Healthy Holiday Recipe Ideas
There is no need to give up on good nutrition during the holidays. These easy recipes bring the festive joy without the overindulgence.
I am the first one to acknowledge that there are some foods that should not be messed around with: Pecan Pie, duck fat roast potatoes and, of course, Brandy Butter. However, there are some festive foods that can be made a little healthier and will taste just as good, if not better!
Here are some holiday recipes that will help you make it through the festive season feeling less need for the Santa Suit and ready for the beach.
Let Them Eat Fruit!
This is the season to make the most of the beautiful fruit now in season. Indulge in fresh berries, mangos, nectarines, and our all time Christmas favourite, cherries are back on the table. Fruit is a great option to liven up your salads, or sweeten up your dessert.
Peach and Rocket Salad
2 tsp olive oil
½ cup (100g) quinoa
75g baby rocket leaves
2 small celery sticks, thinly sliced
1 ripe white peach (or nectarine), cut into thin wedges
2 spring onions, thinly sliced diagonally
⅓ cup (60g) pecan halves, toasted, chopped
Dressing
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 orange, rind finely grated, juiced
2 lemons, rind finely grated, juiced
¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
To make the dressing, combine the vinegar, 1 tbsp orange rind, 2 tbsp orange juice, 1 tbsp lemon rind and 2 tbsp lemon juice. Stir in the oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for 2 mins or until quinoa is toasted. Add 1 cup water and bring to the boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 mins or until quinoa has absorbed liquid. Turn off heat, uncover and cool completely. Arrange the quinoa over a large platter. Top with the rocket, celery and peach (or nectarine). Drizzle with dressing. Sprinkle with spring onions and pecans.
Berry Icy Poles
100g mixed berries (or 75g frozen and thawed)
½ lime, juiced
1 tbsp coconut sugar
200g greek yoghurt
In a bowl, combine the berries, lime and sugar and stir. Leave to sit for 5 minutes. Slowly and gently fold in the greek yoghurt. Pour into icy pole moulds leaving a 1cm gap at the top. Freeze for 30 minutes, then insert the icy pole sticks halfway. Freeze for another 3-4 hours or overnight. Use warm water to loosen the ice pole moulds when removing.
Seafood Lightens The Load
A platter of prawns or smoked salmon is a great way to start a meal, and you can’t go wrong with a fillet of fresh fish to share with your family and friends.
Hazelnut and Thyme Trout
1kg whole skinless ocean trout fillet, pin-boned
1 ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
1 bunch thyme, leaves picked
½ cup parsley, plus extra to serve
1 cup (100g) hazelnut meal
Juice of 1 lemon, plus extra lemon wedges to serve
2 tbsp olive oil
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a baking tray and line with baking paper. Place trout on prepared tray and brush with mustard. Place thyme, parsley and hazelnut meal in a food processor and whiz until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Season, then press over flesh of fish until completely covered. Bake for 20 minutes or until fish is just cooked through.
To make the dressing, combine the lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl and season to taste. Spoon dressing over fish and serve immediately with extra lemon wedges.
Still Enjoy Your Stuffing
Turkey is not the same without the stuffing. The version below swaps out the bread for wild rice and is absolutely delicious (it still includes butter and bacon because, well, it is Christmas!)
Turkey Stuffing
1 ½ cups wild rice blend
2 ¼ cups chicken broth
1 dried bay leaf
4 slices bacon, chopped
2 tbsp butter
1 jumbo shallot or 1 small onion, chopped
225g mushrooms, sliced
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
½ tsp dried thyme
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh sage
¼ cup whole almonds, chopped
¼ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, optional
Add wild rice, chicken broth, bay leaf, and a pinch of salt to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Place a lid on top and simmer for 40-45 minutes or until rice is al dente. Let pan sit off the heat with the lid on for 5 minutes then remove bay leaf, fluff rice with a fork, and set aside.
