Today we welcome #TheMayChallenge‘s fourth guest blogger, Laura, from Beauty & The Beard! Laura is bomb because she’s always inviting us over for dinners that are too cute. She always has the table set up colorfully with a bouquet of fresh flowers and whatever we’re eating is always delicious (her beer tasting + potato bar nights are my personal favorite)! She’s rounded up 9 of her own recipes for healthy treats when entertaining…so if you’ve got big plans this weekend there’s no excuse to sabotage the good things you’ve done this month. You can find Laura on Twitter & Instagram to keep tabs on her upcoming posts!

Hello lovelies! I’m Laura from Beauty & the Beard– and I’m so happy to be here today to chat about healthy entertaining! I think Dani’s May Challenge idea is kick-butt, and it’s definitely been challenging me to take a more active role in my day to day health. I love to have people over for dinner, and this month has been making me focus on having healthy options for all of my guests.

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1. Cut the Sodium, Go for Garlic: You’ll see a lot of the recipes for the images above have garlic in them, and it’s for good reason. Garlic gives a flavorful punch (and packs health benefits) and allows you to cut back on the salt you’d normally use in recipes.

2. Chuck the Chips: Sure, grabbing a bag of chips is easy for hosting people, but take a little extra time to make a homemade snack- and you’re keeping your guests healthy AND showing your creative chops. Roasted Edamame, Garlic Hummus with Veggies, or Kale Chips are all chip alternatives that provide a crunch with much less fat!

3. Water for all!: When most people entertain, they don’t have water out for guests- so thus, water doesn’t get consumed. It’s not rocket science. But just like a restaurant, if you have glasses of water set at the table from the get go, people are likely to consume it. Garnish with a fancy paper straw if you think the agua is boring- your guests will thank you for having a non-alcoholic / calorie free option for them without having to ask.

4. Rely on your Recipes!  You need to have healthy snack & meal ideas under your belt, so in a pinch you know you have easy, wholesome options to fall back on! Otherwise, you’ll probably end up just grabbing a bag of chips or a pizza to bring to the table…

Here are a few no-fail healthy (and delicious) recipes I rely on: