Healthy Alternatives to Holiday Eating

No need to be a calorie Grinch this holiday! 

These healthy, delicious dishes are meant to be shared and savored.

Lemon-Roasted Asparagus With Parmesan

Recipe serves 6 and adapted from Healthy Living Magazine
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 bunches of asparagus with ends snapped off
• 1- 1/2tablespoons olive oil
• 4 minced garlic cloves 
• peeled zest (in long strips) and juice of 1 lemon
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 1/4 oz shaved Parmesan
• sliced almonds
• drizzle of  Balsamic vinegar

DIRECTIONS;

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
• In a roasting pan or a cookie sheet lined with foil toss the asparagus with the oil, garlic, lemon zest, salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes
• Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and roast 20 to 25 minutes, tossing occasionally until browned
• Drizzle lemon juice to taste over asparagus and transfer to a serving dish. Discard strips of lemon zest, sprinkle with shaved Parmesan and almonds

Spicy Asian Chicken Stir-Fry

Cook's notes: Shrimp can be substituted for chicken. Shrimp are a low calorie food item when prepared the right way. Three ounces of raw shrimp has about 80 calories. So the fat and calories in the shrimp you eat are entirely dependent on how you prepare them. Fried shrimp, of course, are high in fat and calories. The same goes for shrimp dishes that are prepared with a lot of butter such as shrimp scampi.

This recipe is adapted from Special K Foods and serves 2-3
Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 ounces medium rice noodles
• 1/3 cup broccoli florets
• 3 red bell pepper rings
• 1/3 cup fresh snow peas
• 2- 1/4 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 3 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 large carrot cut on the bias
• 2-1/4 tablespoons Thai-style peanut sauce, prepared
• 3/4 teaspoon soy sauce, reduced sodium
• Pinch of chili powder (optional)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons roasted peanuts, chopped and unsalted

Directions:

• Cook noodles as instructed on the package, drain, rinse with cold water and set aside
•  In nonstick large skillet or wok coated with cooking spray stir-fry broccoli, carrots and bell pepper over medium-high heat for 2 minutes
• Stir in snow peas and stir-fry for 1 minute more. Remove vegetables from skillet and set aside
• Add oil to same skillet. Add in chicken and stir-fry over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink
• Reduce heat to medium and return vegetables to wok
• Stir in peanut sauce, soy sauce and ground red pepper (if desired)
• Add in noodles and toss until combined and heated through 
• Transfer to serving plate and sprinkle with peanuts
• Serve over brown rice

Grilled Tuna Steak with Salsa

Cook's notes: Grilled tuna steaks are rich in protein, low in calories and full of B vitamins and minerals. Even though tuna itself won’t give you a lot of calories, adding oil during the cooking process can quickly add up the calorie content. To keep your tuna steak as light as possible, you might want to use nonstick cooking spray, which only has a trace amount of calories, instead of a high-calorie oil. Both yellow fin and skip jack tuna provide around 110 calories from a 3-ounce grilled steak. Recipes comes from Special K Foods and an option is 

buying prepared salsa.

The recipe serves 2 

Tuna Steaks can be grilled, pan fried, broiled or baked. I found this link particularly helpful on different ways to cook tuna steaks.

http://www.wikihow.com/Cook-Tuna-Steak

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup finely chopped mango
• 1/3 cup finely chopped kiwi fruit
• 2 teaspoons lime juice
• 2 teaspoons seeded and finely chopped jalapeño pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 1 (5 oz.) tuna steak, about 1/2-inch thick
• 1 small clove garlic 
• lemon slices

Directions:

• In small bowl toss together mango, kiwi fruit, lime juice, jalapeño pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of the olive oil. Set aside
• Brush tuna steak with remaining olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice
• Rub garlic clove over both sides of steak and sprinkle with fresh herbs (Rosemary, thyme, parsley) 
• Grill tuna directly over medium heat about 4 to 6 minutes or until desired doneness, turning once or bake tuna at 450 4-6 minutes per 1/2 inch thickness
• Transfer tuna to serving plate and spoon mango mixture onto plate beside the tuna. Serve with lemon slices.

Next blog will feature several low calorie dessert recipes just in  time for your holiday entertaining.