The holidays are rapidly approaching! For many, this means time spent sharing meals with family and friends. Unfortunately, the holidays can also be a time for overeating and unwanted weight gain. Believe it or not, the average American can gain six to 10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.

Sounds discouraging, I know, but with a little effort, you can make your holiday party foods and meals fit into a healthy eating plan.

Throwing a holiday bash? Make sure you include low-fat and low-calorie choices. For example:

– Arrange colorful raw vegetables on a platter with yogurt or cottage cheese dip.

– Make fruit kabobs with chunks of pineapples, melon, and strawberries.

– Serve hummus with pita wedges or reduced-fat crackers.

– Create a homemade snack mix using nuts, raisins, and pretzels.

– Offer boiled shrimp or scallops with cocktail sauce or lemon.

– Use edible centerpieces made of oranges, apples, grapes, tangerines and other seasonal fruits.

– Remember that alcoholic drinks, especially alcoholic punches, tend to be high in calories. Instead, serve sparking water with a lime twist.

Preparing a holiday meal with all the trimmings, but don’t want to overstuff your guests? Holiday dinner feasts don’t have to be laden with fat, sugar, cream, gravy and lots of butter to taste good. It’s easy to trim a little fat, sugar and calories from traditional holiday foods without sacrificing flavor.

Here are some ideas for making those favorite holiday dishes lower in fat and calories.

– When selecting a turkey, choose a plain bird rather then a self-basting bird.

– Remove the skin from the turkey before eating.

– Refrigerate the turkey pan juices and skim the fat off the top before making gravy.

– For dressing, use less bread cubes and more onions, celery and other vegetables. For something different, try adding cranberries or apples. Moisten the dressing with low-fat, low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth.

– When mashing potatoes, use skim milk, garlic powder and Parmesan cheese in place of whole milk and butter.

– Steam vegetables or cook in liquids such as broth or water rather then oil. Use herbs and spices for flavor in place of margarine or butter.

– Put orange juice concentrate and a touch of cinnamon in the center of acorn squash instead of margarine or butter. 

As you can see, with a little effort and planning, healthy eating can be a realistic goal during the holiday season. The following recipes are great examples of low-fat versions of traditional favorites. 

 

Vegetarian Stuffing

1 loaf day-old bread (multi-grain, nut, sourdough are best) cubed

1 can fat-free cream of mushroom soup

1 can vegetable broth

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

Half cup cooked wild rice

Half cup fresh mushrooms (cut into small pieces)

Fourth cup dried cranberries

Fourth cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Half cup apples cubed (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Mix together the bread, cream of mushroom soup, vegetable broth, poultry seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. Add the next three ingredients and any of the optional ingredients as desired. The mixture will be sticky. Shape into a loaf and wrap in foil that has been sprayed with a nonstick vegetable spray to bake. Bake for about an hour at 350 degrees. It can then be sliced like a meatloaf and served.

 

Low-fat Garlic Mashed Potatoes

8 russet potatoes

4 cloves garlic

2 quarts low fat chicken broth

1 cup skim milk

Half cup plain nonfat yogurt

1 tablespoon chives

1 one-half teaspoons dill weed

1 teaspoon salt

Pepper

One-half cup Monterey Jack Cheese



Peel and quarter potatoes. Place with garlic in a six to eight quart pan; cover with broth. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat, cover and simmer until potatoes are tender when pierced, about 20 minutes. Drain potatoes and garlic; return to pan. Mash with milk until smooth. Stir in yogurt, chives, dill, and salt; add pepper to taste. Spoon mix into a two to three quart shallow baking pan; sprinkle top with cheese. If making ahead, cover with plastic wrap and chill up to 1 day. Bake in a 375 degree oven until bubbly and melted cheese is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Cook for one hour if casserole has been chilled.



Susan Garkalns is a family and consumer sciences agent with the Randolph County Center of the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service in Asheboro. She can be reached at (336) 318-6000 or by e-mail at susan_garkalns@ncsu.edu