cover image Extra Lean Family: Get Lean and Achieve Your Family's Best Health Ever

Extra Lean Family: Get Lean and Achieve Your Family's Best Health Ever

Mario Lopez, with Jimmy Pe%C3%B1a. Penguin/Celebra, $25.95 (272) ISBN 978-0-451-23412-4

Lopez is back with over 50 simple snacks, meals, and desserts to expand repertoires and shrink waistbands. Even non-followers of the author's Extra Lean program will add new lower-calorie meals to their recipe box. And followers will appreciate basic cooking instructions for each dish and charts breaking down carbs, protein, and fat. As for the dishes, once dieters have embraced apples, peanut butter, hummus, and carrots%E2%80%94snacks they'll eat regularly%E2%80%94Lopez offers variety with dishes like Ginger Garlic Shrimp, Veggie Quesadillas, and Orange-Glazed Salmon with Brown Rice and Roasted Broccoli. Readers hoping for speed will find it, but many recipes, such as Pancakes with Strawberry Sauce and Banana-Coconut Muffins, require extra prep time. A father himself, Lopez does an admirable job of including kid-friendly recipes and suggestions for dealing with picky eaters. Busy families will appreciate his once-a-week shopping lists and tips for leftovers, ensuring no ingredient goes to waste. Though he occasionally attacks portions in order to fit his "low-cal" tag%E2%80%94one lunch is just a PB&J and a glass of skim milk%E2%80%94harried cooks who want to keep it healthy could do a lot worse. (May)