Food at Cal-a-Vie

A typical day's meals include a vegetable frittata with asparagus and roasted potatoes for breakfast, sweet and spicy shrimp salad for lunch (and macadamia oatmeal cookie for dessert) and for dinner, an organic baby greens salad with Asian pears, raspberries, maple pecans and feta cheese followed by fusilli pasta and "meatballs" with Provence-style vegetables and baby broccoli, and a petite Meyer lemon cheesecake. Portion sizes vary, depending on each individual's assigned caloric intake, determined by height, weight and stated goals for their stay. Because of their careful construction, I never feel hungry, although most dishes are so tasty that I longed for more just to savor them.

"Cooking demonstration," the Wednesday schedule says. Because our group is small, we all sit in the kitchen and watch sous chef Jason and his assistant prepare and serve our meal while Jason hands out cooking tips and shares some of the kitchen's secret ingredients that allow them to prepare tasty meals while reducing calories. We get a package of recipes to take home, and many people buy cookbooks and have them autographed.

If you'd like to sample the cuisine, but can't make the visit, you can buy their cookbook online.