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Thanksgiving Leftovers: Healthy Post-Holiday Recipes

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

It may seem like you just got through the marathon of preparing for your Thanksgiving dinner, but we wanted to make sure you to provide you with plenty of options for what to do with your remaining turkey, mashed potato and other traditional holiday favorites. So we pulled together a diet-friendly menu of what to do with your Turkey day leftovers.

More Healthy Holiday Meals: This Week on AOL Health

Nutrition & Supplements

shrimp cocktail

Photo: jupiterimages


Get your game face on. It may be early, but that doesn't mean the feasting hasn't commenced. While some of you don't have the heart to skimp on the fat to make your Thanksgiving recipes any healthier, others may have been taking careful notes while That's Fit's resident nutritionist, Tanya Zuckerbrot, transformed your traditional recipes into low fat, lighter fare (cornbread, pumpkin pie or the whole Thanksgiving feast). If you're still hungry for more healthy holiday meals, AOL Health has got simple swaps, such as shrimp cocktail for deep-fried anything, to keep your calorie count down during the holidays.

Feeling guilty even before the holiday season gets into full-swing? Add this exercise to your workout to keep you lean and toned.

Save Money and Cut Calories - Here's How!

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

restaurant foodGoing out to eat isn't just expensive -- it also costs you a lot of calories. Even when I'm trying to be super healthy at a restaurant, I generally consume considerably more calories in a meal than I would at home.

And, let's be honest -- when you're at a restaurant, you don't always want to be super healthy. Sometimes, the entire reason you go to a restaurant is because you're dying to get the shrimp scampi, or you've been thinking about that baked artichoke dip all week long, and nothing else is going to satisfy.

Fortunately, you can make a lot of these dishes at home, where you'll save money and a lot of calories. Check out the gallery for five recipes from the Winter 2009 issue of the Publix GreenWise Market Magazine!

5 Recipes That Save Cash and Calories(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Baked Artichoke-Spinach Dip: Save 73 calories and $1.29 per servingShrimp Scampi: Save 410 calories and $7.13Peanut Lettuce Wraps: Save 131 calories and $2.49 per servingFajita Quesadillas: Save 866 calories and $9.43Blue Cheese-Topped Burger with Carmelized Onions: Save 665 calories and $6.06

Got a recipe you want us to healthy up for you? Leave it in the comments and we'll do what we can to help!

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Spice It Up - 7 Flavorful Recipes

Nutrition & Supplements

spices
Herbs, seasonings and spices can be your best friends when you're trying to cook healthfully. They add tons of flavor without upping the calorie or fat content.

"Fitness Magazine" has seven great spicy recipes that will fit into your healthy lifestyle. Their Hearty Beef Chili recipe is jazzed up with some smoky cumin and it gets its heat from chipotle chili pepper, Thai Pork Stir Fry gets a kick from curry, and fresh ginger flavors the Chicken with Rice Noodles.

All those seasonings and spices can really add up when you buy them at the grocery store. Consider buying them from a health food store instead; you can usually buy just what you need. Also, whole spices tend to have more flavor, so grind your own when possible. To get the most life out of your spices, keep them in air-tight containers in a cool, dry space, preferably away from light.

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Peanut Butter - Try Making Your Own

Nutrition & Supplements

peanutsI was making out a grocery list the other day and realized we were almost out of peanut butter. We don't make many peanut butter sandwiches around here, but celery with peanut butter is one of my son's favorite snacks. Even though I know most major brands of peanut butter aren't on the growing list of recalled peanut products, I have to admit that I paused. The whole salmonella scare is enough to put a person off peanut butter entirely.

Planet Green has a great solution; make your own peanut butter. Not only does DIY peanut butter eliminate any worries about salmonella, it also means you control the ingredients -- there's no partially hydrogenated oil in sight! All you'll need is shelled and skinned roasted peanuts, honey, sea salt and peanut oil. Homemade peanut butter lasts about two months when sealed in an airtight container.

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Nuts - Get Saucy With This Healthy Food

Nutrition & Supplements

nuts
After the low-fat craze, some people are still afraid to eat anything that's fatty. But the key is finding the good fats.

Nuts are a great source of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats -- two fats that actually benefit your health. The problem? It's easy to go overboard when snacking on munchable, yummy nuts. Though they're rich in healthy fats, nuts are still high in calories. So it's important to be reasonable when snacking.

For another alternative -- and one that's hard to go overboard on -- try nut-based sauces for poultry, fish and vegetables. This week, The New York Times will feature a series of recipes for nut-based sauces. Check them out -- and try them out too.

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Sweet Stuffed Sweet Potatoes - You'll Love This Recipe

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

Sweet potatoes are a nutritional gold mine. High in vitamin A, vitamin C, fiber, iron and other powerful nutrients, choosing sweet potatoes over other varieties is a no-brainer. This Sweet Stuffed Sweet Potato recipe is very easy to make, and the sweet flavor makes it taste a little more like dessert than a vegetable.

The recipe can be found on page 8 of my online recipe book at Fitzness.com. I make it often at family meals, but sometimes I just cut the ingredients down and whip some up for myself. Give it a try! I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

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Fish Tacos - How to Cook Them Healthfully

Celebs & Entertainment, Nutrition & Supplements

Wellness Chef Laurie Erickson demonstrates how to make both healthy and delicious fish tacos. You can use her recipe with tofu or chicken as well!

