Swap unhealthy eating with healthier options

• Have meals together- As per National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, kids who eat meals with their family regularly tend to get score better, experience higher levels of motivation and are less likely to use drugs and alcohol.


• Find healthier substitutes for sugary cereals- Try oatmeal instead. Top it with applesauce, berries, fruits or cinnamon and try to skip the sugar altogether.


• Bid goodbye to white bread- Opt for whole-grain breads instead.


• Get rid of the soda- Give up drinking soda and other heavily sweetened beverages. Drink more water instead.


• Beware of unhealthy fats- Make sure you know the difference between unhealthy (saturated fats) and healthy (unsaturated) fats clearly. Cut the unhealthy fats completely, and try to consume healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats in moderation. Omega-3 fatty acids – found in fatty fish, flaxseed and walnuts are good for a healthy heart. Try serving an Omega-3-rich fish entrée at least twice per week.


• Make mealtime pleasant- Dinner shouldn’t be considered as a time to lecture your kids. Instead use it as a chance to get to know one another better and bond as a family.


• Never use food as a reward or penalty- Always remember that food serves the purpose of nourishment and should never be used as an incentive or punishment.


• Go grocery shopping with kids- Involve your children in the grocery-shopping process and provide them with a range of healthy options to choose from.

Ideas to encourage active family lifestyles

• Try to be a role model- Ensure that you make healthy eating and physical activity a regular part of your family’s life.


• Supply the demand. Create a home where healthy choices are available, supported and appreciated.


• Find fun ways to engage your children.Here are a some cool ideas for healthy family activities:


• •Play tag, swim, toss a ball, jump rope, hula-hoop or dance to your favourite music.


• • Walk the dog or head to the nearby park.


• • Cook healthy meals together.


• • Go on a walking scavenger hunt throughout the neighbourhood if possible.


• • Grow your own family garden.


• • Encourage the family to help with yard work which includes tasks like pulling weeds, picking up rocks or sweeping the garage.


• • Involve the whole family in managing household chores.


• • Spend time together with family like a park day, swim day or bike day.


• • o Celebrate special occasions – birthdays, anniversaries, etc. by incorporating something active into the plan, such as a hike, volleyball or soccer game.


• • o Have a backup plan ready for poor weather or scheduling conflicts.

• • Start the day with a good breakfast. Having a hearty breakfast will provide you with all the energy to get you started for the day!
• • Make sure your bird will fit in the oven and you also have a roasting dish large enough. Otherwise you will end up having a big bird and a small oven! Horrific, right?
• • Less is more in case you’re hosting Christmas for the first time. You don’t have to do everything, menu-wise or physically. Anyone who likes to chat, give them some peeling tasks and they can talk to you at the same time. Give your creative friends the job of dressing the table.
• • Be prepared. Ensure all items required for preparing the Christmas dinner are available at home. Make realistic calculations on the time taken to complete each task esp. cutting and peeling of vegetables.
• • Never try to cram everything into the same oven. The turkey can rest for an hour, loosely covered in tin foil and tea towels, giving you an empty oven to roast potatoes and other trimmings.
• • Prepare your stuffing in advance and refrigerate it. Sweat onions and celery for 15 minutes, then add breadcrumbs that have had an hour to soak up full-fat milk, stick in an egg or two, and use butcher’s sausage meat with required amount of salt.
• • Try not to skimp on the gravy –Ensure that you have enough gravy so that you don’t run short! Make a simple chicken gravy a few days before, bolstered up with mushrooms, and thyme and then blend it smooth. It’s ready to go as is, but then you can also add the roasting juices. Speaking of which, you don’t have to be embarrassed about using the supermarket or other sources of readymade food.
• • For extra-crispy roasties, try adding half a teaspoon of baking soda to the water in which you boil them. The higher pH breaks the pectin down more quickly, giving your roasties fluffier edges and more surface area to crisp up.
• • Cooks’ muslin shall keep your turkey moist. It needs to be big enough to double and go over the turkey – a metre should do the trick. Take a large pan, melt a pack of butter and soak the muslin in it. Season your turkey, putting more butter with seasoning or herbs under the skin. Drape the muslin over the turkey and enclose it completely.

Herb and Garlic Butter Roast Turkey with Gravy

Let your Christmas spread have your family coming back for more within seconds with this addicting turkey dish!

Ingredients:

• • 1L chicken
• • 5 Kg frozen whole turkey (thawed)
• • 250g unsalted butter (softened)
• • 6 garlic cloves (crushed)
• • 1 bunch sage (finely chopped)
• • 1 bunch rosemary (finely chopped)
• • 4 cups of breadcrumbs
• • 1/3 cup of plain flour
• • Steamed peas, (to serve)
• • Green beans, (to serve)

