Graham Kerr's Best - Hardcover

Devising regimens to cheer dedicated fat-fighters, Kerr (Smart Cooking) shuffles some 250 recipes into three categories: those whose calories are 10%, 20% and 30% fat. Each section includes appetizers and soups, entrees, side dishes, brunch and breakfast meals and desserts. Emphasizing creative uses of aroma, texture, color and taste to achieve a satisfactory "mouthfeel," Kerr advocates juices, spices, herbs, de-alcoholized wine and balsamic vinegar to spark up flavor. A fervent supporter of portion control, Kerr offers his 14" Pizza Polese, with eight ounces of coarsely ground skinless chicken, four anchovy fillets, vegetables and six thin slices of mozzarella, to serve six. Other fat-lowering strategies include the use of vegetables, bulgur or rice to compensate for low meat content, substituting drained yogurt for cream, thickening sauces with a blend of cornstarch and nonfat liquid , and minimizing oil in preparation. Because it is lean and 18% protein, squid will gain in popularity, predicts Kerr, who also keeps cholesterol low with liquid egg substitute in such dishes as Blackberry Zabaglione. Nutritional profiles are provided for all recipes; the largest share of the book is devoted to recipes with 10% fat.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

No culinary about-face has been performed more dramatically than Kerr's. The number of times his conversion from butter to low-fat broth has been mentioned in cookbooks and on his PBS-TV series defies even an accountant's calculations. Nonetheless, his collections do have wit and an excellent repertoire to recommend them. And, even though many of the 250 recipes here have been assembled from previous publications, this is worth a look because the dishes are organized first by percentage of fat content, then categorized by type: from appetizer to dessert. Also, his revision of recipes often creates something completely different. Barbara Jacobs