If you are planning on hosting the Christmas meal at your place, know that it can be stressful and overwhelming. You surely want your foods to taste the best, however, you would also feel guilty if your guests end up loading up unhealthy sugars and fats. On the other side, there is no fun in declaring your foods gluten-free, sugar-free, and fat-free too. This Christmas, present your holiday meal in a way that will encourage health for everybody while maintaining that seasonal, indulgent flavor. Your will guests will find the meal delicious, but it will also be your secret that it’s healthy at the same time.
Here are some of the trickiest tips for making your Christmas feast a healthy as well as delicious one–
Tip #1: Cut Back On Your Dishes
We always consider the amount of food we are offered is the right amount to eat, but it’s not. During the holidays, we all live on Cloud 9, hardly caring for what we are putting inside our body. All we want is to have fun by gobbling down as much as fatty foods as possible and downing alcoholic drinks. When you are to host the Christmas meal this year, you can make it sophisticated, healthy, and delicious, all at the same time. Portion each food item for everyone already, so that no one can load up more than what’s required. There’s no shame in thinking for your guests’ wellbeing and they, too, will never misjudge you.
Tip #2: Did You Know How Color Makes Difference At The Dining Table?
An ideal reason to choose the brightest, holiday plates prior to the big day: Latest studies show that color contrast between foods and plates might have been proven to influence how much an individual eats. Colored plates and foods, similarly, might lead your guests to eat more. A variety of colors at the food table affects people’s perception of food portions – beige foods would always look smaller on a beige plate. On the other hand, you can place them on a red plate and your guests are likely to eat 10% less.
Tip #3: You Can Always Outwit The Hidden Salt
To keep our health working, we require around 0.8 cups of sodium salt a day – which is much lesser than the average 4,000 many of us ingest. Loading up on salt makes our body clutch to water (which further induces bloating), overdriving the heart and blood vessels. You can help your loved ones avoid such unhealthful effects. Besides storing the salt away from the table, you can also limit processed ingredients. Look at the labels on cured meats, canned vegetables, and dressings – they are often loaded with sodium.
Tip #4: Serve Smart Drinks
The holiday season has only one motto – eat up, drink up, and merry. But, consuming 2,000 calories just by downing a couple of beers is never going to make any merry for anybody. There are many holiday drinks that are complete mood-busters, disguised in holiday names. Offer your guests the choices of beverages that are naturally lower in calories. Serve Maca drinks instead of alcoholic ones. Healthy drinks will leave your guests feeling less of a snowball and more bubbly and comfortable.
Tip #5: Make Some Smart Ingredient Swaps—Swap rice with quinoa
This Christmas classic is overflowing with ingredients that are dubious at best. The traditional chicken rotisserie with canned cream of mushroom soup loads with unhealthy salts, unexplainable ingredients, and fats. Begin by swapping the canned with fresh green beans and rice with quinoa; you can also try smearing them in hummus or olive oil. If you have no intention to give up the soup, you can always look for organic versions. The organic versions have dramatically less sodium and are prepared with organic ingredients, like garlic and mushrooms.
Tip #6: Pack in the Veggies and Protein
Festive meals always lack healthy nutrients in them and surprisingly this is the only reason why people love it. Do not assist your gusts to load up mindlessly and then suffer from guilt. Being the host of this year’s Christmas meal, you can always help them leave feeling fantastic by offering them ample lean protein and vegetable choices. Beans, hummus, chicken, and quinoa are rich in protein. Besides, the basic seasonal vegetables (such as – broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower) and chopped-vegetable appetizer can be charred and topped with a little Parmesan cheese, olive oil, or nuts. Protein always plays a major role in regulating the appetite, and veggies are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Hence, plan your Christmas meal with the utmost smartness and love, of course. Your guest must not leave feeling guilty over their feast.