The perfect (healthy) roast dinner

But while the Sunday dinner can seem like a truly wholesome affair, it can also add up to a health-busting nightmare. According to health experts, the average roast dinner is laden with saturated fats and salt. Healthier fare, such as boiled or steamed vegetables or fruit, have mere walk-on parts.

Fortunately, it doesn't have to be this way, says Nell Nelson, a nutritionist who is in favour of "good, hearty meals that also pay attention to vital healthy-living credentials".

She explains: "We should be able to enjoy our food and it's always at this time of year that people start to crave warmer, more filling meals. The Sunday roast is an obvious choice and even thinking about it makes you feel comforted.

"Of course, a meal such as this is fine in moderation, and once a week might be OK just as long as you're also watching out for some of the nasties such as unnecessary fats, salts, simple rather than complex carbohydrates, and quantity rather than quality."

There are also ways to ensure that you don't give your wallet a roasting with your Sunday lunch. Butcher Gavin Greer, of Robertson Jeen in Bearsden, says options for better-value meats include beef brisket and lamb shoulder. He says: "With brisket and shoulder you'd be best to do a pot roast, slow cooking the meats until they are nice and tender."

Greer also says that chicken is good value for money because there is little wastage. He adds: "Chicken has little fat and most of the bird is edible. You can also use the bones to make the basis of a tasty stock."

Here is our guide to the options for a good value Sunday lunch that's also good for you.

Meat While lamb, pork and beef are considered less healthy than naturally low-fat chicken and turkey, or better still, venison and Quorn, there are steps that home cooks can take to improve matters.

"Meat is a good source of protein, so it should not be overlooked," says Nelson. "But it can also be higher in saturated fats than many health experts would like, so I'd advise people to source their meat carefully. An animal that has been allowed to roam, and one that has fed on grass rather than predominantly on grains will be naturally leaner and lower in bad cholesterols."

The way the meat is then cooked can have a significant effect on its healthy-eating status. Basting the meat in lashings of fat, in particular butter - which contains two cholesterol-raising ingredients, dietary cholesterol and saturated fat - will have doctors shaking their heads.

Better alternatives are olive oil and margarine and lower-fat spreads, although be careful to avoid more solid spreads that can contain higher quantities of trans-fats.

Sous-chef Andy McDowall at The Living Room, Edinburgh, suggests that it's possible to cook meats without basting. He says: "I would advise cooking meat at a lower temperature or adding a tray of water to the oven to create additional moisture."

Further tips for a healthier meat include cooking it on a wire rack to let the excess fat run off and removing the rind, top fat or skin after cooking. Obviously, leaving the traditional bacon trimmings off roast chicken will reduce the calorie and fat count.

Nelson points out, too, that it is the amount of meat that people eat in one meal that can be the biggest problem. "Everything in moderation is my motto and I believe the meat, or protein, part of the meal should be no more than 15% of the total served up," she says.

Potatoes "Again, people should think about moderating the less healthy aspects of the traditional Sunday dinner," says Nelson. "My tip is to choose the tastiest of locally-sourced potatoes so that the tendency is to eat less, but flavoursome, foods rather than over-indulging on something that is bland."

For a healthier alternative to traditional roasties that are often steeped in lard or oil while in the oven, McDowall suggests: "You can simply toss the par-boiled potatoes in olive oil, and refrain from adding more oil to the baking tray. Then soak up any excess fat after cooking with kitchen paper."

Another lower-fat option is to keep potatoes in their skins, brushing with only a little olive oil before roasting. Add cloves or garlic (allegedly a preventative for colds) or chunks of onion (claimed to relieve colds) to the roasting tray for further health-boosting flavour.

Again, the healthy advice is to limit the potato constituents of a meal to about a quarter of the plate.

Vegetables and gravy "The colourful veg such as carrots and greens are rich in all kinds of health-giving nutrients such as vitamin C and iron, especially if they are steamed rather than boiled to nothing, and they are also low in calories," says Nelson.

"The habit of adding salt and butter should be avoided, though, and if you need a bit of extra flavour then go for pepper or a sprinkling of grated nutmeg."

Gravy also can be given a healthy overhaul. If you are making gravy from scratch, use the jus from cooking the meat, drain off as much of the noticeable fat as possible, add stock if necessary and use cornflour to thicken. McDowall says: "This version is lower in fat, while cornflour also contains more complex carbohydrates than white flour."

