Food Processor

This recipe is an accompaniment for Rack of Lamb and Roasted Cabbage with Cauliflower and Date Purées .

Alioli, a very popular Spanish sauce, goes well with almost anything—from grilled meat to vegetables to seafood. Although the authentic version is an emulsion of garlic and oil, eggs are commonly added (especially in restaurants) because they make the sauce less fragile and easier to whip up. We've made ours even easier by using store-bought mayonnaise. This recipe is an accompaniment for Potato Croquetas .

This dish features cabbage and cauliflower prepared simply, to preserve the purity of their flavors. The dates bring out the inherent sweetness of both vegetables perfectly. Make the purées first, then roast the cabbage and cook the chops.

With the mercury rising, who wants to feast on a winter stew? Lighten up with this dish from Sondra Bernstein, author of The Girl & the Fig Cookbook (Simon &Schuster). It features fresh herbs and veggies and a protein-packed halibut fillet. Then, instead of hitting the couch to digest, you can hit the pavement for an after-dinner stroll.

For Kill Bill, Uma Thurman had 10 weeks to lose 50 post-baby pounds. "I was being trained from every angle. Nine to five, five days a week. Every part of me hurt," she says. Easier to take: no-deprivation diet changes that Jackie Keller, founder of L.A. food-delivery service NutriFit, masterminded. Her dried-fruit nougats satisfied Thurman's chocolate yen.

The trick: Give it a rub.
Outside spa land, great crusts usually come by way of the deep fryer. Inside spa kitchens, however, chefs know that by massaging fresh herbs, dried chiles, and other spices onto the outside of meat or fish before searing it in a hot pan, you can create a flavorful "skin" without any fat. Scott Uehlein, corporate chef at Canyon Ranch Health Resort in Tucson, Arizona, went for sweet and spicy when he developed these Moroccan-Spiced Beef Medallions. They call for lean tenderloin (ask for 0" trim), which delivers iron, zinc, and B12. You can also go Tuscan (basil, oregano, rosemary) or Provençal (lavender, sage, thyme). Just follow your taste buds.

The trick: Fake a little fat.
What better way to eat your fill of antioxidant-rich blueberries than via cheesecake? Executive chef Terry Conlan of Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, Texas, makes over dessert-tray favorites, like this Blueberry Icebox Pie, by mixing lowfat and nonfat products rather than using all fat-free foods. For your favorite recipes, replace full-fat dairy with 50 percent lowfat and 50 percent fat-free.

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.

Didn't qualify for the Olympic team? Don't sweat it! You can still eat like you're in Athens. This dish, created by Jim Botsacos, executive chef at New York City's Molyvos restaurant, is a winner. It offers vitamins C and B6 and folate. Plus, you'll set the record for quickest grilling time. For dessert, we suggest a victory lap around the picnic table.

Saturday snack. From Golden Door in Escondido, California. Adapted from The Golden Door Cooks Light & Easy (Gibbs-Smith), out in May, this dip sheds calories by subbing asparagus for some avocado.

Sunday-night dessert. From Golden Door in Escondido, California. Talk about sweet justice: You can eat "cream" with our spa meal plan. This dessert drives its silky texture from tofu and its tangy flavor from orange zest, plus it's loaded with beta-carotene from the squash. Look for squash without green streaks — they're the sweetest.

Tip: In a piecrust, apple juice can replace some of the butter.

If you spend evenings camped out on your sofa staring at the boob tube, take note: People who spend four hours or more in front of the TV are twice as likely to be overweight as those who watch less than an hour a day, a new study from Australia reports. Study participants' body-mass index (which measures how much of your weight is fat) increased for every hour of TV time. If you watch two hours a day, you're 57 percent more likely to be overweight than those who keep tube time to an hour or less; if you watch three or more hours, you're 91 percent more likely to be overweight. What's worse, past studies show that this pastime triggers the munchies for high-fat snacks, though researchers aren't sure why. If you must gaze at the box, channel your snack urges toward something healthful, like this creamy, low-fat dip.

This classic soup is a no-brainer, no-cook meal: Simply chop and blend. Serve it with crusty bread and spreadable goat cheese. Any leftovers will keep in your fridge for up to five days.

Everything about this dish is light, clean, vibrant, and harmonious, with the wonderful taste of corn perhaps taking center stage. The corn's refined sweetness is marvelously juxtaposed with the elegant sour flavor in the cheese. Mushrooms provide an earthiness, and spinach leaves cut through all the elements to insure a clean, bright taste. A playful salad featuring buttery lettuces, tomato pieces, and Rawmesan adds even greater depth on the palate. Here, both the flavor and textural variety are extraordinary.

The great thing about the marinade in this recipe is that the thick yogurt helps it stick to the chicken perfectly, so you get its full flavor in the final dish. Regular basting with ghee produces a tender, melt-in-your-mouth result.