Surviving the Holidays

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

With the holidays quickly approaching, here are some ways to avoid that holiday weight gain or from blowing the diet you are following:

Develop a Strategy That Works For You:

• Don’t go to a party on an empty stomach.
• Have a small snack of protein food before you leave. Protein helps satisfy your appetite and helps you eat less.
• Eat every 3-4 hours. Don't "save up" so you can eat more at dinner.
• Always take a healthy snack with you.
• Offer to bring a food item to a party that is low-fat, low-sugar or both.
• Examples: cheese and crackers, cheese and fruit, deviled eggs, sugar-free desserts, etc
• Consider the food options at a meal – pot luck, buffet – then decide what items will be the best options for you.
• See recipes at the bottom of this post.
• Never eat directly out of a box, bag, or bowl.
• Decide what you’re going to have and make one small plate of food. 
• Sit down and focus on the food.
• Standing up and chatting, especially next to the food table, makes it easier to lose track of what and how much you have consumed.
• Pace yourself.
• Take very small bites.
• “Savor the flavor” of each bite of food. (Remember Remy from Ratatouille?)
• REMEMBER: make your mouth do all the work - chew each bite 25-30 times.
• Stay away from the food table so you’re not constantly tempted to nibble and graze.
• Drink water or other non-caloric beverages.
• Coffee and tea, which are very low in calories, are staples at holiday parties and often come in festive flavors.
• Chew gum.
• Chewing sugar-free gum can satisfy your oral fixation and curb your appetite at a party.
• Tweak your favorite recipes.
• Replace full-fat items with low-fat or fat-free.
• Replace sugar with Splenda or another sugar substitute.
• Socialize.
• Make your holiday about reconnecting instead of chowing down. Holidays are for family and friends, not food.
• Give it away.
• Don’t keep leftovers lying around. Donate the excess to a local homeless shelter or pack up doggie bags for family members and friends.

Take Time to Exercise During the Holidays:
Exercise is a great stress releaser and you have to do something to burn up those extra calories and help energize you!

• Start new traditions.
• Plan to take a walk or play touch football with relatives instead of having an extended happy hour.
• What about a Wii?
• Invite your family to play together – bowling, tennis, boxing, etc. It’s great fun and good exercise, too!
• Park further away from the store, or take a couple laps around the mall before you really start shopping.
• Buy yourself a pedometer.
• Mark your steps on the calendar each day and try to increase the steps each day.
• See if you can walk 10,000 steps in a day. When you do, give yourself a gold star!!

Here are some recipes I found. I haven't tried them out yet, but when I do, I'll let you know.

Low-fat Dressing or Stuffing
Ingredients:
1 pound whole grain bread, cubed
1 pound mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
5-10 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried sage
2 tsp dried thyme
Black pepper to taste
1/2 cup white wine
Non-fat chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 egg or egg substitute
Salt to taste

Preparation:
sauté mushrooms, onion, celery, and garlic in the white wine.
Add the sage, thyme, pepper to the vegetables as you cook.
Cook until tender—don't overcook the mushrooms.
In a large bowl, mix the cooked vegetables with the bread cubes.
Add the egg and broth until it is moist.
Use to stuff poultry or cook separately.

To cook separately: bake covered for 30 minutes at 350F, uncover and bake 15 minutes more.

“Mock” Garlic Mashed Potatoes


Ingredients:
1 medium head cauliflower
1 tbsp fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/8 tsp straight chicken base or bullion (may sub 1/2 tsp salt)
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp chopped fresh or dry chives, for garnish

Preparation:
set a stockpot of water to boil over high heat.
Clean and cut cauliflower into small pieces. Cook in boiling water for about 6 minutes, or until well done. Drain well; do not let cool and pat cooked cauliflower very dry between several layers of paper towels.
In a bowl with an immersion blender, or in a food processor, puree the hot cauliflower with the cream cheese, Parmesan, garlic, chicken base and pepper until almost smooth.
Garnish with chives and serve hot.

Sugar-free Cranberry Sauce


Ingredients:
1 bag of fresh cranberries (12 oz)
Sugar substitute equal to 1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:
1. Put cranberries in a pot on the stove, and pick through to remove soft and/or brown ones.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir, and bring to a boil on medium-high heat.
3. Stir frequently. The cranberries will pop, and then release their "gel" -- and the sauce will come together like magic. Cook until the sauce is the consistency you want, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Sweet Potato-Pecan Casserole


Ingredients:
Cooking spray
3 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 5 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1/3 cup honey
1 large egg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
Kosher salt
1 tbsp packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350F. Mist an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.
Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a pot with a large steamer basket in place.
Put the sweet potatoes in the basket, cover and steam until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and let cool slightly.
Add the honey, egg, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and 1/2 tsp salt; whip with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the sweet potato mixture in the prepared baking dish.
Mix the brown sugar, pecans and remaining 1/2 tsp cinnamon in a bowl; sprinkle over potatoes.
Bake until hot and beginning to brown around the edges, 40-45 minutes.

Devilish Eggs


1 dozen eggs
2/3 cup silken tofu, drained
1 tbsp low-fat mayonnaise
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp hot sauce, plus more to taste
2 tsp prepared horseradish
2 tbsp chopped chives
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika

Place the eggs in a large saucepan and cover with water. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 9 minutes. Remove the eggs from water and run under cold water for 1 minute or until cool enough to touch. Peel eggs under cold running water.
Slice the eggs in half lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks and discard 6 of them or save for another use. Set aside the whites.
Place the remaining yolks in a medium bowl and mash with the tofu, mayonnaise, mustard, hot sauce, horseradish, and chives. Season with salt and pepper.
Spoon the mixture into the corner of a plastic bag and snip off the end. Pipe the yolk mixture into the egg whites. Arrange on a platter and sprinkle with paprika

Crustless Pumpkin Pie


Ingredients:
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree (NOT pie filling!)
1 (12 ounce) can evaporated skim milk
3/4 cup egg whites
3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup granular Splenda
Pam cooking spray

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400F.
Combine all ingredients.
Spray 9” pie plate with Pam.
Pour mixture into pie plate.
Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes.
Reduce heat to 325 F and continue baking for about 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Ricotta Cheesecake with Fresh Raspberries


Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 (15 ounce) container part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
4 ounces fat-free cream cheese, softened
3 large eggs
3/4 cup Splenda
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup all-fruit seedless raspberry jam
1 tbsp orange liqueur or water
2 (6 ounce) containers fresh raspberries

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325 F.
Coat a 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray.
Place ricotta in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy. Add sour cream, cream cheese, eggs, Splenda, flour, vanilla, orange zest and salt. Process until well blended.
Pour into prepared pan and bake until the center is just set, 50-55 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and then cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
In a small saucepan, bring the jam and liqueur or water to a boil, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove sides of pan. Brush the tart with the jam mixture and top with raspberries, flat-side down.