The approaching holidays are a nightmare for anyone engaged in a weight loss or diet regimen and with very good reason. With all of the temptations that seem to lurk around every corner, office get-together and holiday party; it can be easy for even the most determined dieters to get sidetracked and lose sight of their weight loss goals. This year; however, by giving your choices and portions a little carefully aimed attention you can avoid destroying all the hard work you have put into your diet the rest of the year. One of the biggest challenges for many dieters during the holiday season is avoiding the hectic round of get-togethers and parties that almost always come hand in hand with the holidays. The good news about such events; however, is that many of them tend to be buffet and pot-luck types of affairs; which gives you numerous options that can help you to stick to your diet plans. While buffet tables are typically laden with heavy casseroles and fatty appetizers, you can usually find at least one platter of fresh vegetables served with a nice low-fat dip. Also, opt for fresh fruits instead of the abundance of baked desserts that are typically offered. Instead of stocking your plate up with diet dangerous foods, choose steamed vegetables and healthy grains such as wild rice and wheat bread. Opting for white meat instead of dark meat can also help you to stay on the straight and narrow, by avoiding additional calories. Whenever possible, limit the amount of alcohol based beverages that you consume. Just a few alcoholic beverages contain a surprising amount of calories; not to mention the fact that they only serve to increase the appetite of most people. Choose a light bear, wine spritzer or carbonated flavored water instead. When it’s your turn to prepare the mound of requisite holiday food, remember that there are several tricks you can employ in order to stay true to your diet goals and keep family and friends pleased at the same time. One way to do this is by substituting evaporated skim milk for regular milk or cream in your holiday recipes. This will help to tremendously cut down on the amount of fat and calories included in your dishes without sacrificing taste. Unsweetened applesauce makes a great substitute for calorie laden oil while egg substitute can easily replace the requirement for eggs in most recipes without any noticeable change to the taste.
Finally, one of the best ways that you can avoid overindulging this holiday season is to take it slow and easy. Remember that the entire point of this time of year is to get together with friends and family members; many of which you might not see for months to come. Focus on the fun and conversation instead of rushing through a heavy meal and you’ll find that not only did you enjoy this year more, but that you made it through with your diet intact.
It seems that we’re invited to a party or family get-together every other night in the weeks before the Holidays. Unfortunately most of the dishes that are brought to those events are not exactly healthy. We all tend to overindulge during the holiday season, tempted by all the unhealthy treats around. But to be honest with you, I get tired of all the rich and fattening food rather quickly and welcome a healthy fresh alternative. This is your year to shine with that healthy dish the next time you are asked to bring something to a holiday party. Here are a few ideas to get you started. 1. Veggies and DipJust cut up some fresh veggies. Good choices are celery, broccoli, cauliflower and cucumber. Add some baby carrots and grape tomatoes. Serve it with a low fat ranch dip and you’re good to go. 2. Fruits and Dip Serve some fruit that’s in season in bite size chunks with a side of low fat vanilla yogurt. Wash some strawberries, peel and cut up some apples, pears, cantaloupe and even some fresh pineapple for a sweet treat that’s actually good for you. 3. Cheese and CrackersMake a platter of several low fat cheeses and get a box of whole-wheat crackers. To make it even more fun, use some holiday cookie cutters and cut shapes out of the cheese. Just arrange everything on a platter and take it to the party. 4. Bring A SaladA salad of mixed greens with some other veggies mixed in always makes for a great side dish and will go with any other foods that are served. Start with some basic mixed greens, preferably dark greens. I like to mix baby spinach with some other dark greens. Dice up some red and yellow peppers for color and some slices of cucumber for crunchy texture. Top it off with some grape tomatoes and you will have a colorful and yummy salad. I like to bring several ready-made l
ow fat dressings form the grocery store to serve with the salad. Go ahead; give one of these ideas a try. You’ll be surprised how well received your healthy dish will be. Plus you’ll know there will be at least one dish at the party you can fill up on that is actually good for you and your health.
Happy Holidays!
