Herbs & Spices

Instead of making the traditional recipe for this southern holiday favorite, give our version a try. It tastes just as good but is much lower in sodium and contains no saturated fat.

Green tea on your salad? Yes, it makes a great base for this Asian-style dressing, which lets you duplicate the flavor of restaurant salads at home without all the extra salt. Toss the dressing with a variety of salad greens and raw vegetables for a side salad or add grilled chicken, shrimp, or lean beef strips for an entrée.

Serve this easy sauce over fish, use it as a dip for raw vegetables, or spoon it over sliced cucumbers.

After trying our healthful version of barbecue sauce, you’ll wonder why you ever bought the bottled kind.

The combination of fresh basil and lime in the dressing makes this dish distinctive and delightful. It’s a nice and easy way to work some fish into your week.

Easy to make, this topping turns ordinary fat-free vanilla yogurt or ice cream into something special. Instead of using syrup on our Pancakes (page 290), try this as a less-sugary, healthier alternative.

Fresh spinach adds a new dimension to basil-based pesto. Try the pesto as a topping for chicken, fish, or pasta.

Even if you’ve never made pickles before, don’t hesitate to try this recipe. It is so easy! Just let the cucumbers simmer in a flavorful liquid, then cool and refrigerate them. The flavor of these pickles really brightens lean grilled burgers or your favorite potato salad or tuna salad recipe.

Apples cooked in orange juice and flavored with fresh ginger and spices—the combination smells as delicious as it tastes! Serve the chutney with roast pork, chicken, or turkey.

These quick-fix pickles have the traditional flavor you expect but only 1 milligram of sodium, a tremendous saving compared to commercial pickles of the same variety.

Try this in your own favorite chili recipe, our Chili (page 190), or Eggplant Mexicana (page 244).

It won’t take you long to do the actual preparation for this aromatic bread. During its resting and baking times, you can take a walk, fix dinner, or just relax.

Use this spicy mix in Zesty Oven-Fried Potatoes (page 250) and any other recipes that call for Creole or Cajun seasoning blends.

Crisp, colorful vegetables are the highlights of this salad. Try it for a summertime picnic for a group or for the next family reunion.

A sprinkling of crumbled feta tops this very tasty mix of fresh spinach, sweet grape tomatoes, artichokes, and basil.

Fresh sage garnish, lightly crisped on the stovetop, updates humble lima bean soup and gives it restaurant-like flair.

Making this soup with roast beef you’ve saved from another meal (maybe Easy Roast Beef, page 170) cuts down on both prep time and cooking time. Even people who think they don’t like leftovers will enjoy this soup, which gets lots of flavor from fresh produce.

Fresh asparagus and dill turn this soup into a flavorful celebration of spring.

Whether you serve these pancakes for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, they’ll soon become a family favorite.

This creamy chowder boasts chunks of potato and your favorite mild white fish. For a little crunch, top it with crumbled no-salt-added pretzels.