The Svelte Gourmet is expanding...and not in a good way!

I'm back from vacation! And I feel awful. Really, really awful. Don't get me wrong, my trip with Keith and the kids was fantastic -- we left Charleston for a week-long roadtrip to stay with my parents in beautiful Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We did day trips from there, visiting Washington DC, New York City and Williamsburg, hitting up Hersheypark, showing the kids Amish country and hiking my old camping spot. We really had a wonderful time, we got a ton of exercise, and we feel truly refreshed. We shook off the winter cobwebs (it was an unseasonably warm 90 degrees in Pennsylvania!) and we're ready for spring. So why do I feel so terrible?

Well, I figured that just for a week, I could give everyone a break from The Svelte Gourmet kitchen. I admit, I have a tendency to get a little preachy! But this was vacation. No restrictions! My mom has the same svelte mentality that I do, but unfortunately, we only ate a couple meals at home. So theme park food plus roadtrip stops plus drive-thrus plus Easter candy plus nary a chicken breast equals what? Lethargic, puffy and miserable! I feel like I did my own "supersize me" experiment. I did a quick mental recap of our diet last week, and I realized that we ate mostly high fat meats (if you can call a hot dog meat!), fried madness (more than one funnel cake...seriously?!), and an unreal amount of sodium. And virtually no fiber at all!

Has this happened to you on vacation? Or worse, does this resemble your everyday diet? Here's how to get back on track or kickstart your summer-ready fitness plan:

1. Back to basics! Lean proteins, lots of veggies and whole grains. And a TON of water. The Svelte Gourmet basics!

2. Lay off the salt. As you know, too much salt makes me puffy, and isn't good for me internally, either. And the amount in processed foods is sickening. So no more fast food or popcorn for me!

3. Fiber, fiber and more fiber. Fiber is something I've been wanting to cover for a while now, and this seems like the perfect time to do it! Dietary fiber has so many health benefits, and is absolutely imperative to keep things...uhhh..."moving." But we all know that, right? What you may not know, however, is that dietary fiber has some amazing health benefits and may actually help you lose weight!

How? Well, there are two kinds of fiber -- insoluble and soluble. Insoluble doesn't dissolve in water and is really what helps keep things moving. It also comes with the added benefit of making you feel fuller, longer. Soluble fiber does dissolve in water, and forms a gel-like material that, according to our friends at the Mayo Clinic, can help lower blood cholesterol and glucose levels! Foods that are high in fiber also tend to be less dense, meaning they have fewer calories in the same volume of food (as, say, proteins and fats).

Now I'm not suggesting you go buy a canister of fiber powder to add to your food. Yuck. Both soluble and insoluble fiber can be found in many of The Svelte Gourmet basics -- whole grains, fruit, veggies and legumes. If you can, keep the skin on your fruit and veggies, as that's where a lot of the fiber is!

So how much do we need? The Mayo Clinic suggests:
- Women - 25 grams per day (under 50 years old); 21 grams per day (51 and older)
- Men - 38 grams per day (under 50 years old); 30 grams per day (51 and older)

Here are two high fiber recipes from The Svelte Gourmet to get you started. Yay fiber!

Raisin Honey Bran Muffins
Creamy Broccoli Soup

The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses cookbook is available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html.

Enjoy and thanks for reading! It's great to be back!

Sweets get svelte!

Often, one of the first things to get axed when you're trying to lose weight is dessert. Most typical desserts are loaded with sugar, calories and fat. A modest piece of cheesecake comes in around 500 calories at the least! That's enough to sabotage any attempt at cutting calories and fat. And of course when I try to give something up for the sake of watching my weight, it's always what I crave the most. Sound familiar?

Don't despair! Quick, easy, and impressive enough for a dinner party, these svelte desserts will satisfy your sweet tooth without the guilt. Even better, I bet you have most of the ingredients in your house already! We're just going to re-purpose them.

1. Grilled fruit. I know it doesn't sound all that exciting, but wait until you try it! I find that peaches or nectarines, pears (not overly ripe) and pineapple work wonderfully for this. You could certainly grill your fruit on an outdoor grill, but I like to use something that catches the wonderful juices that are released from the fruit. A ridged grill pan on the stove top or even the bottom plate of my panini press are great. Simply heat the grill pan and place slices of fruit around the pan. In a couple minutes, the natural sugars in the fruit will be released and start to caramelize, leaving gorgeous grill marks on each slice. You should only have to flip them once. This process turns ordinary fruit into a sweet, gourmet treat. The grilled fruit is great by itself, or served over vanilla lowfat frozen yogurt. Use the released juice to drizzle over the top. Delicious, fancy and svelte!

