cdkitchen > cooking experts > amy powell
June has arrived. Summer is officially upon us. Time to pack away the sweaters and the wool and bring on the linen and bathing suits. Nothing to hide the pot belly and saddle bags anymore. It is time to get nek-ked.
Minor problem, I am about six weeks behind on the "Six Weeks to a Perfect Body" program. Major problem, I live at the beach where I am certain that somewhere is a written rule “Clothing Optional, Six-packs Mandatory.”
True, this is California and I am told we are a little, um, different. Also true, being around so many well muscled, hardly clothed, bronzed and beautiful people all day is enough to make the most lethargic take up jogging.
Owing to this practically forced health-consciousness, I actually turned down a New York strip steak at a barbecue this week. It was painful, but necessary. I just couldn’t in my right mind justify eating that perfect piece of bloody char-grilled meat, given my delinquency on my summer fitness regimen.
But I was not entirely disappointed at turning down that juicy and irresistible meat, because I had all the ingredients on hand for my favorite turkey burger. A turkey burger may seem like a sorry substitution, but I was far from unhappy. In the land of the bikini, sometimes one has to make just such a bold decision.
But how does one make the healthy choices truly bold and not simply boring? All the experts keep telling us that at the end of the day it really is just about calories in, calories out. According to Dr. Dean Ornish’s best seller Everyday Cooking, high-flavor, low-fat cooking is a surefire way to keep the calories down and the energy up whether you make it to your 6 am boot camp on the beach or not. The trick to is strike that culinary balance without sending your tastebuds into hibernation.
Take my turkey burger, for instance. Because I am always cooking and frequently have the odd small containers of ingredients such as chipotles in adobo gathering dust in my fridge, I always have what I need to spice up my everyday healthy choices. To each turkey burger I add a chopped chipotle to the raw, ground 7% fat turkey (avoid ground breast meat only, no amount of spice can add flavor to that one). Once grilled, I set the burger atop a whole-wheat bun with avocado, red onion, and salsa and I have an instant well-balanced meal bursting with an abundance of flavors.
Other tricks of mine include adding wasabi to low-fat mayonnaise for a different take on the classic tuna fish sandwich. Baking fish fillets in individual parchment or foil-wrapped packets with julienned vegetables, fresh herbs and just a drizzle of oil really cuts back on the fat while infusing the fish with all the aromatics that are steaming alongside it. And one can never really go wrong with an egg white omelet (although there is a lot of healthy fat and Vitamin E in the yolks), as eggs give you the creative freedom to add the bounty of your fridge, from spinach to Canadian bacon to curry powder, to create a protein-packed meal that is anything but standard.
At this beachside dinner party, while the guests were chowing down on their steaks, I sat quietly content in my unconventional healthy choice. The others may not have been drooling over my punched up turkey burger, but I certainly was. More important is the drooling that is to come as I kick up the flavor on the way to a healthier me and make sure I can take my rightful bikini-clad place on the sand, taste buds intact.
©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/290-healthy-flavor/
A Healthy Dose of Flavor
Minor problem, I am about six weeks behind on the "Six Weeks to a Perfect Body" program. Major problem, I live at the beach where I am certain that somewhere is a written rule “Clothing Optional, Six-packs Mandatory.”
True, this is California and I am told we are a little, um, different. Also true, being around so many well muscled, hardly clothed, bronzed and beautiful people all day is enough to make the most lethargic take up jogging.
Owing to this practically forced health-consciousness, I actually turned down a New York strip steak at a barbecue this week. It was painful, but necessary. I just couldn’t in my right mind justify eating that perfect piece of bloody char-grilled meat, given my delinquency on my summer fitness regimen.
But I was not entirely disappointed at turning down that juicy and irresistible meat, because I had all the ingredients on hand for my favorite turkey burger. A turkey burger may seem like a sorry substitution, but I was far from unhappy. In the land of the bikini, sometimes one has to make just such a bold decision.
But how does one make the healthy choices truly bold and not simply boring? All the experts keep telling us that at the end of the day it really is just about calories in, calories out. According to Dr. Dean Ornish’s best seller Everyday Cooking, high-flavor, low-fat cooking is a surefire way to keep the calories down and the energy up whether you make it to your 6 am boot camp on the beach or not. The trick to is strike that culinary balance without sending your tastebuds into hibernation.
Take my turkey burger, for instance. Because I am always cooking and frequently have the odd small containers of ingredients such as chipotles in adobo gathering dust in my fridge, I always have what I need to spice up my everyday healthy choices. To each turkey burger I add a chopped chipotle to the raw, ground 7% fat turkey (avoid ground breast meat only, no amount of spice can add flavor to that one). Once grilled, I set the burger atop a whole-wheat bun with avocado, red onion, and salsa and I have an instant well-balanced meal bursting with an abundance of flavors.
Other tricks of mine include adding wasabi to low-fat mayonnaise for a different take on the classic tuna fish sandwich. Baking fish fillets in individual parchment or foil-wrapped packets with julienned vegetables, fresh herbs and just a drizzle of oil really cuts back on the fat while infusing the fish with all the aromatics that are steaming alongside it. And one can never really go wrong with an egg white omelet (although there is a lot of healthy fat and Vitamin E in the yolks), as eggs give you the creative freedom to add the bounty of your fridge, from spinach to Canadian bacon to curry powder, to create a protein-packed meal that is anything but standard.
At this beachside dinner party, while the guests were chowing down on their steaks, I sat quietly content in my unconventional healthy choice. The others may not have been drooling over my punched up turkey burger, but I certainly was. More important is the drooling that is to come as I kick up the flavor on the way to a healthier me and make sure I can take my rightful bikini-clad place on the sand, taste buds intact.
Chipotle Turkey Burgers with Avocado and Salsa Verde
Made with salsa verde, avocado, chipotles in adobo sauce, ground turkey, salt and pepper, oil, whole-wheat hamburger buns, red onion
Made with salsa verde, avocado, chipotles in adobo sauce, ground turkey, salt and pepper, oil, whole-wheat hamburger buns, red onion
Serves/Makes: 6
- 1 can chipotles in adobo sauce
- 2 pounds (7% fat) ground turkey
- salt and pepper
- oil
- 6 whole-wheat hamburger buns
- 1 medium red onion
- 1 1/2 avocado
- 3/4 cup salsa verde or other tomatillo salsa
Preheat a grill or grill pan on a medium high flame.
Remove six chipotles from the can reserving the adobo sauce. Chop the chipotles finely.
To a large bowl add the chopped chipotles, the ground turkey, and several tablespoons of the reserved adobo sauce. Add a couple cracks of black pepper and three to four pinches of Kosher salt. Mix with a wooden spoon or by hand to combine. Form into patties.
Lightly oil the grill or grill pan. Place burgers on grill. Depending on the thickness of the patties, this could take 3 to 4 minutes per side.
Meanwhile, split the buns and throw on grill to toast or, if there is no room, wait to toast while burgers are resting once they have been removed from the grill.
Slice the avocados and the red onion.
To assemble burger, to each toasted bun add a cooked burger, top with two tablespoons of salsa, a quarter of an avocado, and some thinly sliced red onion.
share this article:
related articles
Write a comment:
©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/290-healthy-flavor/