The Harvard study exposes the faults of generalizing food changes as they take apart each segment and enhance the approach with specificity. For instance with proteins they say not all proteins have the same value for eating healthy. They suggest limiting meat intake and choosing other, healthier foods such as fish, poultry, or beans. They define their adjustments as the Healthy Eating Plate.

The Harvard study is not a complaint against the categories but a source of additional information on how that plate should be filled.  Specifics matter; not just categories. Let’s break it down:

–Fill 1/2 of the plate with fruits and vegetables and focus on adding as much color and variety. They say, “potatoes and French fries do not count as vegetables” because of their high carb count which create the same sugar high as sweets. Interestingly some reports came out this week favoring white fruits as the healthier fruits. Not this study!

–Put whole grains on 1/4 of your plate. Use brown rice and whole-grain pasta and limit white rice and other refined grains.

–Make a protein choice the final 1/4 of the plate. They say eggs are fine (unless there are some additional health limitations), but red meat and processed meats such as cold cuts and bacon should be avoided.

–Use healthy oils such as olive and canola and limit intake of butter.

–Drink water, tea, or coffee (with little or no sugar) and limit milk/dairy and juice consumption.

The researchers believe that the above specifics further define the overall categories of the new food guidelines and increase the heart-healthy benefits of careful eating. They stress the importance of staying active as an inherent component of any approach to improving lifestyle choices

Now if we could just figure out how to get enough food to people that have little choice in their selections, each of these plate approaches would have greater, long-term benefits.

The sounds of summer.

Here’s a simple exercise: Zebra heirloom tomatoes, small yellow potatoes, pickling cukes, corn beggin’ to be husked, and peaches of every size and variety (try the new darling donut peach). Add a protein and your bounty meal is bursting with flavor. However you dance the ingredients, they are ready for your creative tong.

Now’s the time to practice. The market waits for no one.

How ’bout several small meals? Maybe even more than three! That’s the strategy behind the new book of 400-calorie recipes. The complete title: 500 400-Calorie Recipes. The title goes on to say “Delicious and Satisfying Meals That Keep You to a Balanced 1200-Calorie Diet So You Can Lose Weight without Starving Yourself.” Yes, that’s a true mouthful but one that you can take in small bites.

The basic philosophy is quite simple: Don’t stuff yourself. Make small meals; gain more energy and in the process maybe you’ll cut down on the starved sensation and lose some weight. Nothing wrong with the theory which enables you to meet your daily needs but to get there in smaller portions instead of one gluttonous, over-indulgent experience. Here’s the plus: You won’t feel weighted down. Seriously. A recent report on the importance of portion control (“Healthy Eating Strategies by Generation”) from the NPD Group attests to the fact that consumers are aware of the healthy lifestyle benefits. This book clearly spells out a simple life plan that is easy to incorporate.

The strategy is quite simple. Recipes focus on nutrient-dense and low-calorie ingredients that you can eat amply and pair with smaller portions of more filling foods such as grains or beans. Author Dick Logue works with each meal part and gives recipes that say, how about substituting this and saving the calories. For instance, after a complete chapter of what he calls traditional breakfast dishes, he revisits breakfast with “New Ways to Think about Breakfast,” a chapter that is less egg-centric and more focused on introducing other vegetables into the breakfast meal such as eggplant, a handy substitute in a frittata. An egg substitute product is used generously in a number of recipes.

Here’s a sampling of calorie light recipes that might get your creative juices flowing again during the upcoming heavy weather-laden month:

–Italian Dinner Salad–has a sense of the kitchen sink with its antipasto components complemented by chopped chicken breast. A great make-ahead selection.

–Beef Stew with Root Vegetables–the secret ingredient here is the addition of a dark beer! The recipe still comes in under 400 calories!

–Frozen Fruit Cups–now we’re talking: A non-ice cream freezer dessert that takes minutes to prepare and finishes off any meal.

Enough recipe teasers. The author likes the 500 concept as his prior books attest (500 High-Fiber Recipes, and 500 Low-Cholesterol Recipes. Let me say that 500 recipes can be a bit daunting but if you find a number of new possibilities, you’ll be way ahead of the game.

With its healthy focus, the thick book should keep you thinking and planning survival meals during the hot season and throughout the year.

Let’s cut to the chase. In a Harvard study entitled, “Changes in Specific Dietary Factors May Have Big Impact on Long-Term Weight Gain,” the potato ( in all forms, with fried leading the list) tops the chart of offenders. This study says it is not just a matter of how much we eat but specifically what we eat that will determine our future body frames! We are not talking about a small study or one over a short period of time; rather an examination of three major studies encompassing results over 20 years. That in itself is impressive: A true clarion cry or calorie headliner!