Christmas is a time of year that brings friends and family together who may not have the pleasure of one another's company at any other time throughout the year. While family ties may be a bit difficult to maintain in the world in which we live today, the traditions of Christmas for many families is what keeps us grounded and in touch with one another no matter how far apart we are geographically. The problem is that if one person is doing the cooking for all, that person tends to spend endless hours in the kitchen and misses out on the joys of the company of others year after year. One way to avoid this is by rotating locations for the festivities from one year to the next. Another way, a much simpler way, is to delegate items of contribution from all guests in attendence each year so that the cooking and meal preparation duties are shared among the masses.Of course this isn't a perfect plan but it is a good plan. Another great plan is to prepare pieces and parts of your Christmas dinner ahead of time. With careful planning there are items that may be prepared as much as a few weeks ahead of the big day and stored either in air tight containers at room temperature or frozen for heating or baking on the big day or within a reasonable time frame of Christmas for best results. Any of the prep work that can be taken care of before the big day is one less thing to be taken care of when the time comes and that becomes a load off your mind.Make lists. Lists are wonderful things. If you learn to live by your lists you will wonder how on earth you ever got anything done without them. When you are planning your Christmas dinner right down everything you plan to have, who is bringing what, what you are making, and what ingredients will be needed to complete each and every single dish. Go through your pantry and see which items you have in abundance and which items you will need to prepare the meals. Head to the store at least a week ahead of the big day and purchase all but the fresh ingredients you will need in order to prepare your Christmas feast.Another thing you will need to do is make sure you have a list of all the non food items you will need to stock ahead of time. Make sure all the bathrooms are stocked, that you have plenty of garbage bags,
waste baskets, paper plates, cups, napkins, cutlery, and other items that will be needed in order to make things go smoothly when your guests begin to arrive. These are little things that matter and may get overlooked if you fail to plan ahead. You should also make a list of decorations, invitations, and gifts or games you may need to purchase for the day too. You want your day to go as smoothly as possible and you want everyone to fill wanted, appreciated, and anticipated. It may be a great idea to pick up a couple of generic gifts for a male or female in case someone unexpected shows up (you really never know) and have extra wrapping paper and supplies on hand in case someone has an emergency rewrap (as in a kid opened a gift intended for someone else). Most importantly plan to be able to sit back, relax, and enjoy as much of the festivities as possible.
Favorite foods enjoyed by Americans for any given holiday, season or special occasion will likely include some ethnic
dish, given the many ethnic groups that reside in the country. Despite this variety of melting pot cuisine, there are some similarities in
dishes that will be a part of most meals during celebrations such as Christmas. Christmas in the United States
comes almost one month after another big holiday, Thanksgiving, in which the traditional
meal must consist of a turkey as the main dish. This dish also carries over into Christmas as roast turkey is one of the main dishes that
may be served for Christmas dinner. But unlike Thanksgiving, which is solely devoted to turkey meat, Christmas dinners may also
include other birds or poultry. These include roast goose or duck. Roasted ham may also be served. Cranberry sauce, vegetables,
pumpkin pie and a plum pudding or fruity Christmas pudding for dessert tops off traditional Christmas dinners. Mince pies and pastry
that is filled with a mixture of chopped, dried fruit may also be added to the menu. For drinks at Christmas dinner, a bottle of champagne is very popular, as well as wines. But the everyday beverage of beer
is a must for many people to make a meal truly enjoyable. Before Christmas Day and the big dinner arrives, there's also another type of food that Americans enjoy in large quantities
during the Christmas season. The consumption and sales of candies, gingerbread and other cookies and holiday treats increases rapidly
during the holidays. Similar to how department stores seek to attract shoppers to buy items for Christmas gifts, candy manufacturers
also put out special boxes and types of candies for Christmas and the holiday season. A survey done in 2004 by the National Confectioners Association found that many adults derived much pleasure at
Christmas from giving and receiving candies and other treats. In their responses the survey participants said that giving decadent
boxes of chocolate to friends and family, placing candy canes on the Christmas tree and hiding candy treats in Christmas stockings
were favorite ways to give and receive candies, cookies and treats during the holidays. Sweet treats remain popular at Christmas despite a constant message about dieting that is present in everyday life in the
media, in billboards and from some food manufacturers. At Christmas time, people feel free to enjoy the festive season without
constraints. But they also know that they can enjoy candies and cookies that are health conscious by eating ones that are targeted to the
low-carb dieter by having ingredients that are sugar-free and fat-free or both. Cookies that are enjoyed at Christmas are often home-baked ones and usually include gingerbread items. The tradition of
gingerbread cookies at Christmas is also believed to have originated in Germany and brought to America by German immigrants.
