About Dr. Gourmet My name is Timothy Harlan and I am both a physician and a chef. This blog is a general collection of information and random ideas on eating great food and eating healthy.
You can find more at the Dr. Gourmet web site. Link to http://www.drgourmet.com.
Eat well, eat healthy, enjoy life!
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 Chef Tim Says….
We have been reviewing convenience foods here at Dr. Gourmet for a few years. The idea began because my patients talked about eating Lean Cuisine meals. I will admit that at the time I hadn’t had a frozen meal in longer than I could remember. Mind you, I love to cook and a lot of folks don’t. Likewise, I work to make time to cook because I know that it’s the way to living well and living longer.
O.K., that’s me but you may be different. You may not like to cook every day or may not feel you have the time. So I took this to heart and we began testing a lot of different convenience foods. Most of these are frozen meals like Lean Cuisine. We’ve now tasted and reviewed over a hundred such meals and some are pretty darn good and others pretty darn terrible. How to Choose Convenience Foods
Featured Recipe
Egg Salad
 Yes, you can eat egg salad. The variations I will leave up to you. My brother loves Heinz India Relish and I like capers. I will also say that I have tried this recipe both with the reduced-fat mayonnaise and the non-fat and it makes little difference in flavor.
Barbecue Shrimp Salad
This is a perfect healthy summer picnic recipe. Make this along with the Chipotle Jack Grits Cakes and Cole Slaw and you’re good to go.
Chinese Chicken Salad
 This is the perfect complete summer salad (but you can serve it in the winter also). Light and filling, it has everything you want in a salad – fresh crunchy veggies, a sweet sour dressing, savory meat….
Chilled Watermelon Soup
 This is the perfect summer soup. You can serve it plain without the olive oil (with 45 less calories) at picnics along side almost any dish including barbecue, burgers, grilled fish or pasta salads. With the olive oil and basil it makes a fantastic and elegant starter course to your summer dinner party.
 Iced Cucumber Soup
With iced soups, just a touch of sour cream or yogurt will enhance the soup and complement the flavors of the base of the soup.
Chilled Pea Soup with Herbs | Low Sodium Version
 This is the perfect summer soup. It’s really easy to make and served with toasted or grilled bread and some soft cheese makes a lovely warm weather meal. This is great garnished with Candied Pumpkin Seeds.
The key to this soup is to cook the peas just long enough to be soft, but not so long that they begin to turn from being a bright green. The same holds true for the spinach. Cooking more than about 2 minutes and it will begin to lose its color. This is the reason for adding the ice and putting the soup into an ice bath as soon as possible. Cooling the veggies quickly will set the bright green color.
Chilled Tomato Soup | Low Sodium Version
 I started out thinking that I would make this soup with tarragon, but it just hasn’t grown well in my garden. I had the fresh basil and used it instead. I love this soup, but you should use what you have available, and basil, tarragon, oregano or even thyme would be great choices.
As you might expect, I collect cookbooks. The first cookbook I bought for myself was the Peanuts Cook Book, but the one my mother used most (and I bet yours did too) was The Joy of Cooking. I actually have several copies of this venerable cookbook, from the two-paperback edition from 1974 to the 1946 hardback that my wife bought me for Christmas last year.
Recently a brief article in The Annals of Internal Medicine featured The Joy of Cooking. Brian Wansink, a food researcher at Cornell University, and his staff surveyed the seven editions of The Joy of Cooking and found that only 18 recipes have appeared in all seven editions (disappointingly, the letter does not list which ones they are). Right Size Your Recipes
 Q: My brother thinks that drinking Fresca is the same as drinking water. He is diabetic and takes pills to control his numbers. He is about 30 or more pounds overweight and he drinks about 6 cans of Fresca each day. I told him he could drop at least 15 pounds if he didn’t drink so much Fresca. His doctor told him that drinking fresca is the same as drinking water. Is that True?
A: According to the Coca Cola Company, Fresca products have about 2 calories in an eight ounce serving. A can of Fresca is 12 ounces so 6 cans per day would be only 18 calories. While this is more than water, at zero calories, it is not significant. 18 calories is slightly more than a single teaspoon of sugar.
Of course we know that drinking sugar sweetened soft drinks causes weight gain and leads to an increase in the risk of diabetes. This is well established.
There’s not a lot of research about whether drinking calorie free sodas will contribute to weight gain or not. What we do have is not encouraging for those who drink any type of soda, however. Diet Soda vs. Water
 Q: I’ve been following a Weight Watchers type diet for 2 1/2 months now. I’m 44 yrs old, 5′4″ and weigh just over 150 lbs. In the past, as recently as last year, I have been able to go a month or two with a WW type diet and lose 5 lbs minimum. This time I have not been able to lose even 1/2 lb.
I have really been careful about sticking to eating well, but I feel at a real loss right now and don’t know what to do next. Any advice you can offer to help me lose weight would be appreciated. What would you advise as the next steps?
