I'm so glad to see some my staples on the list xtina posted: evoo, garlic, onions and, my favorite fruit these days: pineapple!

The recommendations are interesting -- even though I use it frequenly, I don't think I get a tablespoon of olive oil in just about any day! I use it quite sparingly. I guess that means I'm not getting enough to be useful? Or, does he say anything about the calorie level he's assuming most people are using??

Hey! Thanks a lot! And you added the suggested consumption measure.. wow... The garlic/ onion components do look redundant.. but it still makes sense.. For example in a day if I have scallions.. and then I have chives.. I can still count it twice instead of once. .. I have the variety and the servings.

I eat onions, garlic, and scallions nearly everyday. Many times in the same dish.
Welcome aboard.. my new buddy. ;) with the book.

Kefir is a fermented milk drink (like thin yogurt) much like lassi (indian) or kumis (mongolian) or even good old cultured buttermilk in the US.

The Wiki for yogurt gives a good run down of different kinds of yogurt, and includes instructions for making your own.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogurt

xtina, thanks a lot! I eat a square of dark chocolate a couple times a week so I'm happy that is on the list :)

Jayde, I have an interesting recipe for Butternut squash that is pretty good. I think you can also use other squashes as well but here goes:

Chilean Butternut Squash Casserole

1 large butternut squash
1 cup chopped onions
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1-2 dash cayenne pepper
1 cup red bell peppers, coarsely chopped
1 cup green bell peppers, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, beaten
2 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds.
Bake cut sides down at 425° 45- 50 min.
or until very soft at thick end.
Let squash cool and scrape out of the shell; mash as smoothly as you can.
Meanwhile, sauté onion, garlic and spices in olive oil until onion is translucent.
Add peppers and salt, stir, cover and leave on low heat 5 min.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Stir beaten eggs into mashed squash.
Add corn, sautéd veggies and grated cheddar; stir to mix well.
Bake 20 min. covered; uncover and bake 20- 30 min. more.

My notes tell me that I got this one from recipezaar.com.

Hey gals! I bought the book yesterday, but haven't started reading it yet.....hoping to start today!

Hey Wyllenn, I used it pretty sparingly enough while I was losing weight. Now that I'm maintaining and using Fitday to track my "percentages" I noticed that I was always very low in healthy fats (usually around 15% a day). Now, I use more olive oil, eat more peanut butter, feel okay to put avocado on sandwiches. I get around 25-30% from fat now, much healthier and more in line with recommended daily amounts.

It really helps to have an extra 300-400 calories a day to play with. The books are really not about weight loss, they are about healthy living - so, living healthily and maintaining weight. When I was losing weight, sometimes I had to make choices - did I want to eat almonds or eat a yogurt? It was hard to get all the super foods in that I wanted. Now, I have a lot more flexibility since I get more calories a day.

I've also switched from low fat or non fat dressing to full fat dressing (healthy oil based). I also make my own dressing (got some fabulous walnut oil from Trader Joe's). For example, when I'm making blackened salmon, I rub about a tbs of oil on both sides. I would never have done that when I was actually losing weight, I probably would have lightly sprayed it with PAM!

Yup, I only have the first book and I'm up to "Oats."

One thing I have some concerns about, he's recommending that so many things be kept in the fridge (oats, wheat germ, nuts, etc.). I don't have enough room in my fridge for all that plus the "regular stuff (milk, yogurt, fruit)! I usually keep my nuts and oatmeal in my pantry. Thoughts?

I figure I eat the nuts so quickly - they can live in the pantry. The only thing I refrigerate is wheatgerm, it looks so perishable!

I did have some pine nuts go rancid on me. Didn't notice until AFTER I had tossed them into some quesadilla filling. Oops!

Glory -- Thanks for the perspective check! You're right about the framing of the book!

Though, I don't eat a very low number of calories compared to most others it seems (sitting at 1800/day or so right now), and DO rub oil on chicken and fish before grilling (though I know it's less than 1 tbsp per side right now). But I do hope that I can increase by a bit the amounts of some of these foods. For example, I do sometimes put olive oil and vinegar on salad, but usually only 1/2 - 1 tsp of oil right now. We splurge on nice olive oils, it would be nice to taste them a bit more!

I agree about nuts being in the cupboard. I guess they might lose a little nutrition without being in the refrigerator, but in terms of taste I go through them quickly enough that they seldom spoil.

