Christmas Day
Christmas Day, the time for giving and filling your face! So what do you plan to do for Christmas dinner this year? Are you going to have a day off from healthy living and stick to the traditional roast and all the trimmings with a big fat christmas pud or are you going to find healthier alternatives? I am really interested to know as this will be my first Christmas on my new lifestyle and I am pondering this question myself. Will one day off really hurt or are you so serious that Christmas will be no different to any other day?
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i'm going to eat the lot!0
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I will be having a day off - i just could not face having a healthy meal when everyone else will be digging in! And the chocolates that get passed around all day - nope i could not resist One day surely will not hurt.0
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Funnily enough, we have just been talking about that. Best suggestions so far are a picnic locally in the camper or drive down to Spain where we might get some better weather.0
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I'm not going to go overboard, but I'll make sure there's plenty of healthy chocies around. My husband isn't a big turky fan, so we usually do something else, like a venison casserole. I dont like Christmas pudding, so last year I did a variation of a Provence dessert called Les Treize, which is basicially little morsels of fruit and nuts.0
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I eat what I want in moderation. I am not a fan of chocolate or any other sweets, so it's not that bad of a day:bigsmile:0
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I'll eat what I want on the day, but it will be just the one day, it won't spread into a month long food fest like it so easily can do.
Also in the past sometimes I have eaten till I have been too full. Determined I will only eat till I'm full, and therefore avoid the bloated sick feeling afterwards0 -
This Christmas will be the first one where it's just myself and my son so we'll probably do a roast dinner with some (not all) trimmings or maybe even do a Turk dish as neither of us are big roast eaters.
I can easily resist chocolates, it's the savoury nibbles that I'll be treating myself to but as it will only be the two of us I won't have to have bowls of every crisp/snack/sweet/nut under the sun dotted all around the house as I normally would when there's more of us.
I didn't have a mince pie or bit of pudding last Christmas so that's no biggy for me.
Last Christmas I gained 2.25lb during 24/12 - 28/12 but this was gone again by NYE and I never gained again, this was with having family staying over for the whole period and indulging much more than I can see myself doing this year so I'm not going to stress about it.
As long as my son is happy and having a good time that's about all I need, the calories aren't an issue for me, lol!0 -
This will be the second Christmas of my new lifestyle & last year I tried to alter some dishes & introduce new ones. This time i think I will stick with to the altered dishes (little things, like greek yogurt instead of sour cream in a casserole, etc) & then instead of eating EVERYTHING AT THE TABLE ..it's Christmas, you know what's going to be served.. I'll figure out which dishes I really like (vs. which ones I used to eat just because they're there) & I will budget room for the things I want to enjoy.
The holiday focus should be on family & friends, not food. And if I need to focus on presents for a year or two to help not focus on the food than so be it Presents are fun & they're zero calories!0 -
Just seeing the title of this thread got me excited and it was nothing to do with my stocking being stuffed!
I LOVE a full Christmas dinner, it has to be my absolute favourite!
So for me:
Roast duck with port and cherry sauce
Braised venison with bacon, chestnuts, wild mushrooms in a madeira sauce
Roasted potatoes (in goose fat)
Carrots with thyme, cumin and orange butter
Maple roast parsnips
Brussel sprouts with pancetta
God knows how many calories and who cares?! It's Christmas!0 -
My hubby's family makes Christmas tacos (or taco salads in our house).
They tell me that since the lettuce is green & tomatoes are red it's Christmas colors. And you can let the meat simmer in the crock pot all day so people can help themselves while watching Christmas movies, opening gifts and when visiting friends/family come by then can nibble some too.
edited to add: Thanksgiving we'll do the tradional feast though and stuff our faces.0 -
well usually i have two xmas dinners, 1 at my mother in laws then one at my mums so neither of them miss out, but my parents are going to india for christmas so will have the one xmas dinner, and scoff the lot!!! i only eat a small amount of meat and loads of veg so its fine!!0
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I cook for 14 people on Christmas Day and I love it - my strategy will be to just do what I've always done, it's Christmas for Pete's sake . I plan to eat and drink what I want - one Christmas is not going to sabotage my healthier lifestyle. I'm not on a diet, I'm just being a bit more healthy so why would I deny myself on Christmas Day?
Can't wait! I love having all the people I love together0 -
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day I will be having the days off I won't eat as much as I probably normally would on a holiday but I am definitely eating all the good food.0
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Where I cook 100% fresh all the time, it will really be similar to just another day but have a menu planned already ahead of time.
Christmas dinner is always something I throw on the grill - yes, I grill outside in the middle of winter as much as possible!!!!