2. The Svelte Gourmet Parfait. I'm calling this a parfait because the word means "perfect" -- and to me, this dessert is! It takes a bit of planning, since the bananas need to be frozen, but it is so simple, beautiful and yummy. First, slice one banana. Lay the slices in a single layer on a piece of waxed paper and freeze them for several hours or several days. The ones I used had been in the freezer for weeks, and they were great -- so if you have bananas in the house now (especially ones that are ripening too quickly), slice them up and throw them in the freezer for future use! After they're frozen, you can transfer them to a freezer bag for easier storage.

This recipe serves 2. Once the banana is frozen, simply puree it in a blender with 2 tablespoons of dark chocolate chips (or chunks of a bar) and 1/2 cup skim milk. Serve immediately. The result is a rich, thick, delicious parfait with less than 150 calories per serving! For a twist, add 1 tablespoon of peanut butter (only about 45 calories more per serving). Enjoy!

3. Honey yogurt. As you know, I use a lot of plain yogurt in my recipes. It's a great substitute for mayonnaise and sour cream. However, it can also be a sweet treat -- and without the artificial sweeteners of the store-bought low cal varieties! Drizzle plain yogurt with a couple teaspoons of honey, and add some fresh berries if you like. Yum! Even better, make your own yogurt! I've used the method described in Vintage Savoir Faire, and it works wonderfully. Try it!

4. Dessert panini! This will work with a variety of fillings, but one of my favorites is a twist on peanut butter and jelly. Simply spread a small amount of peanut butter on thin slices of whole wheat bread, layer it with slices of fresh strawberries, mist the outsides of each sandwich with cooking spray, and grill on the panini press. When it's done, sprinkle the top with a little powdered sugar to make it even prettier. Grilling the sandwich will turn your ho-hum PB&J into a sweet, gooey masterpiece. Substitute Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread) for peanut butter for something different. Just remember, go easy on either the peanut butter or Nutella -- you only need a teaspoon! Fantastic!

5. Baked apples with oat crisp. This dessert will totally satisfy your craving for apple pie or apple crisp, without the guilt! Stay tuned for the recipe in a future blog entry...

6. Frozen grapes. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. Freeze some grapes! Just take them off the stems, put them in freezer bags, and throw them in the freezer overnight or up to several weeks. A cup of frozen grapes only has about 65 calories, will satisfy your sweet tooth, and takes a long time to eat...trust me, eating these fast will only result in a major ice cream headache!

I hope I've given you some new ideas for svelte desserts that won't sabotage your diet. What tricks do you have for healthy sweet treats? Please share with us!

The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses cookbook is available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html. Enjoy!

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary..."

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?" A lot better than mine! (Mary being my mother...)

What's the opposite of green? Because that's what color my thumb is. You'd think gardening would go hand-in-hand with cooking, but unfortunately, my mom didn't pass her green thumb onto me. My parents have a beautiful yard with gorgeous blooms virtually every month of the year, but the summer vegetable garden is my favorite. I don't think there is anything else in the world like that first bite of summer tomato from my parents' garden. I don't even waste time with a fork, I just bite right in. YUM. I eat so many that my stomach hurts and I break out into a rash, but I don't care. They always were, and still are, my favorite food. No cooking required!

Unfortunately, my tomato-growing experience has been less than fruitful (pun intended!). I was relegated to container gardens for most of my adulthood (apartments in Washington, DC don't usually come with a garden plot!). My container plants always yielded a few red beauties, but I would eat them right there on the porch as they ripened. So really not much use in the kitchen -- or for anyone else! Then there was the year I tried those tomato planters that hang upside-down. I planted Better Boys and Early Girls...and I got beautiful, red, juicy tomatoes that were the size of large peas. Arg!

My mom claims it took her years to get it right, but I'm sort of (really) impatient. Last summer, we were just finishing the new house, and Keith built me a garden for my herbs. This year, though, is the year for veggies! And it couldn't come at a better time, when I get to chronicle my experiences for you -- if nothing else, it will keep me diligent about the weeding and feeding. I hope.

