500 Fat-Free Recipes: A Complete Guide to Reducing the Fat in Your Diet

I ran into this title at the local library hunting ways to modify a diet for me to gain muscle and for my husband to protect his heart bypass which lasted 15 years and is now getting a worried eye from the Doc. Dragged in unwilling but knowing he has no other choice he's hard to please esp when his idea of a snack is 8 or 9 Mounds Snack Bites [not exactly low in fat] He doesn't miss it a bit. He also doesn't have to give up his beloved Chocolate with recipes like her Coca Cake with .9 [not 9 grams but point 9 grams] of fat or chocolate pudding ringing in with .6 grams fat and both with low cholesterol [0 cake and 2 pudding.] She breaks down clearly at the end of each recipe calories per serving, fat, cholesterol [hanging it at 0 a LOT of the time], protein, carbs, Dietary fiber and sodium. Nice very nice but the recipes are varied, interesting and flavorful. I can make many of them without a special trip to the store on the spur of the moment. Fruit without that ton of sugar added some recipes want to add but still sweet and flavorful. Excellent source for those meatless meals also or just plain great for adding to your favorite meat based meal. Easy to follow recipes esp for those who want to cut and not spend the entire day figuring out how to cut the fat. And the best part? You might not know you are [unlike the low sugar, low carb, low fat candy bar he just purchased "So they flavor plastic now?" ---The cake won hands down] A must for any cooks library and a Golden book for anyone who wants simple recipes.

Schlesinger begins with a thorough guide to shopping, cooking and seasoning techniques. Organized by course, the book includes a chapter on breakfasts, lunches and snacks and another devoted to sauces, dressings and relishes. Breakfast might include pear-cinammon muffins or frozen fruit pops made with yogurt and banana and for lunch there's vegetable tortilla wraps with nonfat cottage and cream cheese or baked potato pancakes. No meat is included (except defatted chicken broth) but there's plenty of variety and creativity including marinated vegetable kebabs, vermicelli with roasted red peppers and lots of bean dishes, all well-seasoned. There's even dessert - apricot upside-down cake, pumpkin pie made with evaporated skim milk and egg whites, and numerous fruit creations. Schlesinger sticks with naturally lowfat ingredients as much as possible and offers dietary information with every recipe.

Sarah Schlesinger has become my new favorite cookbook author. She suggests combinations that are remarkably creative, tasty, and EASY! Low fat and healthy is a secondary as far as I'm concerned. Try her other cookbooks, too. (As for other commentators who have suggested that her cookbooks fall short of the 500 promised: I really admire her cooking philosophy, that small variations create whole new gastronomical experiences! Sarah Schlesinger has cooking in her bones, and her cookbooks are the closest I have seen to a transcription of that kind of intuition.)

Have turned to this repeatedly for new and easy recipes while on Weight Watchers. Easy to convert the listed calories, fat and fiber to WW point system. Even my kids eat most of it!!

I have a shelf full of low fat and fat free cookbooks, but this is the one I turn to time and again. It is absolutely the best. The author began cooking without fat in order to accomodate the needs of her husband, who suffered from heart disease. She was a busy working mom with a career and a family to feed --- she wasn't a trained chef and couldn't spend all day in the kitchen. The recipes reflect that --- they are simple, tasty, practical and fast, featuring ingredients that available in most grocery stores. The book also contains a lot of information to help make the transition to fat free cooking simple and painless. If I could have only one fat free cookbook, no question, this would be the one I'd choose.