food and nutrition

Dealing with a finicky eater can make any mom go crazy. They won't eat meat, fruits or vegetables. They won't eat bread or anything that even resembles bread, like pita pockets or tortillas.

A reader recently asked about her "carbotarian" son, the most finicky of eaters who has survived his five years on only fruit-flavored items and pasta.

It's time to talk about school lunch again, as if it's a completely new concept. That comes off as a bit outdated to those of us who work most of the summer and send our kids to day camp, brown paper bag in hand. But packing lunch is a challenge no matter what time of year, and it never hurts to revisit that eternal question of what to put into it.

OVEN-BAKED BEST-EVER AMERICAN WINGS

(Tested by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

24 chicken wings

4 cups red wine

3 cups ketchup

1/2 cup Heinz 57 Sauce

6 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 cup chili powder

2 tablespoons molasses

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon paprika

Chicken wings are inexpensive, succulent, a cinch to cook and they reheat beautifully. Usually served as an appetizer, they make a great entree, too. As for the menu -- for Labor Day, to name one example, or another occasion -- what goes with burgers and ribs goes also with wings: potato salad, coleslaw, corn on the cob, garlic bread, watermelon and ice cream.

Lisa Hatch of Tampa, Fla., was "looking for some smoothie recipes that do not include yogurt."

Two readers shared recipes that filled the bill.

Karen Wenner's Tropical Pineapple Smoothie is the perfect blend of sweet and tart. The use of fresh pineapple and fresh lime juice really makes this smoothie come to life.

With the extra space in your freezer, fill it with food for those days that no one wants to cook.

Here are a few recipes to get you started.

READY-FOR-THE GRILL BURGERS AND SLIDERS

(Tested by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

8 slices cooked bacon, chopped fine

1-1/2 pounds 90 percent lean ground beef

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Thrift is in. Budgeting is cool. Cleaning out your freezer? That's still something you'd rather not do until you move or buy a new one.

Fair season beckons, which can mean only one thing: fatty foods. On a stick! Take our quiz on the nutrition content (or lack thereof) of the most popular carnival food attractions culled from the book "The CalorieKing 2009 Calorie, Fat & Carbohydrate Counter."

1. Which iconic fair treat weighs in with the most calories, at 760 calories?

a) Cotton candy (5.5-ounce bag)

Salad is the perfect antidote for sweltertime, when it is too hot to crank up the oven and too humid to even think about a heavy meal.

This New Orleans praline-pound-cake recipe is a keeper. The house smelled like fresh pralines while it was baking.

Deborah Griswold of Dunedin, Fla., said she "was recently looking at a catalog and saw a praline pound cake." She noted that it was expensive and wondered "if any readers have a recipe for me to try."

Joan White of Malvern, Pa., had an excellent one.