Weeknight Wonders

November 18, 2013
Krieger, a registered dietician, and host of the Food Network’s Healthy Appetite, maintains that “there is no need to deprive yourself or go to extremes to be healthy… balance is the key.” She suggests time-saving shortcuts, like using prewashed greens or canned or frozen foods, but avoids highly processed ingredients and artificial additives, and focuses on common and easy-to-find ingredients. Chapters are broken down into very basic categories, starting with refreshing salads: sweet and savory carrot salad with oranges and dates and chicory salad with green apple, cranberries, and blue cheese. Meat dishes include the popular steak fajita served with reduced fat sour cream or low-fat Greek yogurt and grilled lamb chops with minted pea sauce. For poultry lovers, there’s internationally inspired one-pot Dominican-style chicken and rice and orange-sesame chicken stir-fry with snow peas. There are also equally simple and easy sections on seafood (honey-mustard glazed salmon with endive and green apple) and vegetarian dishes (spinach, herb, and goat cheese frittata) along with sides and desserts. Krieger delivers on her promise—the recipes are fast and fresh.

December 1, 2013

Registered dietician and Food Network star Krieger (So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week) focuses on making healthy meals delicious and doable. While some of her cookbooks seem similar, each offers distinct strategies for healthy eating. Here she shares techniques for keeping weeknight dinner prep "in the 30-minute zone," suggesting shortcuts that include prewashed ingredients and quick-cooking proteins. Busy home cooks will appreciate that recipes such as grilled tandoori chicken breasts, velvety artichoke soup, and two-minute mango coconut sorbet are easy to shop for and mostly budget-friendly. VERDICT Another solid collection of contemporary feel-good fare. Public libraries should expect demand.

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