A: This is a great question. There’s some evidence that as we get older – into our 40s and 50s – that it can be more difficult to lose weight. Everyone is different, of course, and there’s been some research focusing on this but nothing conclusive as to the actual cause. What we do know… Age and Weight Loss
 Q: Recently I read an article about MSG (monosodium glutamate). It claimed that MSG causes weight gain based on a study done by university of Carolina. Is this true?
A:There have been animal models showing that MSG has an effect on the hormones that influence weight gain. A group of researchers at North Carolina did indeed look at whether such changes might be linked to weight gain in humans. MSG and Weight Gain
 Q: How much weight should you lose doing it healthy each week? I was hoping maybe you could give me a few hints as to what I should be looking for and what to avoid.
A: The best research that we have says to lose about one pound per week on average. Losing weight much faster increases the likelihood of long term failure by rebound weight gain. Healthy Weekly Weight Loss
Have a question? Send it to askdrgourmet@drgourmet.com and your question may be answered in this column. Read more Ask Dr. Gourmet questions.
 Chef Tim Says….
When I am creating recipes I choose ingredients that are lower in calories but very satisfying. Sometimes this means simply cutting down on the amount of fat in a dish by using healthier oils or leaner meats. A recipe might call for a substitution to give the dish more volume so that it’s more filling without adding too many calories. Adding more veggies like onions or mushrooms to a pasta dish, stew or soup, for instance, can make a big difference in the total calories.
There has been some very well designed research showing that eating lower calorie dishes that are higher in volume can be very satisfying. The interesting thing about this is that folks don’t tend to replace all of the calories they might be used to eating by snacking or eating more later in the day. Ingredients are Everything
Featured Recipe
Chilled Tomato Soup | Low Sodium Version
I started out thinking that I would make this soup with tarragon, but it just hasn’t grown well in my garden. I had the fresh basil and used it instead. I love this soup, but you should use what you have available, and basil, tarragon, oregano or even thyme would be great choices.
Featured Ingredient: Tomatoes
 There are thousands of varieties of tomatoes and a look at any seed catalogue always makes my mouth water. I love some of the names — Isis Candy, Cupid, Tiny Totem, Snowberry…. Not many of these make it to the markets, however.
Buying tomatoes at the supermarket can be a daunting task. The quality is often poor because most are picked green and ripened in big rooms using ethylene gas. Even so, even the worst tomato can be made better by placing it stem side down on a sunny windowsill. It will continue to ripen further and if you want it chilled, place it in the fridge for only a couple of hours, as cold is the enemy of the tomato. Tomatoes
Barbecue Chicken Pizza
 Barbecue sauce is a funny thing. Religion for some and with good reason. The complexities of making a good sauce are debated endlessly. This healthy recipe relies heavily on the brown sugar and jam to create a caramelized glaze on whatever you decide to use it on.
Sugar adds calories plain and simple. If you are really watching calories there are a lot of sauces out there with fewer calories and are actually pretty low in sodium. I generally use them more often than I make my own. I look for ones that are low in both calories and sodium. One of my recent favorites is Arriba! Fire Roasted Chipotle Bar-B-Q Sauce. Full of flavor, 1/4 cup has only 20 calories and only 300 mg sodium.
Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
 This is a wonderful recipe. The nutrition information reflects the chicken eaten with the skin on. I almost never do this: after you are used to not eating the skin it can really taste too rich. Nonetheless, in an effort to be fair to those who have a craving for a lovely roast chicken at Sunday lunch this is a pretty healthy way to roast it. The grid of celery keeps allows a lot of the fat to drain away and along with the herbs and garlic makes for a lovely aromatic bird. Serve this with some Pan Grilled Broccoli and you have the perfect healthy Sunday meal.
Kung Pao Chicken | GERD / Acid Reflux / Heartburn-Friendly Version
 I like spicy food but not too spicy. This is literally the one pepper version and is pretty mild so it’s easy to make this spicier by adding peppers to your desired level of heat.
One way to control how much spiciness is in dishes like this one is to use chili oil. This is widely available now, and very common in Asian markets, but your grocery probably carries it.
One Skillet Chicken and Black Beans
 I love quick one pan meals like this one. Its proves how easy it is to eat really great food and eat healthy. This has it all — low fat, high fiber, legumes and a wonderful southwestern flavor. One key is the little touch of maple syrup and vanilla extract. The sweetness of the maple syrup offsets the spiciness of the cumin and cayenne while the vanilla adds a slight aromatic touch to the recipe.
It may interest you to know that the food you keep at home provides 72%, by weight, of all food that you eat. This is assuming that you do not prepare most meals at home, however. If you do make most of your meals at home (breakfast and dinner made at home and taking your lunch with you to work or school), then 93% of the food you eat comes from what is kept in your home.
So what? Of course your food comes from what you have at home. Researchers at Rutgers University wondered if there was a difference in what foods were actually in the home between those families with overweight members and those families who were all of normal weight. If It’s In the House….
Q: I am trying to prepare the best hard boiled eggs for friends. My procedure is to boil them for at least 10 minutes over a medium flame, then I let them sit and cool down so I can peel them. Now isn’t that the best procedure to use?
