Hors D'Oeuvres and Navigating the Holiday Cocktail Party Scene

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You’ve worked so hard all year to fit into that little black cocktail dress, so holiday parties are not the time to blow it by pigging out on those delectable butler-passed hors d’oeuvres.

Speaking of pigs, did you know that one cocktail size pig in the blanket is 63 calories and 5 grams of fat. I don’t know about you, but I usually see people eating several of these. Even worse are greasy mozzarella sticks weighing in at 83 calories and 5 grams of fat. Let’s say you ate three of each of these which is not hard to do, you’re now looking at 438 calories and 30 grams of fat. Add in a mini quiche at 60 calories and a crab cake at 42 and you’re up to 540 calories before even hitting the cheese tray!

As you meander over to the elaborate table displayed munchies, spend some time with the crustaceans. Your “little” friend which could save you from yourself is the cocktail shrimp at about 10 calories a piece and that is with cocktail sauce. Crudites or that colorful veggie spread is your best bet at about 28 calories per cup. Opt for a yogurt dip or salsa instead of creamy sour cream or mayonnaise based dips. Deviled eggs are a good source of protein, but could contain as much as 140 calories and 13 grams of fat if made with a lot of mayonnaise. I like to cut calories by making mine with Greek or nonfat yogurt and mixing in a little avocado and paprika. Below are some of my alternative hors d’oeuvres recipes:

Fitness Answer Health Hors D' Oeuvres

Shrimp Lejons
• 6 Large, peeled, cleaned and deveined shrimp
• 6 slices of turkey bacon
• 2tbs. of. Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp. horseradish
• 2 tbsp. of plain yogurt

Wrap each piece of shrimp in a piece of turkey bacon and place on broiling pan. Bake at 375 degrees until brown. Mix Dijon, horseradish and yogurt together in separate bowl to use as a spicy dip.

Mini Quiche Lorraine
• 6 slices cooked turkey bacon crumbled
• 1/8 cup grated Swiss cheese
• 1/8 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup of Greek or Nonfat Yogurt
• 6 eggs & 6 eggwhites, well beaten
• Dash of Salt & Pepper

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. Combine bacon, cheese, eggs, yogurt salt and pepper. Divide mixture evenly into muffin pan. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes 6 muffin sized quiche. Cut each quiche into 4 cocktail size pieces.

Almond Crusted Crab Cakes

• 6 oz. can of crabmeat
• 4 tablespoons of Almond Meal (usually found in nut aisle at health food store)
• 1 Egg
• 1 tsp. of paprika
• 1 tsp. of dry mustard
• Pinch of salt and pepper
• Olive Oil

Mix all ingredients together. Shape into 6 mini cakes. Fry in olive oil.

Joanne Sgro is a Television Fitness Expert, Certified Personal Trainer and Sport Nutritionist. She is Certified in Pilates, Pre-natal/Post-Partum, Yoga and Senior Fitness. She specializes in Weight Loss, Post-Rehab and Post Cancer Training. Joanne's fitness plans and recipes are available globally on her website www.fitnessanswer.com. She resides in the Phoenix, AZ area with her fiancé, where she runs her personal training business, Fitness Answer, LLC.

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