This weekend I planted. The weather was gorgeous and the sun was shining. My garden still has some stoic survivors from last year -- fragrant rosemary, which was fantastic with pork last night, and enough mint for me to open a mojito bar. That stuff is coming up everywhere, and it smells really good. Especially since Keith weed-whacked a bunch of it and there's now chopped mint all over the place. No worries, though, it's really resilient!

This year, I added basil and oregano on the herb side and peas and Roma green beans on the veggie side (and of course I saved room for some tomato plants!). Cooking with bright, bold fresh herbs are a great way to keep your meals full of flavor, without adding fat. Yum! I'm also looking forward to the peas (I love eating them right out of the pods), and steamed beans with a drizzle of olive oil and some garlic, salt and pepper are amazing. I can't wait! Fresh veggies are one of the best ways to stay svelte -- arm yourself with a bag of fresh peas in the pods to snack on, and you're good to go! And my favorite way to eat green beans is raw. Try it, I promise I'm not crazy. They are SO good.

So here's the current picture of my garden. You can see the rosemary, and that giant bundle of sticks is last year's basil bush. I think I'll trim it down to the base, and maybe it will grow back...thoughts? Anyway, I hope to have beautiful "during" and "after" pictures to show you -- along with recipes! What are you planting this year? Anything you love to grow, but need a great recipe for? Most importantly, any tips for those of us without green thumbs?!

Maybe someday I'll have a giant garden with a lot of variety, but for now, I thought I'd start small and see what happens...farmers' markets, stand by!

Thanks for reading!

The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses cookbook is available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html. Enjoy!

"Eat Better, Weigh Less: 7 Questions With The Svelte Gourmet"

This week, I had the privilege of being interviewed by John McGran, editor of Diet-to-Go, about my thoughts on a healthy lifestyle. Below is the story! Enjoy!

Submitted by John McGran on March 24, 2010 - 11:08am

Diet-to-Go is rolling out a new feature -- "7 Questions with..." -- and this week's premier guest is The Svelte Gourmet, a.k.a. Jenny Fox from Charleston, South Carolina.

The Svelte Gourmet caught my attention while I was compiling our weekly Diet Blog Carnival round-up of interesting and educational Internet features. Jenny's columns consistently appeared in our "best of" round-up so I decided to extend an offer for her to appear in this inaugural question-and-answer series.

"7 Questions with..." will feature top names in the fields of food, diet, nutrition, fitness and motivation, so be sure to come back regularly.. and to tell your health-minded friends about the new and improved Diet-to-Go blog.

Back to matters at hand -- The Svelte Gourmet (that's Jenny pictured at right). I chose to interview Jenny because I was intrigued by her approach as "your personal trainer in the kitchen."
While Diet-to-Go will serve you delicious, perfectly portioned meals to help you get healthier and lose weight, the Svelte Gourmet can teach you to cook healthy meals once you reach your goal weight.

7 Questions with The Svelte Gourmet

DTG: The Svelte Gourmet is your "personal trainer in the kitchen" -- what does that mean and why do I need a personal trainer in my kitchen?

SG: The Svelte Gourmet's mission is to help people understand what they should be eating for optimal health, both inside and out, and how to make it taste great! Through my "personal training" lessons, The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses cookbook, and my blog, I show people how to turn healthy ingredients into culinary masterpieces.

Weight loss is a multi-billion dollar industry, and with good reason. Millions of people are overweight and facing obesity-related health problems. It’s not just about looking good in a bathing suit. It’s about managing heart health, blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes and a host of other weight-related diseases.

One doesn’t have to look very far to find the next diet gimmick that promises to help you shed those pounds. However, in order to lose weight and keep it off, it takes a lifestyle change – eating right and exercising, not just for a week or a month, but forever.

Sounds daunting, I know, but it doesn't have to be. As your “personal trainer in the kitchen," I teach you lifestyle lessons that will help you and your families lose the weight and keep it off.

DTG: What fuels your passion for eating healthy and for educating others to do the same?

SG: Like millions of people, I tried diet after diet, only to lose weight and gain it back. I knew that I had to make a change for good, but I thought that meant that I would have to give up my favorites – pizza, burgers and sweets. What I realized is that it is possible to still have these things in my life, regularly!

