This post is part of a seven article report -- Food for thought: Best bets in food & beverage stocks.

American Italian Pasta Company (NASDAQ: AIPC) has caught the attention of two leading advisors -- Dennis Slothower and Elizabeth Harrow.

Slothower, editor of Stealth Stocks has chosen the issue as his latest "stock of the month" while Harrow, an analyst with Schaeffer's Investment Research, has selected the stock as her latest "undiscovered gem".

Slothower explains, "American Italian Pasta commenced operations in 1988 and believes it is the largest producer and marketer of dry pasta in North America.

"Pasta is a great recession food. With the recession continuing to be a long and deep one, pasta is the ideal food to stretch the budget.

In a difficult economic environment, it is often wise for investors to consider stocks in more defensive and relatively recession-resistant sectors. And one such area is food and beverage stocks.

As the long-standing market maxim goes, consumers can pull back on spending for vacations, remodeling, and new cars, but they still need to eat and drink.

In that light, I turned to nine leading newsletter advisors who serve up their current favorite ideas in the food and beverage sector:

Some believe health care is the Holy Grail for investors in this horrible market, but I'm not so convinced.

When everyone jumps on a bandwagon, I usually like to jump off. It seems like everyone is preaching the merits of owning health care stocks. And when I say everyone, I mean everyone. Even the barber is touting this sector as a place to be during this recession and beyond. We shall see about that.

Instead of focusing on the space, how about looking at a specific name?

In a recession, most professionals suggest that investors take a defensive posture.

That theory states that buying stocks with great balance sheets and stable cash flow is a way to withstand the downdraft of a bear market. If you own stocks of companies with products that consumers have to buy, you can expect to beat the market performance-wise.

Again, this bear market has been different in many ways. Even the most defensive stocks are losing value in a big way. None of it makes sense.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is an absolute must-own stock, recession or not. The company is growing its business at a time when others are retrenching. It's the best of the best, and there is more growth to come.

Apple continues to see penetration in the personal computer market as its products are more desirable to former PC users. Its innovations with iTunes and the iPhone have changed markets entirely.

Oil prices have dropped like a rock, and Americans are driving more as a result. So much for $4 gasoline changing the world. The green wave has run into a brick wall of lower crude prices.

In 2008, oil refiners like Tesoro Corp. (NYSE: TSO) had trouble making money due to intense volatility of prices. This year, it's a different story. Refiners make money by buying crude, processing and then selling gasoline and other by-products.

One group of stocks to own during a recession is the education space, and my favorite name is ITT Educational Services (NYSE: ESI).

With unemployment rising, workers having difficulty finding jobs turn to education as a way to improve prospects.

With the growth of the Internet, the educational space has changed over the years. Brick-and-mortar schools have fallen behind the online degree providers. With a cost-effective and flexible program, online schools have been experiencing solid growth during this recession.

Despite the recent rally, this has been the most difficult period for investors since the Great Depression, and many trying to time a bottom in this market have been burned.

And the reality is that we are still not out of the woods. So is it time to give up?

Not at all!

There are companies operating in this environment that are actually growing their business despite the recession. And these stocks should hold their own in this bear market, even if we retest the recent lows.

Discount retailer Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) saw its shares surge higher in Wednesday trading after it posted a fourth-quarter profit from continuing operations that came in ahead of analysts expectations and offered a better-than-expected outlook.

Clearly, investors view BIG as a recession stock to own.

Earnings from continuing operations totaled a dollar per share, ahead of the 93 cents per share analysts were expecting, and 3 cents higher than the year-ago quarter. Revenue fell to $1.37 billion from $1.41 billion last year, but beat expectations of $1.36 billion. Same-store sales fell a mild 3.2%, as sales of discretionary items, such as furniture and toys, were challenging.

Growth stock expert Steve Rawls sees "dollars" from a company that helps sorts "coins." In his The Tipping Point Stocks newsletter, the advisor takes a look at Coinstar, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR).

"Often we miss the obvious. We miss how the little can equal the large. Consider your last visit to the supermarket. You probably passed by that machine that offered to count your pennies for a small fee. It's neat for people who saved their pennies, but not for you, right?

"What if I told you that the coin machine you just passed by with little thought was part of a $1.2 to $1.3 billion enterprise? Welcome to the world of Coinstar.

Leo Fasciocco is a technician focused on "breakout" stocks; in his Ticker Tape Digest, two recent such breakout ideas were both from the out-of-favor auto parts sector: O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ: ORLY) and Autozone (NYSE: AZO).

Noting the recent strength in these auto parts stocks -- both have recently rose to new 52-week highs despite the market's sharp declines -- the advisor explains, "Auto parts stocks may see strong product demand as more people keep their car and not buy a new one."

"O'Reilly Automotive is one of the largest specialty retailers of automotive aftermarket parts, tools, supplies, equipment, and accessories in the U.S, with annual revenues of $3.1 billion.

In The Cabot Benjamin Graham Value Letter -- which assesses stocks based on Graham's value investing critera, editor J. Royden Ward takes a look at Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT).

"In this month's Classic Benjamin Graham Value Model, our calculation suggests that the Dow is overvalued at 12,370 and undervalued at 8,305; as such, today the market is extremely undervalued.

"This low-risk environment means it's probably a great time to add risk by dabbling in our recommended stocks such as Wal-Mart Stores.

"How cheap is it? The recent decline in WMT shares has created an outstanding buying opportunity for investors. WMT shares now sell at only 12.3 times forward EPS with a dividend yield of 2.0%.

We don't expect to find investment advice from opinion columns, but New York Times columnist Frank Rich unleashed a quartet to those willing to read between the lines in his recent piece "Herbert Hoover Lives."

Here's the money quote (no pun intended) from the theater critic turned political pundit: "What are Americans still buying? Big Macs, Campbell's soup, Hershey's chocolate and Spam -- the four food groups of the apocalypse."

"Aaron Rents (NASDAQ: RNT) is a new addition to the focus list that carries both fundamental and technical strength," says Michael Vodicka, an analyst with Zacks Elite Investment Research.

"The company is a specialty retailer of consumer electronic goods like stereos and televisions that owns or operates 1,545 stores in the United States and Canada. Aaron Rents was founded in 1955 and has a market cap of $1.38 billion.

"In spite of a short-lived drop in mid October, this stock has held up well in an environment where consumers are pulling back on discretionary spending. The big share-price rebound was predicated on the company's solid third-quarter results, reported in late October.

"While many firms are struggling to survive, a lucky minority are built to weather the storm better," says growth stock specialist Karim Rahemtulla. In Xcelerated Profits Report, he eyes Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST).

"Thanks to rising inflation and unemployment, coupled with a beaten-up economy, many retailers are braced for a harsh new reality this holiday season.

"Consumers have much tighter budgets and are cutting back on whatever they can. And that's where some 'one-stop' retailers like Costco can really take advantage.

"Although customers are more likely to avoid the electronics and other non-necessity stocking sections of the store these days, they still need to eat.

"So while other non-food departments are seeing a sales slowdown, Goldman Sachs recently reported that Costco is likely to enjoy strong food sales, which offset that.

"Goldman also noted that Costco boasts a strong balance sheet, with almost $3.3 billion in cash on the books, plus ample liquidity - factors that could encourage management to implement a stock buyback program.

"Compared to other retailers who are flat-out dreading this holiday season, that puts Costco in a strong position.

"And because the store has such a diverse range of products, all under one roof and available at bargain prices, Costco is one firm better prepared to ride out what could be a brutal season for retailers."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.