Pasta with 0 Calories is Here

Shirataki noodles, made from yams, have 0 to 15 calories and 4g carbs per serving, and you don't have to boil them. Discovered through the popular diet books Wheatbelly and Hungry Girl, I found them refrigerated near the tofu at Wal-Mart and bought 4 eight-ounce packages of different brands and shapes, spaghetti and fettuccini. Most have 0 calories; the 15-calorie "Pasta Zero" brand includes a bit of chickpea flour to make it opaque and slightly more familiar to Americans. Forget portion control: I eat the whole eight-ounce package just as I used to eat eight ounces of pasta daily until my cardiologist said to cut it out.

Shirataki noodles make one demand: They must be rinsed right out of the package. Those imported from Japan have a smell considered enticing over there but Americans call it fishy. Be brave: It rinses out in a colander or strainer in 1 minute. Then heat a non-stick skillet and toss the noodles over medium-high heat 2 minutes until they're dry. They are ready. Or you can heat them in a microwave for 1 or 2 minutes, or boil them for 3 minutes, as if they were ramen. They are bland so I sauce them up with Alfredo sauce (pictured), the only calories in the whole pasta bowl, and as I said I eat the entire half-pound package myself knowing my noodles are calorie-free, wheat-free, gluten-free, fat-free, soy-free, low-carb, and vegan, and it doesn't get any better than that.

Pictured is Nasoya brand Pasta Zero Plus shirataki fettucini, $1.97 for 8 ounces.

Strawberry-Coconut Cookies: Paleo Gluten-Free Recipe

I read the book Wheatbelly and it was too extreme, but I gave up white flour and white sugar for a while, yet still wanted cookies. This is the problem-solving recipe (makes 24 to 30 cookies). Coconut oil subs for butter, maple syrup for sugar. The nice thing is, you eat one and are satisfied.

Strawberry Coconut Cookies

1 cup firmly packed almond meal
1/2 cup of coconut flour and
1/4 cup of ground flaxseed
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
zest of 1 lime
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/4 cup diced fresh strawberries
1/2 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1 egg (optional, but the cookies hold together better)

Whisk flours, baking soda, salt and lime zest together. Pour in the coconut oil and maple syrup; stir until almost combined. Then stir in strawberries, coconut and vanilla, and optional egg. Mix until no more flour is visible. Refrigerate dough while the oven preheats to 350 degrees and you line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Scoop a tablespoon of dough onto prepared pans; pat into cookie shape. Bake 11 minutes. Refrigerate the dough between batches.