I love to cook and experiment, so I've found ways to take the fat and calories out, and keep the flavor. In fact, many have said that my recipes actually taste better than the more fattening foods they were used to!

I've put together the collection of recipes that helped me to lose weight and keep it off. I've taken the guesswork out of it – my recipes are simple, fast and use ingredients you can find at any grocery store.

Even better, you and your families and dinner guests get to enjoy tasty meals night after night, often without even realizing that they're healthy!

Once I realized that a lifestyle change was simple, it became my mission to show others how to make the change in their lives.

DTG: Why do you think there are so many overweight and out-of-shape Americans?

SG: There are many reasons, but I think two of the biggest are convenience and the "bigger is better" mentality.

Our society is so focused on convenience that our entire lives can be managed from the computer. We don't have to leave the office chair to work, shop, socialize or even order food. And the portions of food to which we've become accustomed are enormous – often 4-5 times the amount we should be eating for a meal.

Our food comes ready to eat and handed to us through the car window "super sized." Our bodies have gotten used to a sedentary, convenient, all-you-can eat lifestyle. And we’re getting bigger and bigger.

DTG: Changing bad habits and starting a healthy lifestyle can be a daunting task. What are three simple steps I can make today to improve my health and my weight?

SG: First, get moving! You don’t need a gym membership or a house full of fancy exercise machines. Take a walk, ride your bike, chase the dog or the kids… just get out of the chair!

Second, start cooking! The first step is recognizing that it doesn’t take hours to make healthy food from scratch. In fact, it can often be faster than thawing and heating a frozen, processed dinner or ordering a pizza. I can get you started with delicious recipes that are fast, easy AND healthy.

Third, set small, attainable goals! Start with a commitment to yourself for today. “I will make dinner tonight.” “I will walk around the block.” Once you see how easy it is to do those things once, you’ll realize how easy it is to also do them tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that.

DTG: You say you are not a dietitian or nutritionist -- so why should I trust your tips and advice?

SG: For years, nutritionists, dietitians and trainers have been giving me the basic formula for eating more healthfully – lean proteins, whole grains, lots of vegetables, heart-healthy fats and proper portion sizes. I’ve taken this information and put it into easy to follow recipes that have been reviewed by health and fitness professionals.

DTG: How can a busy mom find the time to shop and cook healthy meals for herself and her family -- and how can she get her kids to eat more healthily?

SG: My recipes, tips and tricks are for the "every day" cook. They are designed to be fast and convenient, but still healthy and delicious. You won’t have to run all over town to specialty markets and health food stores, because my recipes use a clever mix of ingredients that you can find at most grocery stores.

Also, most of The Svelte Gourmet recipes come together in 30 minutes or less. Even I don’t like spending all day in the kitchen! I’ve also designed many of the recipes – like The Svelte Gourmet chili, lasagna and pizza -- to work well as leftovers.

It’s extremely easy to freeze leftovers or double a recipe so you can feed your family more than once with minimal effort.

Many of The Svelte Gourmet recipes are foods that kids love already – pizza, spaghetti, burgers and chicken. However, I’ve found that getting picky kids to eat more healthfully is a matter of involvement. When the kids help cook, they tend to eat more.

Cooking together provides great bonding time, it teaches the kids healthy eating habits early in life, and they take pride in the finished product. Your readers can find a lot of tips and tricks for getting kids to eat more healthfully at www.thesveltegourmet.com.

DTG: Finally Jenny, what are the 5 worst foods that the majority of us tend to have in our fridge/pantry -- and what should we replace them with?

SG: No. 1 is the "white foods" such as white bread, white flour, white rice and white pasta. These foods are often stripped of their fiber and nutrition and they break down quickly in your body, resulting in spikes to your blood sugar that leave you craving more. Replace with whole-grain products like whole wheat bread, brown or basmati rice, and whole grain pasta. Whole grain foods take your body longer to digest, meaning you’ll stay fuller longer without spikes to your blood sugar.

2. Mayonnaise or sour-cream-based foods. I’ve found that substituting plain yogurt for mayonnaise or sour cream in recipes affords you a lot of flavor with minimal calories and fat! Even full-fat yogurt has a fraction of the fat of mayonnaise. A cup of plain yogurt has around 150 calories, compared with 180 calories in only 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise! Try it in your dip or salad dressing recipes, or even in soups as a replacement for heavy cream.

