Cookbook

Book Review: America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt by Ron Douglas

Title: America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt: Cut the Calories, Keep the Taste of Your Favorite Restaurant Dishes
Author: Ron Douglas
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: September 6, 2011
Paperback: 336 pages
ISBN: 978-1451623314
Genre: Cookbook

From the back of the book:

From the New York Times bestselling author of America’s Most Wanted Recipes comes more copycat recipes from your family’s favorite restaurants–with fewer calories!

Ron Douglas has wowed home cooks across the country by uncovering the best recipes from hundreds of popular restaurants, including Applebee’s, California Pizza Kitchen, Chili’s, Olive Garden, P.F. Chang’s, and T.G.I. Friday’s. America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt once again features delicious restaurant meals that can be enjoyed at home. But with the help of registered dietician and nutrition expert Mary M. Franz, Ron has created more than 150 amazing reduced-calorie versions. Take Bahama Breeze’s Jamaican Jerk Grilled Chicken, which usually contains approximately 960 calories. By using boneless, skinless chicken breasts, the entire family can enjoy generous, flavorful half-pound servings and save 590 calories. Or how about Dave and Buster’s Steak Fajita Salad? A restaurant portion contains a whopping 1,408 calories per serving, but Ron’s home-cooked version has 489. And for dessert? Macaroni Grill’s Reese’s Peanut Butter Cake has 635 calories per slice. Home cooks can easily trim that calorie count down to 435. Ron will show you how! Each recipe includes nutritional details, the number of calories you will save, and easy tips on how to prepare your favorite restaurant food without feeling the guilt. The book also features a section on restaurant alternatives, as well as a nutritional guide detailing the overall dos and don’ts when it comes to healthy eating. Experience the pleasure and satisfaction of cooking fun, delicious food for your family while also keeping them fit! Watch your wallet get fat and your tummy get flat!

My Review:

If you are a fan of Applebee’s, Hard Rock Café or Olive Garden, fasten your seat belt, for America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt by Ron Douglas has many lower kilocalorie, lower fat alternatives to these and many other popular restaurants’ menu items. It was very helpful to have the caloric and other nutritional information for each recipe and comparative information from the specific restaurant as figuring out recipe calories can be a bit time-consuming. A couple of things that could have been done differently with the nutrition data however is to include sodium content and to round to whole numbers the grams of fat, protein, etc. as these figures are certainly not known to 10 mg precision and even if they were, it would not be significant for anyone to track. Douglas supplements his recipes with a Health and Nutrition Guide that offers a level view of eating a balanced diet and does not promote any controversial or fad-type approaches to healthy eating and/or weight loss. While this section is helpful, what I would have like to see was some listing of authoritative references for readers to further their knowledge in some of the areas of nutritional research. In short, for anyone looking for good copycat recipes that significantly cut the kilocalories per serving, I recommend America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt.

I received a complimentary copy of America’s Most Wanted Recipes Without the Guilt by Ron Douglas from Atria. to offer my honest review of the book. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned book.

Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients: A Book Review & Tour

Title: Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients
Author: Jeff Hertzberg, M.D., and Zoë François
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Publication Date: October 27, 2009
Hardcover: 324 pages
ISBN: 9780312545529
Genre: Cookbook

About the Book:

From the authors of the groundbreaking Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day comes a new cookbook filled with quick and easy recipes for healthy bread

Their first book was called “stupendous,” “genius,” and “the holy grail of bread making.” Now, in their much-anticipated second book, Jeff Hertzberg, M.D., and Zoë François have taken their super-fast method and adapted it for the health-conscious baker, focusing on whole grains and other healthier ingredients.

The method is still quick and simple, producing professional-quality results with each warm, fragrant, hearty loaf. In just five minutes a day of active preparation time, you can create delectable, healthy treats such as 100% Whole Wheat Bread, Whole Grain Garlic Knots with Parsley and Olive Oil, Black-and-White Braided Pumpernickel and Rye Loaf, Cherry Black Pepper Focaccia, Pumpkin Pie Brioche, Chocolate Tangerine Bars, and a variety of gluten-free breads. And many of the recipes are 100% whole grain.

Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day will show you that there is time enough for home-baked bread, and that it can be part of a healthy diet. Calling all bread lovers: Whether you are looking for more whole grains, watching your weight, trying to reduce your cholesterol, or just care about what goes into your body, this book is a must-have.

My Review:

Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients by Jeff Hertzberg, M.D, and Zoë François is filled with 100 mouth-watering bread recipes bring the artistry of bread-making to a new level. Each recipe begins with a message from Jeff Hertzberg, M.D or Zoë François, followed by a clear recipe list, easy to follow instructions as well as photographs. The cookbook is laid out in a very logical and easy to follow manner. There are ten chapters which consist of; Introduction, Ingredients, Equipment, Tips and Techniques, The Master Recipe, Whole Grain Breads, Breads With Hidden Fruits and Vegetables, Flatbreads and Pizzas, Gluten-Free Breads and Pastries, and Enriched Breads and Pastries from Healthy Ingredients. There is even more wealth of information toward the back of the book which includes an Appendix which discusses B vitamins, various grains and the fiber and protein content s well as various oils and fat content. Sources to find bread making equipment and a very detailed Index end this well put together cookbook. Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients by Jeff Hertzberg, M.D, and Zoë François makes it easy for everyone to enjoy healthy homemade breads and pastries every day. This is an excellent cookbook to have at home and is certain to make a delightful gift.

About the Authors:

Jeff Hertzberg, M.D., coauthor of Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients, is a physician with twenty years of experience in health care as a practitioner, consultant, and faculty member at the University of Minnesota Medical School. His interest in baking and preventive health sparked a quest to adapt the techniques of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day for healthier ingredients.

Zoë François, coauthor of Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients, is passionate about food that is real, healthy, and always delicious. She is a pastry chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America. In addition to teaching baking and pastry courses nationally, she consults to the food industry and is the creator of the recipe blog www.zoebakes.com. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband and two sons.

The authors answer bread questions at their Web site.

For more information, view Jeff Hertzberg’s Web site.

I would live to thank FSB Media for supplying me with a copy of this book. My review was in no part influenced by my receiving a free review copy.