10 Healthy Summer Recipes

Soul-satisfying dishes to keep your eating fresh and your weight in line all summer long.

By Janice Taylor

It's time for me to share my favorite summer recipes with you. I permanently removed (remember: if you "lose" weight, you will eventually find it!) over 50 pounds almost seven years ago, and now I am on a mission: to make health and weight loss fun and create balance and harmony in our lives.

My strategy: whip up truly satisfying and tasty dishes that are fast, easy, and packed with the vitamins and minerals that help make us feel great and keep our weight in line. Click through the gallery to experience my ten favorite summer recipes guaranteed to 'lighten'--if not enlighten--you.

Janice Taylor is the author of the "Our Lady of Weight Loss" blog on Beliefnet.

Gabriel's Guacamole

Named after the Archangel Gabriel, this guac is so good (and good for you) that you might hear the angels singing.

Fun Factoid: Contrary to popular belief, an avocado is a fruit, not a vegetable.

Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados
1 plum tomato
1 jalapeo chile (seeded and finely chopped)
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1/3 cup chopped sweet onion (Vidalias are always good)
Salt to taste
Plain tortilla chips (baked, if you like)

Instructions:
Place jalapeo, cilantro, onion, and salt in a large mortar, and grind away with the pestle. It's okay if the onions remain a bit chunky.

Cut the avocados in half. Twist in opposite directions to separate. Slip a spoon in, scoop the fruit out, and place it on a cutting board. Chop into chunks.

Cut tomato in half crosswise. Gently squeeze to get seeds out. Now add avocado and chopped tomato to onion mixture in the mortar. Mash. Spoon until mostly blended (some of the avocado chunks should remain intact.)

Serve immediately. Makes 12 tablespoon-sized servings.

Grilled Salmon Teriyaki

You can grill it or bake it. Either way, it's a delicious main dish that delivers Omega-3s in a big way.

Fun Factoid: A female salmon may lay up to 800 eggs for every pound she weighs.

Ingredients:
4 salmon steaks (about 6 oz. each), skinned
1 cup light soy sauce
1/3 cup sake (Japanese rice wine)
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger root, grated
1/3 cup sesame oil

Instructions:
Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl and stir until the sugar dissolves.

Rinse salmon under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Divide each steak into two pieces by cutting along either side of the central bone and then discarding the bone. Place the salmon in a shallow glass or ceramic container and pour 1 cup of the marinade over the fish. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, turning the fish occasionally.

Let come to room temperature before cooking. Prepare grill.

Remove the salmon from the marinade, reserving the liquid. Place the fish on an oiled grill rack, approximately six inches from the heat source. Turn once and brush with reserved marinade. Cook 3-5 minutes per side, depending on the salmon's thickness.

Makes 8 3-oz. servings.

American Hero Sandwich

Sometimes a sandwich is the way to go. The mustard sauce is a must!

Fun Factoid: It is believed that the hero sandwich originated in New York in the late 19th century, when Italian laborers wanted to have something for lunch that reminded them of home.

Ingredients:
Mustard Sauce
3 tablespoons plain yogurt
1 tablespoon mustard (Dijon works well)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Sandwich
16 oz. French bread, gutted
1 lb. turkey breast, thinly sliced
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 cup arugula
Salt and pepper

Instructions:
Mix all of the sauce ingredients together and taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste (yields approx. 1/4 cup of sauce). Cut loaf of bread in 1/2 horizontally. Spread mustard mixture over bottom half of bread. Top with turkey, remaining ingredients, and the top half of the bread.

Serves 6

Mediterranean Pasta Salad

A lip-smacking dinner you can throw together literally in minutes.

Fun Factoid: Summer's heat causes the butterfat in the milk used in Parmesan cheese to rise to the top surface of the wheel, making it better for grating. In the winter, butterfat stays deep inside the wheel. Winter cheeses tend to be more uniform and softer, ideal for serving as a table cheeses.

