Healthy St. Patty's Day Tips

You can fix up a traditional St. Patty’s Day meal while maintaining a healthful eating plan. Here are tasty tips for preparing a healthy Irish feast:

•For corned beef, purchase the leanest brisket possible and trim off any extra fat before cooking. Also rinse with water to remove the brine.
•Prepare home made mashed potatoes with low-fat or nonfat Greek yogurt and milk in place of butter. Season to taste with garlic and onion powders and fresh ground pepper.
•Steam vegetables using frozen steam in the bag varieties or steam fresh in season veggies to preserve as many vitamins and nutrients as possible while maintaining the flavor.
•Serve corned beef on whole-wheat bread or sandwich thins with reduced-fat Swiss cheese. Mix low-fat or fat-free mayonnaise with horseradish for a tasty condiment.
Also watch the additional calories from green beer and have a glass of water in between each drink to help prevent dehydration. Calories from alcohol are metabolized as fats so be sure to exercise portion control!

If you just can’t part with traditional, higher-calorie ingredients, eat a lighter meal earlier in the day, eat smaller portions and make sure to include physical activity to burn some calories!

Happy St. Patty's Day and Healthy Eating!