Super Bowl Sunday: A Healthy Touchdown

Super Bowl Sunday brings the opportunity to gather with your friends, family, and remaining football teams. Centered around the television set and a plethora of food, this occasion provides the temptation to easily break your diet and regret one-to-many nachos. Instead of feeling guilty by halftime, take a pass on bad foods and run a touchdown for health this Super Bowl Sunday.

Here’s 5 tips for staying healthy on Super Bowl Sunday and 5 championship recipes to bring to the party as the MVP:

 

Five tips for staying Super Bowl healthy

1. Eat before: Worried about getting stuck with the only option of hotdogs and fried chicken wings? Eat a meal before heading to your party to fend off temptation. Then, if you see something you want to try, go ahead and have a bite!
2. Make your chips veggies: Cant’ resist that dip? Go for it, but trade your chips in for raw vegetables. Dip tomatoes in guacamole, carrots in salsa, and celery in spinach-artichoke dip.
3. Drinking? Make a spritzer: Fill your glass ½ up with your alcoholic beverage of choice and fill the rest up with sparking water.
4. Bring an activity: Instead of bringing food, bring a game to your Super Bowl party. Set up a bet, orchestretate a game during the commercial breaks, or brainstorm an activity. Change your focus from food to activity.
5. Bring appetizers: When you bring your own food to the party, you don’t have to worry about hidden ingredients or unknown calories. Show up with one of the healthy appetizers below at your Super bowl party…

Five championship recipes

Buffalo Cauliflower

Ingredients

• ½ head cauliflower (broken into florets)
• ½ cup milk
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. yogurt butter
• ½ cup franks hot sauce.

Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In bowl, mix flour, milk and garlic salt. Dip each piece of cauliflower piece and let excess batter drip off.
3. Place onto greased baking sheet and bake for 18 minutes.
4. Mix yogurt butter and hot sauce in a separate large bowl.
5. When “wings” are done, let sit for 2-3 minutes, then drop them all in the sauce bowl and gently coat using a spoon.
6. Take them out, put on plate; show off and serve.

 

Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 can of garbanzo beans
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 lemon (squeezed)
• 2-3 tbs. Tahini (or white miso paste)
• 2 tbs. water
• 2 garlic cloves
• Sprinkle of pepper and salt

Recipe

1. Add all ingredients in blender or food processor. Blend till smooth; adding more olive oil to reach desired consistency.
2. Pour in bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle of salt and pepper.
3. Add your allegiance: Bronco Fans: Add ½ grilled orange pepper; Panther Fans: Add ¼ cup cooked black beans; Undecided Fans: Fill bowl with ½ of each variation.

 

Spinach-Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:

• 1 package frozen spinach
• 1 can artichoke hearts (drained and rinsed)
• 1 container Greek yogurt, 1 garlic clove (diced)
• 2 tbs fat free feta cheese
• 2 tbs parmesan
• 1 tsp garlic salt

Recipe:

1. Combine the ingredients together
2. Place mixture in greased ramekin. Place in oven for 25-35 minutes, or until broiling and browned.
3. Serve warm with whole-wheat crackers and crisp veggies.

 

Buffalo-Chicken Dip


Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breast (shredded)
• 1⁄2 cup Franks hot sauce
• 1⁄2 cup low-fat ranch dressing
• 1 package low-fat cream cheese
• 1⁄4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Combine the ingredients together.
3. Place mixture in greased ramekin. Bake for 15 minutes, or until broiling and browned.
4. Serve warm with carrots and celery.

 

Portobello Pizzas

Ingredients:

• 8 baby Portobello mushrooms
• ½ cup tomato sauce
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
• 8 slices pepperoni

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Wash mushrooms, dry off, and remove stem.
3. In bowl, combine Parmesan and marinara sauce.
4. Place 1 scoop of sauce in each mushroom cap.
5. Place mushrooms on greased baking sheet, top with sprinkle mozzarella and 1 slice pepperoni.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is broiling and browned.
7. Remove from oven, let cool for 5 minutes, and then serve.

 

Happy, Healthy Super Bowl Sunday!!

Hashtag #HealthyTouchdown if you use one of these tips or tricks on February 7th!