Healthful holiday traditions start in the kitchen - includes recipes and related information

Better Nutrition, Dec, 1997 by Lisa Turner

It happens every year, just after too many Halloween treats have wrecked the diets of otherwise health-conscious Americans. After the last piece of pumpkin pie is gone and the final chocolate-covered candy witch has been devoured, it's suddenly November and the official start of the holiday season. As the holiday goodie baskets and cocktail-party invitations start arriving, it may seem pointless to try to maintain even a semblance of a healthful diet.

Austere eaters and disciplined vegans may be excused from this discussion, but those with slightly more pedestrian diets still worry about winding their way through the maze of salty, fatty holiday fare. Even otherwise healthy eaters will be tempted by holiday treats and casseroles, knowing all the while that the next few days will be spent on treadmills and stairclimbers to atone for gustatory sins.

If you're the chef, do everybody a favor and make a change this holiday season. Create a light, refreshingly different holiday buffet focusing on fresh vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. Serve simple green salads with creative, low-fat dressings, colorful steamed vegetables, fiber-rich bean dishes, lean meat or meat substitutes, wholegrain rolls, and fresh fruit for dessert. Be really daring and leave stuffing off the menu, offering seasoned whole-grain dishes instead. And substitute plain baked sweet potatoes for the syrupy, marshmallow-topped concoction. (No one over the age of 8 will really miss the sweet potato casserole anyway.) If you're dining at someone's home, you may have fewer options, but you can still make healthful choices (see sidebar) that will leave you with more energy -- and a shorter New Year's resolution list.

Here are a few healthful recipes you may want to add to your holiday menu this year. Who knows, maybe you'll start a new holiday tradition!

Cover/Feature photo recipe:

Honey Plum Tarte

1 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup honey
3 large tart apples, such as Granny
Smith or Pippen
2 medium plums, pitted and cut into
wedges
1 prepared refrigerated pie crust for
9-inch pie

1. Watch out for pre-dinner munchies -- just one handful of peanuts has 200 calories and 17 grams of fat. And chips and dips will pad your holiday meal -- and your hips -- with way too much fat. Instead, have a big bowl of raw veggies or a cup of miso soup before you leave home to curb your appetite, and reach for the crudites on the appetizer table.

2. Alcoholic beverages add up fast in terms of calories, even if you're not drinking hard liquor. Just one imported beer or two glasses of wine weigh in at about 250 empty calories. Try plain sparkling water with lemon or lime, or a mixture of orange juice, cranberry juice, and sparkling water for a colorful spritzer. Non-alcoholic beers are good alternatives, too -- most have only 60 to 80 calories per can or bottle.

3. At the table, lots of fresh green salad to start can keep you from gorging on heavier dishes to come. Pass on the cream-based dressings and ask for olive oil and balsamic vinegar (or a sprinkle of sea salt or fresh pepper).

4. If you're a meat-eater, white-meat turkey is a far better nutritional bet than ham or red meat. A medium slice of turkey breast contains 140 calories, 3 grams of fat, and 20 grams of protein. Just don't drown it in gravy. If you're a vegetarian, it's likely that your host will have made special provisions.

5. Fill your plate with vegetables first, and choose those not swimming in sauces and oils. Look for steamed veggies and light leafy greens. Green beans are a mainstay at most holiday tables, as are cooked carrots, squash dishes, beets, and potatoes. If it's a potluck, or you're familiar with the host, bring a healthful combination of lightly cooked, fresh vegetables with a low-fat sauce. Other health-conscious diners will thank you for it.

6. Choose whole grains -- brown rice, buckwheat, and other offerings -- instead of their refined counterparts to boost the fiber in your holiday meal. The same goes for beans. Most conscious hosts offer bean dishes (which are also good sources of fiber) for those who eschew meat. Make sure they're not cooked with lots of oil and salt.

7. Pass the bread-and keep passing it, especially white bread. A couple of dinner rolls with butter can add 500 to 700 calories to your meal. If the rolls are whole grain, just take one, and take it without the butter.

8. Most casseroles are a nutritional nightmare, chock full of fat, salt, and sweeteners. Steer clear of the casseroles and opt for extra servings of grains and green veggies, instead. The same goes for stuffing, even if it's cooked outside the bird. Consider this: one serving of sweet potato casserole has about 360 calories, and just half a cup of stuffing has 200 calories and 10 grams of fat. Instead, stick to dishes which have ingredients you can see.

9. Let the butter dish pass you by. Likewise the salt shaker. Most holiday meals, with their reliance on gravies and sauces, have plenty of both. The average holiday meal-moderate portions of turkey, stuffing, gravy, two vegetables in sauce, and bread with butter-contains more than 3,000 mg of sodium and 55 g of fat.