Fresh Prime Rib
Au jus made from the prime rib
Freshly grated horseradish for mine, but we both love a sautee of baby portabella mushrooms and onion in garlic and wine on top of the prime rib
Spears of asparagus lightly coated with olive oil, fresh rosemary, thyme and finished with freshly squeezed lemon
"Loaded" Mashed yukon potatoes for my husband (loaded meaning shaved parmesan, home-cured hickory bacon, sour cream and chives)
For me a 'pasta' of zucchini, summer-squash and carrots in a wonderful herbal compound butter sauce
I make fresh whole grain rolls for my husband to sop up the juices and he just grabs whatever compound butter I have made in the freezer.
I always make a fresh minestrone or Pasta e Fagioli soup (this is a two-day process in the making) with a hearty rich broth, fresh vegetables and herbs and a small variety of beans.
Dessert for him is always his favorite: "Grasshopper" brownie sundae. Homemade fudge brownies with kahlua seeped into the brownie. The brownie is split in half: one layer features Godiva White Chocolate liqeuer in the frosting, the top/outer frosting featured Dekuyper's dark creme de minthe, frozen Andes Candies broken and sprinkled on top, and a whole Oreo cookie on top - and fresh made whipped cream on top.
For me, I prepare a low-carb Red/Black Raspberry cheesecake using crushed almonds for the base, and a recipe of cream-cheese, homemade whipped cream, berries that are mashed and mixed well, spread on top of the almond-crust and then the top is garnished with more fresh red/black raspberries... Even my husband is known to steal from my dessert as well! LOL!0 -
We have family coming into town, so I'm going to put a turkey and a ham in the smoker. Honestly, I home cook my entire holiday dinner, and it takes me about 3 days, so I'll probably do that as usual. I enjoy hosting the holidays like that. It's a lot of fun, and it burns off a ton of calories doing that much food prep and running around. I'm usually totally exhausted at the end.
I usually do deviled eggs, potato salad, roasted green beans with almonds and garlic, mashed potatoes, noodle casserole, homemade bread (usually five 2-lb loaves), pecan pie, pumpkin pie, coconut cream pie, spoonbread, and we serve home-baked (this year, we're going to smoke instead) turkey and a spiral cut honey ham.
As far as eating goes, I'm going to enjoy a little of everything. We usually do a big holiday breakfast with fresh eggs, ham or bacon, and homemade biscuits on Christmas morning then don't eat again until late in the evening (after dark).0 -
This will be the first christmas i dont go overboard, i will eat in moderation and log everything just to see what i actuall will get through Lol..0
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Christmas?? I got to make it past Thanksgiving first! :bigsmile:0
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I don't really struggle much with overeating on the actual DINNER ... it's the desserts and chocolates that get me.0
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for Christmas we have never had any kind of big meal, even growing up, it was more of a snack all day thing. Thanksgiving is the hard one for me!0
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We fancied a change so we're going to a rather nice local pub / restaurant for Christmas dinner this year. At £80 per head you'll be damn sure I'm eating every last bite along with any leftovers from ours or the surrounding tables...0
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Last November, I began sticking to a healthy eating / exercise lifestyle. I continued to lose through Christmas (about 10 lbs in 10 weeks - I was a high-healthy weight to begin with, this time anyway). I wasn't weighing myself daily, or even weekly, but maybe every 3-4 weeks.
I don't mind over-indulging for one day. However, for my family, Christmas may involve multiple large dinners with different people hosting or different sectors of my family. Throw in staff parties and other outings and you could be in for trouble. I hear so many people lament over weight they've gained over Christmas, or temptations they've had to face, or feeling that they've denied themselves something, or that they deserve to binge at the holidays.
My philosophy is that it's just food. Go ahead, enjoy your meal, try that item that you're curious about, but stay away from the snacks, fillers, and be careful about high-cal alcoholic beverages. Enjoy the people instead. If you'll be having two similar meals (turkey dinner), think "This is not a new taste for me, I can have a moderate amount, and be satisfied that I have enjoyed my meal."
And make time to exercise.0 -
First, if you eat healthy all year, one day won't do a single thing.
Second, I'm at a stage where I don't think I would stuff my face. I'm not into it anymore. A lot of the food served is pretty good. It's the munchie food that always used to get me. Simple answer, stay away from the crackers, chips, dips, and all that. Just don't eat it. When it's time for dinner, just have a plate of food, and be done with it. Don't obsess about it from September to December. Just chill out.0 -
My mom usually has ham for Christmas dinner, and I'm not a big fan of ham (or pork or bacon. hmm.) so I usually eat everything but that, but even still I tend to give myself a 'free pass' on special occasions like Christmas and Thanksgiving and the like. How often do I get to enjoy a giant meal with my family?
