I finally stopped dieting and managed to lose weight
Senior Writer If you want to lose weight without giving up your favorite foods, Chef Devin Alexander has your recipe for success. In fact, she's got more than 125 of them. This celebrity chef and best-selling author recently joined forces with some of the cast members and experts behind NBC's smash hit series The Biggest Loser to create a cookbook that finally bridges the gap between delicious meals and healthy eating.
Now, even if you arent selected to be a contestant on the popular weight-loss reality show, you can still become the biggest loser in your very own kitchen by preparing these healthy recipes for yourself. According to Chef Devin, healthy eating doesn't have to be about deprivation or missing out on your favorite meals.
"I dieted for seven years and got fatter and fatter," Chef Devin tells eDiets. "Then I finally stopped dieting and managed to lose weight."Though she struggled with her weight when she was younger, Chef Devin finally managed to drop a whopping 55 pounds, which she has kept off for more than 12 years now. And instead of depriving herself to slim down, the cooking enthusiast decided to tinker with some of her favorite recipes to make them healthier."People look at my before and after pictures and assume that I must be starving myself," Chef Devin says. "I heard that by cutting just 100 calories a day from their diet, a person can lose about 10 pounds in the course of a year. This led me to tweak some of my favorite recipes so that I could still eat the same stuff."When her grandmother first taught her to cook, Chef Devin never dreamed that this simple hobby would one day become her full-time vocation. Today, she is known as one of the most popular caterers in all of Tinseltown, hosting parties for Reba McEntire, Carol Burnett, and the cast of the Late, Late Show With Crag Kilborn. In addition to working with The Biggest Loser, she shared her healthy cooking tips with Good Morning America and the Discovery National Body Challenge. And when she isn't cooking up a storm in the kitchen, Chef Devin writes articles for many popular magazines, including Prevention, Shape, Muscle & Fitness, and Women's Health, where she is the Contributing Food Editor. Alert eDiets readers may even remember a popular series Chef Devin wrote for our newsletters last year about restaurant nutrition."I am not a stick figure, and I am not overweight," Chef Devin says. "I eat chocolate, exercise moderately and I cook all day. And, I never, never feel deprived."Now, in this eDiets exclusive, Chef Devin shares a few of her favorite healthy cooking tips: Small Changes Add Up To Big Differences. Remember that cutting out just 100 calories per day will help you lose 10 pounds in a year. That doesn't mean you have to prepare a sausage pasta dish with broccoli or make hamburgers out of mushrooms. Chef Devin says just use the leanest cut of meat you can find. She also recommends substituting low-fat cheese for the real thing. "Some low-fat cheeses do not taste good, but others taste great," Chef Devin says. "You just have to experiment." For best results, she suggests shredding the low-fat cheese finely in recipes, so that it will melt better. Hold The Mayo. Though low-fat mayonnaise on its own doesn't taste very good, Chef Devon says you can certainly dress it up. She recommends mixing your mayonnaise with horseradish, Dijon mustard, chili garlic sauce, or other ingredients with a strong flavor. Be Aware of How Much You Are Eating. According to Chef Devin, you can begin practicing proper portion control the moment you get your food home from the store. She suggests filling little plastic bags with a portion of cereal or chips. That way, you wont be tempted to eat more than you should. "Be aware of how much you are eating," Chef Devin says. "If you want a big portion, that should be a choice you are making consciously."If you watched last night's exciting episode of The Biggest Loser, you saw Chef Devin teaching contestants how to prepare healthy recipes from her latest book. Her personal favorite recipes in The Biggest Loser Cookbook include the Almost Fast-Food Burger, Cocktail-Hour Tuna Tartare, Sausage, Egg, And Cheese Breakfast Sandwich, and a BBQ Pork Sandwich. Other Mouth-watering recipes in the book include Better Blueberry Pancakes, Thin-And-Crispy Sausage And Mushroom Pizza, Parmesan-Pepper Sweet Potato Fries, Winning "Fried" Chicken and Chocolate-Kahlua Mousse Parfaits. Best of all, even if the only thing you normally make is reservations, you will be able to prepare most of the recipes in this book. Though there are a few elaborate recipes in the book that you can use for entertaining, Chef Devin says the majority of them can be prepared in 30 minutes or less.To give you a preview, Chef Devin was kind enough to share a couple of her favorite recipes from The Biggest Loser Cookbook :
Almost Fast Food Burger
If those drive-thru burgers call your name, this is, hands down, definitely the burger for you! As a kid and teen, I was addicted to fast food, so I was determined to recreate those drive-thru flavors and secret sauces at home. This burger is much, much leaner than any you're likely to find at a fast-food restaurant, but the sauce makes it taste so reminiscent of them. I often make this burger in a low-carb tortilla instead of a hamburger bun and I always add a few more pickles. If you're watching your sodium closely, you may not want to stick to it "as is" below.1 tablespoon low-fat mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon ketchup
1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/4 pound 96-percent lean ground beef
1 slice (3/4 ounce) fat-free American cheese (optional)
1 whole-grain or whole-wheat hamburger bun
1/4 cup chopped romaine lettuce leaves
1 thin slice red onion
3 dill pickle rounds
In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard. Stir to mix. Set aside. Shape the beef into a patty that is about a half-inch wider than the bun.
Preheat a medium nonstick skillet or grill rack on high heat. Place the patty on the pan or grill. Cook for one to two minutes per side, or until desired doneness. (Do not smash the burger with the spatula.) About 30 seconds before the burger is cooked, top with the cheese, if desired. Place the bun halves, cut sides down, on the pan or grill. Cook for about 45 seconds, or until roasted.
Place the bun bottom on a serving plate. Top with the patty, lettuce, onion, and pickles. Spread the reserved sauce evenly over the inside of the bun top. Flip onto the burger. Serve immediately.
Makes one serving
Per serving: 281 calories, 26 g protein, 27 g carbohydrate, 9 g fat (2 g saturated), 60 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 736 mg sodium.
Boston-Cream Peanut-Butter Breakfast Banana Split
Who doesnt want a banana split… any time of the day? Heres one thats not only so decadent youll forget youre eating healthy, its so fun, youre likely to feel like a kid again -- a kid getting away with eating "junk food" for breakfast.1 small ripe banana (about 6 long), peeled and halved lengthwise
1 tablespoon reduced-fat peanut butter
1/2 cup low-fat, artificially sweetened Boston cream pie-flavored yogurt
2 tablespoons crunchy high-fiber, low-sugar cereal (such as Grape-Nuts)
Place the banana halves in a small banana split dish or shallow bowl, with the cut sides facing inward. Spread the peanut butter evenly over the open banana. Spoon the yogurt in the middle. Top with the cereal. Serve immediately.