For more great cooking tips, fun fit tips, and innovative training videos visit SportsHealthExericse.org.

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Bacon Explosion - More Like a Calorie Explosion

Nutrition & Supplements

baconBetween all the crazy things people deep fry and Paula Deen's Brunch Burgers, I thought I had heard it all. But the bacon explosion takes me to a new level of disgusted.

To make the bacon explosion (which could also be called the "heart attack on a plate"), you weave together strips of raw bacon and sprinkle it with barbecue seasoning. Then cover the bacon with a layer of sausage and sprinkle with crumbled, cooked bacon. Roll it all up, sprinkle with more seasoning, and grill.

The Examiner estimates that the whole thing adds up to around 5,000 calories and 500 grams of fat (much of which is saturated fat). That is one recipe to stay far away from. If you're looking for some savory treats for Super Bowl Sunday, try some of these skinny Super Bowl recipes, instead.

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A More Nutritious - More Filling Soup

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

On a chilly winter day, hot soup often hits the spot. My problem with soup is that it rarely fills me up. Mind you, I'm a little lady and I still don't find a bowl of soup satisfying. I can't imagine how hungry a big guy would be without adding a large sandwich on the side.

I have a solution, though! For a long time, I've been adding other ingredients like cooked vegetables to canned soups to keep the calories low, the meals hot and my tummy full. It's really easy and quick and actually allows soup to become a meal in itself.

I've added my Easy to Make - Soup Dinner recipe to the online recipe book at Fitzness.com on page 32. I hope you'll give it a try!

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A Healthy Waste of Time

Nutrition & Supplements

smoothie ingredients in blenderDo you have a few minutes to waste? I know, I know ... you're busy. But everyone deserves a few minutes just to relax, right?

Check out this new game on Shockwave.com. The Wonder-Juice Machine is a fun way to give your brain a little challenge. A minor mental workout like this is a great way to take your mind off of your troubles for a few minutes and relieve a little stress.

As as added perk, the game includes actual recipes for nutritious smoothies that you can try at home. And keep your eye out for the health tips about different fruits and vegetables. Who knew a game could include such handy health advice?

Carrots - From Snack to Sidedish

Nutrition & Supplements

woman holding carrotsOh, how I miss my local farmer's market. When I go shopping at the local grocery store, the produce department is kind of depressing. The other day the bell peppers were wrinkled and just begging to be put out of their misery. But carrots ... carrots are the ultimate fighting champion of the vegetable world. They look good all year long.

Carrots are a frequent snack at my house. We also steam them as a side dish and dice up the leftover steamed carrots to add to rice the next day.

The New York Times has two great recipes for another carrot side dish. Both grated carrot salad varieties sound utterly tasty. The curry-laced salad is going to be showing up on my dinner table soon.

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Fitz's Fat Free Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products, Nutrition & Supplements

fitz absFrosting, of course, will never reach the 'healthy factor' of fresh fruit and vegetables. It can, however, be made more wisely to preserve the sweet flavor and creaminess while excluding all the fat.

My Fat Free Cream Cheese Frosting tastes amazing, spreads on easily and is the perfect substitution for the full-fat stuff. And ... if you're eager to go a bit further with it, substitute the sugar for Splenda and you'll have yourself a sugar-free treat as well.

Find this recipe on page 11 of my online recipe book at Fitzness.com. For more great recipes, pre-order my soon-to-be released book, The Everything Flat Belly Cookbook here.

Slow Cooker Recipes for Healthy Eaters

Nutrition & Supplements

Crock PotI have a weird fear to confess. Back when I used to work in an office environment, I was always afraid to leave my slow cooker on while I was at work. Silly, isn't it? It's about as sensible as saying I'm afraid to put clothes in my washing machine. (I'm not afraid of that. Really. I'm not totally weird ... just a little bit.)

Now that I work from home, the slow cooker is my best friend. Sometimes I'll take a break from work mid-day, get dinner going, and then I get to enjoy the delicious smells of dinner cooking while I'm typing away on my computer.

Cooking Light has a series of healthful slow cooker recipes that I can't wait to try. The Vegetable and Chickpea Curry sounds delicious to me. How about you? Are you a fan of the slow cooker? If so, what is your favorite slow cooked meal?

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Homemade Tortilla Chips - Skip the Fat, Not the Flavor

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

fitz absI'm a big fan of Mexican food, but not a fan of all the fat that usually goes along with it. That doesn't hold me back from enjoying it whenever I want, though. I just order or make each dish in a much smarter and healthier way.

Homemade Tortilla Chips are a staple item and the great news is, they're painfully easy to make. I whip up a batch quickly and serve them with salsa (which is naturally nonfat) or my Fat Free Mexican O-Layered Dip.

Both recipes are available in my online recipe book at Fitzness.com, and I hope you'll give them a try. Other fun toppings to add to your chips are lean grilled meat, veggies, low fat or nonfat cheeses and sour cream.

Just like any other style of cooking, whenever you ditch the oil, butter and fatty sauces ... you'll end up with a much healthier meal. Ole!

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