Event Planning: Tips for Healthy Menu

People love eating. Plain and simple. And they want to eat good food too!

Whether you are hosting a business, entertainment, or charity event, the food and beverages selection will ALWAYS be an indicator of success. With society becoming more apt to maintaining a healthy lifestyle, we at Shiloh believe that third party event planners should constantly keep this in mind for menu selection in the event planning process.

Here are some tips to help you find the most tasteful and beneficial food choices for your upcoming events.
We also included some tasteful meal ideas below.

Fresh & Organic Choices: Rule of thumb, if you can’t grow it, don’t it eat it. Do your best to select food vendors who provide fresh and organic foods. Organic foods (including fruits) are consistently more healthy. Organic foods are produced with organic farming methods which excludes the use of pesticides, chemical fertilizers, food additives, hormones, or antibiotics to produce the goods. In addition, animals raised organically are not allowed to be fed with antibiotics, genetically modified foods, human growth hormone, or other artificial drugs. To translate – this means that, in turn, we won’t consume those things either. The animals are raised in a healthier environment, fed organic feed, and often eat a wider range of nutrients than those raised in factory farms. Purchasing fresh and organic food also help bring business to local markets.

Mindful of Allergies: If your event exceeds over 15 people (which is usually the case), be prepared to have at least one person who will have some type of food allergy or dietary limitations. The most common food allergies include: nuts, lactose, and gluten. Fortunately, many vendors have menu options to accommodate. At Shiloh, we have plenty contacts with vendors to match your catering and private chef needs. Not only will the food taste great, but it will keep everyone healthy and happy! When selecting food items, remember to carefully read the ingredients. For allergies, make sure ingredients show that they are “gluten-free”, “dairy-free”, “nut-free”, etc.

Smart Snacks: Having snacks on the meeting table during a 2+ hour gathering can help deter attendees from spacing out. Really, it’s true! Snacking during or in-between meetings curb distraction and hunger. Smart and healthy snacks increases attendee’s engagement by stimulating brain activities. They also provide enough nutrients and protein to sustain our energy. To snack smart, you must steer clear of foods with lots of added sugars like candy bars or soda. Look for foods that contain fiber like whole-grain breads, cereals, mixed sliced fruits, and vegetables such as celery, cucumbers, carrots, and snap peas, and combine them with protein-rich snacks such as mixed nuts or low-fat yogurt. And remember, at all cost, stay away from those chips!

Finally, the moment we’ve all been waiting for, here are 10 healthy food ideas that Shiloh Event Management found to be a hit at the events we have produced:

Suggestion #1: For appetizers, hummus (with flavor or your choice) and pita chips never go out of style. It’s easy to pass around and easy for attendees to grab and go with standing station. Here’s an example recipe.

 

Suggestion #2: Have a station of pure organic fruits and veggies that your attendees can venture to as they peruse around your summer event. If it’s classy enough for Barbara Streisand’s event, you can pull this off too!

Suggestion #3: For an early-morning event, try out this yummy paleo muffin recipe!

Suggestion #4: Skip the beef and go with a Salmon or Turkey burger for your luncheon. Here’s a healthy burger idea.

 

Suggestion #5: For dessert, try this classy S’mores recipe! It’s made with homemade organic marshmallows, organic chocolate, and whole-wheat graham crackers. This classic dish will bring back that comfort food feeling and still be a sustainable dish for your event!

Suggestion #6: Mix it up and have tiny popsicles with real and organic fruit and veggie juices. This can be considered a dessert or a fun thirst quencher. Here’s a sample recipe you can start with.

Suggestion #7: Fruit Infused Vodka for cocktails. You can use fruits such as clementines, lemons, raspberries, or blackberry to liven up some organic vodka. Check out this method of infusing vodka with fruits.

Suggestion #8: For non-alcoholic beverages, use an organic tea brands to serve tasty green tea or Arnold Palmer’s with freshly squeezed lemon for hot or iced tea.

Suggestion #9: Gluten free allergy can be solved in a pasta dish, by using spaghetti squash for the “noodles” instead of actual pasta.

Suggestion #10: Super green smoothies are never a fail. Here’s an allergy-free smoothie recipe that will be a hit at your next summer outing event! It will cool down your guest in a tasty fashion while keeping in mind their health!

 

Contact Shiloh for your next corporate or entertainment event and we’ll make sure these healthy tips are implemented!