Eating like the French--an Attitude as Well as a Cuisine

You know you are going to like this book when the author states in the ouverture: " My philosophy isn't about 'dieting' in the conventional sense, but more about eating sensibly and pleasurable." and this--"How are you at dealing with ambiguity? Do you ever have cereal for dinner? A snack?...What's a main course versus a side dish? Can sides be lunch or a side dish a main course?" Mais oui, we say!
Inside Mireille Guiliano's  The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook you will find recipes, of course--and tantalizing and practical recipes they are--but you will also read about a different way of looking at food. This is a companion book of sorts to the author's French Women Don't Get Fat, a non-diet book on how to enjoy food and stay slim (and non, it is not le smoking!) For many people, food and eating have become something to be tamed or managed. Rather than taking the What must I do without approach to eating, perhaps try the How can I prepare my favorite nutritional food so that I am content to enjoy it reasonable portions? As the book reminds us, the most pleasure of eating something we love comes with the first 3 or 4 bites. There is no need to gorge ourselves or feel deprived and grouchy because we are missing out on the foods we love. Remember portion proportion. In this day of repulsive shows that feature people stuffing the biggest pizza or most enormous burger into their mouths as entertainment, it is great to take a step back and take a look at how we can eat (what we love) to live and not live to eat. After all, there are consequences, n'est -ce pas?

Recipes include--Vegetable Curry, Salmon with Endives and Oranges en Papillote, Pumpkin and Apple Soup, Red Berry Smoothies, Yogurt and Oatmeal Cake, and Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal, and so on. But you will enjoy reading it even of you don't think you like to cook. You may even change your mind.

Published by Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster

Souperb!

So, a soupçon of soup can help nourish you and help you lose weight? This idea is not so new but now another recent study gives more credence to it. Here is a brief excerpt. For the entire BBC article go to http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8068733.stm

“In the battle to lose weight, hunger is the dieter's worst enemy. But research has revealed a simple aid to taming the appetite: soup. It's dieting's best kept secret says one science writer.

Imagine a typical lunchtime meal - say, chicken and vegetables with a glass of water.

If you eat the food and drink the water, you will feel full for a couple of hours before hunger kicks in. But if you blend the food with the water - to make soup - you will stay hunger-free for much longer, and less likely to snack through the afternoon. “

Come September Progresso is bringing out a new line of High Fiber Soups: Chicken Tuscany, Creamy Tomato Basil, Hearty Vegetable and Noodles, and Homestyle Minestrone. Each will give you 7 grams of fiber per serving and each tastes like home-made and are a bit more filling than soups without the added fiber. The taste and texture of this line is very appealing and delicious.

So you will get extra fiber and very tasty soups, which should help anyone who is trying to not only watch what they eat but just eat healthier. Soup on your side. Just remember NOT to also eat a half a loaf of bread or half a box of crackers.