Healthy BBQ Recipes ideas

Happy Friday! Isaac and I are trying to soak in every ounce of sun, sand and water we can here in St. Croix. 🙂 I’ll be sure to post recaps of our wedding and honeymoon, but if you want to see some photos, feel free to check out my instagram feed. I’ve been posting a few things here and there when I have internet access. We’re actually off to hike to the tide pools this morning but I have an awesome guest post from my friend Anne to share. If you’re getting ready for 4th of July cookouts, you’ll be happy to know that she’s sharing some of her favorite recipes. Enjoy!

Hey, Eating Bird Food readers! I’m Brittany’s friend Anne, a D.C. area Registered Dietitian (RD) with an online-based nutrition counseling private practice and a health & fitness blogger over at fANNEtastic food. Before I continue with my guest post, I want to say a BIG congrats to Brittany and Isaac for tying the knot! We can’t wait to see photos. 🙂

Anyway! On my blog, I love sharing healthy recipes and quick meal ideas, health tips, and fitness and running adventures (my first full marathon is this fall!). Given that the 4th of July is coming up, I thought for this guest post it would be fun to share some of my favorite healthy 4th of July BBQ recipes with you guys! If you try any of these out, please let me know! Enjoy!

First up: some appetizers!

Edamame Bruschetta Pretty and nutritious, too!

Healthy Deviled Eggs — I used Greek yogurt and mustard instead of mayo. They are still delicious!

Healthier Seven Layer Dip — this recipe uses Greek yogurt instead of sour cream and mayonnaise. Your friends and family won’t even notice the difference… I promise.

Hummus Guacamole — if hummus and guac mated, this would be their love child. Always a crowd pleaser.

And now, for some desserts!

Oatmeal Banana Coconut Cookies – really flavorful and soft. One of my favorite cookie recipes ever — and they’re healthy, too.

Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies. Healthy… but not TOO healthy, if you know what I mean. 😉 Need gluten free? Check out my Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe instead!

And finally — these adorable patriotic strawberries!

All you do is melt some white chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave, dip the fresh (washed) strawberries in the melted chocolate, wait til it dries, and then roll them in blue sugar or sprinkles, which you can usually find at the grocery store at this time of year (or if all else fails, try Amazon.com). Super easy and SO cute. Everyone will be raving about them!

What are your favorite foods to bring to BBQs? If you’re simply bringing something for the grill and looking to amp up the flavor, check out this recent post I wrote: 8 Easy Chicken or Tofu Marinades.