German bakeries began baking very fancy gingerbread houses with icing as edible snow and other decorations after the Grimm
Brothers published their children's story, Hansel and Gretel. That story had a description of a house that was made of bread, a roof of
cake and windows of barley. The popularity of the creations by German bakeries gave rise to cookie cutters that were made in a
variety of shapes, enabling small gingerbread cookies of various shapes to be baked at home. Some of these cookies that had the
shapes of little people and animals were used to decorate Christmas trees. More than one hundred years ago from today, German homes in Lancaster County in Pennsylvania would have cookies
that were up to one foot high in the front of windows of their houses as decorative items during winter. The cookies were often giant
gingerbread men and women that had colorful rows of buttons and big smiles. Passersby were often cheered and intrigued by the sight
and brought the idea to their homes on a smaller scale. Being able to enjoy special dishes, candies, cookies and other goodies during Christmas and the holidays adds a sweet
flavor to the season and also helps to create warm and cherished memories.
The F F F Plan, Extra!
During the Christmas season, summer and its body-conscious state of mind
are distant memories. Hearty indulgence in the many foods shared at Christmas
therefore doesn't produce the same feelings of guilt. Nevertheless, its not a
pleasant thought to start the New Year carrying any extra pounds. So why then
eat yourself into a resolution to 'take off a few extra pounds' if you can
smartly avoid it?
Whether it's sharing cookies and candies at work, or having an evening out
at a party or dinner, you can have Christmas food and enjoy it. While you seem
to be eating heartily with a smile, the key is to have a secret strategy of
moderation. It involves sticking to a plan that can be called 'Eating on a
Budget.''Eating on a Budget' is not about the cost of what is eaten, but about the
quantity of what is eaten. It is important that a 'budget' or eating in
moderation plan is developed because it is almost impossible to avoid exposure
to a lot of cookies, candies and other sweets at Christmas. At work, you may
risk appearing like the Grinch who stole Christmas if your response will always
be something like, 'Uh..no..bah humbug' all the time that some Christmas goodies
are offered. It will seem as if you aren't in the spirit of the holidays
especially since at that time of year everyone is usually in a festive and more
relaxed mood, and the pace at work is usually slower. A practical way to partake in Christmas goodies, for example, is to
substitute some holiday cookies for say the bagel that you usually have with
breakfast or for a mid-morning snack. And instead of just taking one cookie,
from the platter, which is noticeable and likely will encourage a colleague to
tell you to have more, take three instead. That's where the plan can come into
play. You can then enjoy the cookies over two or more hours, because nobody will
be watching how you really eat. You can always have a few candies, one cookie or
a cookie and a half by your desk and that way it will seem as if you are
heartily enjoying the holiday treats. Another strategy is to bring - bake or buy - low calorie Christmas cookies
and candies to work to counteract others that are being offered. Since eating
healthy is highly encouraged, health-conscious cookies will not be looked down
upon so long as they taste great. A box of sugar-free Christmas chocolate
candies for example will look just as delightful as regular chocolate candies.
It's interesting to note that in a poll sponsored by the National Confectioners
Association in 2004, chocolate was the favorite food gift that Americans said
they preferred to receive for the holidays. The lowly and much maligned fruit
cake was last on the list. The second favorite holiday food gift was a fruit
basket and a plate of cookies was third on the list, according to the
Association.
For an occasion such as a Christmas party or a dinner, including Christmas
Dinner, where larger quantities and selection of food is available, the 'Eating
on a Budget' plan means that serving portions and the choice of food selected
should be carefully watched.
At a party where more desserts and sweets are likely to be available, a few of
the selections can be sampled. If the urge to try everything can't be resisted,
then do so, but then second helpings have to be severely limited. The same is
somewhat true for Christmas Dinners. One big difference is that the food served
during Christmas Dinner will be heavier, so by selecting portions wisely, one
can always say truthfully that the stomach is full.
And indeed, after a sumptuous Holiday Dinner, your body is likely to be full
from food and your soul full of joy from sharing another memorable holiday
tradition with family, friends and loved ones.
