STEPS TOWARD A HEALTHIER ATTITUDE ABOUT EATING, COOKING IN 1997.

Byline: Deborah Byrd Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

Resolution time has come and gone. We vowed to eat more healthfully, shop more wisely, cook more at home and waste less.

To help you on this noble mission, here's a grab bag of tips and ideas gleaned from interviews, authors and a few experts.

Look for one that seems easy to do, then do it. Then, maybe do another. Some are for health, some are to save money, some to help others and some are just for fun.

Cut the fat

Saute without oil or fat. Use low-fat or nonfat chicken or vegetable broth instead of oil or butter.

Bake without the fat. Substitute pureed prunes for the oil or butter in cake and cookie recipes. This only works when the other flavors are assertive, as in spice or chocolate cakes.

Get protein without the fat. Learn to make one or two main dishes that feature grains or beans instead of meat.

Grains and beans give you fiber as well as low-fat protein.

Switch to 1 percent or nonfat milk.

Serve fresh, seasonal fruit for dessert, instead of fat-laden cookies, ice cream or cakes.

Pair fruits - oranges with dates or strawberries, pears and grapes, apples and Fuyu persimmons.

Try to eat a green salad every day (leave off the high-fat dressings, cheese, olives, etc.)

Try to eat one green vegetable and one citrus fruit every day.

Cut cooking time

Keep a well-stocked pantry. Some basics - pasta, low-fat sauces and low-sodium soups, canned imported tomatoes, tuna, capers, dried mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes.

Roast - in a nonstick pan at 500 degrees F, vegetables cook in half the time and get crisp and crunchy. Certain meats (especially chicken - leave the skin on, remove after cooking) also do well on high heat. Do not cover.

Use the microwave. Learn to use it for more than just making popcorn or reheating leftovers. Start small, by melting the butter or chocolate you're going to use in another recipe. Move up to cooking vegetables (covered, without water) they cook faster and retain more nutrients.

Shop smart

Plan several days' worth of menus, planning to cook one big dish a roast or a ham, say on Sunday and then use the leftovers in one or two meals later in the week.

Learn the store layout to save time. Make a shopping list that follows the layout. Stick to the list.

Shop before work, early in the morning, before the crowds show up.

Shop ``the outside'' aisles of the store - that's where the less-processed foods such as fresh fruit and produce, bread and meat counters tend to be.

Don't bring the kids (consider trading baby-sitting time with a friend or neighbor). You don't need the distraction and neither do fellow shoppers.

Eat before you shop. Hungry shoppers make more impulse buys.

Buy frozen and refrigerated foods last. Once home, put them away first.

Learn kitchen thrift

Don't throw away the end of that hunk of Parmesan cheese - toss it into soup for a heartier flavor.

Make bread crumbs out of French bread heels and use them for topping casseroles and coating boneless, skinless chicken breasts before baking.

Make French toast or bread pudding out of stale bread of any kind.

Freeze bones from cooked chicken or meat for soup stock.

Rediscover pleasures of the table

Gather your family at least once a week for dinner together. Turn off the TV

Insist that people talk to each other (nagging and complaining do not count as conversation).

Entertain friends once a month - OK, once every six weeks. Master a main dish, then buy prerinsed, precut salad (toss with oil and vinegar) and bread. Serve fresh fruit and cookies for dessert. This is about getting closer to your friends, not culinary stardom.

Offer plenty of bottled sparkling mineral water for nondrinkers, or drinkers who've had enough.

Clean up your act

Minimize your risk of food-borne illness. Oftentimes what we think is the flu is really a food-borne bacterial infection.

Wash your hands well with hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly.

Thaw food in the refrigerator, not on the countertop.

Clean any and all utensils you've used to handle raw meat, fish or poultry in hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly. Clean countertops and cutting boards in a weak (1 to 10) chlorine bleach-and-water solution.

That sponge in the sink harbors bacteria. Pour boiling water over it once a day to cleanse it.

Mark the date on leftovers in the fridge; toss after about three days.

Cook more at home

Make the kitchen work for you.

Remove from the countertop anything not used daily or almost daily, so you have room to work.

Invest in at least one good, sharp chef's knife to make slicing and chopping easier and safer.

Get a cutting board that's big enough.

Maybe you're not cooking much because of all those unused spices and herbs staring accusingly at you from the cupboard. If they're more than a year old, throw them out without feeling guilty. Sniff them first and you'll see there's nothing much left.

Make sure there's good lighting over work areas.

Put up one picture poster, cartoon, kids' art work that makes you smile whenever you see it.

Consider the environment

Vote with your dollars. Don't buy overpackaged food. Write to the manufacturer to say why you're not buying that product.

Reuse plastic produce bags for other uses. Take clean paper bags back to the store with you or carry purchases home in fabric tote or string shopping bags.

Shop seasonally. Learn the peak season for each fruit and vegetable in your area, and buy it only then. It's more likely to be locally grown and not trucked or flown in from far away (using up fossil fuel). It's less likely to be treated with pesticides banned in the United States that are not banned in some of the other countries we buy from. It also is more likely to taste better.

Buy organic. Find out how the farmer cares for the land, and support that activity by buying the produce.

Shop farmers' markets 

To get the most from the farmers' market, walk the market first. See what's there, what looks and tastes good and what the prices are.

Taste samples the farmers are offering, and buy only what appeals to you.

Talk to the farmers. They know the best ways to prepare their own produce and can tell you where and how it was grown.

Try a new vegetable, such as Thai eggplant, broccoli raab, leeks, golden beets.

Help others

Help the hungry by getting together a group at work, school or church to collect food for donations.

Encourage your child's school or club to plant a garden or fruit trees for the hungry.

Schedule a tour of your area food bank.

Organize food drives.