Free Pasta, Risotto, and Rice by Robin Miller Page A

sense of serenity.
    Even better? Every dish is a mouthwatering 500 calories or less, and many contain less than 500 milligrams of sodium. (The FDA recommends 600 milligrams max per meal.) With 380 main dishes, there are enough entrées to create a different meal seven nights per week for an entire year without having the same meal twice. But wait, there’s more. There is also a huge selection of side dishes and desserts (60 recipes each) with the same 5-ingredient, 500-calorie promise. The only staples I expect you to have are olive oil (and occasionally cooking spray), salt, and black pepper. That’s it. Look no further for your nightly noshing, because when Robin Takes 5 , we all reap the rewards.
    The average American eats out an astonishing three to four times each week. You don’t need me to tell you that when you eat out or rely on heavily processed foods, you have little control over the content, namely calories, fat, trans fat, saturated fat, and salt. In some cases, it’s worth the indulgence, like a planned family night at the best pizza joint in town. The problem is, many times it’s not planned, and it’s that lack of preparation that drives us through the fast-food lane or straight to the microwave with a hunk of frozen fare. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing fast food or prepared meals; I rely on them during busy soccer seasons! But I also strive to create meals from scratch, those made with love and a few ingredients that blend and evolve into magical meals. If you think you can’t create fantastic dishes with five ingredients, think again. The trick is choosing the right ones . Which lends more gusto to a hearty sauce—a green bell pepper or a sweet and smoky roasted red one; a plain tomato or a sun-dried gem that’s packed in fruity olive oil; a canned black olive, a cured Greek kalamata olive, or one stuffed with a jalapeño? You get the point. There are countless ingredients available today that help all of us get gourmet meals to the table in just minutes. In fact, many of these recipes are so amazing, they’re suitable for entertaining. Those dishes have this icon .
    And there’s more to Robin Takes 5 than terrific entrées, side dishes, and desserts. I donned my nutritionist/chef’s hat to create incredible meals that boost flavor, texture, and color, not calories, fat, and salt. We’re all aware of the excess calories and fat that come in processed foods, prepared meals, and those from dine-in and dine-out restaurants. What you might not realize is the amount of sodium they hoard. The average American consumes up to 4,000 milligrams of sodium per day. What’s the problem with that? Too much sodium can cause hypertension, which can lead to heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, and kidney failure. What’s worse is that one in three adults (that’s 75 million) already has hypertension. An additional 50 million adults are well on their way, with what’s known as pre-hypertension. This explains why sodium is the latest hot-button issue, replacing trans fat in all the headlines. The FDA recommends 1,500 to 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. Folks older than 51 and those with dietary restrictions should limit their sodium intake to 1,500 milligrams, while healthy individuals should aim for a maximum of 2,300 milligrams per day. I’m not the salt police, and I don’t brag that my recipes are “low-sodium.” What I do promise is that my recipes are mouthwatering and sensational and use sensible amounts of salt. To make it easy for you to find recipes with sensible amounts of sodium, main dishes with 500 milligrams or less and side dishes and desserts with 250 milligrams or less will have this icon . The sodium numbers reflected in each recipe are for the amounts actually called for, not including any additional that you may add at the end for seasoning. I use just enough to make the dish perfect. And I mean perfect .
    For more than twenty years, I’ve been creating recipes that folks