Cocktails and Cuisine

By Rajni Hatti

Healthy Eating during the Holiday Season

The holiday season is one of the hardest times to keep up good eating habits. With upcoming celebrations of three major holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s), get-togethers will almost always involve lots of food! This can be a challenging time to watch your calories or even practice moderation.

By the end of the year, many of us are thinking remorsefully about how we’ll have to hit the gym as quickly as possible to shed those extra holiday pounds! Although we can’t control all the festivities, we can control our eating behavior. Here are a couple tricks to keep holiday eating under control:

- Before going to a party, eat a small meal or healthy snack (like fruit or yogurt) so you’ll be less likely to overindulge.

- Try to choose desserts that use the naturally sweet tastes of vegetables, fruits and nuts. Generally, less sugar is needed when ingredients such as carrots, sweet potatoes or raisins are used.

- Avoid fried foods, which are usually high in saturated fat.

- If you are offered party leftovers, try to take only the healthy ones home. If you take a dessert home, just take a small amount.

- Set yourself up for success! Don’t set the bar too high by totally denying yourself the foods you enjoy. Expect a little “cheating” now and then, but just keep it in moderation.

Every year I look forward to the holidays because it means time with friends and family. Here are a few recipes that I like to use around this time of year because they are perfect for entertaining; they are healthy, easy to make and delicious!

Ginger and Coriander Baked Chicken
Makes 4 servings

Although coriander chicken has many variations, the use of freshly ground coriander seed is a constant in almost every recipe. You can use a coffee grinder (one that you reserve only for spices) or a mortar and pestle to grind the spices.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
4-5 pieces of boneless chicken, preferably a mix of thighs and breasts
1 small onion, diced
½ teaspoon grated ginger
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
¼ cup chopped cilantro for garnish

Instructions:

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees F.

2. In a pan, dry roast the cumin and coriander seeds until they brown slightly and give off an aroma. Cool to room temperature and grind finely using a coffee grinder.

3. Put ground spices in an oven safe dish large enough to hold the chicken. Add salt, turmeric and crushed red pepper, and mix the spices together.

4. Cut chicken breasts in half so that all the chicken pieces are about the same size, and put thighs and breasts into the oven safe dish. Press all of the ground spice mixture onto the chicken, making sure to cover both sides.

5. Sprinkle the onions over the top of the chicken.

6. Combine chicken broth and ginger and pour around the edges of pan.

7. Put pan in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes (or until chicken is no longer pink inside), turning once after about 15 minutes.

8. Garnish with cilantro.

Serving Suggestion: Serve with a rice dish, such as Peas Pulao (see recipe below).

Peas Pulao
Makes 4 servings

Pulao is a staple dish at South Asian restaurants, and it works well with almost any meal, not just South Asian cuisine.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
8 whole cloves
1 medium size onion, diced
2 cups long grain or extra long grain rice
8-10 saffron threads
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups water
1 cup frozen peas

Instructions:

1. Add oil to a pot and place over medium heat.

2. Add cloves. Sauté for about a minute, until cloves give off an aroma.

3. Add onion and sauté until onion begins to brown, about 3 minutes.

4. Add rice and saffron. Sauté until rice starts to turn whitish, about 2-3 minutes.

5. Add salt and water. Stir and cover pot tightly with lid. Reduce heat to low and cook for about 25 minutes.

6. Remove from heat (do not remove lid) and let sit for about 15 minutes to set.

7. In the meantime, put peas in a bowl with enough water to cover the peas and a few pinches of salt. Microwave for about 45 seconds or until peas are warmed through.

8. Drain the water from the peas and add the peas to the rice. Mix gently.

Copyright © 2006 Rajni Hatti. All rights reserved.

Rajni Hatti teaches Indian cooking classes in the greater Washington D.C. area and is currently writing a cookbook which focuses on simple and delicious South Asian cooking. Email askrajni@yahoo.com with comments or questions about this column.

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