Diwali is just round the corner and so are those sinful delicious snacks and sweets. Can’t stop drooling just thinking of the kheer, laddoos, chaklis and what not. Face it, during Diwali most of us tend to binge and gain at least a couple of kgs along with an inch or two around the waist. After all, the weather is delightfully crispy, people are happy and that food platter is just winking mischievously at us. So we eat, then we eat some more and then a little more.

And guilt comes crashing down in no easy manner! Staying away from sweets and savories during Diwali is like asking to not watch your favorite movie or that totally nail biting cricket match. Indulging in some good food and desserts makes the festivities all worth it, but it is equally important to know when to stop and not over indulge. With literally just a few days left for Diwali to ring in, we bring you certain tips and options here are a couple of tips to keep your guilt & stress at the bay and not overindulge yourself.

1. Don’t skip any meals or starve yourself. Try to cut down extra calories possibly, have breakfast options like idli-sambhar, paneer sandwich, sprouts upma instead of samosas, wadas, pakodas. It will help to keep you energetic throughout the day.
2. Avoid eating your food in hurry, chew your food slowly & properly. It will release the digestive enzyme in your saliva which will help in better digestion therefore easing the process of metabolizing food particles.
3. Have only one cup of tea, coffee, kava, thandai instead of more than one servings. Choose infused water, green tea, lemon water & coconut water for easy digestion.
4. Avoid choosing deep fried food items like samosa, wadas, chakali etc. instead choose baked samosa, sweet potato wedges, whole wheat shakapara, whole wheat mathri’s & sevs.
5. Opt for fresh lime juice, sodas without sugar or buttermilk instead of aerated drinks, sweet sherbets & canned juices as they are nothing but empty calories.
6. Maintain your portion size choose smaller plate rather than large plate.
7. Add salads, fruits, sprouts or soups before heavy meal in order to avoid over binging & saves you from hunger pangs.
8. Diwali is incomplete without sweets & desserts choose 1 besan ladoo, rasmalai, rasgulla, sandesh, and 1 spoonful of phirni or kheer instead of barfis, jalebi, gulab jamiun, ghevar which are high calorie sweets.
9. Keep yourself well hydrated throughout the day. Avoid eating 2 hours before you go to sleep.
10. If you have already consumed a lot of calories throughout the day then go for some light stomach dinner, avoid starving yourself in terms to save or compensate calories.
11. Choose smart cooking methods like steaming, grilling, roasting instead of deep frying. This cut down your calorie intake.
12. Do go out for walk post your dinner this will help to burn your calories.

           Choose your options in smart way-

 

CHOOSE	AVOID
2 Kaju katlis (114 kcal)	1 Malpua (210 kcal)
1 Besan ladoo (85 kcal )	1 Shahi tukda (169 kcal)
1 Rasgulla (95 kcal)	1 Gulab jamun (145 kcal)
1 Sandesh (90 kcal)	1 Jalebi (150 kcal)
1 Til ka ladoo (43 kcal)	1 kalakand (226 kcal)
1 White peda (82 kcal)	1 Malai sandwich (160 kcal)

 

CHOOSE	AVOID
1 Tandoori roti (147 kcal)	1 Butter naan (235 kcal)
1 Missi roti (133 kcal)	1 Lacha paratha (270 kcal)
1 Paneer paratha [low in oil] (120 kcal)	1 Aloo paratha (177 kcal)
2 Canapes (50-60 kcal)	2 Aloo tikki (200 kcal)

 

CHOOSE	AVOID
3-4 pcs Paneer tikka (85-100 kcal)	4 pcs fried pakodas (280-300 kcal)
3-4 pcs Mushroom tikka (40-45 kcal)	1 Samosa (280-300 kcal)
2 Momos (40-50 kcal)	1 khasta kachori (201 kcal)
1 Katori paneer (190-200 kcal)	1 katori chicken/paneer Mughlai (350-390 kcal)
1 Katori veg kolhapuri (155-165 kcal)	1 Katori malai kofta curry (385-430 kcal)

 

This Diwali enjoy some healthy recipes listed below for you.

Oats Till Ladoo [makes 7-8 ladoos]

Ingredients

• Oats- ½ cup
• Sesame seeds- ¼ cup
• Green cardamoms- 2 nos
• Coconut sugar/jaggery- ½ cup

Method

1. In a pan dry roast oats & sesame seeds together until they are light golden.
2. Once cool grind them along with coconut sugar/jaggery into blender.
3. Roll them into balls & store them into air tight container in refrigerator.

 

Masala Multigrain Baked Mathris

Ingredients

• Whole wheat flour- 1 cup
• Multigrain atta- ½ cup
• Sooji or rava- ¼ cup
• Ajwain seeds- 1 tsp
• Red chili powder- ½ to 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder- less than ½ tsp (to get yellow color as required)
• Salt & black pepper as per taste
• Sesame seeds/ til- 1 tsp
• Oil- 1 tsp
• Dried kasuri methi- 1 tsp

Method

1. Mix all the dry ingredients and keep aside.
2. In a small pan, heat oil and then add this to the dry mixture. Mix well.
3. Now knead the dough using enough lukewarm water. Cover it and keep it aside.
4. Later, divide the dough into 2-3 balls. Roll each ball and using fork poke the rolled dough. This will help the mathris to stay flat.
5. Using cookie cutter cut the rolled dough into shapes you like. If you don’t have cookie cutter, you can use any small bottle lid and cut the shapes.
6. Preheat the oven at 350 degree F (180 degree C). Arrange all the mathris on baking tray and Bake for 13-15 mins or till they are golden brown.

So this Diwali, let us not be guilty & stressed. After all, it is festival time and we should be celebrating, not sulking away at the weighing machine.