Have you seen the documentary Food Inc.? If you haven’t, it’s worth watching. If you have, then you can relate to my guilt over meat. It’s easy to say you’re going to stick to organic, grass-fed beef or poultry but actually doing it is a whole different story. When faced with the moral dilemma, I chose evasion: cook meat-free!

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Frozen chocolate banana bites. Photograph by Becca Boyd

Hello, Be Well Philly readers! My name is Becca Boyd and I’ll be posting healthy, delicious recipes here a few times each month.

A bit about me: I’m a family and consumer science teacher at Radnor High School. It’s basically the modern-day version of a home economics course. Among other things, I teach high schoolers how to cook. Last year, I started a blog, Home Beccanomics (cute, right?), to record recipes and photos from the school kitchen so my students could get the “how to” when they were home or away at college. Over the summer, I really caught the blogging bug and continued with recipes of my own (some that I come up with, others from my favorite cookbooks). I had a baby in September (love you, Tess!), so this year I’m out on maternity leave—which gives me a lot of time to experiment in the kitchen. My husband, Rich, sure isn’t complaining.

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Let’s face it: these slushy, arctic mornings offer no incentive to get out of bed. But where weather fails, breakfast prevails—especially if you’re making one of these tasty oatmeal recipes. Here’s to warming up from the inside-out.

Apple-Berry Baked Oatmeal
via Whole Foods Market

Vanilla extract and vanilla yogurt make this baked breakfast treat full of winter-blues-fighting flavor. You can sub in different fruit according to what you have on hand, and the cake-like texture means you can take a slice along for a breakfast on the go.

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Drinks
>> Low-cal holiday cocktails
If you’re going to drink (and we totally think you should), you might as well be smart about it. Here are five festive cocktail recipes for under 200 calories.

>> Spiced Skinny Cocktail
Today’s secret ingredient: coconut water. Trust us—it makes for one delicious (and potent!) drink.

Appetizers
>> Artichoke and ‘Shroom Bruschetta
We love this interesting twist on a classic favorite. And the artichokes, mushrooms and spinach pack a serious punch, veggie-wise.

>> Chipotle Butternut Squash Soup Shooters
Here’s what you do: Get a bunch of those plastic, shot-glass-size cups, make a big batch of this good-for-you soup, and bam—the classy hors d’oeuvres your friends won’t stop talking about.

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Discover Magazine’s Discoblog is doing an ode to college professor/researcher/self-described “informal” numbers cruncher John W. Trinkaus this week. Until about 15 minutes ago, I’d never heard of the guy. But a few Google searches later, I turned up this 2004 profile from Fortune Magazine, which explains that Trinkaus has made a bit of career out of quantifying human behavior—counting a show of hands, so to speak—on all sorts of subjects: grocery checkout habits, stop sign compliance, waiting times at doctors offices. You get the picture.

Discoblog unearthed a 1991 Trinkaus report which looked at the preference for Brussels sprouts among business school students. A very specific sample set, yes, but I’m assuming it was the best one he had at his disposal at the time. Anyway, his research found that half of respondents found the veggie to be “very repulsive” or “somewhat repulsive,” 40 percent were indifferent, and about 10 percent (that’s rounding up!) actually liked them.

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Congratulations, you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner! Not only must you juggle a platter of appetizers, four pots on the stove and three dishes in the oven, you also have to remember that Grandpa likes his mashed potatoes extra creamy, Mom refuses to eat pie on her new diet and Aunt Marge needs a cocktail ASAP.

Luckily, we’ve compiled a menu from our favorite fall recipes that’s sure to please every palate. Plus, our dishes are easy to whip up and will keep holiday weight gain at bay. You’re so very welcome.

Appetizers

Pumpkin Seed Sweet Potato Fries
Loaded with spices but short on fat and calories, these bright and crunchy fries are a great precursor to the feast ahead that won’t stuff your dinner guests too soon. You can prepare the complementary sage dipping sauce up to three days in advance to ease up Turkey Day crunch time.

Artichoke and Mushroom Bruschetta
You’ll get a good dose of veggies plus ample serving sizes (three pieces!) out of this dish. The leftover topping mixture can be used atop chicken or tossed with pasta, too.

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