Jalapeño poppers took a beating in Valerie's first book, Losing It, and with good reason: The fried, cheese-filled snacks ladle on the fat and calories with questionable nutritional content. She readily admits that the poppers were a trigger food when she was eating her emotions (and gaining weight), rather than finding productive, healthy ways of handling stress and losing it!

In honor of Valerie's forthcoming cookbook, she asked us to share another family recipe from the Bertinelli Test Kitchen, a.k.a. her baby brother Pat's backyard grill. So just in time for your Labor Day barbecueing festivities, we present to you: Pat and Stacy's Epic Rib Awesomeness.

My husband Pat and cousin Ross fancy themselves to be quite the grillmasters, and much debate has ensued around our house about the proper technique for preparing fall-off-the-bone pork ribs: Wet mop versus dry rub? Pre-sear then bake? Bake then post-sear? Typically these debates occur over a beer or two while watching a barbecue cook-off on the Food Network.

Through the scientific method (and untold slabs of experimental ribs), the boys believe they have discovered the secret to rib nirvana! Let us know what you think of these succulent lovelies at your next backyard barbecue. 

One of the most popular features on my website are the family recipes that I post - and we receive so many requests for more!

Your wish (and mine) has been granted! In fall 2012, Rodele Books will publish my very first cookbook, tentatively titled One Dish at a Time! This cookbook will be a great companion to my memoirs Losing It and Finding It, and my workout DVD: Losing It and Keeping Fit.

One Dish at a Time will have the tasty family recipes and tips for a healthy lifestyle that have helped me maintain my weight loss through the Jenny Craig program. This is a project that is a lifelong dream of mine and I can't wait to share it with you. Here's a link to the announcement from Publishers Weekly!

I was thrilled to win the Celebrity Cook-off at Jenny Craig's Party in the Plaza. This is a healthy, portion-controlled option for July 4th celebrations, using Jenny Craig's tasty Beef and Cheese Sliders, but you can adapt the recipe to your own pantry. These delicious cheeseburgers were voted the audience favorite at our summer celebration. Instead of the standard potato chips or potato salad, you can opt for the nutritious "Buttery Corn Salad" as a side dish. The Chipotle Cheeseburger recipe is below, but you can find all of the Party in the Plaza recipes by following this link.