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The holidays can be a particularly difficult time for people to maintain healthy habits, but
Start by making little changes for a big difference
Making a few small changes in the kitchen can help make dishes more nutritious, but still delicious. To reduce the fat and calories in classic holiday foods:
- Try replacing cream in recipes with regular or low fat milk.
- Use healthy oils, like olive or canola, instead of butter, for sautéing.
- Top roasts with fruit chutneys or glazes.
- Replace traditional potatoes with seasonal turnips or sweet potatoes – they're easy to bake, boil, steam or mash.
- Use herbs and spices, like rosemary and cloves, to flavor dishes, instead of salt or butter.
Enjoy the colors of the season
Make holiday meals festive and healthy with a variety of richly colored fruits and vegetables. Try these ideas to make the most of these seasonal beauties:
- Add butternut squash cubes to stews or vegetable soups.
- Mash sweet potatoes with a dash of orange juice and top with orange zest, or try a heart-healthy sweet potato recipe.
- Spice up
Brussels sprouts by dusting them with brown sugar and a pinch of salt, microwave for five minutes and serve hot. - Mash steamed butternut squash and sweet potatoes together and flavor with ground ginger and cinnamon.
- Include some fall apples for a burst of flavor and some antioxidant protection in holiday recipes.
Don't forget to make your holiday kitchen safe
- Always wash hands BEFORE starting to prepare food and in between tasks. Handwashing is critical to preparing safe food.
- It is recommended that a refrigerator is used to thaw frozen food, so plan ahead. For every five pounds of large frozen food, like a turkey or roast, allow 24 hours of refrigerator thawing time. Place the food in a tray or container deep enough to collect any draining fluids to prevent contamination of other foods in your refrigerator.
- Cook raw meat products to the minimum internal temperatures as stated on the product packaging. Poultry's minimum internal temperature should measure 165°F for 15 seconds, while other meats, like beef, pork, lamb or wild game's minimum internal temperature should measure 160°F.
- Leftovers are a great holiday tradition. To keep them safe, leftovers must be cooled to below 70°F within two hours, and then to 41°F or below, within four hours.
The holidays also provide a wonderful opportunity to spend time with children and set the foundation for a lifetime of healthy eating habits. Remember the following when cooking with children this winter season:
- Make sure kids stay away from hot food and liquids. The steam or splash from vegetables, gravy or coffee could cause serious burns.
- Keep children away from the stove. The stove will be hot and kids should stay three feet away.
- Keep knives out of the reach of children.
- Be sure electric cords from an electric knife, coffee maker, plate warmer or mixer are not dangling off the counter within easy reach of a child.
For more great holiday tips, download the
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