Fasten your seatbelts and make sure your seat is in the upright position – we are on the runway for the holiday season! Cozy get-togethers, tasty dinners, and delicious sweets and treats await us! For some, the question is always: how can I stay healthy and still enjoy my holidays? Too many times we can struggle with this balance, finding ourselves dehydrated, bloated, and unhealthy come January, swearing “never again.” Or – just as unfortunately – stressing ourselves out so much about not affecting our health that we don’t actually spend any time enjoying our holidays. No more! Here are 5 practical, easy tips to enjoy a holiday season that won’t leave you ragged coming in to the new year.

1. Prioritize

Our natural tendency is to take a little bit of everything at any given holiday event. Often, though, we don’t even truly love all of these treats. Skim the spread and honestly ask yourself which items are sure to delight you. Which one would you be sad to leave without? Dish up and enjoy! If there are others that aren’t your favorites, don’t take them by default. Make sure to prioritize what you really love!

2. Set Yourself up for Success

It’s tough to enjoy a holiday when you aren’t feeling well, and we all know that certain foods (in certain amounts) affect us in uncomfortable ways. If a gathering is potluck-style, bring a food that you know leaves you feeling great. Then you know there will be at least one dish that won’t leave you feeling less than your best. If you don’t have the option to bring something, snack on some feel-good foods before you head out.

3. Take Your Time

Don’t rush the experience – eating holiday food is a seasonal delight to be savored. Make a plate, have a seat, and visit with a loved one as you eat. Take time to enjoy each bite and chew well (this helps with digestion as well as enjoyment)! After finishing your plate, give yourself 10-15 minutes before you go back for seconds. Our satiety signals sometimes take a bit to kick in. Waiting can help prevent painful over-fullness!

4. Hydrate Well

Most of the things that leave us feeling crummy after the holidays have to do with their dehydrating effects – sugar, salt, and alcohol are all culprits for leaving us dried out. That dehydration can lead to headaches, fatigue, breakouts, digestive issues, and more. You can make big strides to feeling your best by simply making sure to drink plenty of water leading up to, during, and after your holiday celebration.

5. Enjoy!

Do not let worries about your health or weight consume your holidays. Your mental health is a much larger part of your overall wellness than that Christmas cookie. Practice balance, give yourself grace, and enjoy every second with your family, friends and favorite foods.

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What’s a better pairing than strawberry and rhubarb? Sweet and tangy, and both ready at the same hopeful time of year – Spring! This seasonal recipe helps you celebrate the return to sun and fresh produce in delightful, high-fiber cookies. An extra bonus? They’re egg-free and very easy to modify to vegan with your favorite plant-based milk!

Here I place my pledge to never make you scroll through 24 paragraphs about what I did the day I first made this recipe, 14 variations on the recipe, and how this was my grandmother’s sister’s favorite food. You will find the recipe directly below. Happy cooking!

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Strawberry Rhubarb Cookies

Quick, easy, and egg-free, these delicious cookies will celebrate the flavors of Spring and can be vegan with a swap to your favorite plant-based milk!

Course Dessert

Keyword cookies, rhubarb, Spring, strawberry

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 18

Calories 99kcal

Author Down Home Dietitian

Ingredients

• 1 cup 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup oats
• 2/3 cup raw sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds
• 1/4 cup avocado oil
• 1/2 cup fat free milk substitute plant milk for a vegan recipe
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup strawberries stemmed and diced
• 1/2 cup rhubarb sliced into 1/4" slices

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C).
• In a large bowl, mix flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and chia seeds until well blended.
• In a separate bowl, combine oil, milk, and vanilla extract.
• Stir wet ingredients in to dry ingredients and mix well.
• Fold in diced strawberries and sliced rhubarb.
• Place in 2 Tbsp dollops on a cookie sheet 2" apart. Bake for 22-25 mins or until center is no longer gooey.

Notes

Each cookie contains 15.7 g carbohydrate (7% DV), 1.7 g protein (2% DV), 3.6 g fat (7% DV), 1.5 g fiber (6% DV), .4 g saturated fat (0% DV), 8.1 g sugar, and .1 g omega 3 (12% DV).

This delicious chimichurri salmon recipe could hardly be easier to make, and the herby, aromatic sauce takes plain ol’ salmon several notches up the flavor scale. Celebrate the fresh leafy green herbs of Spring with this powerfully anti-inflammatory dish. Follow it up with some Strawberry Rhubarb Cookies to harness the delicious flavors of the season!

Here I place my pledge to never make you scroll through 24 paragraphs about what I did the day I first made this recipe, 14 variations on the recipe, and how this was my grandmother’s sister’s favorite food. You will find the recipe directly below. Happy cooking!

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Chimichurri Salmon

Anti-inflammatory and bursting with flavor, this Spring seasonal recipe will not disappoint and is so quick and easy!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword anti-inflammatory, salmon, Spring

Prep Time 7 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Active Time 7 minutes

Total Time 37 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 163kcal

Author Down Home Dietitian

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 3 whole garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups fresh parsley loosely packed
• 3/4 cup fresh basil loosely packed
• 3/4 cup fresh mint loosely packed
• 3/4 cup fresh cilantro loosely packed
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 full side salmon

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F (175° C).
• Place all ingredients except salmon in blender and blend until well-mixed.
• Using a spoon or rubber spatula, spread sauce evenly over side of salmon.
• Bake for 30 minutes, or until salmon flakes easily and is opaque all the way through. Cut into fillets and serve.

