cover image Entertainng Light and Easy: Lower Fat Recipes for Festive Meals

Entertainng Light and Easy: Lower Fat Recipes for Festive Meals

Laurie Burrows Grad. Simon & Schuster, $25 (400pp) ISBN 978-0-684-82714-8

Grad, former food editor of Los Angeles magazine and author of Make It Easy, Make It Light, offers 175 appealing reduced-fat recipes. Many are geared to eight or more servings and are well suited to entertaining, whether casually (Savory Shepherd's Pie; Roasted Vegetables and Feta Cheese Pizza) or in a grander manner (Rack of Lamb with Pistachio-Mint Crumb Crust and Tangy Mint Sauce; Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Basil Spinach Puree). They are offered with do-ahead tips and few demand extensive preparation. Grad's focus is on the recipes; her attention to other entertaining issues, such as plating meals and setting a table, is scant. The low-fat element of the recipes is generally taken care of by fairly standard means, e.g., substituting yogurt cheese for mayonnaise and sour cream, using egg whites rather than whole eggs and making the most of such techniques as steaming and grilling. Roast Butterflied Turkey Breast with Orange Mustard Glaze and Raisin Bread Stuffing poses an intriguing alternative to traditional holiday fare. Nutritional analyses, however, are not provided. In the Introduction, Grad asks that readers ""just trust that the recipes are low in fat, low in calories, low in sodium, and most importantly, high in flavor and good taste."" A list of menus and a brief mail-order source list are included. (Jan.)