What changes need to be made in our diets to digest the conclusions. First off, yes, the potato, needs to be reduced (eliminated) or we will continue to rock the obesity numbers. Very sad reality. On the other hand, the love of nuts continues to be a positive. Well-known cookbook author Susan Herrmann Loomis may help you discover some new uses for nuts.

Sure, everything in moderation, but grabbing a handful of nuts over the small bag of chips proves a healthy decision. Yes, fruits and vegetables have overall high scores. Let’s hear it for the new USDA plate!

Yogurt scores well, too, and makes it into the slimming column. Another interesting takeaway from the study is that getting less sleep, less than 6 hours, proves a weight-gaining decision. Go for fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, and yogurt. Get 8 hours of sleep, and you’ll be following the right approach to lessen weight gain.

I begin now: Major lifestyle changes ahead since there’s never been a potato I haven’t liked!

Yet, I have earned a new education. Without my early membership in a CSA, I might never have tried some of my new friends. It’s you Kohlrabi I’m talking to. Not that the stand employees had many ideas how to handle this rather awkward looking vegetable; they were curious what I would uncover. With my trusty computer and numerous search attempts, I found no shortage of recipes but after the early experimentation, I settled on a personal Waldorf Salad.  Kohlrabi, apples, nuts, and cranberries became perfectly united with just a little lemon juice and a dollop of mayonnaise. The crunch worked and this veg gained star status in our house. Consider starting it from seed as Gurney’s catalog offers some enticing recipes!

Maybe the trendiest vegetable of the year award will go to KALE. From an unknown to super-star status and expensive marketing (kale chips at $7.95 a bag), this prior, semi-unknown proved a most versatile companion to many dishes. The biggest caveat is that a small bunch shrinks to a minuscule size when cooked. Buy more than you need or if you are lucky enough to find it, get a big, triple-washed bag (remember kale neared the top of last week’s pesticide list), and go wild with recipe creations. Kale can handle experimentation or if you focus in one direction, it loves sesame oil and rice vinegar with a sprinkling of tamari in a hot skillet.

Rhubarb may tie with Kale for top trend honors as the once unfamiliar fruit now champions a legion of followers or as the food52 people learned, rhubarb parties are a big hit! Maybe the house’s personal favorite recipe involves using way less sugar than previously imagined and cooking bite size pieces until just soft. Cool, taste, and freeze the majority as this is a fruit that loves oatmeal. OK, we had plenty of rhubarb-strawberry events but love pulling out a little bit as a cereal or dessert add-on. Have you tried it with Greek yogurt? A winner.

Actually these three foods moved to star status in our house this year, and we haven’t even talked about health benefits! Are we ever lucky as so many new choices are coming into market and it’s only the first day of summer. Our list will expand.

Happy Solstice.

Not just any plate, but one that has been approved by the First Family. A plate that says, less is better but what constitutes less will be unveiled in stages. We have become a full plate society from our parents earliest admonitions to finish your food to dining out and expecting full plates brimming over with food. Oversize restaurant portions were supposed to imply monetary value but instead helped contribute to our obesity numbers.

The President and the First Lady exemplify their commitment to exercise and good eating habits. The White House Garden has been a huge success and farm markets continue to expand in close proximity to the White House. At the same time some of the nation’s top chefs have contributed their time and expertise to improving the school lunch program. Logically, the next step is to take the tired pyramid of foods and replace its message with one that stresses vital health information. This is a more active focus that demonstrates the importance of being active and eating healthy. In addition to the USDA, other government agencies will help drive the important message.

Making the plate a thing of beauty with an emphasis on fruits and vegetables is a natural starting point. After all we are in the heart of the growing season and product availability. Grocers are competing with farm stands to show that locally grown food can be readily available to all shoppers.

Eating healthy has new rules and as a nation the time has come to step up to the plate and move into a healthier position. We welcome the pyramid retirement party.

It’s time to set up a healthy plate.

I’m talking about the new darling, the Sweetie. Its big fancy name is the Oroblanco, but why bother with that nomenclature when you can just profess your affection for the new cross-food, a mix of a grapefruit and a pomelo. The end result is a non-bitter taste that segments easily without the extensive, thick outer skin of the pomelo.

An easy fruit to pop into lunch boxes or serve at any meal. Price point is very attractive, too, as the giant pomelos can stretch your budget easily with their common $3 price tag (OK, Costco often has 4 big guys for $9.99). The Jaffa Sweetie has managed to work itself onto the produce aisles and a bag easily beats out the current cost for grapefruit.

No bitter taste. No need for sugar. Nor overly sweet. It’s the right combination.