Method

• • Preheat oven to 180°c /160°c fan-forced. Now place a wire rack in a large flameproof roasting pan.
• • Combine butter, garlic, sage and rosemary in a bowl. Season. Combine breadcrumbs, 1 cup chicken and one-third of the butter mixture in a large bowl.
• • Pat turkey dry with paper towels. Loosely fill the front and back cavities of turkey with the stuffing mixture. Secure well the front cavity with tooth picks and legs with kitchen string. Tuck wings under the turkey and then place on rack. Spread one-third of the remaining butter mixture over the turkey.
• • Add 1 cup stock and 1 cup water to pan. Bake uncovered for 3 hours, basting every 30 minutes with pan juices, or until well browned and juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced with a skewer.
• • Transfer the well cooked turkey to a large platter. Loosely cover and rest for 10 minutes. Strain pan juices into a heatproof jug and return 1/4 cup pan juices to roasting pan.
• • Add remaining butter mixture and place pan over high heat. Add flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute or until mixture bubbles.
• • Gradually add remaining chicken and cook, stirring for 5 minutes or until gravy bubbles and thicken slightly. Strain gravy into a jug.
• • Serve turkey hot with gravy, steamed peas and beans.

Swap unhealthy eating with healthier options

• • Have meals together- As per National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, kids who eat meals with their family regularly tend to get score better, experience higher levels of motivation and are less likely to use drugs and alcohol.
• •Find healthier substitutes for sugary cereals- Try oatmeal instead. Top it with applesauce, berries, fruits or cinnamon and try to skip the sugar altogether.
• • Bid goodbye to white bread- Opt for whole-grain breads instead.
• • Get rid of the soda- Give up drinking soda and other heavily sweetened beverages. Drink more water instead.
• • Beware of unhealthy fats- Make sure you know the difference between unhealthy (saturated fats) and healthy (unsaturated) fats clearly. Cut the unhealthy fats completely, and try to consume healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats in moderation. Omega-3 fatty acids – found in fatty fish, flaxseed and walnuts are good for a healthy heart. Try serving an Omega-3-rich fish entrée at least twice per week.
• • Make mealtime pleasant- Dinner shouldn’t be considered as a time to lecture your kids. Instead use it as a chance to get to know one another better and bond as a family.
• • Never use food as a reward or penalty- Always remember that food serves the purpose of nourishment and should never be used as an incentive or punishment.
• • Go grocery shopping with kids- Involve your children in the grocery-shopping process and provide them with a range of healthy options to choose from.

Ideas to encourage active family lifestyles

• • Try to be a role model- Ensure that you make healthy eating and physical activity a regular part of your family’s life.
• • Supply the demand. Create a home where healthy choices are available, supported and appreciated.
• • Find fun ways to engage your children.Here are a some cool ideas for healthy family activities:
• •o Play tag, swim, toss a ball, jump rope, hula-hoop or dance to your favourite music.
• • Walk the dog or head to the nearby park.
• • Cook healthy meals together.
• • Go on a walking scavenger hunt throughout the neighbourhood if possible.
• • Grow your own family garden.
• • Encourage the family to help with yard work which includes tasks like pulling weeds, picking up rocks or sweeping the garage.
• • Involve the whole family in managing household chores.
• • Spend time together with family like a park day, swim day or bike day.
• • o Celebrate special occasions – birthdays, anniversaries, etc. by incorporating something active into the plan, such as a hike, volleyball or soccer game.
• • o Have a backup plan ready for poor weather or scheduling conflicts.

• • Start the day with a good breakfast. Having a hearty breakfast will provide you with all the energy to get you started for the day!
• • Make sure your bird will fit in the oven and you also have a roasting dish large enough. Otherwise you will end up having a big bird and a small oven! Horrific, right?
• • Less is more in case you’re hosting Christmas for the first time. You don’t have to do everything, menu-wise or physically. Anyone who likes to chat, give them some peeling tasks and they can talk to you at the same time. Give your creative friends the job of dressing the table.
• • Be prepared. Ensure all items required for preparing the Christmas dinner are available at home. Make realistic calculations on the time taken to complete each task esp. cutting and peeling of vegetables.
• • Never try to cram everything into the same oven. The turkey can rest for an hour, loosely covered in tin foil and tea towels, giving you an empty oven to roast potatoes and other trimmings.
• • Prepare your stuffing in advance and refrigerate it. Sweat onions and celery for 15 minutes, then add breadcrumbs that have had an hour to soak up full-fat milk, stick in an egg or two, and use butcher’s sausage meat with required amount of salt.
• • Try not to skimp on the gravy –Ensure that you have enough gravy so that you don’t run short! Make a simple chicken gravy a few days before, bolstered up with mushrooms, and thyme and then blend it smooth. It’s ready to go as is, but then you can also add the roasting juices. Speaking of which, you don’t have to be embarrassed about using the supermarket or other sources of readymade food.
• • For extra-crispy roasties, try adding half a teaspoon of baking soda to the water in which you boil them. The higher pH breaks the pectin down more quickly, giving your roasties fluffier edges and more surface area to crisp up.
• • Cooks’ muslin shall keep your turkey moist. It needs to be big enough to double and go over the turkey – a metre should do the trick. Take a large pan, melt a pack of butter and soak the muslin in it. Season your turkey, putting more butter with seasoning or herbs under the skin. Drape the muslin over the turkey and enclose it completely.