Meeting Planner's Guide to Healthy Menus
Get Delicious AND Healthy From your Chefs Every Time

The Breakfast Dilemma

Do you get complaints that your attendees want something healthier than the typical glycemic bombs, a.k.a. doughnuts and sweet rolls? Do you know that the typical "continental breakfast" offers no protein, which is essential for blood sugar management and sustained concentration? These also provide no antioxidant-rich nutrients to help fight cold viruses so frequent in public gatherings.

Your NEW, Continental Breakfast!

• For a healthier menu and more alert attendees, start offering the following:
• Sliced fresh fruit and berries (if too expensive, offer dried fruits)
• Variety of 100% juices such as tomato juice (have pitchers of water available for diluting the 100% fruit juice, which is naturally sweeter than soda pop)
• Whole-grain bagels (order direct from Natural Ovens Bakery 800-772-0730)
• Peanut butter and/or bowls of nuts like almonds and walnuts
• High-fiber, low-sugar cereals such as Cheerios, Bran Flakes, Wheaties, Shredded Wheat, Frosted Shredded Wheat, Kashi Cereals, and Natural Ovens Granola
• Skim milk, 1% milk or soy milk (Eden Foods offers individual boxes of Eden Soy)
• Hard boiled eggs or mozzarella cheese sticks
• Natural yogurts topped with ground flax seeds
• Low-fat bran muffins, moderately sized

HOT Breakfast Ideas

• Egg Beater or egg-white omelets with a variety of fresh vegetables
• Lean breakfast meats such as Canadian bacon, ham, Morning Star Farm meats or Garden Burger "Vegetarian" sausage
• Whole-grain toast and bagels (stay away from plain white breads)
• Whole-grain pancakes with fruit toppings (frozen blueberries cooked down in the microwave can be advertised as "no-sugar-added blueberry topping")
• French toast made with exotic multi-grain breads
• A complete "oatmeal buffet" offering berries, nuts, cinnamon, maple syrup, brown sugar, honey, and Splenda for toppings.

Heart-Breaking, Waist-Widening Breaks?

Try These NEW BREAK Ideas…

• Healthy "soda" (100% fruit juice diluted with flavored sparkling waters)
• Sliced fruit, whole fruit or dried fruit
• Soy milk or natural yogurts
• Mozzarella cheese sticks
• Frozen grapes (nature's "popsicles"), Popsicles and Fudgesicles
• Vegetable trays with reduced-fat dips, pita Triangles, hummus and tabouli
• Natural Ovens or Health Valley Granola Bars (Trans-fat free)
• Mixed nuts, peanuts, pretzels, baked potato/tortilla chips, Sun Chips or popcorn (popped in oil)

Lunch and Dinner Ideas - Suggestions for conversations with the Chef

• Opt for marinara, tomato or red clam sauce instead of white or Alfredo sauces.
• Ask for entrees that are prepared without frying and with little oil added.
• Ask for whole-grain rolls and olive oil for dipping.
• Don’t shy away from offering fish and seafood most often, then chicken, and last beef.
• Ask for entrees that feature more vegetables than starch.
• Request brown rice as a healthier alternative to white rice or potatoes. Stir-fries are excellent.
• Ask for ample servings of vegetables, not just the token spoonful.
• Desserts that center around fruit are best. Berries with a single chocolate wafer or sorbet topped with fruit.
• The secret mixture of fuels is: lean protein, ample servings of colorful vegetables, and one double or two small servings of starch (preferably whole-grain).
• Providing copies of the healthy recipes served at your meetings is also an option worth exploring with your chef.

Looking for spectacular recipes showing all the nutrition information that you can reprint and offer to your attendees? Lickety-Split Meals is a great resource for you.

Yes, reprint permission of recipes is granted.

Below are some of the most requested recipes for conferences.

Appetizers
Herbed Salmon Spread – page 33 and Bagel Chips – page 37
Marinated Sesame Chicken Kabobs – page 47
7-Layer Bean Dip – page 29 and Bagel Chips – page 37
Spinach Dip and Pumpernickel – page 39
South of the Border Roll-ups – page 41

Lunch
Turkey and Hot Mustard Roll-ups - page 73
Mediterranean Roll-ups - page 75
Vegetable & Spinach Roll-ups - page 75
Almond Chicken Salad - page 45
3-Bean Turkey or Vegetarian Chili – page 217

Salads and Sides
White Beans with Tomato Basil Parmesan - page 95
Black Bean and Corn Salad - page 71
Broccoli Salad with Dried Cherries page 263
“Unfried” Rice (great with Teriyaki grilled Salmon) page- 207

Breakfast or Break
Pumpkin Oatbran Bread or Muffins - page 309
Banana Nut Cake or Muffins - page 303
Enlightened Zucchini Bread – page 305
Chewy Multi-Grain Bars - page 293
Chocolate-chip Bar cookies – page 295
Breakfast in a Cookie – page 9
Smoothies - page 11

Lunch or Dinner
La Zonya - page 135
Crispy Chicken Dijon with Sweet Potatoes – page 91
Chicken Marsala over Brown Rice – page 109
Hungarian Chicken Paprikash w/whole-grain noodles – pg 111
Saucy Almond Chicken Stir-Fry over Brown Rice – page 205
Grilled Beef, Chicken or Salmon Teriyaki – page 123
Ratatouille with Chicken - page 89

Desserts
Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake with fresh berries - page 289
Chocolate No-Bake Cookies - page 299
Cocoa Lava Kisses - page 301
Brownie Banana Split (served in Champagne glass is nice) - page 319
Flaming Bananas Foster – page 313