Entertaining recipes that will wow your guests

Celebrations are a part of life. For 60 years, we've helped millions of people lose weight with our flexible and sustainable weight loss program. On WeightWatchers®, you can celebrate, eat cake, and anything else you want too.

There’s nothing better than gathering with friends and family with good food and plenty of laughter. With these simple recipes, you can prepare a feast that is so delicious, your guests won’t even know the menu is WeightWatchers-friendly! At WeightWatchers, we know that balance is essential for long-term success. These easy entertaining recipes means nothing is off limits and no missing out!

Getting together with friends and family is one of the most enjoyable aspects of life, but when socialising revolves around food it can seem incompatible with a healthy lifestyle. At WeightWatchers, we know that balance is essential for long-term success, so we’ve put together our top tips for entertaining.

1. Play it smart with healthy swaps. A few substitutions when entertaining can help you stick to your Points Budget without leaving you or your guests feeling deprived. Swap fried and cheese-laden appetisers for some delicious olives or an array of vegetable sticks with homemade dips; exchange rich, creamy side dishes such as potato gratin for flavourful salads and ditch the indulgent desserts in favour of a fruit platter with a little melted dark chocolate to dip the fruit into.

2. Make quality ingredients the hero. We all want to serve our guests a meal to be remembered, but food doesn’t have to be unhealthy to be special. Buying the best quality ingredients you can afford will have your guests raving while allowing you to stay on track. Think freshly caught fish and seafood, just-baked sourdough, crisp seasonal vegetables and fresh berries.

3. Find your inner food stylist. Putting a little extra effort into the presentation will impress your guests and make far more of an impact than foods with higher Points. Think bright and colourful canapés and salads, beautiful serving platters and creative table settings. After all, we eat with our eyes!

4. Go easy on the alcohol. Toasting a special occasion is part of the fun but alcohol contains ‘empty calories’ which means it has plenty of energy but very little nutritional value. Plus, it can actually stimulate your appetite. But that doesn’t mean you have to forgo alcohol entirely, it just requires a little planning. Set yourself a drinks allowance, factoring this into your overall Points Budget. Have 0 Points mixers such as soda water with fresh lime and remember to have a glass of water between each alcoholic drink. Or why not give a fun fruity mocktail a go? Like our strawberry mojito kombucha cocktail.

5. Most importantly, enjoy yourself. Do your best, but don’t get down on yourself if you overindulge a little here and there. The most important thing is to enjoy the time with your friends and family and get back on track with your goals as soon as you can.