Oven Bake

A taste of Chicago: deep-dish pizza. Chi-town pizza lovers may be die-hard advocates of the deep-dish, but no matter how you slice it, thin-crust has one major health advantage: It's considerably lower in calories. But if deep-dish is the pie of your dreams, try this one, made with turkey sausage instead of traditional Italian and part-skim mozzarella. We even added some green peppers to sneak in a veggie serving.

A slice of health heaven Before you dial out for pizza, consider this: A pepperoni slice (about 6 ounces) has 500 calories and 20 grams of fat, whereas two slices of this polenta-crust pie (also 6 ounces) have only 194 calories and one third the fat. One reason: The polenta (cornmeal) crust has less fat than a made-with-oil flour crust. Even better, it's a quick-make pie.

The casserole comes back. What do June Cleaver and the American Institute for Cancer Research have in common? They both love casseroles! Yep, health advocates are lobbying for the return of this dish as an easy way to pack disease-fighting veggies into a comfort food. The key is to modernize. (Sorry, Mom, no breadcrumb topping.) Our post-Cleaver, 21st-century version is warm, satisfying and more nutritious than June's.

Lasagna is comfort food — a real PMS soother. But it's also loaded with symptom-fighting calcium.

This dish, from Scott Uehlein, executive chef at the renowned Canyon Ranch Health Resort in Tucson, Arizona, is basically potatoes baked in a blend of broth and onions. It's amazing how rich they taste, and they take only 15 minutes to assemble.

Chef: Wylie Dufresne, 71 Clinton Fresh Food, New York City. Claim to fame: His restaurant won a rave review from The New York Times — now it's a hot spot. How he defines natural: "Clean, simple food tastes best; by happy accident it's also healthiest."

Surprise! A heavyweight makes a lightweight pizza. This healthy pizza comes from boxing champ George Foreman, the master behind the Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine (don't tell us you haven't seen the infomercials!) and author of the new George Foreman's Big Book of Grilling, Barbecue & Rotisserie (Simon & Schuster). Why grill? "It produces great-tasting healthy food, and it's easy," Foreman says.

Cuddle up with comfort food that's — gasp! — healthy.
Soothe your carb-craving soul without the guilt. This chicken pot pie delivers comfort at a fraction of the salt and fat of the traditional variety.

The French prince: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, executive chef and co-owner of Jean-Georges, Jo Jo, Lipstick Cafe, Mercer Kitchen, and Vong in New York City. What you'll love: No-mess cooking — just wrap the chicken and vegetables in foil, then bake and serve. Our taster says it all: "Super easy and very delicious."

Veggie perfection This nutrient-stuffed dish won't leave you hungry. What do you get when you give bell peppers center stage on your plate? A veggie-heavy meal that even a meat fiend will find too tempting to resist. Here we stuff antioxidant-rich bell peppers with couscous (a tiny, round pasta) and hardworking nutrient powerhouses like zucchini and yellow squash. The result? A meal low in fat, high in fiber, and loaded with vitamins A and C.

Slow-cooking these colorful vegetables renders them soft and silky. And serving them Mediterranean-style — at room temperature — makes entertaining easy, because you don't have to run back and forth between the table and the kitchen.

Kerabu Bok Kwa This fresh, zesty salad cuts through the richness of the heavier main courses. Sambal belacan is a classic Nonya dressing. We've reduced the amount from what would traditionally be used because belacan (shrimp paste) can be rather strong for those who aren't used to it. The paste has a salty fish taste and pungent smell (the odor dissipates once it's added to the dish), but it lends a dimension of flavor very characteristic of Nonya cuisine — were you to eliminate it, you wouldn't really be eating Nonya food. For a more authentic version, use 2 tablespoons belacan and 4 tablespoons lime juice.

Elegant but easy, this fast fish dinner is simple enough to prepare on a weeknight and special enough to serve to company.

Using multicolored carrots makes this beautiful side dish even more vibrant.

Tart rhubarb pairs with the sweetness of oranges to create a tangy sauce for roasted black sea bass. Cinnamon and ginger add a lovely background flavor.

High-quality ingredients transform this salad into an extremely satisfying weeknight dinner.