Earlier in this thread (I think it was this one) there was a discussion about yogurt. I went to Trader Joe's to look at and buy some yogurt. I was happy that none of the ingredients on any container was high fructose corn syrup, but I was amazed that the calories were so high. I'm used to eating a 6 ounce Yoplait (fat free, I think) for about 100 calories. Most of what I found at Trader Joe's was up over 200 calories for 8 ounces. I did buy a couple, but I think I'll go back to Yoplait at least until I lose these last few pounds.

Nelie, thanks for the recipe! I was wondering what I was going to do with the squash instead of just staring at it each time I walked into the kitchen. I had all the ingredients except the green peppers.. so I bought some when I was out. I’m making this tonight.. actually I might not wait till tonight.. I might make it NOW!

Jen- Glad you have the book. Now you can catch up to the class! At first I thought .. "Hey.. if I just know what the foods are and their sidekicks I won't need the book." I am glad I didn't listen to myself as the book had stuff in it I needed to read. So when the second comes out in paperback I'll buy it too.

Heather- I know I get that much olive oil in.. cause I use it all the time. For some reasons when I made Asian dishes that required vegetable or sesame oil I never thought to use olive. Now I use both the sesame and olive.. I also use it for rubbing on salmon, marinating other meats (shrimp marinated in olive oil, lemon juice and spices then grilled is to die for!), and of course in pasta dishes, salads or other vegetables.

I don’t think I go over board with it as it seems when I am really taking care of myself I have to be careful that I am eating enough… really odd since when I am not being good to myself I could eat all day and still not be satisfied.

Breaking free- Up to oats.. it’s a good book isn’t it! Ok.. as far as refrigeration goes.. I don’t have this problem as I have a side by side frig/freezer in the house, as small frig in the garage for drinks (honey’s beer and coke for guests, extra storage for soymilk and now kefir that hasn’t been opened..etc), plus I have a large “kimchi” refrigerator placed in the dining room that holds lots of veggies in the drawer and an extra “room” that I use for fruits.. so good for storing apples and oranges! So I refrigerate a lot of things that probably would be fine in the pantry. It is humid here so I don’t want to take the chance of things spoiling..

Ideas? Let’s see.. I don’t store my oats in the frig.. I keep them in a very dark pantry that is cool and use them quickly. If I didn’t have space for nuts I would probably buy smaller bags (kind of an expensive proposition) or buy the large bags I get at Costco and then divide them up between myself and neighbors and friends. Just like I sometimes do after a trip to the farmer’s market.. my friends also reciprocate when they find a good buy. If I didn’t have the storage space I’d probably just keep them in the pantry although I prefer not to do that since I don’t want to be concerned about what is in there that might be getting too old too fast. Pine nuts?. I keep them suckers in the freezer. They would go rancid too quickly and are so expensive!

Well I went back to the store today (aka commissary) to get the peppers.. whaddaya know.. I found the canned pumpkin right where it was supposed to be! I must have been blind! I didn’t find the stevia though.. makes me wonder if I have selective sight or something!

Jayde, let me know what you think of the recipe. I made it once and it was pretty good. It makes a lot though (plenty of leftovers).

Allison, I mentioned Trader Joes yogurt but I should specify that I only buy nonfat plain yogurt tubs from TJs. For my lunches, I put half a cup of nonfat plain yogurt in a 1 cup tupperware type container and then I add berries or some type of fruit. I will also sometimes add the yogurt to smoothies I make. If you are looking for premade snack cups, I'm not sure about the TJ selection.

I forgot to mention that I received the book. I started reading it and it is interesting. I am glad that I have a good list of veggies and their side kicks :)

I used to always buy the plain variety. I like it--especially with fruit and a little granola. My DH recently decided he wanted yogurt daily, but he likes it flavored, so we've been doing the yoplait. I guess I should just go back to plain (but it is nice to have that sweetness with the flavored variety--it really satiates my sweet tooth!).

Trader Joe's has my favorite yogurt--it's Fage 0% (plain, nonfat) Greek yogurt. It's so good! Don't know if it comes flavored, but I put in sugar-free DaVinci syrup and berries anyway. Unfortunately, it's a 45 min. drive from where I live. Supposedly you can get it at Krogers (Fred Meyers here), but I haven't seen it in any of the grocery stores in my town of 53,000. TJ's also has salmon patties that are just salmon. I fry them up in a little olive oil, and eat them like a hamburger. And they have the best wild-caught canned salmon I've tried, and I eat a lot of it.