CosBeauty Magazine #86

Pick your battles
FEATURE
It’s neither fair nor feasible to maintain a strict diet
all the way through the party season. Choose two
or three occasions when you will allow yourself
to indulge and then revert back to healthy eating
for the remainder of the summer. For example,
sticking to a salad and a mineral water at the office
Christmas lunch might do more to damage your
relationship with colleagues than a blow-out would
to your waistline. No one likes a party pooper.
Christmas calorie
catastrophes
The old-fashioned Christmas feast with roast turkey, hot
vegetables and Yorkshire pudding, all smothered with
lashings of bread sauce and rich gravy is a delightful idea
for those dining in the chilly Northern Hemisphere.
However, for those celebrating in the sunshine of an
Australian summer, it just doesn’t make much sense.
Follow the lead of clever Aussie families by abandoning
hot and heavy Christmas lunches in favour of a summery
selection of seafood and salad. In terms of calorie counting,
a light lunch of lobster, prawns and salad doesn’t even
compare with the old-fashioned Christmas fare. Make sure
you have some treats for guests who aren’t worried about
their weight. A cheese board is a great idea, as it can be left
out from the time guests arrive until the end of the day. As
a guide, include a good cheddar, a creamy Brie, a mild blue
vein and perhaps a hunk of something strongly flavoured.
Accompany that with some sliced pear, dried fruits, quince
paste and a selection of crackers.
For dessert, put out platters of seasonal summer fruits
such as strawberries drizzled with balsamic vinegar, sliced
melon, mango, kiwifruit, pineapple and paw paw and big
bowls of cold grapes in different colours. Set out a couple
of dipping bowls of King Island Creme Fraiche for a bit of
extra indulgence.
If you’re hosting the festivities, get rid of the leftovers
when your guests depart. Often it isn’t Christmas Day that
adds the extra kilos; it’s the week that follows of grazing
endlessly on all the goodies left in the fridge.