3. Fatty proteins. Replace the ground beef with ground chicken or turkey breast. Instead of pork chops, try pork tenderloin. Instead of a ribeye, try a nice, lean sirloin. Replace the drumstick and wings with a juicy chicken breast (yes, it’s possible!). Lean proteins make a world of difference in your diet, and they can still be very flavorful with the right seasonings and cooking methods!

4. Bags of fried, processed snack foods. It’s a pretty safe assumption that anything with day-glow orange “cheese” powder isn’t good for you. Same goes for fried potato chips and butter-laden popcorn. Instead, try crunchy veggies with your new yogurt dip, air-popped popcorn with parmesan cheese and garlic, or fresh fruit salad with nuts.

5. Packaged baked goods. I know it’s easy to grab a box of iced cupcakes or store-bought cookies, but please don’t. I’m not saying you need to swear off baked goods forever, but when you do crave them, bake them yourself. You’ll savor them more, and they’ll taste a lot better! Consider healthy substitutions like whole grain flour, honey instead of sugar, and dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate.

Thanks to you Jenny for providing so much food for thought. We hope to see you back here in a future installment of "7 Questions with..."

Meanwhile, to get your regular fix of Jenny and to sample her yummy recipes, check out her website www.thesveltegourmet.com and grab a copy of her cookbook, "The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses."

Recipe Makeover #1 - Svelte Macaroni & Cheese!

What?! Yes, you heard that correctly. Traditional, homemade baked macaroni and cheese. YUM!

I'm saying "yum!" now, but this week in The Svelte Gourmet test kitchen did NOT run as smoothly as usual. Last week, as you may remember, I blogged about eating at home and sending in your favorite "not-so-svelte" recipes for a makeover. Many of you jumped on the opportunity to send me scrambling! And I'll tell you, this one was certainly a challenge.

The suggestion for a lightened version of mac 'n cheese came from Amanda Cook, creator of one of my favorite blogs, Vintage Savoir Faire. Taking a cue from her tag line, I tried my best to make my great-grandmothers proud! But it wasn't easy...

So first, let's break it down. What is macaroni and cheese? Well, first there's macaroni. Pasta. Not svelte, especially when consumed in large quantities, since one ounce has 100 calories. And cheese. Oh, glorious cheese! Cheese is quite good for you if you exercise portion control -- but just one ounce (yes, ONE!) of most cheeses packs a whopping 100 calories. So what do we have? A dish based solely on pasta and cheese (each 100 calories per ounce). And I promised you I'd try to keep it under 200 calories per serving, so already you can see the challenge!

Since Amanda didn't have a specific recipe in mind and there are a million ways to make this traditional dish, I browsed some of my favorite cooking websites -- both gourmet and home style -- to figure out some common themes with mac 'n cheese. Here's what I found to be average for most of the recipes that serve 8 as a side dish (1/2 to 1 cup serving size):

1. 2-3 cups of cheese (one TV chef's recipe had 6 cups of cheese -- for 6 servings! Ahhh!)
2. At least 4 tablespoons of butter (at 100 calories per tablespoon!)
3. A cup of whole milk or sometimes heavy cream (gasp!)
4. 4 tablespoons of flour (often cooked with the butter to make a roux)
5. Varying amounts of breadcrumbs
6. Typically 8-12 ounces of pasta
7. About half the recipes included at least 2 eggs

So let's say that this is our recipe. Calculating this conservatively (with 2 1/2 cups of cheese, milk instead of cream, etc.), I get 433 calories and 20 grams of fat per serving! For a side dish! Does your recipe resemble this one? Yikes!

So how in the world am I supposed to make a dish that has virtually NOTHING healthy in it "svelte?" Let's just say I started on Sunday and we've had failed mac 'n cheese every night this week. But I never give up!

I started the week fully believing I could perform miracles. Let's just take all the bad stuff out, add some healthy (and sneaky!) substitutions, and OF COURSE it will taste authentic. Makes sense, right?! And of course I have to make it gourmet. That's what I was going for originally, so my first version starred Gruyere and white truffle oil. YUM! At least that's what I hoped. Trying to make a roux with whole wheat flour just wasn't a good idea. The Gruyere is usually a stand-out flavor, but it was overshadowed by the faulty roux. The truffle oil added a nice touch, but that was about the only redeeming quality. NEXT!

