Lighter, wholesome dishes for festive occasions

The holiday season is just around the corner. Try as we might to watch our diets, more often than not we end up overeating.

We’re here to help with some simple, healthy suggestions that that are low in fat, sugar and calories:

Appetisers: forget greasy foods like mayonnaise, pâté and foie gras and opt for seafood, vegetable skewers or salads with nuts. If you must add sauce, make it something light like a citrus or yoghurt dressing.

Starters: Consommé, stock, seafood or cream of vegetable soup. All excellent choices that will warm you up and kill hunger pangs.

Main courses: turkey is white meat and low in salt. It’s marvellous stuffed fruit (apricots or raisins) and served with steamed vegetables. Apple compote and puréed potatoes (made with skimmed milk) make an excellent garnish.

Fish baked in the oven is also an excellent, low-calorie choice. Accompany it with baked potatoes, artichokes, peas or asparagus.

Dessert: Homemade trumps shop bought, and always use fruit (sponge cake with lemon, banana cake, apple tart, etc). If you are going to serve typical seasonal sweets, serve fruit first (baked apples, pears poached in wine, fruit salad), which is not only satisfying, but also a source of fibre and vitamins.

Remember to drink plenty of water with all your meals to reduce your calorie intake, flush away toxins and help with digestion, and stay active and do sport.

This post is also available in: Portuguese (Portugal)