Looking for that magic bullet for losing weight? Then head to your grocery store and pick up some mushrooms.

The nutrition experts at RealAge say substituting mushrooms for red meat can help you slash lots of calories. Mix chopped mushrooms into your lasagna, sloppy joes, chili and other ground beef dishes (but don't include the ground beef, of course), and you'll naturally eat 420 less calories. You'll feel plenty full too.

Ready to make a move with mushrooms? Get started with this recipe for Savory Mushroom Stroganoff.

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Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy.

Eric Stoltz has one of those careers any actor would kill for. Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Mask, Pulp Fiction ... the list goes on and on. He's currently on a tear, directing all sorts of hit primetime shows too, but this week we sat down to chat about his guest role on ABC's Grey's Anatomy. My opinion: Eric is really smart, relaxed and funny. He also happens to know the secret to losing weight -- you might be surprised by how simple it actually is!

Fitz: You're playing a serial killer on Death Row for a couple of weeks on ABC's Grey's Anatomy. Any similarities between you and your character?

Eric: Fortunately, no. But it did get me interested in reading and learning more about serial killers. Although repellent, they're often very brilliant, bold and fearless people. Evil characters like that offer me a great opportunity to be creative.

Fitz: Does that mean you're really a super nice guy?

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Actor Eric Stoltz and I just had one of the most interesting and funniest conversations I've had in a long time. He's presently guest starring on ABC's hit show Grey's Anatomy as a Death Row serial killer. Charming. While interviewing my guests for Celebrity Fitzness Report, we always talk fitness, but we also talk about the projects each celebrity is working on at the moment.

So first Eric and I talk fitness. Eric is a guy who works out not because he's desperate to get big, he just really wants to be healthy and fit. He makes a habit of doing cardio and strength training on alternating days. Great! He's also a vegetarian who loves a healthy meal of pasta with eggplant and mushrooms.

Now to the serial killer/last meal part. I asked Eric what his favorite not-so-healthy food is, and he told me he loves pizza. So, going back to his role on Grey's Anatomy, I asked him if pizza is what he'd choose for his last meal.

Grocery costs are a bit crazy right now. I was forgiving of it when fuel costs were also outlandish ... after all, food has to be transported so fuel costs directly effect grocery costs. But now the fuel costs are down and grocery costs are staying high. I don't know about you, but I think it's totally unfair.

In these tight economic times, we all have to be penny-pinchers. Since meat is one of the most expensive grocery items to buy, it only makes sense to cut back. Beans and tofu spring to mind as meat-replacements -- they're inexpensive, filling and high in protein. Another great option -- though not high in protein -- is mushrooms.

Swapping mushrooms for meat isn't only economical, it's healthful, lower in calories, filling and completely tasty. Try them in lasagna or grill up a marinated portobello as a burger. A recent study found that when participants ate meals where mushrooms replaced beef, they consumed an average of 420 fewer calories. Great news if you're trying to lose weight!

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Maybe it's true that we are what we eat, but what does that make us if we try this nut loaf recipe? Heck, there's nothing wrong with being a little nutty if it comes from eating this tasty dish.

Nuts, mushrooms, veggies, and fresh herbs make the bulk of this recipe, with eggs and a few this-and-thats. So healthy proteins and fats combined with the nutrients of onions, leeks, carrots, and celery. Can it get any better?

Just a few tweaks and we've got a vegetarian mainstay full of healthy perfection:

• Use wild mushrooms, not just white ones, to help boost your immune system.
• Use brown rice cooked in broth instead of rice pilaf.
• Instead of breadcrumbs, just pop a slice of sprouted grain bread in the food processor and use that for more nutrition and better digestion.

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Mushrooms are very tricky. Eat one kind, and you're noshing on a tasty pizza topping or stir fry ingredient; eat another kind, and your Bruce Lee poster speaks to you and your bedroom fills up with lemonade and Care Bears; and eat yet another kind, and you can wind in the morgue. It goes without saying, then, that the kind of mushrooms that Arizona State researchers have linked to a reduction in heart disease risk must be those mentioned first.

In the study, it was discovered that a particular antioxidant in the fungi (known as ergothioneine) prevented the accumulation of the artery-clogging plaque. Evidently, this specific antioxidant helps reduce the number of adhesion molecules that cling to plaque-forming cells in your blood and pull them into blood vessel walls.

In separate studies, mushrooms have also been found to bolster immune function, suppress breast and prostate cancers, and help decrease tumor size.

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When people talk about healthy foods, there are several specific kinds that seem to always be mentioned. Pomegranates, blueberries, broccoli, almonds, olive oil, etc. However, one dietary powerhouse that remains an oft-forgotten member of this healthy food list, probably because ... well, I have no idea, really. You tell me why we always seem to overlook mushrooms.

