The arrival of the holiday season signals the time for celebrating. There will be parties and cards, gifts and decorations, friends and loved ones to visit and those who visit you. At this happy time of year a person can find the opportunity for overindulgence almost every day! With the right choices however, meals, parties and buffets don’t have to leave you feeling stuffed and resolving to diet again on New Year’s Day.
The dining room table always seems to be at the center of holiday celebrations. While everyone enjoys their traditional family recipes, it can be fun to incorporate some new dishes that reflect our own tastes and personalities. The options to incorporate delicious, healthy dishes to your holiday table are endless. Make the season come alive with the vibrant colors of fruits and vegetables. Use these suggestions for making every course colorful, flavorful and best of all, more nutritious.
- Before the meal, offer appetizers in the form of a vegetable tray
that includes blanched asparagus or green beans, red and green bell pepper strips and your favorite raw veggies. Serve a couple different flavors of low-fat dressing, hummus, or guacamole as dips. A variety of dips to choose from keeps everyone happy.
- Start every meal with a festive, memorable salad; top mixed greens with sliced apples or pears, dried cranberries, canned and drained mandarin orange segments and colorful vegetables. Delight your guests with the unexpected salad ingredients like jicama, sprouts and avocado. For another option, slice a variety of citrus fruits such as tangerines, grapefruits and naval oranges, garnish with fresh basil leaves, black and green olives then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil for a refreshing seasonal fruit salad.
- Soup also makes a great beginning for a meal and a wonderful way to fill up without adding many calories, as long as you stay away from the cream-based type. A broth-based soup containing red bell peppers, orange carrots, yellow corn and green peas is a warm and colorful start to the holiday meal.
- Vegetable medleys make an attractive side dish while adding multiple flavors and nutrition to your meal. For a festive touch, try adding a small amount of chopped nuts or a fun shaped pasta to the mixed veggies. As another side dish option, asparagus spears steamed and served through a lemon slice look as good as they taste.
- Fruit can serve as the centerpiece when it’s time for dessert. Slice off the leafy pineapple top, place it in the center of a platter and surround it with a combination of pineapple chunks, strawberries, grapes, kiwifruit, orange sections, apple slices or other fruit. Pies and cobblers highlight sparkling fruit fillings and small portions of cheesecake can be topped with any variety of fruit.
- Be sure to have plenty of fruit on hand to serve as festive garnishes for holiday beverages. Sparkling seltzer mixed with 100 percent juice and topped with a twist of lemon or lime or a few raspberries or cranberries makes a pretty and satisfying thirst-quencher.
Enjoy a little of everything in moderation: No guilt involved and maximum enjoyment for all!
There are other ways to incorporate fruits and vegetables into your holiday celebrations besides just on the menu.
- Put out festive baskets or bowls
- Teach your child the spirit of giving by having them help you donate non-perishable fruits & veggies to a local food pantry or homeless shelter. You can also suggest they donate old clothes that no longer fit or toys they no longer play with as a way to make room for anticipated holiday gifts. This helps others while teaching your child a valuable lesson by letting them feel the joy of giving.
There are many wonderful recipes that feature autumn and winter fruits and vegetables. Broccoli Mandarin Orange Salad makes a great seasonal side dish and adds a beautiful combination of colors to the holiday table. If you’re looking for a few fun, yet educational gift ideas, surf over to www.pbhcatalog.com for some inexpensive items that would make great stocking stuffers, gift exchange presents, or presents for all of the young children and teachers on your list. More seasonal fruit & vegetable inspiration can be found online at www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org.
Happy Holidays to you and your families.
