Get In Shape - Healthy Dinner Recipes

What do we mean by a "healthy" dinner recipe?

This means different things to different people. If you are a vegetarian..., if you like seafood..., whether you are on a diet

However any healthy dinner recipe should follow good basic nutritional guidelines:

1. Balanced proportions of carbohydrate, protein and fat

You need to serve the correct amount of each type of food. One popular diet – the Zone – recommends we consume 40% of calories from carbs, 30% from protein and 30% from fat.

While we don’t need to follow this exactly it does serve as an overall guide. (See our healthy dinner recipes below for some practical examples).

2. Low in saturated fat

It’s commonly accepted that saturated fats can be bad for you, leading to high cholesterol and heart conditions. Make sure your dinner recipe is healthy by limiting the amount of saturated fats like rich sauces, fatty meats and cream deserts.

3. High in Nutrient Value

Heat destroys many of the vitamins and nutrients in food, so the less you cook it the healthier it will be. Salads are great, and lightly steamed vegetables like broccoli are very tasty.

Healthy Dinner Recipes: Portion Sizes

When you are looking for a healthy meal, if you over-eat you will end up counter-acting all the benefits you got from the food. North Americans generally eat too much, and this is as much by habit as anything else.

Try cutting back on some of the serving quantities. For example if you take the standard size 12 oz steak and cut it in two, this is an ideal size for the average person. Likewise with potato, try eating just half of the (usually big) baking potato. If you're still hungry you can increase the portion size of things like green vegetable or salads.

Our Favorite Healthy Dinner Recipes...

Fish Chicken Beef Pork Vegetarian

Chicken Parmesan & Eggplant Casserole

Makes 2-4 servings

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cups chopped onion

3 cups diced eggplant

2 tomato, chopped

1 1/2 cup low sodium tomato sauce

2 4oz grilled chicken breasts

5 ounces Low Fat Parmesan Cheese, grated

2 tbs. bread crumbs

2 tbs. corn meal

Directions:

Ø Heat 2 teaspoons of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet and sauté the onions until the turn translucent.

Ø Add the eggplant and sauté for 10 minutes or until soft

Ø Add tomatoes and chicken and sauté for another 7 minutes.

Ø Pour the tomato sauce into a large casserole dish or two smaller ones.

Ø Put the eggplant mixture on top of the sauce, sprinkle with breadcrumbs then layer with the cheese on top of the breadcrumbs and drizzle the remaining teaspoon of olive oil on top.

Ø Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes, then place under the broiler for 5 minutes. Remove from the broiler when the top is brown and bubbly.

Serve with a fresh salad or steamed Broccoli

Makes 4 servings.

Preparation time: 35 minutes

Grilled Fish Marinated with Lime & Ginger

Makes 2-4 servings.

Ingredients:

Marinade Ingredients:

3 Freshly squeezed limes (1/4 cup juice)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard

1 teaspoon fresh grated gingerroot

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Directions:

Preparation:

Ø      In a small bowl mix together above ingredients and set aside.

Ø     Cut 1 lb of fresh fish (such as mahi-mahi) into 2-4 steaks/filets

Ø     Brush marinade on the fish steaks.

Cooking:

Ø      Cook over hot (400 degrees) coals for 16 - 18 minutes, turning over half way through. A grill basket works best if you have one.

Serve with rice and your favorite grilled vegetables ie; corn and sweet peppers.

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Fish Chicken Beef Pork Vegetarian

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