Entertaining, the Healthy Way

This weekend, we had friends over for Friday night dinner. Jared and I love to entertain, and it’s important to us that our guests feel special and welcome when they’re in our home. One of my goals as a health coach is to prepare a meal that isn’t just delicious but is healthy, as well. I think it sends a message that healthy food doesn’t have to be boring, bland, or unappetizing. And often, health-ifying a recipe doesn’t take much more effort than its unhealthy counterpart.

This Friday, I made chicken puttanesca with the option of whole wheat pasta, apple-walnut salad with cranberry vinaigrette, and chocolate cupcakes. I will say that dessert is often the hardest for me because it can be tough to find recipes that are nutritious. The recipe I made isn’t exactly healthy and I wouldn’t suggest it as a regular option, but for special occasions, it was a delicious and much lower in calories and fat than the original recipe.

Here are the recipes for our Friday night meal. Where do you go for healthy recipes?

Chicken Puttanesca

Apple-Walnut Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette

Chocolate Cupcakes (I used seltzer water)