Recipe: Turkey Artichoke Salad With Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing

With their large volume and low calories, salads are a big part of the Volumetrics Diet.

This version can be modified in many different ways depending on your goals and preferences. Don't have turkey on hand? Substitute chicken. Want more protein? Add a couple of handfuls of cooked navy, black, or kidney beans. Want less fat? Cut down on the cheese, or use a lower fat variety. If you like strong flavored cheeses such as blue cheese or feta, a little goes a long way, so you can use less and still get a lot of flavor.

However you make it, this is a great option for a lunch or light supper, as it will fill you up and leave you satisfied for hours!

Turkey Artichoke Salad With Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing
(Serves 2-4.)

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp grated sweet onion
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp fresh ground black pepper
8 cups mixed greens, washed and dried
1 lb. roasted turkey breast, cut up bite sized
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 sweet red bell peppers, diced
1 jar (6 oz) marinated artichoke hearts, chopped slightly
4 oz. soft mozzarella cheese, chopped

Directions:

• Put the olive oil, vinegar, onion, salt, and pepper in a bowl and whisk vigorously until foamy.
• In a big bowl, toss together the remaining ingredients.
• Spoon salad out evenly between cold salad plates and drizzle the blended dressing over as desired, taste and season with salt and pepper if you wish.

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Recipe: Crazy Crunch Cannellini Salad

If you're following the Volumetrics approach, this salad will be a great option for a filling meal. Packed with tons of fresh, healthy veggies, along with beans for protein, and some tasty herbs for great flavor, you can pretty much eat as much as you want of this delicious salad!

Crazy Crunch Cannellini Salad

Ingredients:

4 small cucumbers, scrubbed clean and diced small
1 sweet red bell pepper, cleaned and diced small
2 green onions, chopped small
1 celery stalk , chopped small
1 radish, chopped small (optional)
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped fine
1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained well
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp grated sweet onion
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions:

• Put all the prepared vegetables in a large bowl and toss together, then add the beans and lightly toss just to combine.
• In a small bowl put the remaining ingredients and whisk vigorously until blended well and dressing gets lighter in color and becomes frothy.
• Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
• Drizzle about half the dressing into the bowl with the vegetables, toss, and add more if desired, tossing again.
• Serve immediately or chill slightly (about 20 minutes) before serving if you wish.
• If your diet doesn't allow cannellini beans, you can substitute another form of protein such as diced cooked turkey or chicken.  This is a very refreshing salad that can take a lot of tweaking.
• This makes a nice side dish for a grilled fish, chicken, or other meat dish.  You can also serve it as a light supper, lunch, or even a brunch dish.
• Use a variety of herbs in the dressing to make this dish different every time you make it. You can also change the beans to others you may prefer.

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The Volumetrics Diet: Eat More To Lose More?

The Volumetrics Eating Plan is based on the simple fact that people like to eat. And, if people are given the choice between eating more and eating less, they'll take more almost every time. Want proof? Just look at meal sizes over the last thirty years and you will notice that not only have the portions increased, the size of the plate has increased too.

Unlike diets that are based on deprivation, the Volumetrics diet doesn't try to fight this natural preference. Its creator, nutritionist Barbara Rolls, PhD, argues that limiting your diet is not sustainable; you will just wind up hungry and unhappy and revert back to your original eating habits. Let's take a look at the basics of the Volumetrics Eating Plan.

The Volumetrics Approach

The approach Dr. Rolls takes is to help people find food they can eat lots of while still losing weight. The diet revolves around the feeling of fullness, or satiety. The theory is that people feel full based on the amount of food they eat, not the number of calories or nutrient density.

So, the trick is to fill up on foods that aren't full of calories, which allows the dieter to stick to the main principle of calorie restriction. Dr. Rolls claims that in some cases, following a Volumetrics diet will allow you to eat more than you do now, while still slimming down.

Dr. Rolls has excellent credentials. She a professor of nutrition and director of the Laboratory for the Study of Human Ingestive Behavior at Penn State University. She is also the author of more than 200 research articles. Volumetrics is based, in large part, on the work done in her laboratory.

What You Can Eat on the Volumetrics Diet

Since the diet doesn't revolve around differences in body types or “good” foods and “bad” foods, Dr. Rolls doesn't ban food types as part of the Volumetrics diet. She does, however, urge people to evaluate foods based on their energy density which is a critical concept for the diet.

Energy density is the number of calories in a specified amount of food. Some foods are more energy dense than others, like fats, which have a lot of calories packed into a small size. Water, on the other hand, has an energy density of zero.

