My Perfect Pre-Holiday Cheat Day

Around this time of year, everyone starts buzzing about Halloween plans, then Thanksgiving  plans then Christmas and New Years. I already have a list of amazing recipes I want to try for each holiday- scary berry spider web cookies, pumpkin bread, cranberry sauce and a gingerbread house.

With so much YUM in my future, and in preparation for all the festivities (and the caloric intake), I usually like to eat a little healthier leading up to the holidays. One of my favorite meals is a homemade blueberry vinaigrette over a green salad. 

Still, it can be hard to resist temptation with so many tasty recipes to enjoy. I've heard it's important to indulge your cravings every-so-often (but not too often) so that you can stay on the straight and narrow. The special days when I break away from salads are my so-called cheat days. My cheat day happens to be on Saturday and I have every meal planned out in anticipation!

BREAKFAST- I'm starting off my ultimate cheat day with these beautiful cinnamon sugar berry quesadillas! The cinnamon sugar on my favorite berries will really hit the spot. It's like a dessert, but for breakfast! To add a little bit of nutrition, I love adding in a few sliced bananas. 

LUNCH- I will be making homemade blueberry goat cheese pizza. There is nothing like a warm slice of 'zza and this particular pizza is full of some of my favorite foods- pecans, goat cheese, spinach and blueberries!  

3 O'CLOCK SNACK- These Strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups will be my go-to snack while I'm out and about running errands. They are so much more than a run-of-the-mill candy because they are home-made and made with REAL strawberries.  

DESSERT: Blueberry Lemon Olive Oil Cake is the pièce de résistance. If I can only indulge in one cake recipe on my cheat day, this is definitely the one I will choose to make. The combination of lemon and blueberry will be more than enough to hold me over. It's the perfect ending to my perfect pre-holiday cheat day!

After this cheat day, it’s back to my delicious salads before the holiday season. To ease back into my healthy eating after all the sweets, I am going to enjoy the almond & blueberry salad with blueberry muffin croutons, topped with lemon & honey vinaigrette. The small morsels of scrumptious blueberry muffin are my way of treating myself (in moderation).  

I hope you have a lot of fun holiday get-togethers to look forward to as well! If you are looking for more inspiration for your pre-holiday cheat day, subscribe to The Buzz Blog. It's full of recipes that are sure to curb your every craving!