|
Courses >
Health Care, Nutrition, & Fitness > Luscious, Low-Fat, Lightning-Quick Meals
 Have you ever wished you had a personal chef preparing luscious, low-fat meals for you? This course is the next best thing! You'll learn how to ferret out fat in recipes, and discover how to reduce fat without sacrificing flavor or texture. Explore how to use flavor profiling to expand your culinary horizons. Learn how to prepare casseroles, crock-pot dishes, vegan dishes, oven-fried foods, meat-based meals, and many other entrees that are both nutritious and delicious!
You'll discover how to get in and out of the kitchen faster, including tips for grocery shopping, menu planning, food preparation, and quicker cooking. You'll also learn a dietitian's tricks of the trade for encouraging reluctant family members to eat more healthfully. You'll have the chance to try out over 50 exciting and easy lowered-fat recipes for tasty entrees, side dishes, desserts, and garnishes, with each recipe demonstrating a topic that's covered in the lessons.
This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Donna Acosta.
 Donna Acosta, RD, is a registered dietitian and nutrition educator. Her clinical expertise is in weight management, diabetes nutrition care, and cardiac rehabilitation management. Donna also has many years' experience teaching cooking classes, which reflects her passion for eating healthfully—and enjoying every bite! She has developed and taught a variety of hospital- and community-based nutrition programs, including such clients as Warner Bros. Studios, Neutrogena and Fluor-Daniel. As the wife of a husband with type 2 diabetes and the mother of three young children, Donna's focus is on helping others discover how feasible and delicious it can be to eat healthfully for a lifetime.
To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Requirements:
Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Flash and PDF plug-ins (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Flash Player and Get Adobe Reader).
Syllabus:
All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.
A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.
| Week One |
| Wednesday - Lesson 01 |
Have you always suspected the only function of fat was to attach itself to your stomach, hips, or thighs? In our first lesson, we'll uncover the functions of fat in cooking and discuss easy, lower-fat ways to replace these functions. We'll begin to identify high-fat ingredients in recipes, too. You'll use your new skills to prepare a luscious—and lowered-fat—recipe for Lasagna Mexicana. Then you'll try your hand at a quick-and-easy Chicken à la King that's lower in fat but even more flavorful than the original recipe!
|
| Friday - Lesson 02 |
In Lesson 1, you learned that two of the functions of fat are carrying flavor and adding "mouthfeel." Seasonings are a fat-free way to improve flavor and mouthfeel. We'll explore the functions of seasonings in lowered-fat cooking, then we'll discuss several of the most commonly used seasonings and their uses. You'll also learn about flavor profiling, and use this terrific technique to create three easy, flavorful lowered-fat recipes: Mexican Shepherd's Pie, Greek Pizza, and Italian Meat Loaf.
|
| Week Two |
| Wednesday - Lesson 03 |
Many recipes are based on sauces, and many of them tend to be high in fat. In today's lesson, we'll look at the functions of fat in sauces. We'll discuss several ways to make easy and delicious lowered-fat sauces. You'll use this knowledge to prepare an easy, elegant Fettuccine Tofredo with Chicken and Broccoli that's deliciously smooth and rich. You'll learn how to use canned condensed soups to make easy low-fat sauces when you make Quick and Easy Turkey Tetrazzini. And you'll discover the differences between opaque and glossy sauces as you prepare my quick and easy recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken.
|
| Friday - Lesson 04 |
This lesson is a student favorite! Today we'll define add-in ingredients, and you'll discover how to incorporate them into delicious lowered-fat recipes. Armed with this knowledge, you'll prepare a kid-friendly Spaghetti Pie that adults will love, too! If you enjoy Asian cuisine, you'll be delighted with my 15-minute recipe for Spicy Peanut Chicken. You don't have even 15 minutes to make dinner? After you apply your knowledge of seasoning, flavor profiling, and add-in ingredients, no one will believe you made Very Veggie Soup using canned and frozen foods. Last but not least, I'll share with you the alterations I made to a typical restaurant-style fried rice recipe to create an unforgettably delicious "Fried" Rice.
|
| Week Three |
| Wednesday - Lesson 05 |
Have you sworn off red meat because it's too high in fat or it's too difficult to prepare tender and flavorful cuts of lower-fat meats? Are you sick to death of the same old recipes for chicken? If you answered yes to either question, you'll love this lesson! You'll uncover many tips and tricks for preparing tender and flavorful meals based on leaner meats when you prepare Ground Beef Stroganoff, Pan-Broiled London Broil, and Sweet and Sour Meatballs. We'll revisit flavor profiling as we explore rubs and marinades, two great ways to enliven plain old poultry. To showcase these skills, you'll prepare Cinnamon Chicken. And finally, you'll discover how to convert a time-consuming recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu into a quicker, easier, and lower-fat casserole recipe.
|
| Friday - Lesson 06 |
Seafood offers so many health benefits that several health organizations recommend eating it at least twice a week. Many people avoid fish and shellfish because they aren't familiar with how to prepare it or they're not excited about filling up the kitchen with that fishy aroma. Today we'll discuss how to choose seafood, and we'll prepare a bounty of fish and shellfish-based meals that won't leave your house smelling funny, including Grilled Ginger-Lime Salmon with Sauce, Drunken Cod, Poached Asian Salmon, Fish Puttanesca, Thai Shrimp, "Crab" Salad, Quick Crab Bisque, and Asian Tangerine Scallops.
