Simmer

This is a ridiculously easy soup to make. It's tasty and durable, and it gets even better overnight.

(Idlee Sambaar) Editor's note: These instructions are excerpted from Julie Sahni's book Classic Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking. Sahni also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. Idlee sambaar is one of the great classic dishes of Indian vegetarian cooking. The dish consists of split peas in a spicy vegetable sauce that is a slightly milder version of the lentil and vegetable stew called sambaar. Radish and onion are the primary vegetables used to make this sauce, because their distict fragrance provides a marvelous contrast to the dumplings. Idlee sambaar traditionally are served in a generous amount of sauce in individual soup plates. Other spicy accompaniments, such as coconut chutney , Red Gun Powder (see tips, below), and hot-spicy pickles are also traditional. In India idlee sambaar are always served at tiffin or brunch.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon. This recipe originally accompanied Basic Oven-Baked Marinated Tempeh and Lentil Croquettes. White wine, Dijon, miso, good vegetable stock — the flavors in this are incredibly good and fly in the face of anyone who thinks that something vegetarian and low-fat cannot be intensely delicious. Instead of the fat-intense roux technique that is typical of gravy making, the thickeners are buzzed in the food processor with some of the liquid. Countless entrees and entree plates would be sparked by this sauce — basic baked tempeh or tofu, for instance, with a grain side dish and some steamed broccoli.

You can omit the salt in this recipe if the recipe you are using calls for it.

The leftover cooking liquid makes the perfect base for a soup or white sauce. This recipe is an accompaniment for Rack of Lamb and Roasted Cabbage with Cauliflower and Date Purées .

Actress Bridget Moynahan is fueled both by stardom and foods that keep her in top form. "I love beets," Moynahan says. She can get her fix with this dish from Axe, her healthy eatery of choice. Pick up organic fixings at a farmers' market and enjoy!

Chef Anne-Sophie Pic serves this chutney, topped with a skewer of rabbit liver and kidney, alongside the Savory Rosemary Shortbreads . We recommend pairing it with steak, lamb, pork, or a full-flavored fish such as salmon, bluefish, or mackerel.

The holidays are gone, and the relatives have left. You can also say farewell to the season's fatty foods with this veggie-loaded soup created by Lulu Powers, Madonna's caterer. One bowl dishes more than all of your RDA for vitamin A and 20 percent for potassium. Bonus: Eating soup before a meal means you'll consume fewer total calories.

Some say it isn't soul food unless it's mashed, creamed, candied, or deep-fried. But Southern cuisine needn't swim in saturated fat: Witness the recipes in Dr. Ro's Ten Secrets to Livin' Healthy (Bantam Dell Books) by nutritionist Rovenia Brock, Ph.D. With this delicious down-on-the-Delta dish, Brock slashes the fat while upping the nutritional ante with picks high in vitamin A, beta-carotene, and lycopene. You get a meal that's good for your heart and soul.

When the heat is on, veg out with this easy meal. With farmers' markets sprouting up everywhere, it's easy to feast on good veggies. How to prepare all that produce? Serve it on skewers with a side of hummus, says Daniel Orr, executive chef of Guastavino's in New York City. Not only are the vegetables healthy, but the creamy bean dip boasts plenty of protein, some heart-helping monounsaturated fat and rosemary for an added antioxidant punch.

When you crave something hot and filling, a bowl of this chili will do the trick.

Jerry Traunfeld, author of The Herbfarm Cookbook (Scribner), says, "Vegetables that are very fresh and picked at the perfect time are delicious cooked very simply. Just boil or steam them and serve with a little butter and maybe a sprinkling of tarragon, chervil or basil." Or savory, or oregano, as in this recipe.

Jesse Ziff Cool, author of Your Organic Kitchen (Rodale Press), advises, "When moving toward any plant-based diet, don't be too drastic. You'll hate it. Instead, cut down the amount of meat you eat and choose vegetables that taste good to you."

Want to feel alert and energized? Repeat after us: protein, protein, protein. Here's a way to get lots of it, with very little saturated fat. (For an equally high-energy vegetarian version of this dish, substitute 12 ounces firm tofu, drained and cut in 1-inch cubes, for the shrimp.)

Although this recipe has a long ingredients list, it's a snap to throw together, even when you're zapped by sneezes and sniffles. Best of all, you'll be feeling better in a flash — chicken soup is a true germ conqueror, and the spiciness kicks up the cure a notch.

Scott Uehlein, executive chef at the renowned Canyon Ranch Health Resort in Tucson, Arizona, says this broth is delicious over seared tuna or noodles.

No time to make a healthy dinner? "I love to cook for myself," says Jennifer Garner, the costar of Fox's Time of Your Life television series. "It's my stay-healthy secret. Making a simple dinner actually calms me down after a harried day. Often I'll spend Sunday nights cooking and then use the leftovers for lunch that week. Right now, I'm really into cooking with orzo. It's a light, rice-shaped pasta that fills me up. I especially love this recipe because the orzo goes well with the shrimp and veggies and it's quick and easy to make."

We traded fish for fowl for a fresh approach to the classic niçoise salad, and guess what? It's tastier than ever (and still lowfat).
Think salad means a bland bowl of greens? Not with this recipe, adapted from the revised Taste of Summer cookbook by Diane Rossen Worthington (Chronicle Books). The dish is so full of scrumptious finds, you won't miss the lettuce. You can prepare the salad ingredients and dressing in the morning and refrigerate, then combine and serve for dinner.

Comfort food at its healthiest. Serve this colorful one-dish meal over couscous or rice. Garnish with fresh basil.