OK, so the next night, humbled, I went back to the old standbys. No more showboating. I have to get it right this time! So I went with cheddar, but instead of a lot of regular cheddar, I opted for considerably less "extra sharp" cheddar. I thought the best way to get it to coat the pasta, since I didn't have that much cheese to work with, was to make a cheese sauce. So off I went, heating the milk (I skipped the roux after the first incident!), and melting the cheese. I wanted to use whole grain pasta, since you know I prefer whole grains over those stripped of their fiber. Oh, and I thought a little crushed red pepper would give it a nice pop of flavor.

Well. What I had this time was what tasted like chili pepper and wheat, with maybe a hint of cheese somewhere in there. Dry as a bone, too. Where did all the cheese sauce go?!?! Foiled again!

One more shot...I figured if it didn't work this time, I would have to just tell you to eat less (or none!) of the real stuff. That would have gone over like a lead balloon, I'm sure! So I had to do a little compromising. After all, you're looking for comfort food, and I really wanted to deliver.

Tonight, my friends, I had success! I loved the end result and Keith said it tasted like real mac 'n cheese! It was the perfect texture, full of flavor, and not at all dry! And get ready for this -- it has less than half the calories and a quarter of the fat of our traditional recipe above! At only 195 calories and 5 grams of fat per 3/4 cup serving (that's big!), consider Macaroni & Cheese made over! Now promise me that you'll read the whole recipe and don't be alarmed by the secret ingredient! I'll explain at the end!

The Svelte Gourmet Macaroni & Cheese
Serves 8

7 oz elbow or shell pasta (NOT whole wheat)
4 cups cauliflower florets, roughly chopped
1 1/2 cups lowfat (2%) shredded cheddar or cheese blend (I used lowfat 4-cheese Mexican blend and it was fabulous!)
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
2/3 cup 2% milk (skim would make the fat and calories even lower!)
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp butter, melted
2 tbsp panko bread crumbs
butter spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain well. Steam cauliflower florets until very soft, drain. Let pasta and cauliflower cool a bit while you prepare the other ingredients. Shred the cheese if it's not pre-shredded. Beat the milk, egg and salt together in a small bowl. Mix the melted butter with the panko in another bowl.

Mash the cauliflower with a potato masher, a whisk, or whatever you have handy. Mix it with the pasta until well combined, being careful not to break up the noodles. Take a pinch of each of the cheeses and toss them with the panko/butter. Set aside. Combine the rest of the cheese with the pasta and cauliflower. Spray the bottom and sides of your casserole dish lightly with spray butter, then spread the mixture evenly in your casserole dish. Pour the milk/egg/salt mixture over the top. With your mixing spoon, carefully stir and fold until the milk mixture is combined with the pasta/cauliflower. Sprinkle with the panko/butter/cheese mixture and bake, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes or until the top just starts to brown. Voila!

OK, hold on. Who said anything about Macaroni-Cauliflower & Cheese? That's cheating! But trust me on this, you will not be able to taste the cauliflower at all. I had it in all three versions, and despite how terrible the first two were, Keith had no idea there were veggies in any of it. The bite of the cauliflower disappears and it melts into that lovely, cheesy, custardy texture that you're looking for. Try it! I think you'll be surprised. It adds volume to the dish with negligible calories, and you won't even know it's there! Magic!

Is this version as good as the "real thing?" Some may think so, some may not. But try it and then ask yourself this -- is the fattening one really worth it? 433 calories and 20 grams of fat? Maybe for a special dinner, but at least with this new one, you can enjoy it more than once a year without the guilt!

I truly hope you enjoy this recipe -- I wouldn't have dared attempt mac 'n cheese if it weren't for Amanda's suggestion, and I hope you all continue to share your suggestions and ideas with us! Thank you, Amanda!

For more "magic" recipes, try The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses cookbook, available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html.

Enjoy!

The Svelte Gourmet takes on the Charleston Wine + Food Festival!

The 2010 Charleston Wine + Food Festival could have been intimidating for me, with thousands of chefs and foodies sampling my fare. After all, I was serving a "cream of" soup with no cream (gasp!) and facing an audience whose mission is flavor, not diet-friendliness. But I decided to go into it with a positive attitude, excited to share my healthy take on broccoli soup -- and it didn't hurt that I've received a ton of compliments on it from those of you here in cyberspace! So thank you!

