More and more restaurants are offering healthy options, but sometimes it's tough to figure out just what is the best option. Your smartphone can help. There's an app, "Healthy Dining," making it easier.

Launched in the early 1990s, Healthy Dining began as a book publisher of healthful menu options offered at restaurants in the Southern California region. Today, the company operates a website, Health Dining Finder, that allows users to search for nearby restaurants and view a list of dietitian-approved menu options with nutrition information and a selection of kid-friendly items backed by the National Restaurant Association's Kids LiveWell program. And as of late November, the "Healthy Dining Finder" app is available in a GPS-enabled mobile format, delivering access to better-for-you food at 60,000 full-serve and quick-serve restaurant locations. Users can filter results by price and distance, as well as alphabetically.

All of the restaurants featured on "Healthy Dining Finder" have signed up for the program, and then dietitians work with every single restaurant to identify the healthy dining criteria. The criteria are based on nutritional recommendations from the USDA and stress lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, whole grains and unsaturated fats. Entrees must have 750 calories or less, no more than 25 grams of fat and no more than 8 grams of saturated fat. Appetizers must have less than 250 calories, 8 grams of fat and 3 grams of saturated fat. Deep-fried items are entirely excluded, save for a garnish like wonton strips. "Healthy Dining Finder" also highlights low-sodium items for those with specific dietary requirements and identifies allergens and glutens.

Once the app is downloaded, you can choose a restaurant and then find the healthiest menu options.

Don't Peel It

When you remove the peel or skin from fruits and vegetables, you lose a lot of nutrition — it's a concentrated source of fiber, vitamins, minerals and potentially beneficial phytochemicals. Here are some facts you might not know about peels, from the University of California, Berkeley Wellness Letter:

1. The pigments in produce are healthful and the peels or skins are often the most colorful part.

2. Vegetable peels or skins are particularly good sources of insoluble fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Some peels, notably apple, are rich in pectin, a soluble fiber that helps lower blood cholesterol and control blood sugar.

3. Apple peels may help prevent cancer. Lab research has found that whole apple shave a much greater effect on cancer cells than peeled ones, probably because of the antioxidants in the skin.

4. Potato skins have far more fiber, iron, potassium and B vitamins than the flesh. Potato skins are also rich in antioxidants.

5. You don't need to wash fruits and vegetables in soap or detergent — plain water is fine. It will remove nearly all dirt, as well as bacteria and some pesticide residues, if any, on the surface. Scrub firmer produce like potatoes with a vegetable brush. The wax on cucumbers, apples, tomatoes and eggplants is harmless.

Q and A

Q: How can I avoid overeating in response to people pushing food at me during family gatherings?

A: Family dynamics vary, so an approach that works in one family might not do well in another. Is your family one in which eating rich foods in large amounts is seen as an essential part of gatherings and not doing so is met with resistance? Rather than making a major statement that you don't want to eat that way, you might try to let your healthy eating quietly fly under the radar. If you are busy helping and chose not to sit next to the person most likely to push food at you, your lack of overeating may go undetected. If people do urge you to take more than you are comfortable eating, try for responses that don't put them on the defensive. You might compliment the food and say that you are so full you'd like to wait until later for more. If you refuse in a way that makes others feel guilty, by implying that they are eating excessively or that the food they have served you is unhealthy, they may be offended and push further. Remember that the health impact of a food varies with its portion. If you help with serving, you can choose the portion that's right for you. Try to find some vegetables or other healthful choices to savor slowly, so that if others are going back for third or fourth portions, you still have something to munch. Don't let other people derail your efforts to take care of your health. Nevertheless, try to be sensitive when you are dealing with people for whom you know refusing food feels like you are refusing their love.

Information courtesy of the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Recipe

Here's a twist on the classic minestrone from Cooking Light magazine (December 2013). This Chickpea and Sausage Minestrone can be made ahead — just store the soup and pasta separately to keep the pasta from absorbing too much liquid.

Chickpea and Sausage Minestrone

—3/4 cup uncooked small shell pasta

—1 tablespoon olive oil

—1 (4-ounce) link hot turkey Italian sausage, casing removed

—1 cup diced onion

—1 cup diced carrot

—1/2 cup diced celery

—2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

—2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

—1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

—5 garlic cloves, chopped

—1 (15-ounce) can unsalted chickpeas, rinsed and drained

—1 (15-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained

—4 cups unsalted chicken stock

—1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

—1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook pasta according to package direction, omitting salt and fat; drain. While pasta cooks, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add sausage, cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring to crumble. Add onion and next six ingredients (through garlic); cook 10 minutes. Add chickpeas, tomatoes, and stock; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in pasta, salt and black pepper; cook 1 minute. Serves six.

Per serving: 197 calories, 12 g protein, 26.5 carbohydrate, 4.7 g fat, 16 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 553 mg sodium.

Charlyn Fargo is a registered dietitian from Springfield, Ill. For comments or questions, contact her at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @NutritionRD. To find out more about Charlyn Fargo and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.