And I will never ever give up the homemade waffles and fruit topping and whipped cream that has been the traditional Christmas breakfast in my family for the past 20 years or so. It's just not Christmas without a waffle. Mmmm.0 -
I dont celbrate Christmas as i'm aethiest but i do go to my parents for a 'Sunday roast' (Beef usually). I hate rost dinners- so I'll probably pick at it and munch on chcolates later, as usual.0
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omg.....im so excited for christmas always am lol....i shall be eating what i want on christmas eve and christmas day..
all the food i cook is the type of food id eat all year anyway, i dont drip it all in fat just because its christmas etc, im not a huge chocolate fan, so thats fine,......for me its the christmas pudding with brandy cream, cheese and bisuits that will be my sticking point, but i dont binge or eat to bursting, so im not that fussed :happy:0 -
Well...I typically make a lot of sweets this time of year. And I am lucky enough that my DH takes them off my hands to all his work guys.
As far as Christmas meal goes, we started our own tradition a few years ago of NOT having the traditional Christmas dinner. So we have Carne Asada Tacos every Christmas. My DH is the bomb at carne asada. We make homemade salsa too. Its fantastic! And we only have it twice a year (because its so much work)...once in the summer and on Christmas. :drinker:0 -
My family usually has a fairly healthy Christmas dinner because we eat vegetarian and have a nutroast. But of course we do have our yorkshire puds . Let me know if you want some of our recipes. xoxo0
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Christmas has changed for me. It used to start on Thanksgiving with more food than you can imagine. Both my mother and father love cooking and baking....and the whole family was obese...so it was not out of the ordinary to over indulge the holiday season away.
Now that I live in the UK Christmas is a very different story. My in-laws prepare 1 meal, usually a roast turkey with some sides, but nothing over board. My in-laws are also a whole family of thin people...the whole season is different when you aren't surrounded by disordered eating.
I'm not worried about Christmas at all. What I DO worry about are my trips home, lol. yikes!0 -
Since I'm now the one who cooks Christmas dinner, it gets to be the way I want it to be. I'll make the traditional Christmas ham for the family. Followed with mashed potatoes for my son (he loves them), which I probably won't eat 'cause I don't like 'em that much. Then I'll have roasted sweet potatoes, green beans, and maybe some whole grain stuffing if I can bother with the energy to make it. That'll do. We'll have a dessert, though I have no idea what. I'll have a small serving b/c a large one will leave me feeling bad.
For us it's not about the food itself. It's about spending time with family and appreciating what the holiday actually means. The Birth we celebrate.0 -
On Christmas what I eat would probably depend on who I'm with, and it's not a time that I would count calories, although I probably will watch potion sizes just to keep from going overboard.
If I'm with my rural Kansas Grandparents, breakfast food for dinner time on Christmas Eve is probably on the menu, so fresh homemade biscuits with butter and jam or honey or "white" gravy (or combinations of all of the above), bacon, sausage, and fried eggs. The cookies of choice are frosted cut-out sugar cookies, chocolate no-bakes, snicker doodles, and an old family recipe for awesome oatmeal cookies (no raisins). (Seriously, what most people know of as oatmeal cookies don't hold a candle to these lovelies.) And usually someone else makes peanut brittle.
If I'm with my parents, for lunch it's probably more likely food that my late (also Kansas) Grandma used to make, like a cheese soup very similar to this one http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/cheese-soup-recipe/index.html served with oyster crackers. (I've made it with regular whole milk, low sodium broth, no wine and cheddar cheese before and it's still very tasty. It reheats well and was a great excuse for me to buy a stick blender.). Dinner would likely be ham and beans with cornbread. The cookies of choice are "peppernuts" (flavored with anise and very addictive, although my husband swears they aren't "cookies" since they are hard as rocks/nuts) and soft chewy gingersnaps (loaded with molasses, and they disappear quickly when I take them to parties). Flavored popcorn is also on the snack list.
With my husband's family, seeing as how they are Jewish, it's Chinese food. :P Apparently all Jews have Chinese food on Christmas. I did not know this before I married one, but it's been confirmed to me by every Jew I've meet since.
Left to my own devices, in the Carolinas where I've grown up and live, it's biscuits and "sawmill" gravy for a late breakfast/brunch and cheese soup later in the afternoon or evening. Cookies of choice are all the family recipes I know, but I box most of them up as gifts, so hubby complains that he don't get to eat nearly enough of them. :P0
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