By Hadas Kuznits

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Chef Guillermo Tallez, of Square 1682 restaurant at the Palomar Hotel in center city Philadelphia, has modified his menu to reflect his recent weight loss of nearly 50 pounds.

“I learned I was diabetic a while ago and I never really took that serious,” he admits, “but now, on my last visit to the doctor, he’s like, ‘You better start doing something.’ “

Tallez took a healthy cooking class and implemented his new lessons at work (see related story).

“We decided to get rid of all the bad sugars and butters and creams and really utilize a lot of vegetable purees,” he tells KYW Newsradio.

Listen to Hadas Kuznits’ full interview with Guillermo Tallez of Square 1682 in this CBS Philly podcast…

Download the full Guillermo Tallez podcast

—–

For healthy desserts, Andrea Kyan of puresweets.com cooks up vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free treats in her East Falls kitchen.

(Andrea Kyan of puresweets.com, in East Falls. Credit: Hadas Kuznits)

—–

“I don’t want to use anything that’s been highly processed,” she says.   So she sticks with fresh ingredients.

“I find that the nuts, because of the fats and the oils, it gives it a richness that you don’t get in grain flours.  And it’s also high in protein.”

Listen to Hadas Kuznits’ full interview with Andrea Kyan in this CBS Philly podcast…

Download the Andrea Kyan podcast

—–

For fresh drinks, Hop Sing Laundromat will be opening soon at 1029 Race Street, in Chinatown:

“What we do is, we squeeze it per order,” says the owner, known simply as Lee.   He prides himself in using only the freshest ingredients at the bar.

(A drink topped with fresh cream from Hop Sing Laundromat. Lee would not allow his photograph to be taken. Credit: Hadas Kuznits)

—–

If you go, don’t even think about pulling out your cell phone.  Calls and photographs are forbidden there.

“You know, it’s a privacy thing,” Lee tells KYW Newsradio.  “Everyone’s welcome once, but not everyone’s welcome back.”

Listen to Hadas Kuznits’ full interview with the elusive Lee in this CBS Philly podcast…

Download Hadas Kuznits’ full interview with “Lee”

For this week, that’s “What’s Cooking on 1060!”

—–

“What’s Cooking on 1060″ main page

Follow Hadas Kuznits on Twitter!