A Guide for a GOAN Christmas Eating

With Christmas and New Year around the corner, festivities have begun all over and with the number of parties and weddings that people attend it is not surprising that many find that their waist lines have expanded by the end of the season. View the Newspaper o HERALDO with the published print article on 24 Dec 2012.

5 Kgs by 1 January is what your worried and then you calm yourself saying you will take care of it in the new year.

Well YES YOU did just like last year and the year before and you are now 10-15 kgs heavier that you were in College...sign of prosperity....

The answer is sensible eating. 

Here are some tips to make your SWEETS healthier:

• Use Jaggery particular COCONUT palm jaggery or Madachem GODD instead of sugar to prepare sweets as it is more nutritious having valuable minerals such as Iron and calcium.

• Make cakes more nutritious by adding grated carrots, dates, prunes and dried figs along with nuts instead of plain TUTI FRUITY. Adding dry fruit also helps to cut down the amount of sugar that needs to be added. Most of Goan Christmas sweets are rich in ghee and coconut making them calorie dense. 

• BEBEINCA is rich in saturated cholesterol. Dodol is rich in saturate fat, but contains iron and calcium because of the Jaggery, that is used in its preparation.

• CHONER DOCE is rich in protein as well as FAT. Enjoy them in small portions.Use pure ghee or butter as a shortening instead of vanaspati or margarine to reduce the amount of Trans FAT in your sweets and savories items.

• Prepare savory items like NEVREOS, KULKULS, KORMOLAM, etc using wheat flour or multi grain flour instead of Maida and after frying them, drain them on absorbent paper to remove the access oil.

While planning the menu for Christmas lunch or dinner party, chose the main course dishes carefully. Remember, you do not need to deprive yourself and can enjoy all your favorite foods in small portions. Ensure that you eat a variety of food and restrict the amount of oil, sugar, alcoholic beverage, and soft drinks as they are high in calories.

Xacutti

Traditional Christmas dishes include pork preparations which are very rich in saturated fats and cholesterol- HENCE calories. Items like Chicken or Beef Xacutti are also prepared. As Xacutti is a coconut based dish its rich in saturated fats. My tips here are if you’re eating the same, Use the meats and try to limit the gravy you consume. Excessive amounts of saturated fats are bad for the heart. So keep portion size small.

It is best to serve plain Pulao, sanna’s or bread. Use brown Basmati Rice instead of White. Use Parboiled or brown rice too to make the RICE cake or Sana. As Sanna are fermented they make a very healthy meal along with other items.

Sanna's

Complement the non veg main course with Salads. Avoid mayo based salads.

Cook food using very little oils.

Consume alcoholic beverages in moderation. Dilute preferably with plain water rather than with SOFT DRINKS. Alcoholic beverages are calorie dense and also increase appetite and diluting them with Soft drinks pushes up the calorie count further. Sip your drink slowly and limit the consumption to 2 pegs.

Serve fruit juices instead of soft drinks. Go for the NO ADDED SUGAR versions of 100% pure fruit juice. Fresh is better if you have the help. They are rich in Vitamins.

Limit starters to 2 items. Go with Grilled or Tandoor rather than fried items.

Remember consumption of alcoholic beverages and soft drinks along with fried snacks contribute to a very high calorie intake. OVER 1000 Calories or 3 hours of walk time…so go easy. A healthy alternative is to serve a mixture of dry fruits and nuts instead of the regular fired stuff.

For deserts serve fruit salad. Prepare the custard using skimmed milk as it has lower fat content.

The traditional Christmas plum pudding is nutritious, but calorie rich because of rum or brandy used in its preparation. Portion control is really advised here.

Practice the principal of balancing Calories particularly when socializing. You need to accommodate the calories that come from beverages, snacks or starters, main course items and the desserts rather than simply adding them by OVER EATING.

Either Ways whatever you do if your a fit person you will be able to burn off the weight gain. Get in touch with my dietitians to help you burn off that fat in the NEW year. Book your time with a dietitian by Clicking here ....Talk to a Dietitian