What if I told you that you could eat as much as you wanted and lose weight Not only could I lose weight but get healthy enough to stop some and maybe all my medications. Is this too good to be true? What's the catch? First, this is not science fiction; honest. Second, this is not a calorie counting diet. The secret: eat foods that are good for you and forgo those that are bad. Earlier this year I was shocked to find myself hitting 320 pounds on my scale due to following the Standard American Diet (SAD). Eggs and bacon for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch and meat, potatoes and a vegetable for dinner was my typical daily fare. I tried to lose weight under medical supervision with limited success and was eventually referred to a bariatric surgeon. There I was told my best option was a full bypass surgery. As a result I would have to dramatically change my daily diet and never enjoy certain foods I loved. I decided this option was just not for me. Due to my chronic bad back, serious exercise was not in the cards. My options seemed bleak. Then I discovered the nutritarian  diet where dietary preference is given to those foods that are high in nutrients and low in calorie density.  The "Nutritarian diet" was coined by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, a board certified family practitioner who has studied nutritional studies and developed a smarter way to eat. When I told my wife, Susan who is also a physician that I wanted to switch over to this style of eating she was overjoyed and supportive. Gone is the toxic Standard American Diet with it's emphasis on meat, potatoes and processed foods and in with healthy vegetables, fruits, beans and legumes and nuts and berries. After switching to this diet most people can gradually wean themselves off of many of the medicines they have been taking and enjoy losing weight and more energy. After one month on the plan, I am personally twenty pounds lighter.

What good is a diet if the food isn't very good? My chunky vegetable tomato sauce shows how to put the focus on the vegetables so no pasta is needed. Using a vegetarian "meatball" gives extra texture plus give the dish a familiarity that will satisfy most picky eaters, I like to cook the vegetables so they have a slight crunch to give the dish extra texture and retain most of the vitamins. You can cook the vegies more or less and adjust the seasonings to your taste.

Ingredients:

 3 stalks celery

 3 large carrots

 1 large sweet onion

 1 medium red pepper

 3 medium tomatoes

 other veggies (mushrooms, zucchini, peppers, leeks, or others)

 3 to 5 cloves garlic minced

 1 28 oz. can of San Marzano tomatoes crushed

 1/2 tsp dry basil

 1/2 tsp dry thyme

  1/2 tsp dry oregano

 1 bunch fresh basil

 1 - 2 packages Gardein  classic meatless meatballs

 4 Tbsp. olive oil

 salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

 Dice the onions, carrots, celery and red peppers into a large dice. You can also add other veggies at this time. Add 2 Tbsp. olive oil to a hot saute  pan and add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add, season and cook the veggies until the onion starts to turn translucent. Add the dry herbs and the tomatoes and continue to cook. Season with salt and pepper to taste or forgo the salt.

 In a separate skillet, heat some oil and brown the "meatballs". Add the meatballs to the tomato mixture and cook until done. I like the veggies to retain some of their crispness. Serve hot with or without pasta.