Notes

Each serving of this recipe contains 2.8 g carbohydrate (1% DV), 16.6 g protein (22% DV), 9.7 g fat (19% DV), 1.5 g fiber (6% DV), 291 g vitamin K (323% DV), 1785 IU vitamin A (76% DV), 23.2% vitamin C (31% DV), 1 g omega 3 (87% DV).

Carbohydrates – what is the deal? Are they good? Are they bad? Are some better than others? Should I cut them out entirely? Carbohydrates are one of the most misunderstood topics in nutrition. This video gets down to the bare-bones basics of what carbohydrates are, what carbohydrates do, and how to choose healthful carbohydrates most of the time while still enjoying your favorite foods.

Seed starting is a key piece of getting more from your garden sooner, especially if you live somewhere with a shorter growing season. This video will give you all you need to start seeds indoors and get a jump on tasty fresh produce!

Twice-baked potatoes are one of the epitomes of comfort food in my mind. These fluffy potatoes could be a meal in themselves – they’re loaded with protein, potassium, fiber, and of course, cheese and bacon. You’ll make use of seasonal broccoli and be wrapped up in cheddar broccoli goodness in this hearty, filling Spring recipe. Follow it up with Strawberry Rhubarb cookies! Mmmm…

Here I place my pledge to never make you scroll through 24 paragraphs about what I did the day I first made this recipe, 14 variations on the recipe, and how this was my grandmother’s sister’s favorite food. You will find the recipe directly below. Happy cooking!

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Twice-Baked Cheddar Broccoli Potatoes

A simple twice-baked potato recipe to celebrate the melding of comfort foods and seasonal broccoli. These fluffy potatoes could be a meal in themselves - they are loaded with protein, fiber, and heart-healthy potassium. Enjoy

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword baked potato, high-fiber, potato, Spring seasonal recipe, twice-baked

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Active Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 4

Calories 447kcal

Author Down Home Dietitian

Ingredients

• 4 whole potatoes medium
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 head broccoli medium
• 1 cup cottage cheese fat free
• 4 slices cooked bacon crumbled
• 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
• 5 spring onions chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450° F (230° C).
• Wash potatoes and pierce each potato a few times with a fork to release steam. Rub potatoes with a small amount of olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
• Bake potatoes for 45 minutes. While potatoes are baking, bring a large pot of water to boil.
• Cut broccoli into florets and steam or boil broccoli for 5-10 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork.
• Removing potatoes from oven with an oven mitt, carefully cut a slit in the top of each potato. Scoop out the cooked potato flesh and reserve in a bowl. Place empty potato skins on a baking sheet.
• Combine potato flesh, cottage cheese, 3/4 c. cheddar cheese, 3/4 of the bacon, 3/4 of the chopped Spring onions, and salt and pepper to taste until mixed through. Fold in cooked broccoli florets.
• Fill each potato with the broccoli potato mixture. Top potatoes with remaining cheddar cheese and bacon.
• Bake the filled potatoes at 350° F (175° C) for 15 minutes. Top with remaining Spring onions.

Notes

Each serving of this recipe contains 447 calories, 47 grams carbohydrate (22% DV), 22 g protein (30% DV), 19.6 g fat (39% DV), 6.8 grams fiber (27% DV), 89% DV vitamin C, 53% DV potassium, 99% DV vitamin A, 157% DV vitamin K, and 14% DV iron.

Snacks! Who doesn’t love a good snack? Snacking is a great way to stabilize your blood sugar and energy levels and stave off nagging hunger. Prevent being over-hungry is also a great way to prevent nighttime cravings or bingeing. So where to start?

When Should I Eat a Snack?

It’s pretty simple – if you are hungry and there isn’t a meal on the docket for the next 1-2 hours, it’s snack time! If you are hungry, your body is asking for more energy to meet its energy needs right in the moment. If it doesn’t get a response from you (aka – food!), it’s going to slow your metabolism down in order to economize. If you do feed it, it knows it can trust you to take care of its energy needs, and it will fire on all cylinders. Plus, you get to eat a snack…it’s a win-win!

What Makes a Satisfying Snack?

You want to make sure your snack addresses both physical hunger and biochemical hunger. Physical hunger is the actual emptiness in your stomach, while biochemical hunger is a declining blood glucose (which is your body’s fuel).

To satisfy physical hunger, include a protein because it is slow digesting. This will ensure that it stays in your stomach for at least an hour or two, getting you to your next meal. Proteins you might choose for snacks include:

• cheese
• cottage cheese
• deli meat
• nuts or nut butter
• hard-boiled eggs
• Greek yogurt

To satisfy biochemical hunger, you’ll need a food that raises blood sugar a bit to provide the energy you’ll need for 1-2 more hours until your next meal. The only foods that directly break down into blood glucose are carbohydrates, since they are made of pieces of glucose. Some carbohydrates are made of individual glucose pieces or short chains of glucose. These are called simple carbohydrates, and because they are small they digest very quickly, and therefore raise blood glucose very quickly. Other carbohydrates are called complex carbohydrates, and are made of long chains of glucose. The long chains take longer to digest, and therefore raise blood glucose much more gradually. The gradual rise in glucose means a more stable blood sugar, longer-lasting energy, and a lower likelihood of your body storing “extra” blood glucose as fat. Choosing a complex carbohydrate is a great way to go.

There are also a couple of carb-containing foods that have simple carbohydrates, but contain a natural nutritional “buffer” that slows their digestion, making them act more like a complex carbohydrate. For example, fruit is high in fiber (which slows digestion) and milk and yogurt contain protein. Here are some great carbohydrate options for snacks:

• fresh, canned, or dried fruit
• Greek yogurt (bonus: also contains protein!)
• popcorn
• whole grain crackers
• whole grain chips