A: There are dozens of ways to boil an egg and your email piqued my interest. I searched the internet and found many people who claim to have the perfect method. While many of them sound good there are often multiple steps involving heating, reheating, ice water and cool running water.
The method that I use is pretty simple and very similar to yours. The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg
 Q: I am from Vancouver, Canada and I am curious what Americans call a “baron of beef inside round.” I find it very difficult to find recipes for this cut on the Internet due to the fact that I am not sure what this cut of meat is called in the U.S. It is a boneless lean cut and I was wondering if I should cook it pot roast style or can I cook it 20 min. a lb. and still have a nice tender roast.
A: A Baron of Beef is alleged to have originated when Henry VIII was served a spit roasted double sirloin of beef and was so taken by the roast that he dubbed it Sir Loin, the Baron of Beef. Whether this is true or not, the term has come to refer to the large joint of beef that includes the loins and both legs. A Baron of Beef
 Q: I am a male in my thirties and I am trying to re-evaluate my diet. One thing I have been reading (in men’s fitness mags and such) is that increased protein at breakfast can be very beneficial. My typical breakfast is a whole wheat bagel with peanut butter.
What would you say would be the best possible breakfast (without breaking the bank) for me to eat, keeping in mind I work out for at least an hour pretty much every day?
A: This is a great question. The whole wheat bagel and peanut butter is a good choice for a workout day. There are enough calories and the whole wheat will give you some added fiber. We know that meals that have a pretty good balance of carbs, protein and fat will keep people satisfied and make it easier to lose weight. So your combo of the carb (bagel) and peanut butter (protein and fat) works well. Part of that satisfaction comes from the added protein, which helps blunt the insulin response a bit and is digested and absorbed a little more slowly. Breakfast for Weight Loss
 Q: I went to lunch with my friends and we were at the salad bar choosing the various vegetables for our salads. When my two friends saw me putting peas & corn kernels on my salad (a small amount) they said both of those were very bad for you because they were loaded with starch. I understand the starch thing, but I read where they do have a lot of vitamins, minerals, folate, fiber and good carbs, as well as other nutritional benefits. I disagreed with them, telling them that foods high in starches, served in moderation, aren’t bad for you. Am I wrong or were the two of them over-reacting?
A: Your friends are completely wrong. Period. While corn and peas are carbohydrates, they are really good for you. Both are full of fiber and satisfying. While they are mostly carbohydrates (starches) it has long since been proven that low-carbohydrate diets are no better for you for losing weight. We now know that it is eating fewer calories that is the key and not limiting one particular type of food. Peas and Corn
Dr. Tim Says….
One of the most amazing “diets” that I have come across recently is the “Negative Calorie” diet.
There has long been a theory that some low calorie foods actually burn more calories during digestion than that particular food contains. A bit silly, I know, but there are actually books written about this.
The basis for the concept is the “thermic effect of feeding.” This is the scientific phrase used to describe the calories used in digesting foods. It has been shown that in a routine day we use about 10% of the calories we take in for digestion. The Negative Calorie Diet
Featured Recipes: Fish
Lemon Thyme Redfish
 You can use almost any white fish that you like with this dish, but I like leaner fish like redfish, drum, red snapper or even trout.
Grouper with Horseradish Glaze
The lemon juice and maple syrup balance the spice of the horseradish and the thyme adds a fresh flowery flavor. This is a quick and easy dish that works for weeknights or the weekend dinner party.
Roasted Salmon with Corn Relish
The amount of calories seems like a lot for a single entree, but this includes the corn relish, which is a starch, and there are plenty of vegetables. A complete plate. Pair this with a simple salad and you have the perfect meal.
Seared Tuna Steak with Sake-Wasabi Sauce
Searing any meat, such as tuna, makes for a rich and luxurious dish and is a healthy cooking technique. Make sure that the pan is very hot and add the meat carefully so as to not splash any hot oil.
 Rich, creamy sauces can be healthy. Start with less fat, cook the roux carefully, stir constantly when adding the liquid and thicken with a lower fat creamy cheese.
 The ground flank steak will be more expensive than using ground beef. I prefer to know that my ground beef is very lean and in this day and age there are not many hometown butchers that will make fresh, lean ground beef. You can use pretty much any lean cut of beef – top or bottom round that are well trimmed of fat will do nicely.
If you are going to use ground beef that is purchased in the meat section it is best to pre-cook this in a separate pot and then squeeze all of the excess grease out through a strainer. Then add the cooked and defatted beef to the cooking onions and peppers.
 A great, healthy Mac and Cheese that kids love.
The key to this is to not overheat the sauce. The eggs need to cook but if you let the sauce boil, it will likely curdle. That won’t really affect the flavor but the texture will be a bit lumpy.
 This recipe was a challenge not so much because of the amount of fat that many Creole recipes have in them but because of the amount of salt. The first concern was the sausage. A number of variations of ham and sausage were tried but the Healthy Choice and Healthy Ones are really good products with only 480 mg of sodium and 2.5 grams of fat in 2 ounces. You may be able to find similar products at your grocery: look for the American Heart Association “Heart Check” Symbol.
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