- \n
- Maybe you just blow things off because you go to only one party a year.<\/li>\n
- Maybe you eat beforehand and go to the party for (just one) dessert.<\/li>\n
- Maybe you view the party as just a place to talk to friends, not an eating event.<\/li>\n
- Maybe you bring a dish that you’ll love to and can eat.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The last strategy is my usual M.O.\u00a0 Here’s what I say to the host:\u00a0 “Oh, I love to make salads, and I’ve got a great one for the holidays.\u00a0 Could I bring one for you?”<\/p>\n
Sure it takes time and money to make a colorful, tempting salad–especially when there’s a free, no-effort meal at the party.\u00a0\u00a0 But you would be feeding yourself anyway, why not make enough to share?\u00a0 You’re sure to make a more fun and interesting salad–besides making friends with other party goers in the same boat.\u00a0 Ready to give the Salad Strategy a try?<\/p>\n
The 10-Step Salad Strategy for a Festive Holiday Salad<\/h3>\n
- \n
- The Dish<\/strong><\/span> Since salads are my party strategy, I bought two neat salad bowls that showcase them beautifully.<\/li>\n
- The Greens<\/span><\/strong> Just walk right past the iceberg to thevibrant greens of romaine, green leaf, red leaf and butter lettuces.\u00a0\u00a0 Or make a spinach salad–or make a mixture of all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Since lettuces are a cold weather crop, they are very tasty and sweet right now.<\/li>\n
- Vegetables <\/span><\/strong>Skip the tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.\u00a0 They are out of season and won’t tastegood enough to satisfy.\u00a0 Instead, add color and nutritional depth with shredded carrots, roasted beets, diagonally sliced celery, mushrooms, frozen petite green peas , corn perked up with a light sauteeing, and avocado.<\/li>\n
- Fruits <\/span><\/strong> Nothing adds “festive” to a salad like fruit.\u00a0 Deep red pomegranate seeds are the perfect holiday color.\u00a0\u00a0 Apples and pears are great local and seasonal options and become candy-like when roasted.\u00a0 Good oranges are now in stores.\u00a0 And in a hurry, don’t forget about dried fruits:\u00a0 raisins, figs, dates, cherries, and cranberries .\n
\n- \n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/i722.photobucket.com\/albums\/ww230\/mcolletterogers\/Pomegranate-cropped.jpg\" "\\"Luscious")
<\/dt>\n- Pomegranates from California make a lusciously festive addition to a salad–and they are one of the few (if not only) fruits that are in season in December.\u00a0 This picture comes courtesy of the Pomegranate Council<\/a>, which has more great pomegranate salad recipes <\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
- Cheeses <\/span><\/strong>bind a salad nicely with creaminess.\u00a0 The code word is moderation, which is why I like high-impact varieties like Parmesan and feta:\u00a0 lots of flavor in a small, low-calorie amount.<\/li>\n
- Breads and Grains <\/span><\/strong>are unusual, but they add a satisfying, filling taste:\u00a0 Try tossing in a little wild rice\u00a0 or bulgar\u00a0 or topping with whole grain croutons.<\/li>\n
- The Dressing<\/span><\/strong> While homemade can be quite special, it’s fine to use ready made, as long as it’s free of additives, colorings, etc.<\/li>\n
- Meats<\/span><\/strong> Most parties, thankfully, have some plain meat (turkey, a roast beef, a ham.)\u00a0 I usually bank on this for a side or topper for my salad.<\/li>\n
- Cost<\/strong><\/span> Hey, it’s the holidays–and your health.\u00a0 Spend enough so you are ecstatic about eating that salad.<\/li>\n
- Remember: No Free Lunch<\/span><\/strong> Eating well doesn’t come without effort.\u00a0 But at the same time, effort always brings rewards, like the great feeling you’ll have when you survive a party without blowing your eating ideals.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Ready for more practical cooking skills, ideas and inspiration for a lifetime of healthful eating?\u00a0 Healthy Eating Coach Mary Collette Rogers teaches hands-on classes<\/a> to build confidence and comfort in the kitchen:\u00a0\u00a0 Next series begins January 13<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Join us!<\/p>\n
(Also, read how one dedicated real foods eater put the salad strategy to good use for her Thanksgiving feast with the in-laws<\/a>.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
If you care about weight maintenance, holiday dinners are where your resolve gets tested.\u00a0\u00a0 Assuming there are any healthful options at all, it’s most likely a gloppy coleslaw, tray of cold raw vegetables with ranch dressing, or whatever other tasteless nod to nutrition a deli can concoct. Theoretically, you could be virtuous and subsist on … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,2,20,23],"tags":[284,287,288,298,501,515,632,633],"class_list":["post-995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-what-is-healthy-eating","category-healthy-cooking-basics","category-recipes","category-seasonal-eating","tag-healthy-eating","tag-healthy-salads","tag-healthy-weight-meal-making","tag-holiday-eating","tag-salad-strategy","tag-seasonal-eating","tag-weight-loss","tag-weight-maintenance","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/995","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=995"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/995\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- Cheeses <\/span><\/strong>bind a salad nicely with creaminess.\u00a0 The code word is moderation, which is why I like high-impact varieties like Parmesan and feta:\u00a0 lots of flavor in a small, low-calorie amount.<\/li>\n
- The Greens<\/span><\/strong> Just walk right past the iceberg to thevibrant greens of romaine, green leaf, red leaf and butter lettuces.\u00a0\u00a0 Or make a spinach salad–or make a mixture of all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Since lettuces are a cold weather crop, they are very tasty and sweet right now.<\/li>\n
- The Dish<\/strong><\/span> Since salads are my party strategy, I bought two neat salad bowls that showcase them beautifully.<\/li>\n