DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet is great and beneficial for your health as it supports the management of high blood pressure the natural way. We love the DASH diet here at Qardio, so we have put together a few great recipes that we think are great for the holiday season. So if you are ready to make a few changes in your diet and see how emphasizing certain foods that naturally lower blood pressure, you can do so over the holidays with our top festive treats.
For more information about the DASH diet or how to lower your blood pressure naturally, check our guides ”The DASH diet” and ”Six ways to lower blood pressure naturally.”
Rather than skipping desserts, eating small portions, or deciding not to touch the carbs, these DASH diet festive-inspired dishes encourage you to be smarter about food by topping up on fruits, nuts, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products, while minimizing red meat, sugary substances, fats, and sodium. Our DASH treats allow you to naturally decrease saturated fat and cholesterol while adding foods that are high in calcium, magnesium, and potassium – the nutrients that help to reduce your blood pressure.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Chicken, and Potatoes
Enjoy this roast without any added guilt:
Ingredients:
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 4 pieces
4 cups trimmed and quartered Brussels sprouts
3 cups Yukon gold or red potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup medium-diced onions
1/3 cup vinaigrette dressing (not fat-free)
Juice of 1 medium lemon
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 cup quartered Kalamata olives
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Place the chicken in a single layer in the middle of a sheet pan. Then place the Brussels sprouts in one section of the pan, the potatoes in another, and the onions in the remaining space.
3. Combine the vinaigrette, lemon juice, mustard, oregano, and garlic salt in a small bowl and drizzle over the chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle with olives and pepper and toss vegetables to coat evenly.
4. Bake for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
5. Transfer chicken to a plate and stir the vegetables.
6. Continue to roast the vegetables for 15 minutes, until the outer leaves of the Brussels sprouts are crispy and the potatoes are fork-tender.
Whole wheat-oat pancakes
Start the festive days right, with these wholesome pancakes:
Ingredients:
2/3 cup regular oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
3/4 cup reduced-calorie maple-flavored syrup
Directions:
1. Place oats in a container of an electric blender; cover and process until ground.
2. Combine oats, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt ingredients in a bowl.
3. Combine milk, egg substitute, and oil; add to oats mixture, stirring just until moistened.
4. For each pancake, pour 1/4 cup batter onto a hot griddle or skillet coated with cooking spray. Turn pancakes when tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked.
5. Sprinkle pancakes evenly with powdered sugar, and serve with syrup
Snack – nilla cinnamon snack mix
Let snacks be a carefree joy on every occasion with this simple savory mix:
Ingredients:
3 cups NILLA Wafers
1 cup PLANTERS Pecan Halves
1 cup pretzel sticks
3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 cup yogurt-covered raisins
This recipe has a simple preparation process:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Combine Nilla Wafers, Planters Pecan Halves, and pretzel sticks in a large bowl.
3. Mix melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Drizzle over wafer mixture; toss to coat.
5. Spread onto bottom of foil-lined 15x10x1-inch pan.
6. Bake 10 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring after 5 minutes. Cool. Stir in raisins.
Fruitcake
Treat yourself to this nutritious and delightful cake:
Ingredients
2 cups assorted chopped dried fruit, such as cherries, currants, dates, or figs
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup crushed pineapple
Zest and juice of 1 medium orange
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup apple juice
2 tablespoons real vanilla extract
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup milled flax (flaxseed flour)
1/2 cup oat flour (can make by putting rolled oats in a food processor)
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1/2 cup crushed or chopped walnuts
Cooking Instructions:
1. In a medium bowl, combine dried fruit, applesauce, pineapple, fruit zests and juices, and vanilla. Let soak for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, mix sugar, milled flax, oat flour, pastry flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Pour fruit and liquid mixture into dry ingredients and stir to combine. Add egg and walnuts and stir to combine.
3. Pour mixture into a loaf pan lined with parchment (baking) paper and bake at 325 F for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the fruitcake rest for 30 minutes before removing it from the pan. Serve.
So there you go, a few of our favorite recipes from Qardio to try and enjoy this holiday season. And don’t forget to measure your blood pressure and weight the smart way without wireless, medically accurate devices QardioArm and QardioBase.
QardioArm is the award-winning blood pressure monitor you can use anytime anywhere. Packed with useful features, it’s the perfect companion to your smartphone or tablet, allowing you to look after your heart with ease.
QardioBase is the only wireless scale offering a SMART FEEDBACK. Replace numbers with smileys to achieve your goals without the stress of fluctuating numbers.
Sources:
Mayo Clinic
