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!

Recent Posts


This week's Ask Dr. Gourmet: Diet Soda vs. Water; MSG; More!

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 [...]

Ingredients are Everything: Dr. Gourmet Newsletter

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 [...]

If It's In the House....

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 [...]

Hard Boiled Eggs; Baron of Beef; More : Ask Dr. Gourmet

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 [...]

The Negative Calorie Diet: Dr. Gourmet Newsletter

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 [...]

Here's a Good Tool for Weight Loss: Your Camera

When my patients ask me for help with weight loss, the first thing I tell them to do is to keep a food diary. As I noted in my Real World Diet Coaching Essay on “Why You Should Keep A Food Diary,” I think [...]

Ask Dr. Gourmet: Diabetes and CHF

Q: My husband has type 2 diabetes as well as congestive heart failure. He is 67.5 years old, is 5′7″ and weighs 313 lbs. Is there a place where I can get recipes that deal with all three issues?

Coffee; Wild Mushroom and Sausage Linguine; Lean Body Mass : Dr. Gourmet Newsletter

Eating Healthy: Coffee

[This article is part of The Real World Diet Coaching Program, an ongoing series on The How and Why of Eating Healthy. Read the whole series to date.]

Back when David Letterman had his heart trouble a few [...]

Does muscle really weigh more than fat? : Ask Dr. Gourmet

Q: People say that muscle weighs more than fat. Is that true?

A: Muscle density is 1.06 grams per milliliter (g/mL) and fat is 0.9 g/mL. That means that muscle is about 18% denser than fat. [...]

Should I be getting 3 servings of milk a day if I am over 50? : Ask Dr. Gourmet

Q: I have been on Weight Watchers and they want you to get 3 servings of milk a day if you are over 50, as I am. I don’t see a concentration of calcium in your menus. Any advice?