Happy, Healthy Holiday Meals

Christmas dinner, Hanukkah parties, New Year's Eve celebrations — all come with high-fat foods that pile on pounds. Instead, try these menu ideas that will ensure healthy eating throughout the holiday season.

The holidays are a time to get together with family and friends — gatherings that usually mean indulging in favorite holiday recipes — and overeating. If you want to prevent the typical Thanksgiving to New Year’s weight gain this year, you don’t have to sacrifice all that good food. Making a few smart substitutions and adjustments in menu planning is all it takes.

Plan Holiday Menus With Healthier Ingredients

Healthy eating at holiday dinners and social gatherings starts with trimming some of the fat from traditional holiday recipes. Try these substitutions in your holiday cooking and baking:

·         Create a flavorful marinade or dressing using a fruit juice as a base rather than oil — citrus juices work well.

·         Make a healthy vegetable dip with fat-free sour cream or yogurt and add herbs and spice to season it.

·         Cut calories and cholesterol by using only egg whites (throw out the yolks) in baked goods and other dishes.

·         Add a sprinkle of chopped pecans and a hint of cinnamon to your sweet potatoes rather than fattening them up with butter, brown sugar, and marshmallows.

·         Make stuffing with whole-grain breadcrumbs rather than white bread and use fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth as a binder instead of lard or butter.

·         When cooking green beans and other vegetables, skip the bacon or other fats by steaming rather than sautéing; slivered almonds make a tasty topping.

·         Opt for the leanest cuts of meat for your holiday roast, like top sirloin, turkey, pork tenderloin, or ham.

·         Swap white flour with whole-wheat flour for healthier recipes.

·         Replace unsweetened bar chocolate in dessert recipes with cocoa powder (three tablespoons per ounce).

Cook Holiday Recipes With Healthier Techniques

The way you prepare your holiday recipes is just as important as what you put in them:

·         Remove excess fat and skin from any meat that you prepare.

·         Mix up with a salad topped with fresh fruit instead of canned fruits that contain heavy syrups.

·         Don't fry: Bake, broil, poach, or roast instead.

·         Skim the fat from any juices that you plan to use in gravy or another sauce.

·         Avoid breading whenever possible as it soaks up more oil in the cooking process.

What to Avoid in Holiday Meals

Whether it’s Christmas dinner or New Year’s Day brunch, there are some once-a-year dishes that you might not be able to make healthier without totally changing their taste, and you’ll be tempted by foods that friends and family serve at their holiday parties. A simple rule when you want to indulge in some less-than-healthy holiday treats is to limit yourself to a tiny sample — one or two bites — and take the time to savor them slowly.

To help set aside calories for those non-negotiable treats, try to avoid these fat-laden traps sure to derail your healthy eating plans at a buffet or while chatting it up at a cocktail party and eating endless hors d’oeuvres:

·         Before you head out to a party, have a light snack so that you're not starving and eating everything in sight as soon as you get there.

·         Skip foods swimming in creamy or heavy sauces, or sample them without heaping on extra sauce to your portion.

·         Load your plate with filling, high-fiber options like fresh vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain side dishes — that way, you'll be less tempted to overeat.

·         Just say no to any fried or dough-based appetizers — the calories in these typically fat-laden finger foods really add up fast.

·         Alcoholic drinks are also packed with calories, and many creamy seasonal brews, like eggnog, can also be high in saturated fat; hot apple cider enhanced with a few cloves and a cinnamon stick is a healthier and just-as-tasty alternative, especially for a designated driver.

Try These Delicious Holiday Recipes

You can make a few new, healthy dishes traditions at your holiday table. Try a sampling of these yummy holiday recipes:

·         Turkey Cutlets With Dried Cherries, Rosemary, and Port

·         Spiced Sweet Potato Stuffing

·         Sweet Potato Casserole

·         Raisin-Pumpkin Custards

Healthy eating during the holiday season is easier and tastier than you might think. Make a few simple substitutions to your regular meal planning, offer a fun and festive atmosphere, and no one will notice the missing fat.