For starters, a handful of mushrooms contain only 20 calories. And unlike other snacks with such a low caloric content (such as rice cakes, which are a bit higher in calories, actually), mushrooms offer myriad health benefits -- including, but not limited to, improved heart health and immune-boosting properties. With a very high amount of vitamin D, as well as antioxidant capacity that is on par with many other vegetables, mushrooms make for a great healthy snack or topping.

And, lest we forget, mushrooms can also help you lose weight. Well, sort of. Here's how - If you're a hamburger eater, you can save yourself roughly 18,000 calories and close to 3,000 grams of fat per year by substituting a portabella mushroom for your 4oz piece of ground beef. This works about to be about 5.3 pounds per year!!

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Mushrooms are a very unusual. Some make for great pizza toppings. Others can kill you almost instantly if you were to eat them. And others still can make you see life-sized versions of Care Bears bouncing next to you on the couch. With this all being the case, could it be at all possible that some mushrooms are actually healthy?

The most common mushroom is the white button variety. This mushroom itself has been shown to have many health benefits, but it is the less common fungi that I want to instead point out.

Shiitake Mushrooms. The popularity of this mushroom has grown quite a bit over the past few years, probably because it is known for its good flavor. What's not as well known, however, is that it has been shown to lower blood pressure, protect the liver, fight cold and flu, and even lower bad cholesterol.

Reishi Mushrooms. This mushroom doesn't have any culinary value, so it's likely you've never bought this variety before. But, it's lack of edibility doesn't mean that you shouldn't still look into buying it. This mushroom is referred to as the "Mushroom of Immortality" in parts of Asia, and for good reason. Its consumption (in supplement form) has been shown to enhance immune function, reduce tumor growth, fight viruses, reduce asthma, lower bad cholesterol, and improve endurance.

Maitake Mushrooms. The "Hen of the Woods," as it is commonly called because of its ruffled tail feather-like appearance. Looks aside, it has been a popular mushroom in some Asian cultures for its good taste and supposed properties as a longevity tonic. Available as a food and in tea form, evidence shows that maitake may improve blood sugar metabolism, lower blood pressure, strengthen immune function, and protect against viruses.

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Jacki recently wrote about the nutritional value of peanut butter. Many people shy away from this creamy treat because of its fat content, but in reality, most of that fat is the good kind. Not only that, but studies have shown that eating peanuts is linked to lower cholesterol. Peanut butter is also satisfying, which means that when you eat it, you stay full longer.

There are a handful of other foods that have earned a bad reputation over the years, including eggs, coffee, avocado, and mushrooms. These foods were either deemed unhealthy or just not nutritionally sound, but new research is putting them back in the spotlight. Click on the gallery below to find out why health experts believe these bad boy foods might actually be good for you.

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Some mushrooms taste great on pizza. Some mushrooms can kill you. Some mushrooms can make you see purple dragons. And some mushrooms can boost your immune system. In the interest of keeping things healthy, I think I'll focus on the kind I mentioned last.

White button mushrooms, also known as the table mushroom and the cultivated mushroom, have been shown to strengthen the body's defense against the common cold and even cancer. A report in The Journal of Nutrition revealed that mushrooms enhanced the activity of immune system cells.

This immune system boost comes from the high levels of the super-antioxidant ergothianine, which exists in abundance in the white button mushroom variety.

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I love mushrooms but always figured they were kind of a throwaway food. I know they're low in calories, but I also thought that they don't contain much in the way of nutrients. Plus, many varieties only offer a moderate amount of flavor. So while I enjoy them, I didn't think they had much to offer.

But then I read this article that explains how mushrooms (along with many other fruits and vegetables) are considered low-energy-dense foods. These products contain high amounts of water and/or fiber, and also have a low fat content. OK, so what does THAT mean? Basically it means you can eat loads and loads of these foods and get really full without consuming a huge amount of calories (one of the reasons salads are so darn good for you!).

If you're interested in learning a bit more about low-energy-dense food choices, as well as some ways to substitute mushrooms for other, higher-energy-dense foods (like cheese) into various recipes, take a look here.

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As a blogger for That's Fit, I sift through lots of information on food, food safety, nutritional value etc. It's pretty rare for me to come across something that I haven't read or heard before, but some of the food facts in this surprised me. For instance, I did not know that cooked tomatoes have more cancer-fighting agents than raw tomatoes. And I didn't know that figs are high in calcium. I also didn't know that frozen fruit can be better for you than fresh. These are things that are handy to know, whether you're a writer or not.

Do you know of any other food facts that might be surprising?

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