It’s not even Valentine’s Day yet, but everyone will enjoy this sweetie, Sweetie.

When we balance that consideration with the glaring statistics about obesity, we recognize the prominent role the schools play. At the time when family budgets are stressed and fast food restaurants are fighting over each other to establish top dog terrain in the low-priced food category, many people are left with no healthy choices. This scenario makes the school lunch program an ever more important stop gap for lowering the caloric input of our youngsters. As a nation, we need to spend more money taking care of our children and making certain the foods they receive in the school programs are good for them and not just additional calories.

Some states have decided to step out of the shadows and take the initiative to correct or at least revise some of the food choices. Tomorrow April 15, the University of Northern Iowa’s Center for Energy and Environment hosts a program to help get healthier food into the Iowa school lunch program. By joining forces with the farm-to-school program, they believe that schools can get healthier foods onto those lunch trays. This program is part of the Northern Iowa Food & Farm Partnership.

The nationwide Buy Fresh, Buy Local approach to healthier eating impacts many of these state food/farm associations. Yes, I understand not every school cafeteria can financially support this particular healthy strategy, but I also understand that as a nation we have to do a better job. Our children depend on us to make these decisions. They need to know what a fruit looks like; what a vegetable is. They need to be protected from the system that has ignored the effect of low-cost decision making.

Now.

Skip the white asparagus from Chile as the first sprigs of springtime green asparagus are ready for crunching as many farmers return to the farm markets. Asparagus, as a food, spurs numerous lengthy discussions about its preparation. There are those who subscribe to the thin spear school as the tastiest product that merely needs a quick dip into boiling water for a wonderful al dente taste. The other camp looks for thick spears that need more time in boiling water; more monitoring. Whatever your preference, it is best to select uniform stalks to even out cooking time. Then there is the whole discussion about peeling and not peeling the outside skin. With the first crop of its season, it needs little attention. OK, a squirt of lemon and a dip into fresh Hollandaise.

Brussel sprouts are still fairly plentiful at market, but it’s time to say good-bye and welcome the other fruits and vegetables that are making their entrance. Mushroom varieties are back with so many wonderful choices bursting from their terroir. The bounty of lettuces have escaped the greenhouses and are ready for light tossing.

Yet, no food is as recognizable at this time of year as the once humble egg. This is the season that egg farmers cherish most. With all the ceremonial egg dishes for both Passover and Easter and the decorated fun accompanying the baskets, no one is happier with this week than sellers of eggs as dozens make their way into uncountable households for traditional foods and fun choices.

Now we’re cooking.

Yes, something’s going on at the grocery store. Somebody very smart, somewhere, figured out that buying fruit by the pound could tip the scales over the budget limits, but buying affordable 3-lb bags seemed somehow logical. With the economy in its current circular cycle, shoppers needed products in more manageable sizes: They could no longer afford to fill their kitchens with 10 lb bags of an assortment of fruits. Welcome to the 3-pound bags.

Selection varies from store to store, but there are multiple varieties within a category such as apples: Saw 4-5 different types of apples (even found organic honey crisps) in this 3 lber easy-to-carry bag. Another positive besides price, storage, and variety, they were smaller apples: Perfect lunch box or brown bag size. Hey, someone has figured this out.

There are small bags of all types of oranges, too. Not seen much in the way of grapefruit, but figure this year with the various negative temperature cycles, small grapefruits will become popular, too.

We’re talking economy of scale.

OK, economy.

Certain fruits and vegetables have a long list of research followers from the famous broccoli discussions after a President scoffed at the idea of ingesting this green veggie to the Happy Apple Trail of positive thinking.

The Pomegranate continues to be a darling of research-minded scientists and food marketers. Look at the invasion of POM Wonderful, a pure pomegranate drink that barely caught one’s attention a few years ago. Now it is prominently displayed in all types of food emporiums. Anyway a product that has “Wonderful” in its name always deserves a second glance!

The antioxidant superfood concept has caught on as the otherwise strange-looking pomegranate might be ignored. It has found a home as a prominent partner in so many other juices, teas, snacks, and energy beverages that its presence is hard to miss.

The latest pomegranate research holds significant promise for staving off breast cancer. A study from California’s City of Hope National Medical Center found that the pomegranate contains chemicals that help reduce the risk for women in developing hormone-related breast cancers. The researchers quickly point out that further study is necessary, and the fruit needs to be tested for its potency as a stand-alone product and then compared to its value as an add-on to other beverages and snacks.

In the meantime, you can buy the lonely pomegranate, cut it open, enjoy the seeds, and feel refreshed. Your bright red fingers will be a tell-tale sign of your munching.

May be worth it; healthwise wins.