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Healthy Mardi Gras Recipes and Menus

Featured Recipes

Sausage Gumbo

To keep it simple, we've opted for just the essential ingredients in this rendition of the hearty Creole favorite: sausage, okra, rice and a little spice.

» Sausage Gumbo

Blackened Salmon Sandwich

Blackened salmon is great in a sandwich with a spread of mashed avocado and low-fat mayonnaise plus peppery arugula leaves, cool tomato slices and zesty red onion. We grill our Cajun-style salmon so there is no need for any added cooking oil. Catfish makes an excellent stand-in for the salmon but you'll want to use a grill basket if you have one to keep the fish from breaking apart.

» Blackened Salmon Sandwich

Deep-Dish Apple-Blackberry Pie

With a traditional high-fat pie dough, it's easy to go wrong because the dough must be chilled and rolled out while the butter or shortening is still cold - a relatively small window of time (especially for beginners). Nuts and nut oil replace most of the butter in this pie crust, so the timing is less particular. The dough doesn't need to be refrigerated, which cuts down on preparation time, and because it is rolled out between sheets of plastic wrap, it won't stick to the countertop and it can be easily lifted.

» Deep-Dish Apple-Blackberry Pie

Rosemary & Garlic Crusted Pork Loin with Butternut Squash & Potatoes

Pork today is so lean, the meat will be dry and crumbly if overcooked, but there are a couple of tricks to help avoid that fate. The first is to turn the pork over halfway through the cooking time so the juices will concentrate in the center of the roast instead of settling on the bottom. Second, take the roast out of the oven when it is about 5° below the recommended internal temperature, which is 160°F. The meat will continue to cook as it rests.

» Rosemary & Garlic Crusted Pork Loin with Butternut Squash & Potatoes

Chicken & Spiced Apples

The buttery apples suit these chicken breasts, which are pounded thin so they cook evenly and quickly. You could also serve this compote with any roasted meat or vegetable.

» Chicken & Spiced Apples

Stewed Okra & Tomatoes

This simple stew highlights two summer stars—tomatoes and okra—in a simple stew. Okra (known as gombo in much of West Africa) does especially well in a hot growing season. In this dish, it appears as both vegetable and thickener, as is typical of many of the continent's okra dishes. Serve it over brown rice.

» Stewed Okra & Tomatoes

Shrimp & Cheddar Grits

The South's version of creamy polenta, grits are easy to make on a weeknight—especially when topped with quickly broiled shrimp and scallions. Use the sharpest Cheddar you can find for these cheesy grits. Serve with: Sautéed greens and a tall glass of iced tea.

» Shrimp & Cheddar Grits


Travel to the Big Easy with these healthy, colorful Mardi Gras recipes and Cajun favorites.

Take “Fat Tuesday” a little less literally this year with a more creative, more colorful approach to your Mardi Gras menu. Our perfect-for-a-dinner-party recipes are low in calories and celebrate the colors of Mardi Gras: purple, green and gold. These hues traditionally symbolize justice, faith and power, respectively. To us, they also reflect nutrients galore. Gold-tinged produce provides beta carotene. Those green vegetables deliver folate and lutein, a phytochemical linked with healthy vision. “Red” (or purple!) fruits and vegetables can be rich in anthocyanins, antioxidants that may prevent age-related cognitive decline, and flavonoids, antioxidants that help keep blood vessels healthy.

And of course, if you want to stick to traditional Cajun favorites, we have healthier versions of those as well. These Mardi Gras recipes are delicious and totally perfect for entertaining—just toss in some colorful beads and you’ve got yourself a party.

Healthy Purple/Red Mardi Gras Recipes

The combination of blackberries and raspberries in this favorite old-time dessert is...
The buttery apples suit these chicken breasts, which are pounded thin so they cook...
With a traditional high-fat pie dough, it's easy to go wrong because the dough...
Pork and apples and red cabbage are meant for each other. Here all three appear in a...
The entire beet plant—roots, stems and greens—can be used in this stunning appetizer...
Try a variety of beets in this dish. The simple Dijon vinaigrette really makes the...
Shredded green and red cabbage tossed with hot, fruity dressing make a colorful low-...

Healthy Green Mardi Gras Recipes

Sweet and tangy hoisin sauce is a delicious base for stir-fried chard and bell...
Flecks of red potato skin and deep green from the winter greens add festive color to...
Pomegranate juice is a flavorful stand-in for some of the oil in the dressing. To...
While still hot, green beans readily absorb this tart mustard dressing.
This update of a holiday entertaining classic delivers all of the rich flavor with...
Orange zest and juice are whisked with balsamic vinegar to dress this salad of...

Healthy Gold Mardi Gras Recipes

A sophisticated alternative to a brown-sugar glaze, pesto flavored with pungent sage...
Butternut squash, carrots and parsnips take on a sweet intensity when gently braised...
Cake flour gives this carrot cake a tender crumb, while bits of crushed pineapple...
Layers of potatoes and sweet potatoes meld into an impressive vegetable "cake...
Use these colorful, versatile peppers to top crostini, on a sandwich or as a...
Pork today is so lean, the meat will be dry and crumbly if overcooked, but there are...

Healthy Cajun Favorite Recipes

Frozen artichoke hearts are great to have on hand for just this type of easy salad....
Blackened salmon is great in a sandwich with a spread of mashed avocado and low-fat...
Nothing is wasted in a Cajun kitchen where stale bread becomes a luscious dessert.
Crab cakes get a Louisiana spin with Cajun spice and corn. Although any type of crab...
Crunchy, battered catfish fillets have jumped out of the Louisiana backwaters to...
Garlic-cheese grits are a typically rich Southern dish, but the truth is you don...
An updated and untraditional rémoulade makes a tangy sauce for these spice-rubbed...
Kiwis add a tropical note to the Southern favorite.
This quick version of red beans and rice gets its smoky goodness from super-lean...
This salad makes an excellent sandwich filling or spread for crackers.
This rich, chocolaty Southern favorite has its own culinary mythology: a couple at...
To keep it simple, we've opted for just the essential ingredients in this...
Kale becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender in this recipe. Assertive garlic and salty...

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