Cooking the Books with Phyllis Good
By Lynn Andriani -- Publishers Weekly, 12/28/2008 10:28:00 AM
Good Books and Mayo Clinic may not be slick, overtly commercial brands, but they both have a homey, authentic vibe that results in mass appeal. For Good Books, it’s the Fix -It and Forget-It series (as well as the series’ spin-off, Fix-It and Enjoy-It); for Mayo, it’s a reputation as a non-profit medical clinic built on years of experience. The two powerhouses are teaming up for the first time, with Fix-It and Enjoy-It! Healthy Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good with nutritional expertise from Mayo Clinic, which Good Books has just released. Good talked about uniting two major brands—and the challenges and opportunities that entailed.
PW: How did the partnership come about?
PG: We were exhibiting next to Mayo Clinic at the Frankfurt Book Fair two years ago. We got to talking with Mary Rysavy, who was representing Mayo Clinic. She looked at our books and said, “You know, you are reaching the multitudes, and we would like to do that. We’ve done two cookbooks for the trade and they were beautiful and successful, but they weren’t, in many cases, moving off the coffee table.” We talked about a way we could work together.
PW: How has the collaboration been?
PG: It has not been easy, and that’s not because they aren’t fine people. But they are purists in terms of what one ought to be eating. Our focus has been slightly other than that as the primary focus; finding good recipes that families and home cooks have enjoyed has more been what I’ve been after. “Make it again” is the mantra I have in mind when I search for recipes.
PW: So how did you go about selecting recipes?
PG: I figured Mayo Clinic would want to create the recipes in a test kitchen, but they were clear from the very beginning that absolutely not; they wanted recipes from home cooks. They wanted people to take comfort knowing the recipes came from families and home cooks. I was a little worried about finding recipes that would be acceptable to them and acceptable to me. I sent a letter to our contributor list, a list we have built through the years, with between 2,000 and 3,000 names on it. I told our contributors the recipes had to follow the Mayo Healthy Weight pyramid. I thought maybe I’d get 20 recipes. I got around 1,800. I eliminated 400 just by looking at them. Then we tested 1,000. I sent 700 or 800 to Mayo. They then had their nutritionists look at them one by one and only ended up eliminating 25 or 30. Then we selected the best.
PW: What does Mayo receive for their involvement?
PG: Mayo has received an advance against royalties for their help with the book. We hope the book can greatly support the fine work and research of the entire Mayo Clinic operation. We have some further books we’re hoping to do together.