The festival was sensory overload in a good way! The smells were amazing, the weather was gorgeous, the people were buzzing and the food was absolutely beautiful. It was intense, and I had a ball. I came away from it feeling very positive about The Svelte Gourmet's debut!

There were a few things that struck me as I spoke to hundreds of people yesterday. I was fortunate to have the first booth inside the FedEx Grand Tasting Tent, so I was told by many that the aroma of the soup filled the front vestibule and encouraged people to seek it out! Also, many were shocked that there was a healthy option at the festival, since they'd been inundated with calorie-laden, cream-based dishes. Risottos, pastas, soups, a variety of cream sauced dishes....yum! However, people were excited to try something lighter.

My favorite reaction was the incredulity many (most!) people had when I told them that the soup they were tasting only had 25 calories in their tasting and 75 calories per 1-cup serving. "But it can't possibly, it's delicious and it's cream of..." I started referring to my not-so-secret ingredient as "magic" yogurt. The best was when people sampled it and loved it even before realizing that it was "healthy."

I was touched as I talked to people about their struggles with weight loss and I loved hearing how so many had recently lost weight. They were truly interested in how they could make their healthy food taste good, so of course the cookbook was very popular! I also prepared recipe cards for everyone so they could make the soup at home -- and I truly hope they do! I also talked to a lot of people who said that they don't pay much attention to healthy foods, but they know they need to start. One thing I'm learning as I get deeper into this is that cooking and eating habits are things that families learn together. They have to unlearn the bad habits and pick up some new ones if a healthy lifestyle change is really going to happen. I connected with so many people this weekend and I am thrilled to be a part of their changes going forward.

As the afternoon progressed, people were coming to me saying things like, "Is this the diet soup I've heard so much about" and "I was told I had to come over here and taste this soup." I was also "recognized" several times, I suppose from my blog and local news appearances! It was quite exciting! I am touched and honored to have been a part of this year's festival, and I look forward to doing it again in future years! Thanks to every one of you who came by my booth! I loved meeting so many new fans and I hope you all continue to follow The Svelte Gourmet and share your stories and comments with us here!

I also loved helping Louie's Kids through cookbook sales, and I will continue to donate a portion of sales to help those in need. Thank you for joining me in supporting these great causes!

Extra special thanks to Keith, Gayle and Cheryl for all your hard work this weekend! Thank you!

Mark your calendars! I will be doing a cookbook signing on Thursday, March 18 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Silver Belles of Charleston gift shop (2487 Ashley River Road). Please drop by and see me and sample some complimentary dishes from The Svelte Gourmet! I will have cookbooks there for purchase, or you can bring your well-worn (I hope!) copies with you. Tell your friends!

To order The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses online, please visit www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html.

For the recipe for Creamy Broccoli Soup, please click here! Enjoy!

Extreme Makeover: Recipe Edition!

Since you're all taking The Pantry Challenge and cooking at home this week, I thought it would be a good time for a recipe makeover! Send your favorite "not so svelte" recipe to me at jenny@thesveltegourmet.com. Over the next couple weeks, I'll choose a few to revamp. I'll publish the made-over versions in upcoming blog entries!

I know what you're thinking. There's no way "my famous xyz" will be the same with lighter ingredients! Well, you're right, it probably won't be exactly the same. But here's what I can promise you -- it will still satisfy your urge for whatever it is supposed to satisfy! In other words, comfort food will still comfort you, dinner party food will still impress your guests, and quick-to-the-table dinner will still be speedy. Remember, this is a lifestyle change. We still need our favorites from time to time. Denying ourselves these guilty pleasures just leads to a backslide to bad behavior. My goal is to make your guilty pleasure with a lot less guilt!

Some of the made-over recipes from The Svelte Gourmet include spaghetti, lasagna, pad Thai, burgers and even pizza -- a pizza so good that my family says it's better than delivery. They request it weekly and I oblige. After all, the entire 8-inch pizza only has 400 calories and is loaded with wholesome ingredients and no preservatives! That's my kind of diet food!

So send me your favorite guilty pleasures and I'll get to work on some svelte make-overs! Don't worry, I won't publish your original "secret" recipes -- just the new versions, attributed to you.

Send your recipes to jenny@thesveltegourmet.com. Go ahead, challenge me!

