~by Nikki

BBQ’s can be a prelude to disaster y’all! But they don’t have to be. You can survive the family barbecue this Labor Day!

Aside from strategy, though, you have to make some decisions for yourself before the event. What to bring, what you’ll eat that others bring. And, more importantly, what you WON’T.

Here’s what yours truly WON’T be eating at the Labor Day BBQ:

My cousin’s coleslaw: full fat mayo (which my pouch seems to hate), sugar (which will make me dump) and virtually no protein. With as much fiber as coleslaw has, it will fill me up before I even get to my protein.

Instead: I am going to bring a batch of Jen’s protein cole slaw!

Chips and dip: you ever heard the expression “you can’t just eat one…”? The guy who wrote that…wrote it after he saw me sitting next to a bowl of chips. Nope!

Instead: I am going to make my (regionally) famous 4 layer dip!

Nik’s Four Layer Mexican Dip

Ingredients:

Layer one: 2 cans of fat free refried beans

Layer two: 2 cans of either salsa, diced tomatoes, or tomatoes and chiles (depending on your heat tolerance)

Layer three: 16 oz. container of Greek yogurt, mixed with a packet of onion soup mix

Layer four: shredded low-fat Mexican blend cheese, diced red onions, black olives

On the side I will serve veggie crudites. And yes…for the purists some WHOLE GRAIN chips which I will try my best to ignore.

My aunt’s sticky, sugary bbq chicken! Can you say “dumpsville?”

Instead: I’m skewering up some of my Thai chicken skewers to throw on the barbie! That and a little peanut sauce is heaven…

ANYBODY’S DESSERT: Cuz no matter how “healthy” they say it is, they are not the ones who will spend the next 48 hours worshipping the porcelain gods.

Instead: I made a protein cheesecake. And I will conveniently “forget” to mention that it is healthy!

…And while I don’t have time to make it before tomorrow, I FULLY intend to make me a batch of Jen’s brocolli salad. I had the pleasure of tasting it when she was in the process of tweaking and “oh my bald Britney Spears!” (<–the divas newest fave expression of shock) that stuff was GOOD! I was dubious. Cuz veggies and raisins don’t make sense together for me but for in Indian curry. But damn that stuff was good!

S’anyway…watch out for Jen’s “BF Basics” this week and next week…we begin to tackle fall food!