Eat your vegetables. They're good for you.

If you ignored Mom when she handed out this advice, maybe you will listen better when you hear it from two moms, both named Deborah.

This attractive and useful book will make you downright eager to eat your veggies — and lots of them.

Deborah Szekely, founder of the internationally known Rancho La Puerta fitness resort and spa in Tecate, Mexico, teamed with chef and author Deborah M. Schneider to write "Cooking With the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta" (Stewart, Tabori and Chang; $35).

This attractive and useful book will make you downright eager to eat your veggies — and lots of them.

"Cooking With the Seasons" celebrates Rancho La Puerta's spa cuisine as cooked through the year (zucchini flower frittatas in spring, summer's grilled figs with honeyed ricotta, and hearty fall pleasers like Creamy Lima Bean Soup). However, winter recipes such as tequila-laced Lobster a la Diabla and Chocolate Cake With Almonds make clear that the authors rejected the notion of writing a diet book.

In introductory notes, Schneider states that her goal is to make those who use the book feel "good, full of energy, vitality, creativity." A fine writer as well as a chef, Schneider has spent 20-plus years cooking at notable local restaurants, and she soon will open Sol, a Newport Beach, Calif., restaurant themed around her previous cookbook, "Baja! Cooking on the Edge." Of her new venture, which a group of investors plans as the prototype of an upscale chain, she says, "The concept is based on surf culture and goes heavy on seafood."

For "Cooking With the Seasons," Schneider based some recipes on favorite dishes served to Rancho La Puerta guests over the decades, and many more on the produce-inspired creations of Jesus Gonzalez, who was the original chef/instructor of the resort's cooking school, La Cocina Que Canta (The Kitchen that Sings).

In her own introduction, Szekely, a lively 86-year-old, reveals the philosophy that built her fitness resorts into paradigms for the industry.

She developed a principle called the "complete calorie," which specifies, "The food we eat is complete only when we find joy in the many facets of growing, purchasing, preparing and enjoying it."

She strongly advises readers to abandon the "crime and punishment" theory of eating, which she describes as "the belief that it's a crime to eat, so you must punish yourself by dieting."

So diet you don't when you cook with the seasons Rancho La Puerta style, but then again, the spa effect should take hold if you portion dishes according to the recipes, nearly all of which claim to serve six.

They might not stretch so far at your house, even if you bake the relatively filling entree of Polenta Gratin With Braised Greens and Roasted Red Peppers, which stars among autumnal preparations.

This is the sort of book that you want to rip through quickly, admiring the artful, full-page photographs and salivating over recipes that look too good to be true.

The second time around invites more thoughtful reading with a stack of little Post-it notes to mark the pages of recipes you will be ready to try as soon as you have tracked down the best-quality vegetables and fruits — organic when possible — as well as seafood, cheeses and eggs, small quantities of which Rancho La Puerta includes in most daily meals.

"The philosophy of the cooking school is that people cook in the real world, and there is no harm in small amounts of good-quality organic oils and dairy, including eggs," said Schneider. "In fact, hard-boiled or scrambled eggs are served every morning at Rancho La Puerta, and sometimes there are really wonderful huevos rancheros.

"But at the ranch, you're eating huge amounts of vegetables, fruits and grains, so proteins like eggs, cheese and fish are a very small part of what's on your plate."

Schneider carefully used Szekely's philosophies and the 68-year history of Rancho La Puerta as guideposts for the book. Some recipes are long-standing ranch traditions, such as the creamy-crisp Chiles Rellenos that Szekely notes as a personal favorite. (She was the original cook when she and her late husband, Edmond Bordeaux Szekely, founded Rancho La Puerta as a retreat for health enthusiasts in 1940.)

For the balance of the recipes, Schneider elaborated on "sketches" composed by Gonzalez when he surveyed any given day's fresh-picked bounty from the Tres Estrellas garden, which supplies up to 90 percent of the produce served at Rancho La Puerta.

In 2007, Szekely chose a spot in the middle of the expansive spread to build a cooking school in order to teach the distinctive Rancho La Puerta approach to cooking. Six days a week, classes at La Cocina Que Canta are limited to ranch guests, but on Saturdays, the school offers instruction to nearby residents.

Through its insistence on seasonal fruits and vegetables, and a series of beautiful, full-page photos, "Cooking With the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta" splashes color across the kitchen counter.

Besides the consistently appealing recipes, it shares anecdotes from Rancho La Puerta's past (actor Burt Lancaster enjoyed baking bread in an outdoor oven), as well as how Szekely's unusual childhood led to her becoming a doyenne of North American spa keepers.

Driven by hard times in Depression-era Brooklyn, her vegetarian parents moved the family to a grass hut in Tahiti, where fresh produce was abundant. It was here that 12-year-old Deborah met her future husband, whom she describes rather fondly as "a health-nut friend of my parents."

