Whenever I can, I try to buy my produce from a farm stand or a local farmer’s market. It’s not only tastier, it’s more nutrient-rich (produce retains maximum nutrients when you eat it shortly after harvesting) and eco-friendly. Summer is my favorite time to shop locally because the stands are bursting with a crazy variety of veggies. From eggplant to cucumbers and summer squash, I can hardly contain myself (it is almost as if I am shopping for shoes!). But, my absolute favorite summer veggie, well fruit in reality, is the tomato.

Football season is here again, which means my husband will be having his friends over to watch the pre-season games. When I suggest serving celery sticks with low-fat ranch dressing, turkey chili and baked chips I’m greeted with a less than enthusiastic reaction. My husband is thinking more along the lines of cheesy nachos, loaded potato skins and his favorite… buffalo wings. Unfortunately an appetizer sized order of Buffalo wings at Applebee’s clocks in at an astounding 1,724 calories and 132 grams of fat. An entire day’s worth of calories in a few wings!

There’s nothing that reminds me more of my childhood than dunking a chocolate chip cookie into a nice cold glass of milk; the way the cookie softens yet still maintains some of its crunch is just plain delicious. But as a dietitian, consuming a cookie high in refined carbohydrates, fat, and sugar is a no-no. Simple sugars and refined grains in cookies, like sugar and white flour, are easily broken down causing blood sugar levels to rise quickly. Which, if you eat them too often, translates to a greater risk for obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.

I’m not a vegetarian, but I do eat more vegetarian meals than not. For now, I’d consider myself a pescetarian (a vegetarian who eats fish) or a flexitarian (a vegetarian who occasionally eats meat, fish, poultry).  Either way, new dietary guidelines to be published by the end of the year suggest that a shift toward a more plant-based diet is healthier for you and the environment. That’s why I play around with new vegetarian dishes.

They’re possibly the most tempting side dish—golden, crisp, deep-fried potatoes. But just one order can pack a whopping 500 calories and 30 grams of fat! Even so, sometimes sheer willpower isn’t enough to just say no. That’s why we found three healthier options that will satisfy your salty tooth, without sabotaging your diet.

I’ve always liked ethnic foods. While others crave burgers and fries, I turn to curries and stews filled with exotic flavors. Indian cuisine is among my favorites — it contains many healthful roots and spices such as ginger (remedies nausea and reduces pain and inflammation), turmeric (detoxifies the liver and protects against Alzheimer’s), curcumin (found in turmeric, it’s been shown to reduce risk of cancer), and cayenne pepper (promotes circulation and helps to rid the body of bad cholesterol). But before you Google the nearest Indian takeout, be aware that many dishes are filled with butter and cream, stuffing them full of calories.

I start most mornings with a Greek yogurt mixed with Fiber One and berries, so you can only imagine my excitement when I was flying to Greece. I was about to eat the real deal! While touring the Greek Islands on vacation, I had a chance to indulge in all the delicacies Greece has to offer. And the best part — the number on the scale didn’t go up. Greek cuisine is inherently healthy, incorporating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seafood, and heart-healthy fats. But even though I feasted on shrimp bigger than my hand, sampled homemade jams flavored with fig or oregano, and snacked on packaged olives sold right next to the potato chips, enjoying my daily Greek yogurt while staring at the ocean was my favorite part by far.

Every time I go out to eat, I grab a handful of mints when I pay the bill. Who wants to go back to work (or worse — end a date) with bad breath?  Always conscious of halitosis, I find myself popping mints even in the morning after coffee, or right before a big meeting.  So small and light, the fresh-breath candies barely even count as calories, right? Wrong.  Unfortunately, some brands can run up to 25 calories per mint. That means if you’re reaching for a mint after breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner, you’re already at adding an extra 100 calories to your day! Keep this up, and it adds up to 10 extra pounds of weight gain a year.

I recently moved back to Florida from New York City and forgot how hot and humid summertime here can be (not that NYC is much better). When it’s hot outside, I tend to crave refreshing and cold foods—which means I eat a lot of salads and well, salad dressing. As a dietitian I feel compelled, even if you’ve heard it a thousand times, to tell you that salad dressing can easily make a healthy, nutritious meal into an unhealthy disaster. Certain restaurant salads can top out at 1200 calories. Often, the dressing is to blame for this exorbitant number.

Monday: Katy Perry’s record release party. Tuesday: Lollapalooza in Chicago. Wednesday: Goldbar in NYC. Thursday: 333 Club in London... Ok, hold up. I’m really not that cool. Really. However, I have discovered the coolest thing to hit the web (and soon your iPhone) this year—Dubset.