Basically, this diet is a game to see how you can eat more food while eating fewer calories.  Here is a short break down to give you an idea of what Volumetrics is all about.

Very low-density foods include:
Non-starchy vegetables
Nonfat milk
Soup broths

Very high-density foods include:
Crackers
Chips
Cookies
Chocolate and Candies
Nuts
Butter and Oils

Since water is the ultimate zero-density food, Volumetrics relies heavily on foods with a high water content, such as many vegetables and fruits, which are 80 to 95 percent water. These will fill you up without adding a lot of calories. Dr. Rolls also suggests eating lots of foods with filling fiber, along with adequate portions of lean protein and healthy fats from fish and other sources. Of course, energy-dense foods, like sweets, fats, and alcohol, are still allowed, but only in moderation.

Anyone who loves lots and lots of food, will enjoy the Volumetrics diet. You will still have to do some simple math to calculate the energy density of foods, but at least you don't have to track calories or deny yourself a small bite of that delicious chocolate mousse.  If endless bowls of soup and piles of veggies and fruit appeal to you, dig into Volumetrics and watch the weight come off.


Learn More About the Volumetrics Diet:

   

Recipe: Tomato Lime Garnished Spicy Poblano Avocado Soup

The Fat Resistance Diet emphasizes eating plenty of healthy protein and fats, along with loads of fresh fruits and veggies to stimulate your body's natural fat-burning ability, and reduce your cravings for fat-promoting carbs.

This delicious soup is packed chock full of amazing fresh flavors, and the healthy fats from the avocado will help keep you feeling full and satisfied.

Try this as a light lunch, or a side dish along with a lean protein of your choice.

Tomato Lime Garnished Spicy Poblano Avocado Soup

Ingredients:

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

2 Tbsp finely diced tomato
2 Tbsp finely chopped green onion
2 tsp fresh lime juice
pinch salt
4 to 6 ripe avocados, peeled and diced
1/3 Tbsp lime juice
3 cups chopped sweet white onion
2 1/4 cups chopped yellow bell pepper
3/4 cup chopped poblano chile pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup dry white wine
2 chicken stock
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chile powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
12 cilantro sprigs
crumbled feta cheese for garnish

Directions:

• To make garnish, mix together the tomato, green onion, 2 teaspoons lime juice, and a large pinch of salt; set aside.
• To make soup, dice avocado and mix with 1/3 tablespoon lime juice; set aside.
• In a skillet, put the onion, both peppers, garlic, and 2 tsp olive oil over medium-high heat and cook stirring often until vegetables are softened and lightly browned, about 4 to 5 minutes.
• With skillet still on heat, push vegetables aside and pour in the wine, stirring to deglaze the pan, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until liquid is reduced by half.
• Add the stock, cumin, chile powder, white pepper, and salt; turn heat to low, cover pan, and simmer for 1 hour. Remove from heat and let cool just enough to handle.
• Pour the mixture into the food processor, then add the avocados and the cilantro springs.  Put processor on puree setting and blend until smooth.  You can change consistency by adding a bit more stock if you wish. Taste and season with additional salt, if necessary.
• Serve immediately in big bowls and top with the tomato garnish you made in the first step.
• If you need to reheat the soup after you puree it, pour it into a large saucepan and put over low heat and heat very slowly; make sure not to boil.

Recipe: Kale Lentil & Tomato Soup

This soup is the perfect support for your weight-loss diet, while filling you up with plenty of protein and veggies - and it's great for a cold winter night!

For more nutrients without much more work, cook 1 1/2 cups dry lentils instead. Lentils cook quickly and do not need to be soaked like most other dry beans. You will need to add more liquid, but it will only take a few minutes longer, and will be tastier as well as more nutritious.

Kale Lentil & Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
4 celery stalks, chopped
1 small sweet onion, diced small
1 garlic clove, grated or crushed
8 cups kale, trimmed, cleaned, and rough chopped
2 cans (15 oz size) lentils, rinsed and drained (or 1 1/2 cup dry lentils)
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
4 cups vegetable stock (6-7 cups for dry lentils)
salt and pepper to taste
fresh Parmesan cheese shavings for garnish

Directions:

• In a large soup pot over medium-high heat, put olive oil, celery, and onion, and cook, stirring often, until celery and onion starts to soften.
• Add the garlic, and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
• Dump in the kale and stir until it starts to wilt.
• Add the remaining ingredients and season to taste.
• Bring stew just to a boil, then quickly reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer slowly for about 15 minutes (30 minutes if using dry lentils).
• Serve immediately in soup bowls. If Parmesan cheese is on your diet, shave a few curls on top of each bowl of soup.