The book concludes with a useful chapter that explains various cooking techniques along with essential ingredients, but perhaps the best advice in "Cooking With the Seasons" is given near the beginning, on a page Schneider titled "How to Use this Book."

"Use your recipe as a guideline, like a melody, and go for it," she writes. "Experiment. Change the recipe. You'll only get better, and someday soon, like a chef, you won't really need a book at all."

True, perhaps — but you'd still want to own this one.

POLENTA GRATIN WITH BRAISED FALL GREENS AND ROASTED BELL PEPPERS

4 1/4 cups water or vegetable stock (divided use)

1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt (divided use)

1 1/2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal (polenta)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or rosemary leaves

1 large bunch fall greens, such as Swiss chard, collard greens or kale, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 6 cups)

12 small white onion, peeled and cut into 14-inch dice

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

3 roasted red bell peppers, peeled, seeded and cut into thin strips

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (about 12 cup)

Salsa, for serving

Yields 6 servings.

Make polenta at least an hour ahead. Bring 4 cups of water or stock to a boil, add 1 teaspoon salt and slowly whisk in cornmeal. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Reduce heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often. The polenta will be very thick.

Brush an 11x9-inch baking dish with some of the olive oil. Spread polenta evenly in the dish. Sprinkle parmesan and herbs over hot polenta. Cool completely and chill, unwrapped, until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut polenta into 6 squares, then cut each square diagonally to form 2 triangles. Lightly oil large baking sheet, set polenta triangles on it in rows, and bake for 30 minutes.

While the polenta is baking, wash greens in several changes of water and drain thoroughly. In a 10-inch saute pan, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add greens, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, or until the greens start to wilt. Add remaining 1/4 cup of water to pan and cover. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes, until greens are quite soft. Keep warm.

Remove polenta from oven and transfer 2 triangles to each of 6 warmed plates. Lay several strips of roasted peppers on polenta and set greens on top. Crumble a little goat cheese over peppers and greens. Return to oven for 5 minutes. Serve with salsa on the side.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 246 calories, 10 g fat, 7 g protein, 33 g carbohydrates, 7 mg cholesterol, 868 mg sodium, 9 g dietary fiber.

MEDITERRANEAN SAFFRON STEW

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 large leek, white part only, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon minced garlic

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 garnet yam, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 stalks celery, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch dice

2 medium zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 large tomato, cored and chopped

1 green or yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped

4 to 5 cups vegetable stock

1 cup organic tomato sauce

1 teaspoon saffron threads

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

Lemon Zest Aioli:

1 large clove garlic, peeled

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

3 tablespoons organic olive-oil mayonnaise

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1 tablespoon chopped basil or tarragon

Yields 6 servings.

In a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Gently saute leek for about 3 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and stir for 1 minute. Add carrots, yam and celery, and saute for 5 minutes. Add zucchini, tomato and bell pepper. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Add stock and tomato sauce, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, stir in saffron and red pepper, and continue cooking on low for about 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

To make Lemon Zest Aioli: Mash garlic and salt with a fork to form a paste and mix with mayonnaise. Add olive oil, lemon juice and zest, and mix until smooth. Stir in herbs.

Ladle stew into warmed bowls and top with a dollop of aioli.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 196 calories, 11 g fat, 4 g protein, 22 g carbohydrates, 2.5 mg cholesterol, 992 mg sodium, 5 g dietary fiber.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH FLAN

13 cup plus 14 cup packed light brown sugar

3 tablespoons fresh orange juice

3 cups milk

4 extra-large eggs

34 cup cooked, pureed butternut squash

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Finely grated zest of 1 orange

Yields 6 servings.

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a small saucepan, combine 1/3 cup brown sugar and orange juice, and cook over low heat until sugar is melted and bubbles form across surface of syrup, about 3 minutes. Divide syrup evenly among six 6-ounce ramekins.

In a saucepan, combine milk and 1/4 cup brown sugar. Heat over low to medium heat, stirring constantly, to dissolve sugar. Set aside to cool. In a bowl, whisk eggs until frothy. Add squash, cinnamon, vanilla and orange zest. Stir in cooled milk mixture. Strain custard through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any squash fiber.

Divide custard evenly among the ramekins, filling to within 1/4 inch of rim. Place ramekins in a rectangular baking pan with high sides and carefully pour 1 inch of boiling water into pan. Cover with foil and bake on middle rack of the oven for 30 minutes, or until custards are no longer jiggly in the center and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven, take off foil and let custards cool in water bath. Once cool, remove from pan, cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

To unmold, press gently around edge of each flan to break seal. Invert onto a dessert plate. Or flan may be served in the baking dish.

— Adapted from "Cooking With the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta" by Deborah Szekely and Deborah M. Schneider, Stewart, Tabori and Chang.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 229 calories, 7 g fat, 9 g protein, 35 g carbohydrates, 177 mg cholesterol, 119 mg sodium, 1 g dietary fiber.

David Nelson writes about food for The San Diego Union-Tribune.

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