It is that that time of year again, celebrations with family and lots of food. Keeping your diet heart healthy during the holidays can be challenging. Many of the dishes that we look forward to all year are loaded with salt, fat, sugar and other unhealthy items. You can have a heart healthy holiday meal without sacrificing flavor by making some simple substitutions.
Refer to our heart healthy substitution tips when planning your holidays meals. You can either save it to your computer or print it out to keep handy. Click here to download..
Tips for heart healthy holiday meals
Start with a delicious healthy soup. This pumpkin soup with hints of spices makes it a sweet/savory dish that is perfect for the start of your meal.
Ingredients:
- 1-1/2 cup water, divided
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cans (15 ounces each) pumpkin
- 4 cups unsalted vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 cups fat-free milk
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 green onion tops, chopped
Directions:
- Heat 1/4 cup of the water over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender (about 3 minutes). Don’t let the onion dry out.
- Add remaining water, pumpkin, broth, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the milk and cook until hot. DO NOT BOIL
- Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with black pepper and green onion tops. Serve immediately. Serves 8.
For more heart healthy recipes to enjoy during the holiday season or anytime visit our recipe category in our articles on our website or click here.
Use our heart healthy substitution tips to make all your family favorites healthy and delicious. Your heart will thank you.