Christmas is a hectic time of year. Many families find that they barely have time to breathe much less cook dishes to bring for this or that function. For this reason there are several great cheat dishes that can be purchased and prepared for the occasions and very few people will be the wiser. Though Christmas may be about being with friends and family it is not about broadcasting a possible lack of talent in the kitchen, time on hand, or a shortage of attention span that is required in order to prepare a stellar dish for your Christmas needs.Of course, you could begin preparing and freezing large casserole favorites as early as August for the Christmas season. In this instance you could freeze all your family favorites and have great dishes not only for family functions that require a pitch in dish but also for those nights when you are far too busy to be bothered with something as demanding on your limited attention span as actually preparing a home cooked meal. This is possible the best method for each Christmas cooking known to man. If you prepare casseroles and similar dishes that work well with a holiday theme throughout the year be sure to double your efforts next time and freeze half for busier months such as November and December.Of course there is one method that may be a little easier in the long run though a good deal more costly. This is the supreme cheater method. There are plenty of businesses that offer you the opportunity to put together or 'assemble' meals then bring them home to freeze and bake. This isn't quite home made though it tastes as good and might convince those at the parties and events you attend that you are in fact an excellent cook even if you have difficulties finding your way to boiling water. Some cities have several of these meal assembly stores while others have none or only one. You need to constantly check with the menu if you are a finicky eater because they often rotate some of the more popular dishes so that they aren't available all the time. Since the food is frozen you can typically plan your sessions for those times when they are offering the dishes you are interested in creating.A variation on the theme above is purchasing prepared meals in the freezer section of your local supermarket. There are a few surprisingly good meals to be had especially if you are considering macaroni and cheese or lasagna for your offering. These are meals that you bring home and heat in your oven.
They are often sold in foil pans, which are great for potlucks and pitch ins but not so much for looking good. If that isn't the utmost concern these are definitely a possible fit for your needs and your plans. They also happen to be fairly budget friendly which is something most of us can agree is a great thing.You do not have to have super powers or even a great deal of cooking talent in order to make a Christmas dinner that is delicious and easy to make when time is short. Careful planning well ahead of time is often the key to a successful Christmas season. Most of us begin our shopping early there is no harm in also beginning our cooking a little early too.
Every holiday season, many of us look forward to eating special treats made using long-held and cherished family recipes. Many families have holiday food traditions they hold dear. There are those who cannot imagine a holiday without Grandma’s date pinwheel cookies or Great Uncle Peter’s cornbread stuffing. Year after year, we enjoy these treats and use them as a way to stay connected with our families and personal histories.More than mere sustenance, the traditional foods we enjoy year after year are a source of family pride and lead to conversations about family members and fond memories of holidays past. Family food traditions can be one of the most important parts of the holiday season for many people.There was once, however, a time in each and every family history before those recipes existed. Grandma had to make those date pinwheel cookies for the first time. When she did, she may have placed them right next to sugar cookies made with her Grandma’s secret recipe, having no idea they would become such an integral part of the holiday. Great Uncle Peter’s cornbread stuffing only came about because Great Aunt Beth was sick years ago and he had to come up with some way to stuff a bird himself on Christmas morning. His reliance on a simple recipe card with a few personal touches started a family tradition, too. Grandma and Great Uncle Peter didn’t intent to create a longstanding tradition that generation after generation would enjoy. They simply hoped that they could add a little bit to the holiday meal by doing something different.
The holiday food traditions to which we now look forward were the byproducts of experimentation. The creators of the original dishes may have never intended to make them again. They just happened to feel like doing something different or adding something new to the holiday table.
Holiday food traditions are special to many of us, and it is wonderful to experience those comforting recipes each and every holiday. It’s a great idea, however, to remember how those traditions began. By realizing the source of those traditions, we can be spurred to create our own.
This holiday season consider doing something new. Think about adding a different plate to the dinner or treat table. Make a side dish not generally found on your holiday table or produce a cookie with which you are not familiar. Try a few new ideas and see what happens. Some of the new notions may not be universally well received. Others may be enjoyed, but not to the extent of your family’s holiday classics. One, however, might receive such rave reviews that you decide to try it again next year. Over time, that simple decision to experiment may turn into part of your family’s traditional holiday table. The new cookie recipe you find in a holiday recipe collection this year may eventually become a staple item that your great-grandchildren cannot imagine missing.Traditions are important and enjoyable. They form part of the essence of one’s family. Wouldn’t it be nice to add your generation’s mark to the food traditions you all hold so dear? Inventing new holiday traditions has no precise formula. One cannot really intentionally “design” a new holiday food tradition. They tend to grow over time. However, new traditions do require a willingness to prepare an inventive new dish. This holiday season, consider your potential role as a creator of a meaningful holiday tradition and add something new to the holiday feast.
