When you throw a party, you may be under pressure to develop a party menu that pleases everyone. This may tempt you to put food items on your menu that are not healthy. Be conscious of what you are serving and impress your guests by making your menu healthy for everyone who attends. This means low-fat, lean proteins, fruits and vegetables along with low-calorie drink options.
Healthy Appetizers
Skip the chips and dip. Instead serve cut fresh fruit and vegetables. Dips can be high in fat so be creative and use low-fat sour cream to make dip for the vegetables. Healthy, high-protein hummus also makes a tasty dip for vegetables. For the fruit, use nonfat yogurt as a dip. Fruits and vegetables are colorful, so they can make an attractive centerpiece. Whole grain crackers with nonfat or low-fat cheeses or low-fat tortilla chips with fresh salsa made with tomatoes, onion, cilantro and peppers also make impressive healthy appetizers.
Main Dishes
When you throw a party, deciding on a main dish can be tricky. If you want to stay healthy, stick with lean proteins such as chicken breast without the skin, fish or tofu. You can grill or broil the chicken breast or fish fillets after drizzling them with a little olive oil and sprinkling them with herbs and lemon. Alternatively, fry tofu with mixed vegetables in a small amount of olive oil. Add low-sodium soy sauce to taste. Serve this with whole-grain brown rice.
Side Dishes
Steam green beans or broccoli for an easy side dish. Add lemon, herbs and pepper to taste. Baked sweet potatoes or squash provide your guests with colorful vegetables they can enjoy; sprinkle with cinnamon for a sweet treat. If you serve bread, rice or pasta, choose whole grain.
Dessert
Dessert can be both delicious and healthy. Serve a light, low-fat cake with plenty of fresh berries and pineapple chunks. Offer nondairy, nonfat whipped topping for the cake with fruit. If you prefer, offer guests a variety of sorbets or nonfat, low-calorie ice cream.
Drinks
Provide your guests with flavored seltzers with no sugar added for light, nonalcoholic beverages; they come in different flavors, are refreshing and have few if any calories. Offer ice water with lemon and mint or unsweetened herbal iced tea as an alternative.
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