The versatile templates below can be adapted to whatever seasonal ingredients you have on hand. The risotto, for example, can be made with zucchini and tomatoes in summer, or with radicchio and butternut squash come fall. And next week, substitute whole wheat pasta or polenta for the grains. The idea is that these three days of menus can be expanded into a blueprint for a lifetime of healthy eating.

Note that this plan is not meant to be a comprehensive guide to everything you should consume in a day (beverages, side dishes, and snacks are absent). Talk to your doctor about your particular nutritional requirements and fill in the blanks with the foods he suggests—a snack of yogurt to increase calcium, perhaps, or nuts for protein. And when your sweet tooth acts up, grab the juiciest, ripest fruit you can find. You'll barely miss the cookies, we promise.

Consult each recipe's notes for ideas on seasonal variations.