|
| Week Four |
| Wednesday - Lesson 07 |
Are you suspicious of soybeans? Any doubts you may have will be dispelled when you taste Marinated Three-Bean Salad and Farmer Chili. Are you baffled by tofu? You'll discover how easy it is to use it to replace high-fat ingredients like cream and whole eggs when we prepare Creamy Butternut Squash Soup, Pasta Carbonara, Spicy Peanut Tofu, Tofu Pumpkin Custard, and Tofu Guacamole. As easy and delicious as these recipes are, what most students enjoy about this lesson is sneaking healthful soybeans and tofu into their family's meals. Your diners will never be the wiser, either!
|
| Friday - Lesson 08 |
Are you tired of never having an answer to the question, "What's for dinner?" If you shouted "Yes!" then this your lesson! Even if you usually have dinner under control, you'll be delighted to learn how to develop and use a cycle menu to save you time, reduce food waste, and help encourage diner acceptance. To prove these points, we'll prepare Bean and Basil Salad, Tomato-Basil Meat Sauce, Chicken Curry, Shrimp Cashew Salad, and Greek Skillet. We'll also discuss how to develop a grocery list that works for you. We'll finish up by taking a look at shopping for groceries, including the pros and cons of online and warehouse shopping.
|
| Week Five |
| Wednesday - Lesson 09 |
Break out your Crock-Pot and discover how delicious and easy lowered-fat cooking can be! We'll prepare an exotic but oh so easy recipe for African Chicken. You'll learn how to convert the Chicken à la King recipe we prepared back in Lesson 1 to a Crock-Pot recipe. We'll uncover the secrets of lowered-fat casserole cookery as we prepare a yummy Chicken Enchilada Casserole. And if you've given up deep-frying because it's too high in fat, you'll love my recipes for Oven-Fried Chicken, Oven Fries, and Oven Onion Rings. You'll be licking your fingers because these recipes taste so good—not because they're greasy!
|
| Friday - Lesson 10 |
If you're like me and you prefer to cook rather than clean, you'll love the tips and tricks we'll discuss in this lesson! We'll examine how to organize and take control of the pantry, kitchen, refrigerator, and freezer. I'll share with you my kitchen cleanup tips, too. Once we've got things organized and tidy, I'll share what I call cupboard meals. I fall back on these family-favorite recipes when I'm pressed for time—Chicken Florentine Pasta, Speedy Lasagna, and Quick Chicken Risotto. We'll revisit flavor profiling and discuss another way it can benefit you when we prepare Caribbean Chicken Pizza. And, we'll use the Crock-Pot to prepare Mexican Pork, a simple but delicious twofer recipe.
|
| Week Six |
| Wednesday - Lesson 11 |
In this lesson, you'll learn how to keep cool as a cucumber on the hottest dog day of summer as you prepare Summer Seviche, Gazpacho, and Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad. You'll find out how to use your small kitchen appliances to make Best Pizza Dough, Tomato-Olive Bread, and Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole. And you'll beat the heat while grilling up Grilled Margherite Pizza, Grilled Veggie Medley, and Grilled Fruit Cups. These summer-perfect recipes are so scrumptious, though, you'll want to enjoy them year-round!
|
| Friday - Lesson 12 |
Bring your sweet tooth to this lesson! You'll have several opportunities to wow your taste buds, as you'll prepare Very Cherry Cake, Tofu Key Lime Pie, and Peanut Butter Cup pie. You'll learn how to choose and make tasty, colorful lowered-fat side dishes, including Fruit Salad, Asian Coleslaw, and Green Beans and Bells, as well as a variety of garnishes. We'll talk about one last hurry-up technique—how to break the rule of mise en place—in this last lesson. To close out the course, we'll discuss the basics of evaluating nutrition research.
|
To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Student Reviews:
"Great course, lots of helpful information. The instructor is passionate about nutrition and it shows in her course content."
"I am an active member of a weight loss group and found this information invaluable! The course also helped me look at my family's diet and easy ways to improve it. Thank you!"
"I really enjoyed this course...Both my husband and I lost a couple of pounds."
"I really enjoyed this course. The recipes were delicious as well as healthy. I have learned many ways to improve my cooking, marketing, and housekeeping."
"I thoroughly enjoyed this class and would highly recommend it! I've used the recipes since the class started and have had wonderful results from my family!"
"I thoroughly enjoyed this course. I learned so much about nutrition, as well as cooking! The instructor is very knowledgeable, and makes the course fun, and practical. I highly recommend this course."
"I was a little skeptical about taking a cooking class online. I was greatly suprised at how much I learned and how informative it was. This was due in large part to the instructor."
"Loved the class. Motivated me to cook more and am finding I enjoy it."
"This course has been wonderful! I have learned so much and am incorporating all of it in my daily cooking routine. My family has been very receptive to the new recipes and ingredients. I can honestly say that I am becoming a better cook, shopper, and nutritionist. Thank you for a great experience."
"This course was extremely helpful in learning how to lower the fat content in any recipe. It also provided a lot of recipes I've never seen before. Applying these methods to my cooking will make all my meals more healthy. Thanks for offering this course!"
To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Recommended Courses:
Students who enrolled in Luscious, Low-Fat, Lightning-Quick Meals were also interested in the following courses:
Secrets of the Caterer
Introduction to Natural Health and Healing
Wow, What a Great Event!
|
