberries and almonds. Mix thoroughly.
On floured surface, divide batter in half and pat each into a log approx. 14 inches long and 2-3 inches wide. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 300. Cut biscotti into ½ inch slices. Stand upright on cookie sheet and bake for an additional 20 minutes. Let cool and store in a loosely covered container.
Makes 2 ½ dozen
Adapted from www.oceanspray.com
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