Don’t miss our interview with co-host Allison Fishman.

Are you wondering if there is a healthier and less caloric way to whip up your favorite dishes like pasta carbonara and fudge brownies? Cook Yourself Thin is Lifetime’s newest cooking show, helping you give your favorite meals a healthier and lower-calorie makeover. The series, which starts airing on May 4 at 5 p.m. EST, features three cooking experts, Harry Eastwood, Allison Fishman, and Candace Kumai, who incorporate their ingenious and savvy cooking techniques to make indulgent dishes tasting as indulgent as they were meant to be but with significantly less calories and fat. (Now showing at 8 a.m. EST weekdays.)

Based upon the super popular cookbook and British series of the same name, during each half-hour episode of Cook Yourself Thin, you’ll learn how to swap calorie-heavy ingredients for leaner and healthier additions. For instance, the three cooking experts will show you how to turn a traditional 1,300 calorie steak and potato dinner into a less than 400 calorie meal, or you’ll learn how to skim 400 calories off of a muffin.

Each episode chronicles one cooking novice who wants to lose weight, but still savor sumptuous meals.  With step-by-step cooking instructions, their favorite meals get a skinny makeover and you get to learn secret and clever ways to slim down meals and your waist. Then after six weeks of Cook Yourself Thin, each participant is revisited at their home to see how their new culinary skills are keeping their tummies satisfied and flat.

Similar to newer cookbooks like Hungry Girl’s 200 Under 200 and Naturally Thin, more and more people are desperate to find creative ways to eat the foods they love and lose weight or maintain their healthy weight. Cook Yourself Thin is just another example that lets you have your cupcake and eat it too -  gooey frosting and all!

Try Cook Yourself Thin’s Frosted Vanilla Cupcake or Pumpkin Spice Cookie recipes.

Get your copy of Cook Yourself Thin, or pre-order the upcoming book Cook Yourself Thin Faster (releases 12/29/09).

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Lifetime’s Cook Yourself Thin is a New Healthy Cooking Show

If you’re planning your own Derby party, or just want an excuse to make some Southern favorites, consider these recipes. Once again proving that when you follow healthier versions, it’s not impossible to enjoy your favorite foods while watching your weight.

Winning Fried Chicken
This recipe comes from the folks at Biggest Loser, who never sacrifice flavor. It’s a crunchy, well seasoned oven-fried chicken recipe.

Apricot Glazed Pork Medallions
Use one of the the sweetest fruits of Spring to create an unforgettable centerpiece for your Derby party.

BBQ Chicken
This rich homemade barbecue sauce will be scrumptious and keep calories and sodium lower than a store-bought variety.

Braised Collard Greens with Red Wine
Chef Rocco shows a soft side and affinity for preparing healthy Southern recipes.

Celery Seed Slaw
A creamy side dish full of fresh vegetables and only 31 calories per serving!

Onion Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Give new life to this classic side with fresh garlic and onions.

Old Fashioned Baked Macaroni and Cheese
This comfort food is always a crowd pleaser, especially when using healthier ingredients.

Parmesan Pepper Sweet Potato Fries
Kick the white potatoes to the curb and go with a delicious and easy finger food instead.

Farmer’s Market Salad
Using a fresh ear of corn, fresh tomatoes, zucchini and onions, this salad will taste like it came straight from grandpa’s garden.

Cinnamon Pecan Muffins
This flourless recipe is a great way to start off your Saturday, or satisfy a sweet tooth for dessert.

Peach Yogurt Pops
With only three ingredients and less than 100 calories in each, this indulgent dessert will be the sweetest way to end your party.

Rocco’s Sweet Potato Pie
The Biggest Losers were grateful to Chef Rocco for helping them find a way to eat this classic dessert.

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

12 Healthy Southern Recipes for a Kentucky Derby Party

A few that have made our list include the Hungry Girl cookbook and Eat, Shrink and Be Merry. We also love the 1,500 Calorie per Day cookbook, and the newly released Gordon Ramsay’s Health Appetite. Continue to check out this section as we add more healthy guides to keeping your stomach satisfied and trim.

When trying to manage a healthy diet, finding the right meal choices can sometimes be the most difficult part. With detailed recipes, tips on sneaky food alternatives and an abudance of nutritious ingredients, each of these books can help you prepare delicious meals that you feel good about serving yourself and your family.

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We Love Healthy Cookbooks

There are many ways you can stay frugal and healthy at the same time. One effective way is to make soups. I think soups (homemade, anyway) are the forgotten weight management tool. There’s a reason soup kitchens are used to feed the poor, and just generally associated with rough times – soups are economical to make, and in large quantities!

The key to the effectiveness of soup, from a health perspective, is that they’re usually not very calorie dense. Meaning, you get a lot of bulk for few calories. Plus, I’ve always found soups to be more satiating than your average meal.

Lastly, soups are almost always super-easy to prepare. You shop for your list of ingredients, put them in a pot, and simmer them. Sure, there are some variances, but you get the point.

If you’re single, you may need to be open to reheating it for a few days to get some extended value from your soup. But, you can always miniaturize the portion sizes of your ingredients.

Find dozens of healthy soup recipes right here at DietsInReview.com.

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Soup: The Perfect Food for a Recession