Ingredients:
16 oz. Rigatoni (use whole wheat, if you're so inclined)
12 pitted black olives, sliced
1 16 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
1 small red onion, chopped
1/4 cup parsley, minced
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper to taste (it won't need much, if any)

Instructions:
Cook pasta as directed on package, rinse and drain. Add all remaining ingredients. Mix, toss, and serve with a mixed green salad.

Serves 4-6

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers

The best burger in town - hands down!

Fun Factoid: Mushrooms have been named the "vegetarians' beefsteak," because there is no other vegetable that even comes close to the taste and texture of meat.

Ingredients:
4 large portobello mushrooms (1 cap per sandwich)
4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Rock or kosher salt and pepper to taste
4 oz. low-fat mozzarella
4 large pieces roasted red pepper (roast yourself, or if you go with the ready-made stuff, pat it dry with a paper towel.)
4 whole wheat pitas or 8 slices of light bread
Greens (arugula, iceberg, whatever you like!)
Low-fat mayonnaise or store-bought pesto, if desired

Instructions:
Remove and discard mushroom stems. Brush top of mushroom caps with a bit of the olive oil. (You really do not need to slather it on.) Season with salt and pepper.

Lightly coat your grill with cooking spray. Grill mushrooms, covered, for approximately four minutes; turn and grill another three, or until tender.

Place flat side of mushroom up on the grill, and top with a thin slice of mozzarella and a nice juicy piece of red pepper. Cover and cook one minute more, until the cheese is melted. At same time, toss your roll, pita or light bread onto the grill until lightly toasted.

Put a layer of greens on the bread (or in the pita) top with a mushroom cap and add a bit of low-fat mayo or prepared pesto sauce.

Serves 4

The World Is Your Oyster

...and yours comes with a side of dill vinaigrette.

Fun Factoid: Oysters are warm-blooded animals and, therefore, are either male or female. But they also have the ability to change their gender, which they do at least once during their lifetimes.

Ingredients:
12 oysters
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon hot mustard
2 teaspoons chopped dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
2 1/2 teaspoons canola oil
1 Tbsp. salmon roe (optional)

Instructions:
Make vinaigrette: in small bowl add rice wine vinegar, mustard, dill, salt, and pepper. Whisk to incorporate, and then in a thin stream add the oils. Set aside until ready to use.

Carefully open oysters, remove from shell and put in a small bowl. Clean shells and return oysters to shells. Put crushed ice on a plate, and arrange the oysters on top of the ice.

Top each oyster with 1/2 tsp of the vinaigrette and top with 1/4 tsp of salmon roe, if using. Serve immediately. Serves 2

Soulful Chocolate Smoothie

This chocolate smoothie is sheer decadence, minus the guilt.

Fun Factoid: Chocolate is called the "Food Of The Gods" because cacao beans come from a tree from a species called Theobroma, which translates to the famous phrase.

Ingredients:
1 cup low-fat chocolate sorbet
1/4 to 1/2 cup low-fat milk or 1% chocolate milk
1 heaping teaspoon instant coffee granules
Splash vanilla extract

Instructions:
Put all ingredients in blender and blend for about 30 seconds.

If you want a thinner smoothie add the full 1/2 cup of chocolate milk above; if you want a thicker smoothie, use only 1/4 cup. If you like, top your smoothie with a dollop of (light!) whipped cream.

Serves 2

Grilled Pears

Fruit that's better than cake--I promise!

Fun Factoid: In the 1800s, one pear could cost you the modern-day equivalent of $20.

Ingredients:
4 pears
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons butter
1/3 cup water

Instructions:
Peel pears and cut in half lengthwise; remove core. Set aside. In large skillet, over low to medium flame, combine the butter, nutmeg, cinnamon, and brown sugar.

Drizzle in the water as the butter melts. When the mixture covers the bottom of the pan, add the pears, cut side down.

Grill until pears are tender - about 10 minutes.

Note: When cooking pears, it's best to remove the skin--even though it's loaded with vitamins--because it tends to get tough during the cooking process.

Serves 4