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Focus on the Stars
Q: Do you have any tips for staying healthy this holiday season?
A: “Healthy” and “holiday” don’t usually find themselves in the same sentence, especially when it comes to food. But that doesn’t have to be the case. You can learn to reduce the large amounts of fats and sugar usually found in holiday recipes and focus more on the “star” ingredients — fruits and vegetables. With a little planning and a few simple changes, it is possible to enjoy great tasting holiday foods while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle and avoiding the weight gain often associated with the holiday season.
Many favorite holiday dishes — such as candied sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, and pumpkin pie — begin with a healthy main ingredient. Foods such as apples, sweet potatoes, and green beans have great flavors of their own and are members of the healthful fruit and vegetable food groups. The large amounts of fats and sugars added to those fruits and vegetables cause the dishes to become less healthful. Each gram of added sugar adds 4 calories to a recipe, and each additional gram of fat brings with it another 9 calories.
I’ve listed some examples of healthier alternatives to traditional holiday meal components, but feel free to adapt the “STAR” principles to any dish this season!
Traditional sweet potato casserole contains an estimated three hundred and twenty calories per three quarter cup serving, but this can be decreased significantly by baking plain sweet potatoes or baking sweet potato coins. Orange juice is a great sweetener for sweet potatoes when used as a glaze. If you plan to make a sweet potato casserole, try using pineapple and cinnamon as seasoning instead of brown sugar.
Simple adjustments for green bean casserole include using no salt added canned green beans or reduced fat cream of mushroom soup with non-fat milk. Instead of fried onions, consider substituting sautéed onions. If you want to ditch the casserole all together, try a green bean sauté.
Almost everyone loves mashed potatoes, but they can be another caloric pitfall. Try seasoning them with pepper and herbs and mix in low-fat margarine, fat-free half-and-half, or reduced fat sour cream. You can start by making small adjustments, such as leaving the skins on. This provides additional fiber in the dish. Using non-fat plain yogurt gives the dish extra calcium while making the potatoes creamier.
Practice focusing on the “star” ingredients — the fruits and vegetables. With a little planning and creativity, you can enjoy great tasting holiday foods and still maintain a healthy lifestyle.