Hungry Girl's Top ATE Comfort Food Tips!

Hungry Girl Lisa Lillien has become an Internet and publishing hit by delivering no-nonsense dieting advice to America.

Now she has a new television show on the Cooking Channel (Saturday at 4 p.m.).

But you can catch her here first as she drops the skinny on eight easy-to-do kitchen tricks for losing weight.

French Fries

Just cut butternut squash into fry shapes, salt 'em, and bake. You'll get fries that are low in calories, nearly fat-free, but high in flavor. By the way, butternut squash has half the calories of sweet potato.

Pigs in a Blanket

Using reduced-fat crescent roll dough and low-fat hot dogs lowers calorie and fat counts in this old favorite by a TON!

Meatloaf

My two big tricks for meatloaf?

1. Bulk it up with veggies - broccoli coleslaw works great here.

2. Portion-control - pat the meat mixture in a muffin tin and serve the right amount every time. Using super-lean ground beef is key as well.

Macaroni & Cheese

05_Too-EZMacnCheese_(BC).jpg — Hungry Girl

Blue box? Nope. My way is just as easy: Toss whole-wheat-blend pasta with frozen cauliflower or broccoli in cheese sauce. Way more filling, way more fiber, and WAY lower in fat.

Chili

Instead of canned stuff or versions with fatty meats, make your own chili with lots and lots of veggies, plus plenty of spices and hot sauce with negligible calorie amounts. Mmmmm...

Chicken Noodle Soup

11_HungryChickChunkySoup_(BC).jpg — Hungry Girl

DIY! Load up fat-free chicken broth with 40-calories-per-bag tofu shirataki noodles, stewed canned tomatoes, and any veggies you can think to put in. Chunky... and VERY comforting.

Brownies

Instead of eggs and/or oil, just mix a 15-oz. can of pure pumpkin with a standard box of devil's food cake... NOTHING ELSE. Divvy it up into a muffin tin and bake for rich, chocolatey, and oh-so-low-fat brownie swaps. So good!

Fried Chicken

Instead of frying breadcrumb-coated chicken in oil, crush some high-fiber cereal twigs and season them up. Coat the chicken with fat-free egg substitute, cover with the crumbs, and bake... Tada! Super-good-for-you faux-fried chicken!