This is a guide to eating and drinking over Christmas if you have been asked to:
Use this information alongside the information about ‘Eating less potassium’ and ‘Managing fluid intake’ given to you by the dietitian.
Here is information on some foods and drinks you can enjoy over the festive period.
It is still important to be careful with foods high in potassium and keep to your fluid allowance.
You may be able to include a high potassium food by swapping this for another food. For example:
This recipe makes a fruit cake with a lighter sponge and all the flavours of Christmas. It doesn’t need to mature like a traditional Christmas fruit cake.
Serves 16.
Sieve the icing sugar together with 1 tsp cinnamon, and mix with the water and juice of an orange. The icing should be thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. If it is too runny add a little extra sieved icing sugar, or if it is too thick then add a little more water.
Turkey, chicken, duck, goose, beef, lamb, pork or fish.
Dishes made with tofu, Quorn, lentils, pumpkin,or squash. Cheese or brie and cranberry pastry parcels.
Dishes made with nuts, courgette, mushrooms, spinach, sweet potato.
Boil potatoes first to make roast or mashed potatoes.
Potatoes which have not been boiled.
2-3 portions
1 portion = 2-3 tablespoons
Boil vegetables. Choose those lower in potassium such as carrots, red cabbage and cauliflower. Limit Brussel
sprouts to 6.
Vegetables such as mushrooms, parsnips, spinach, vegetable/tomato soup.
Yorkshire pudding, apple sauce, cranberry sauce, homemade bread sauce, mint sauce and horseradish.
Fruit pie or crumble (except for rhubarb, blackcurrant or apricot), artic roll, gateaux, ice cream, sorbet, pavlova,
profiteroles or trifle. Brandy/rum butter or double cream with puddings.
Try to limit to 1 portion of either Christmas pudding or Christmas cake or 1 mince pie or 1 slice of Yule log.
Clementines, satsumas, apple, raspberries, tinned fruit.
Fruits such as apricots, bananas, dried fruit and fruit juices.
Plain breadsticks, unsalted popcorn, corn, maize or wheat snacks (choose those without potassium chloride), pickled onions, cheese and biscuits. Carrot or cucumber sticks with cottage/cream cheese or sour cream or mayonnaise dips. Cranberries. Chestnuts (5)
Potato crisps, Twiglets, guacamole, salsa, nuts and dried fruit.
Chicken or fish goujons, mini sausages, blinis or crispbreads with pate or salmon and cream cheese, prawns, arancini balls, mini quiches or vol au vents.
Sponge cake, gateaux, cream cakes, jam tarts, jam or cream swiss roll, brandy snaps, gingerbread or shortbread.
Stollen, biscuits, cake containing dried fruit, nuts.
Jelly sweets, mint creams, marshmallows and Turkish delight.
Liquorice, hot chocolate. Limit chocolate to 4 pieces / squares or 2 chocolate coated biscuits.
Liqueurs, port, sherry, spirits. 1 small beer/lager or 1 glass of wine/mulled wine or champagne.
Cider and strong ales. Drinks/cocktails with fruit juice.
The Kidney Care UK website has a range of recipes and can be found at: https://www.kidneycareuk.org/about-kidney-health/living-kidney-disease/kidney-kitchen/recipes/
These also include a selection of low potassium Christmas recipes:
Some recipes are also low phosphate or low salt. You can check this under the ‘Nutrition’ section of each recipe.
If you are unable to look at the recipes on the Kidney Care UK website and would like a printed a copy of a particular recipe, please ask your renal dietitian for this.
© North Bristol NHS Trust. This edition published June 2023. Review due June 2026. NBT003433.
Kendon House
Kendon Way
Southmead Hospital
Bristol
Telephone: 0117 414 5428
Email: dieteticenquiries@nbt.nhs.uk