If you need some recipe ideas in the meantime, The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses is available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html.

Food: Fashion or Fuel?

So I was cleaning up at the news station after my cooking segment the other day, and I was talking to one of the anchors and another show guest. The anchor really enjoyed the Creamy Broccoli Soup, and she was especially happy to learn the yogurt substitution trick. She was telling me about a cooking class that she took. During the class, she raised her hand and asked if there were any substitutions they could use to make the food more healthy. She said the chef gave her a glare that was like daggers. Then the other guest added that he once took a French cooking class, and he asked the chef if he could substitute soy butter. The chef threw a book at him. Wow...I'm prepared for a whole bookshelf to be thrown at me! I make creamy soup with no cream (gasp!) and I use a meat thermometer in my chicken (!!!).

I'm not bashing chefs or culinary training, nor am I saying that there is no place for rich foods or restaurant meals. I love eating out and trying unique, beautiful dishes! I am in awe of the amazing chefs who make it their life's work to create gastronomic masterpieces for us to enjoy. We are entitled to our nice dinners and guilty pleasures. I read cooking magazines and cookbooks and watch cooking shows daily. I love to cook and consider myself a foodie. But if I ate like that 3 meals a day, I'd be unfit inside and out. I also like to try rare and special ingredients, gourmet cheeses and foods that turn every night dinner into fancy fare. But if I did THAT for 3 meals a day, I'd also be broke. What I am saying is that we shouldn't be chastised -- by anyone! -- for wanting to keep ourselves and our families healthy most of the time.

I couldn't find a statistic on it, but I'd be willing to bet that 99% of people responsible for putting food on the table at home do not have formal culinary training. Many of us learned our cooking skills and eating habits from our parents -- good habits and bad! Recently, I've heard comments like, "my parents/grandparents ate fried food everyday and they lived to be 90." Well, my great grandmother baked bread everyday and fed her family a diet loaded with potatoes. After all, that's the most cost effective way to feed a husband and 13 children. But when you knead the bread yourself, dig your own potatoes and wash clothes for 15 people on a washboard, you're getting your cardio! I'll go out on a limb again and say that most of us do not have what is considered an "active" job. I certainly don't -- typing doesn't burn many calories, and even a thousand laps around my kitchen can't be considered cardio.

Anyway, I write this blog and share my recipes and lessons for the "every day" cook. Whether we have formal training or not, we all have to eat. Several times a day! I love the craze surrounding food and cooking -- there's even an entire television network devoted to it! But with food as fashion, the concern has mostly been taste, not nutrition. What's gotten lost is the concept of food as fuel. We need it to survive, and if we want our bodies to perform optimally, we have to put the best stuff in. Lean proteins, heart healthy fats, vitamin-rich vegetables and whole grain carbohydrates. The good stuff.

In 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 32 percent of American children are considered overweight and 34 percent of all Americans are considered obese. WOW. This is a serious problem. And the culprit isn't fancy restaurants, chefs or the Food Network. Really, I believe it's the drive-thrus and the processed and frozen food aisles at the grocery store. We've sacrificed nutrition for convenience. We're spending more time on the couch and in front of our computers and less time exercising. And we're going to pay the price for it. And this is not about being skinny, it's about being healthy inside, too. Keith used to have digestive problems and high blood pressure. Since he's been eating healthier and staying away from the sweet tea, he no longer has acid reflux and his blood pressure has normalized. Oh, and he's lost 20 pounds -- just a bonus.

Preparing healthy food everyday may seem daunting, but it really can be simple, fast, inexpensive, AND delicious! I receive so many comments from fans about what they do to make healthy food for their own families, and I love that this blog has become a forum for us to share our ideas. I've also received a little criticism here and there from those who have "expertise" in one area or another. And that's fine, throw those books! Dodging them is great cardio!

And I guess if I have to have a point, it is best said by this alliteration (because I'm nerdy like that) -- food can be fun, fashionable, and fancy (and fantastic, of course!), but most importantly, it should be fuel. Feed your bodies right (most of the time) and you'll be fit inside and out. And it feels good!

The Svelte Gourmet: A Month of Main Courses is available at www.thesveltegourmet.com/products.html. A portion of sales will be donated to Louie's Kids, a non-profit organization dedicated to fighting childhood obesity.

Enjoy!