Adventist La Grange Memorial Hospital issued the following announcement on Dec. 17.
It’s the stress dream of every holiday host. The sideboard is lined with steaming covered dishes. The turkey’s just about to come out of the oven — and then you suddenly remember that Uncle Jerry has a heart condition and can’t eat salt. Or that Cousin Lily is off of glutens. Will there be anything for them to eat? And will it be enough to fill them up?
Fear not. The AMITA Health nutrition team has put together a contingency plan of last-minute recipes for four of the most common special dietary restrictions. What do these diverse dishes have in common?
They are fast (20 minutes or less)
They are easy
They are made with common, easy-to-find ingredients (no trying to find a store that sells Sardinian mountain honey for you!)
They feel like a meal, not an afterthought — we’re talking hearty dishes that taste so good, you might need to shoo away the guests without dietary restrictions
Keep these recipes at the ready (and their ingredients in stock) and you’ll be able to accommodate almost any dietary restriction your guests spring on you. Let’s start with the trickiest:
Vegan & Gluten-Free
Two dishes from Cooking Light can be life-savers, whether served solo or in tandem. The first, sweet potato medallions with almond sauce and chickpea salad, balances a rich, creamy sauce with a lemony mélange of arugula and chickpeas. The sweet potatoes topping it are brushed with oil and lightly seared to a steak-like consistency. The result is a flavorful, filling salad that requires only 5 ingredients and about 10 minutes of prep time.
If parsnips aren’t a mainstay of your holiday dinners, they should be. The sweet, earthy flavor of the carrot-like veggie needs only a little seasoning to shine. That’s why for our second dish, we’re recommending roasted parsnips with lemon and herbs for your gluten-free guests. Using just five ingredients and a few popular seasonings, you can roast the sliced parsnips into crispy fries in just 10 minutes. Best of all, you can tailor the flavor to your guest’s palate using whatever you have handy. Rosemary, garlic and parmesan? Walnuts, maple and thyme? The combinations are practically endless.
Low-Sodium
The holidays can be a real challenge for anyone recovering from a heart problem or high blood pressure. It takes a conscious effort to curb one’s salt intake during this time of year, but you can make the choice a lot easier for your loved one with Food Network’s recipe for grilled salmon glazed with a sweet and spicy rub. It preps in 10 minutes, cooks in seven and involves only a salmon fillet and six seasonings. A blend of cumin, chili powder, brown sugar, pepper (and just a teeny amount of salt) add a complex flavor profile to an already heart-healthy fish. Serve this to your guest and they may not even notice the turkey.
Diabetes
Your relatives with diabetes might have to tread lightly around the candied yams and the pumpkin pie, but at least they’ll get to go back for seconds with this main dish from Food Network. On the table in just 20 minutes, chicken cauliflower fried rice tickles the palate with ginger, soy sauce and scallions (and even a splash of hot sauce, if you like).
Original source can be found here.
Source: Adventist La Grange Memorial Hospital
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