Massabesic Health Resources December 2018

Surviving the Season of Sweets How to Indulge Your Sweet ToothWith Less Sugar

Cookies, cakes, and pies, oh my! The holiday season is brimming with sweet treats of all kinds. Sometimes it can feel like candy and sugary desserts are around every corner, and yet you still want to indulge. However, when you consider that over 50 percent of Americans are insulin-resistant, prediabetic, or diabetic, that piece of pumpkin pie with whipped cream starts to look more dangerous than appetizing. During the holidays, how can you satisfy your sweet tooth without worrying about consuming excessive sugar and calories? Skip the candy and go for the fruits and nuts. Keeping a bowl of fruit and nuts nearby can help keep sugar cravings at bay. Dried fruits, such as cranberries, pineapple, or apricots, are both sweet and nutritious. Just be sure to check the packaging for added sugars. You can even make your own dried fruit with a food dehydrator. This way, you are completely in control of the ingredients. No matter what you do, just be mindful not to overindulge. Dried fruit is high in sugar and calories, but the fiber and vitamins make fruit much healthier than just about any other sugary treat. Another way to cut down on your sugar intake is to use dark chocolate in all your chocolate-based treats. Dark chocolate has about half as much sugar as milk chocolate, twice as much healthy fat, less cholesterol, 4–5 times more iron, twice as much potassium,

fewer carbs, and more flavonoids and theobromine. The antioxidant properties of the theobromine and flavonoids make dark chocolate as good for your heart as it is for your soul. If you have a recipe that calls for chocolate, reach for the dark stuff, whether it’s dark chocolate chips, cocoa powder, or baking chocolate. While it may seem as though everyone and their grandma is overindulging in sugar this season, know that you have the choice to opt for healthier sweets. And come New Year’s, you won’t have to spend the first few months of 2019 working off that extra cookie weight.

Take a Break!

Holiday

ROAST PRIME RIB

Ingredients

1 bone-in prime rib (6–7 pounds)

4 cups beef stock

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 cups red wine

Directions

1. 30 minutes before cooking, remove roast from fridge and let sit until it reaches room temperature.

5. Tomake au jus, place roasting pan with drippings from roast over 2 burners on high. Add wine and scrape pan as liquid reduces. Add beef stock and

2. Heat oven to 350 F.

cook until reduced by half. Finally, sprinkle in thyme.

3. Make small slits in prime rib and stuff with slices of garlic. Liberally season with salt and pepper. 4. Place a rack inside a roasting pan and roast prime rib for 2 hours, until medium-rare.

6. Slice roast and serve topped with au jus.

CANDLE COOKIES DECORATIONS FAMILY

GRATITUDE HOLIDAYS SNOWFLAKE SNOWMAN

SNOWSTORM TRADITION

TRAVEL WINTER

Inspired by Food Network

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