Step 1- Ask Your Friends
First up, ask your friends whom they recommend. With the increase in availability (and affordability) of meal-delivery services, at least one of your health-minded pals should have a recommendation. “This is what we do all day,” explained Amber Phillips, owner of Sage Events Catering in Naples. “I do a meal delivery service and am a full-time caterer, so a lot of my clients already know me because I provide healthy food for them all year.” And don’t forget to check with your favorite restaurants and food trucks, as many also have catering or large-scale take-out options. John Hart, owner of the Organically Twisted Food Truck in Naples, has a mobile kitchen that’s ready to go anywhere. “It’s a fun way to take regular holiday foods and twist them to make them healthy,” he says of his catering offerings. Instead of a traditional holiday turkey, Hart says “…picture a pounded out turkey breast stuffed with a fresh, savory cranberry, pecan and quinoa dressing, [that’s] rolled up roasted to perfection, sliced into medallions, and placed on a nest of baby kale, and drizzled with a sweet potato vinaigrette—yum.”
Experts also suggest asking your friends about what they can and can’t eat. “My first question,” explains Phillips, “is ‘what are the allergens? What are your dislikes?’ You can’t take time off from your diet during the holidays if you have food allergens,” Phillips adds.