Light and Easy Holiday

If flavor and fat merge synonymously during your holiday season, blame it on tradition. Winter's meager harvest once forced cooks to rely on fatty cured meats and richly preserved sweets to serve at feasts. But the year-round availability of fresh vegetables, fruits, fish and meat opens the contemporary buffet to a range of dishes that celebrate the season without fattening the figure.

To help us slim down these merry meals, we asked three prominent chefs to create holiday recipes that maximize flavor while minimizing fat. "You don't want your guests so full they have to flop on the couch," says Emily Luchetti, executive pastry chef at Farallon in San Francisco, one of our guest chefs. "Remember, yours is not the only holiday dinner your guests will attend." The other chefs are Henry Meer, chef/owner of both The Cub Room and City Hall in New York City, and Josie Le Balch, who was executive chef at The Beach House in Santa Monica, Calif., and is opening her own restaurant this month. (They've also provided us with tips on how to prepare and serve their dishes.)

Prized for creativity and presentation, these recipes can be stand-alone dishes to incorporate among your favorites. Or, if you hunger for a complete break from your usual holiday fare, you can assemble an entire holiday meal using these recipes. This year, your guests won't be unbuttoning their pants and skirts while you're pouring the coffee.