Pudding No Sunday roast would be the same without it. To minimise the calorie and fat overload, Nelson suggests cooks serve up favourites such as fruit crumble or apple pie.

She says: "Add lots of low GI oats, as well as spices, to the crumble topping to give it a healthy injection, and simply top the pie with pastry rather than making a full pie top and bottom.

"And serve theses dishes with low-fat yoghurt or custard instead of cream. You'll still have a satisfying pudding but without adding to your waistline."

Recipes for a satisfying Sunday

Healthy roast (and it will save you money, too) Brisket, a cut from the breast or lower chest of an animal, is usually cheap and can be as nice as traditional cuts of meat used for roast. While all animals have a brisket, beef brisket is the most common.

Pot roasted beef brisket Serves 6 Ingredients 2 tbsp olive oil 1.5kg piece boned and rolled beef brisket 50g reduced fat butter or margarine 2 turnips, chopped into long wedges 4 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced 2 celery sticks, sliced 2 bay leaves 2 sprigs fresh thyme 300ml chicken stock Preheat the oven to 150C/fan 130C/gas mark 2. Heat the oil in a casserole large enough to fit all ingredients. Season the brisket all over, add to the casserole and brown on all sides. Lift out on to a plate. Pour away any excess oil.

Melt the reduced fat butter or margarine in the casserole over a medium heat. Add the vegetables and herbs. Season. Cook gently for a few minutes until lightly browned. Add the brisket and stock, then cover with foil and a tight-fitting lid and cook in the oven for two to two-and-a-half hours.

Put the brisket on a board and carve thin slices. Skim excess oil from the casserole and boil for a couple of minutes. Serve with the juices and mustard.

Heathly roast potatoes Serves 8-10 1kg floury potatoes (for example, Maris Piper), peeled and cut into large chunks A few tablespoons olive oil Pinch of low-sodium salt Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas mark 7. Parboil the potatoes in lightly salted for five minutes. Alternatively, steam the potatoes to preserve more of the vitamins.

Drain the potatoes and soften the edges with a fork. Toss them in olive oil, making sure the edges are covered. Put the potatoes in a roasting tray and place in the oven. Cook for about 45 minutes to an hour until the potatoes are golden and crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. Turn from time to time. Once the potatoes are cooked, remove them from the oil and drain thoroughly on kitchen paper before serving.

Heathly mash Serves four

The secret to creamy mashed potatoes lies in the whisking, not the double cream and butter. The more time you spend on it, the lighter and fluffier the mash will be.

500g potatoes (such as Maris Piper), peeled and halved Low-sodium salt 50g margarine, reduced-fat butter or low-fat spread Up to 25ml semi-skimmed milk Freshly ground black pepper Boil the potatoes, plus a pinch of salt, in a large pan of water over a high heat until tender. Drain them and leave until the steam has evaporated. Drier potatoes will avoid a watery mash. Place the potatoes in a large bowl and mash them with a potato masher. Don't use electric whisks or food processors as the texture won't be the same.

Once all lumps are removed, add the margarine and mash it into the potato. Add a splash of milk. Keep mashing and check the consistency. Finally, taste the mash and add a bit of salt and pepper.

Healthy alternative to meat Roast Vegetable Strudel Serves 4 Ingredients 3 sheets filo pastry olive oil, for brushing For the roasted vegetables: 1kg mixed vegetables, chopped into bite-sized pieces A few garlic cloves, skinned and left whole Up to 3 tbsp olive oil 4 sprigs rosemary or thyme, or a handful sage leaves Salt and black pepper to taste Juice of 1 lemon Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas mark 6. Mix the oil with the herbs and seasoning, and the lemon juice. Toss the vegetables thoroughly in the mixture and place them in a roasting tin. Place the tin in the preheated oven and bake for 30-40 minutes until the vegetables are tender and well browned, then leave to cool.

Take three sheets of filo pastry. Brush one sheet with olive oil, place the second sheet on top and repeat, then top with the third. Place the cooled roast vegetables on to the filo and roll up to make a sausage shape, tucking the sides in as you go. Place on a baking sheet, brush with a little more oil and put in the oven for 20 minutes.