Eating healthy on Super Bowl Sunday is like tightrope walking in hurricane-force winds. The unhealthy choices surround you: dips with more layers of cheese than you thought possible, deep-fried chicken wings covered in buttery hot sauce, carb-laden snack food, you get the idea. Leslie Anders is a nutritionist who has spent more than 15 years helping people of all ages avoid these pitfalls. She recommends not arriving to your party with an empty stomach and dedicating at least half of your party plate to veggies. We asked her to suggest a few recipes so that our readers have a shot at staying on course during the eating frenzy.
White Bean Dip
Ingredients
· 2 cans cannellini beans
· 4 tablespoon olive oil—plus extra to garnish
· One small garlic clove
· Fresh herbs of your choice—cilantro, parsley, basil, etc.
· 6 red peppers
· Toasted pine nuts
· Salt and white pepper to taste
· Raw vegetables of your choice. Suggested: fresh sugar snap pea pods, yellow and red peppers, celery sticks, baby carrots, cucumber slices, zucchini spears, etc.
Directions
Rinse and drain beans. In a blender or food processor, combine beans, 2 tbsp olive oil, and herbs. Puree on high until smooth (no pieces). Season with sea salt and ground white pepper. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and roast whole peppers at 420 degrees for 20 minutes. Rotate peppers and then cook for another 20 minutes or until soft and charred. Once cooled, peel blackened skin, pat peppers dry, remove seeds, and puree with 2 tbsp olive oil. Swirl red pepper paste into bean puree and garnish with a handful of toasted pine nuts. Drizzle olive oil on top. Serve with fresh veggies.
Sausage, Peppers, & Onions
Ingredients
· 3 lbs natural (no added preservatives) spicy chicken or turkey sausage
· 2 Vidalia (sweet), yellow, and red onions sliced
· 2 2-inch slices of yellow, red, and green peppers
Directions
Pan sear and thoroughly cook sausage in skillet. Diagonally slice the sausages into 1-inch pieces and set aside. Sautee peppers in olive oil until moderately soft. In a separate pan, caramelize the onions until softened. Toss the sausage, peppers, and onions together. Serve with crusty whole grain baguette or seeded semolina Italian bread.
Fresh fruit salad
Ingredients
· 1 pineapple, diced—save juice
· 2 pints of berries (black or blue)
· 2 peeled and medium-chopped apples (preferably Granny Smith)
· Unsweetened, preservative-free shredded coconut
· Non-fat plain Greek yogurt
· Honey
· Vanilla extract
Directions
Combine apple, pineapple, pomegranate seeds, blackberries, and/or blueberries in a bowl. Add a splash of fresh pineapple juice. Carefully toast shredded coconut on cookie sheet. Allow it to cool and garnish each serving generously.
Optional: Spoon fruit salad on dollop of Greek yogurt and honey.
Bonus! Tropical Rum Tonic
Mix light rum with chilled coconut water, fresh lime juice, and a small amount of fresh grated ginger on ice. (Paper and umbrella optional, of course.)
