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  Recipes to Jump-Start Weight Loss

  Warm Grapefruit Tea

  Looking to lose weight? In addition to following a plant-based, whole foods diet, incorporating certain foods can help catalyze weight loss. Ingredients like grapefruit, wild salmon, almonds, avocados, and kiwi can trigger your body to process them more efficiently, mainly making your insulin more effective. Here are some fabulous, healthy, and delicious recipes that will also help you on your weight-loss journey.

  Grapefruit has a compound called naringenin, which studies have shown can make our insulin more effective. This tea was featured on "The Martha Stewart Show." (And Martha loved it!)

  Get the Recipe for Warm Grapefruit Tea

  Next: Glazed Salmon with a Spicy Grapefruit Relish

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  Glazed Salmon with a Spicy Grapefruit Relish

  The combination of grapefruit and wild salmon work double duty in this recipe. The naringenin in grapefruit can make our insulin more effective -- and the omega-3 fatty acids in salmon have an anti-inflammatory effect in the body and can increase our cells' ability to burn fat.
  

  Get the Glazed Salmon Recipe

  Next: Whole-Wheat Couscous with Almonds

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  Whole-Wheat Couscous with Almonds

  Foods such as almonds, avocados, and olive oil are high in fat, but about 70 percent of that fat is monounsaturated, the heart-healthy kind. "These foods help make our cells more insulin-sensitive," says Bagnulo. "Less insulin typically means weight loss."

  Get the Recipe for Whole Wheat Couscous with Almonds

  Next: Cherry-Almond Granola

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  Cherry-Almond Granola

  Munch on this delicious granola during your next 3 p.m. snack attack -- or make it for breakfast and serve it with low-fat milk or soy milk.

  Get the Recipe for Cherry-Almond Granola

  Next: Kashi, Mint, and Almond Salad

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  Kashi, Mint, and Almond Salad

  A mixture of grains often served as a warm breakfast cereal, Kashi's 7 Whole Grain Pilaf also works beautifully as a savory side dish. Look for it alongside rice and other whole grains in natural-foods stores.

  Get the Almond Salad Recipe

  Next: Spiced Avocado Sandwich

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  Spiced Avocado Sandwich

  Although avocados help make our cells more insulin-sensitive, there's one note of caution: For optimal weight loss, avoid combining high-fat foods with simple carbs like white bread, baked potatoes, or sugar. For example, if you are going to eat an avocado, serve it on a high-fiber, multigrain bread rather than a white tortilla.

  Get the Spiced Avocado Sandwich Recipe

  Next: Cantaloupe and Avocado Salad with Honey-Lime Dressing

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  Cantaloupe and Avocado Salad with Honey-Lime Dressing

  Avocados have high concentrations of many B vitamins, as well as beta-carotene, magnesium, and vitamins E and K. These nutrients support and sustain your overall health, not to mention your energy, and can speed up your metabolism.

  Get the Avocado Salad Recipe

  Next: Chilled Avocado Soup

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  Chilled Avocado Soup

  When shopping for avocados, choose one that's firm to the touch with unbroken skin. Let it ripen a few days at room temperature. You'll know it's ready to eat when it feels soft.

  Get the Recipe for Avocado Soup

  Next: Miso Salmon with Cilantro Salsa

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  Miso Salmon with Cilantro Salsa

  Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish like wild salmon have an anti-inflammatory effect in the body and can increase our cells' ability to burn fat.

  Get the Miso Salmon Recipe

  Next: Grilled Salmon with Spicy Honey-Basil Sauce

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  Grilled Salmon with Spicy Honey-Basil Sauce

  Salmon, an omega-3 powerhouse, is a great asset in your weight-loss arsenal. Omega-3 fatty acids promote weight loss in several ways. They help the insulin in your body work better and decreases insulin resistance. They improve blood-sugar control, which helps reduce food cravings and overeating. Omega-3s help your body burn off calories before they get stored as fat.

  Get the Grilled Honey Salmon Recipe

  Next: Apple, Walnut, and Endive Salad

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  Apple, Walnut, and Endive Salad

  Raw apples, raw carrots oats, and beans are a good source of fiber and "resistant starches," those that the body has to expend a lot of energy to break down. Unlike foods that cause a blood-sugar rush, sugar from these foods will only drip into the bloodstream.

  Get the Apple and Endive Salad Recipe

  Next: Carrot-Mango Smoothie

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  Carrot-Mango Smoothie

  This breakfast alternative starts with carrot juice, a valuable source of beta carotene, which many juicing enthusiasts believe is best absorbed on an empty stomach.

  Get the Mango-Carrot Smoothie Recipe

  Next: Sesame-Crusted Tuna with Carrot-Ginger Sauce

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  Sesame-Crusted Tuna with Carrot-Ginger Sauce

  The raw carrot sauce on this dish is a perfect foil for sesame-coated tuna steaks.

  Get the Recipe for Sesame-Crusted Tuna

  Next: Two-Bean Vegetarian Chili

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  Two-Bean Vegetarian Chili

  Complementing beans with grain foods, like rice, makes them a great substitute for higher-fat protein sources like meats. Beans are also filling enough to stave off hunger. The low-fat, high-fiber nature of a bean-centered diet makes them a great weight-loss staple. 

  Get the Vegetarian Chili Recipe

  Next: Spicy Bean-and-Cheese Soft Tacos

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  Spicy Bean-and-Cheese Soft Tacos

  You can make these as spicy as you like by varying the amount of chipotle peppers or using a spicier salsa. Fresh cilantro and lime are a vibrant complement to the smoky chipotle pepper in this dish. Canned chipotles in adobo can be found in the specialty section of most supermarkets.

  Get the Recipe for Vegetarian Tacos

  Next: More Power Foods

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