October is the third annual Dining Month on OnMilwaukee.com. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, delicious features, chef profiles, unique articles on everything food, as well as the winners of our "Best of Dining 2009."

It's Dining Month on OnMilwaukee.com, and we've got food on the brain. But no matter what month it is, Milwaukee is never a place that will leave you hungry.

We are a town known internationally for our fare, and that's nothing to be ashamed of. But while Schlitz may be the beer that made Milwaukee famous, are cased meats and deep fried cheese the foods that are making us fat or unhealthy?

"When you look at our forerunners, as far as the types of things that are super popular around here, I would have to say that we don't have health-promoting food choices," admits Barb Troy, clinical assistant professor and nutritionist at Marquette University.

But then again, is there any region of our country known specifically for its salads? No; a city's signature dishes tend to be based in the historical roots of the area and generally come from an era when calorie counting was unheard of. Think of our neighbors to the south. Chicago's deep dish pizza has been a culinary tradition since Pizzeria Uno introduced it in the early 1940s, and it's not as if a three-inch bowl of cheese, meats and crust is for dieters.

Out East, locals and natives savor New England's creamy clam chowder by the bowlful, a culinary choice made more popular by Catholics looking for a meat relief on Fridays during Lent (or all year-round in the early, early days). Milk or cream is a staple in this now-famous soup, so much so that a 1939 bill introduced to the Maine legislature made it illegal to use tomatoes as a substitute in clam chowder.

Let us not forget the South, where barbecued ribs and other highly fat-saturated soul foods still reign supreme. The point is, we're definitely not alone in our gastronomic gluttony, and we should be proud to know the difference between ice cream and custard. But according to Troy, we should also pride ourselves on knowing the difference between a special treat and everyday eating.

The bottom line, she says, is a concept we all know but love to ignore: portion control. Too much of anything can cause harm -- even if sucking down brewskis and eating taco dip all afternoon while the game is on is a fun family tradition.

"We're all getting the message about exercising regularly; unfortunately, if you're not moderating your portion sizes, you're not going to get the benefits and that puts you right back to digging yourself out of a pretty big hole," she says.

But it's hard in summer, when, after a long, cold winter, many Milwaukeeans feel entitled to that cream puff at the State Fair, those brats on the grill and that scoop of custard on a hot night. Do we not deserve to indulge a little after putting up with sub-zero temperatures and icy road conditions for half a year?

Yes, we do. And Troy agrees.

"Even as a nutritionist, I plan in my Kopp's visits. I have the daily flavor schedule on my refrigerator right now." But she stresses the planning part of that statement. For instance, you find your favorite flavors on the list and then moderate your food and exercise behavior -- take a short jog, eat a healthy lunch -- to better balance the day you make your Kopp's stop.

And that planning concept can be applied in other areas, too. If you know you're going to a restaurant for dinner, she says, don't go there starved -- it'll only cause you to over eat.

While we had our nutritionist on hand, we laid out a buffet of Milwaukee's most well-known classics and asked her to comment.

Fried cheese curds (one serving)
Fat: 25 g
Calories: 416
We'll admit it, it's difficult to find anything remotely redeemable regarding cheese curds, save for a trace amount of protein and calcium that comes from the cheesy center. Here's what Troy had to say:

"I was at a conference through the University of Arizona's School of Integrated Medicine this summer. One of the pediatric speakers there mentioned being in the Midwest with a colleague and bumping into cheese curds. His colleague was just in awe that there could be anything so ridiculously foolish to be eating as that. It's basically making cheese as horrible as you can, and calling it a snack."

Cream puff
Fat: 25 g
Calories: 500
Among its fans, this pastry is the indisputable king among sweet things. The bad news? If you're aiming for the average person's 2,000 calorie-per-day diet, this one palm-sized treat eats up a fourth of them and nearly half of your recommended fat intake. The good news? It's only available for 11 days out of the year.

"If that's your State Fair pleasure, that's fine. You're probably burning a lot of calories hiking around the grounds to all the exhibits anyway. What's more concerning to me is the family that has a cream puff and then is taking home the six-pack for home."

Brat
Fat: 25 g
Calories: 282
When baseball season hits in Milwaukee, it's hard to avoid these bad boys. And sure, the fat content is pretty steep, but as Troy says, you certainly don't have to eliminate them from your diet. She recommends balancing out your brat with a side of fruit salad rather than potato chips.

Classic "Milwaukee" pizza: cheese, sausage, mushroom, onion (one slice)
Fat: 6.5 g
Calories: 150
Compared to the other contenders on this list, the "Milwaukee" pizza comes off as rather harmless, especially when you pit it against Chicago's classic pie, which has about 10 times as many calories.

Still, there are ways to make this a healthier choice. Opt for a whole wheat crust. Substitute turkey sausage or soy sausage for the pork, which is where the bulk of your fat content is coming from. Use fresh mushrooms rather than canned. Make your own red sauce from fresh ingredients rather than pre-packaged kinds that are loaded with sugar and sodium.

Miller Genuine Draft (12-oz. bottle)
Fat: 0 g
Calories: 143
There's no fat, but beer can be loaded with calories and sometimes sugar.

"Some people like to discuss that beer has some redeemable factors -- maybe some trace minerals, some B vitamins -- but basically it's negligible. It's not enough that would ever add up to something significant or be a positive contribution.

"Now, you can go down that line of discussion further in regards to alcohol consumption having health benefits because of the plant chemicals -- the vital chemicals that have unique benefits beyond whatever the nutritional value is in the food. We began looking at red wines and then it started being generalized to all alcohol.

There is a bit of a redeeming value, but it's still based on these two things: the research is based on someone who is moderately drinking (one alcoholic drink a day for a woman and two for a man) and secondly, the American Heart Association says the evidence, while intriguing, still isn't strong enough to say to a person who doesn't drink, "You know, you're getting older now, maybe you ought to have a glass of wine every day for your cardiovascular system.'" It's not that convincing. It's more like, if you're choosing to drink, it might give you a bit of a benefit, but stay within a moderate amount."

Custard (one scoop)
Fat: 15 g
Calories: 275
This one's pretty simple. It only takes one lick to know this stuff should be handled in moderation. Don't deny yourself, but do yourself a favor and walk to the stand next summer rather than drive.