Tis the season for boots, leggings, oversized sweaters, and FOOTBALL! Well, maybe not the football, but it definitely gives us all the more reasons to tailgate that consists of eating and drinking excessively. However, girls especially, are fighting the extra college pounds that we miraculously seem to gain from the alcohol and those late night munchies. A saying that my friends and I repeatedly announce when it’s the weekend is, “Our diet starts on Monday!” But that’s ending, and healthy munching starts now!
Below are some yummy skinny tailgating recipes and drinks that fall under our desired calorie intake and that satisfy those “comfort food” cravings! Tailgate with NO SHAME and NO REGRETS!
Cocktails
1. Morning Mimosa
• Trop50 Orange Juice
• Preference of Champagne
To start off your morning right, why not have some vitamin C and a little bubbly? Just add 3 parts champagne and 2 parts orange juice!
2. Crystal on the Rocks
• Preference of Vodka
• Crystal Light To-Go Packet
If you’re feeling ambitious and want to start with the vodka, go right ahead! Mix a Sugar Free and 5 calorie Crystal Lite Packet (Any Flavor) into your water bottle and shake well. Using the Crystal Lite as your mixer pour into a separate cup and add in your number preference of shots of vodka!
3. Skinny White Sangria
• Skinnygirl bought at your local liquor store
• 5 oz. 143 calories
4. Michelob ultra light cider
• Bought at your local grocery/convenient store
• 12 oz. 120 calories
Appetizers
1. Grilled Fruit kabobs
• Package of wooden skewers
• Cantaloupe, pineapple, melon
Instead of your average fruit kabobs, why not grill them!? Slide your cantaloupe, pineapple, and melon onto the skewers and place onto grill for about 2 minutes or until it starts to brown, and then flip them over to grill the reverse side!
2. Veggie Platter with salsa ranch dip
• Assortment of veggies- red, green, and yellow peppers, carrots, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup of Nancy’s Skinny Ranch Dressing
• ½ cup of Pace Chunky, medium-hot (or your favorite)
Mix the 2 ingredients together in a bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour for it to thicken before serving and spread veggies around the dip.
2 tablespoons is 35 calories and 2.5 grams of fat
http://www.skinnykitchen.com/recipes/veggies-and-salsa-ranch-dip/
3. Turkey Burger
• Brand preference – Bubba Burgers or jennie-o
• Whole wheat buns
• Favorite condiments
Turkey Burgers are a great alternative other than your average burger! They are almost half the calories and total fat than a beef burger! And cheese isn’t necessary because they are filled with such great flavor!
4. Mac N Cheese Lite
• Non stick cooking spray
• Salt
• 4 ounces of whole wheat macaroni
• ½ cup of onion garlic pure
• ½ teaspoon dry mustard
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 cup shredded 50% reduced fat cheddar cheese
• 1/3 cup of non fat greek yogurt
• ¼ cup of whole wheat panko bread crumbs
• ¼ cup of grated parmesan cheese
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mist an 8-by-8-inch baking dish with cooking spray; set it aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook according to package directions, drain. Meanwhile, bring onion-garlic puree, mustard, and cayenne to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Whisk in cheddar until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in yogurt. In a medium bowl, toss the macaroni with the cheese sauce. Season with salt to taste. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle panko over the top. Top with Parmesan. Bake until Parmesan is melted and macaroni is hot throughout, about 10 minutes. VIOLA!
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/quick-recipes/dinner/healthy-mac-…
5. Farfalle with Watercress, Cherry Tomatoes, and Feta Salad
• 8 ounces of farfalle pasta
• 1 cup of crumbled reduced fat feta cheese
• 2 pints of cherry tomatoes (halved)
• 3 cups of watercress leaves
• ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
Cook pasta according to package directions. Place the cheese in a large bowl; top with the watercress. Before draining the pasta, take 1/4 cup of the cooking water from the pot and pour it over the watercress. (Watercress will wilt slightly and cheese will get soft.) Place the tomatoes in a colander. Drain the pasta over the tomatoes for a super-quick blanch. Toss with the watercress and cheese; sprinkle with pepper and serve! YUMMMOO
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/quick-recipes/dinner/easy-healthy…
6. Skinny Mexican Layered Dip
• 1 16 ounce can nonfat refried beans, preferable “spicy”
• 1 15 ounce can black beans rinsed
• 4 scallions, sliced
• ½ cup prepared salsa
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ¼ cup of pickled jalapeno slices
• 1 cup of shredded Monterey jack cheese
• ½ cup reduced fat sour cream
• 1 ½ cups of chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 1 medium avocado, chopped
• Whole wheat tortilla chips
Combine refried beans, black beans, scallions, salsa, cumin, chili powder and jalapeños in a medium bowl. Transfer to a shallow 2-quart microwave-safe dish; sprinkle with cheese. Microwave on High until the cheese is melted and the beans are hot, 3 to 5 minutes. Spread sour cream evenly over the hot bean mixture, then scatter with lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/southwestern_layered_bean_dip.html
7. Banana Delights
• 5 Bananas
• 3 oz. of vanilla greek yogurt
• 1 ½ tablespoons of natural peanut butter
These are perfect for your frozen treats! Slice ¾ of a banana and mash it up into a bowl. Add in 5 oz. of greek yogurt into the bowl and add in the 1½ tablespoon of natural peanut butter and mix well. Slice up the remaining bananas. Spread the mushed bananas, yogurt, and peanuts butter onto a slice and then top it off with another making mini sandwiches and then freeze for an hour!
All recipes are guilt free! No more worrying about the calories…pack those coolers and hit the tailgating fields!
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