Holiday food: How to fake-out your tastebuds

By By Steve Gillespie / staff writer
Nov. 15, 2002
Cooking is a big part of the holiday season when you add toiling away in the kitchen, shopping, decorating and parties, the holiday rush can be stressful.
Sky Joiner, a registered dietitian, will show people how to stay healthy during the holiday season with a "Heart Healthy" holiday cooking class Monday at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
Traditional holiday foods aren't necessarily bad, Joiner said, it's the amount of them people eat that leads to health problems. She said people sometimes over-indulge because their New Year's resolution is to start a diet.
She also said people sometimes turn to food for comfort when they are stressed out.
Joiner will show how to reduce calories without changing texture and flavor and participants in the class will get a chance to taste the dishes.
Some tricks for creating healthy desserts include substituting two egg whites for a whole egg in recipes. Skim milk or 1 percent milk can take the place of whole milk and three tablespoons of cocoa powder with one tablespoon of vegetable oil is a healthier alternative to an ounce of baking chocolate.
Other lower-fat versions of ingredients found in holiday recipes include ground skinless turkey breast instead of pork sausage or ground beef; skinless chicken or turkey thighs as substitutes for fatback, neck bones or ham hocks; and strained low fat cottage cheese whipped until it is smooth to replace sour cream.
Both Joiner and the American Heart Association recommend incorporating more fruits and vegetables during the holiday season, and year-round, because most are naturally low in fat and high in vitamins and minerals.