How many Americans eat meat this way? Most restaurants don't serve lean 2- to 3-ounce steaks--the recommended portions. They pride themselves on quarter-pound fatty burgers and 12-oz and larger steaks. These kinds of portions make it easier for some people to condemn meat.

Healthier, leaner meat can be tough, unless it's marinated or stewed. But if you want to eat lean meat without sacrificing taste, there are ways.

My mother used to make two delicious dishes. One is a beef stew, made with lean chunks of beefs simmered all day in red wine with onions, potatoes and carrots. The second is flank steak, marinated in a strange-sounding but utterly delicious concoction of orange marmalade, ginger, soy sauce and black pepper, then grilled and sliced thin.

I occasionally crave (and eat) the traditional fatty meat dishes I was raised on, things like grilled hamburgers, bratwurst sausages and ballpark hot dogs. Once in a while, meat is very comforting and satisfying.

Since I eat it only once a month, I'm not worried about the ill effects of overdosing on it, and enjoy it as a treat.