Meanwhile, brown bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, then transfer to a bowl. Turn heat up to medium-high then melt butter in skillet and add shallots, mushrooms and celery. Once mushrooms have released their liquid and begin to brown, add dried thyme then season with salt and pepper. Saute until mushrooms are golden brown and vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes. Add garlic and fresh sage then saute until garlic is very fragrant and golden brown, 1-2 minutes.
Remove skillet from heat then add cooked wild rice, cooked bacon, chopped almonds, dried cranberries, and parmesan cheese to skillet then stir well to combine. Add a splash of chicken broth if you need to loosen the stuffing up a bit. Taste then add salt and pepper if necessary, and serve (serves 6-8 as a side).
Christmas Themed Collection
Here are 3 recipes that add some Christmas sparkle to your meals. This muesli is delicious and the addition of the red cranberries give it a Christmas vibe - pop it in a jar for a simple and healthy gift idea. The red and green of the pomegranate cauliflower and parsley salad make it a beautiful way to liven up the Christmas table, and the mini Christmas puddings are such a fun way to finish off a meal.
Christmas Muesli
3 cups rolled oats
½ cup raw sunflower seeds
½ cup chopped raw walnuts
½ cup chopped raw pecans
½ cup sliced raw almonds
1 cup flaked unsweetened coconut
2 tbsp ground flaxseed
2 tbsp wheat germ
1 heaping tablespoon ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
3 tbsp coconut oil
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup dried cranberries
Preheat oven to 150°C. Spray a sheet pan (rimmed baking sheet) with nonstick cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, sunflower seeds, walnuts, pecans, almonds, coconut, flaxseed, wheat germ, ground cinnamon and salt. Stir to combine. In a 2 cup microwave-safe measuring cup (or small bowl), mix oil, honey, and vanilla. Heat in microwave for 45 seconds on 50% power. Stir to combine. If using coconut oil, continue to heat in 30 second increments until coconut oil is completely melted. Pour over dry ingredients and stir until everything is coated. Spread into an even layer on prepared baking sheet. Place in preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, stir, and continue to bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. If you like big chunks, press down with spatula and let cool completely on pan. If you prefer not to have large chunks, stir 3-4 times as granola cools. Stir in cranberries once cooled.
Cauliflower and Pomegranate Salad
1 head cauliflower
1 avocado cubed
1 pomegranate
⅔ cup almonds
1 large handful of fresh mint leaves
1 large handful of parsley
½ a red onion
Dressing
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 lemon juice and zest
1 large clove garlic crushed
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Toast your almonds in a pan on low heat stirring regularly for 5 minutes until they become golden and crunchy. Set aside to cool then pulse in the food processor a few times until they're just roughly chopped. Blend the cauliflower in a food processor until the texture resembles that of couscous. Chop the herbs, and add to a bowl with the rest of the ingredients including the dressing. Slice the pomegranate in half, hold the chopped half with the palm of your hand facing the bowl, and bang the other side with a spoon to release the seeds into your salad - pick out any pith that falls in. Gently mix all the ingredients together, adding the avocado at the end so as not to squash it too much. Top with a little reserved pomegranate seeds, almonds, raisins, avocado and herbs.
Mini Christmas PuddingS
8 medjool dates
150g dried apricots
zest and juice of 1 orange
1 cup almonds
1 cup walnuts
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground ginger
⅓ cup white chocolate, melted
Fresh raspberries or dried cranberries to serve
Method
Blitz dates and apricots in a high speed blender. Place in a mixing bowl and add orange zest, juice and spices. Blend nuts into small pieces. Add nuts to wet mixture and press into mini muffin moulds. Put in the fridge for a couple of hours. Remove carefully, leave upside down and top with melted white chocolate and a raspberry or cranberry.
Please note: These recipes are not original (I am by no means a chef!), but have been gathered from events, books and websites over the years and I’ve made a few tweaks of my own.
By Angie Black
ANGIE BLACK
BLOG CATERGORIES:
