cover image 100% Pleasure: From Appetizers to Desserts, the Low-Fat Cookbook for People Who Love to Eat

100% Pleasure: From Appetizers to Desserts, the Low-Fat Cookbook for People Who Love to Eat

Nancy Baggett. Rodale Press, $27.95 (370pp) ISBN 978-0-87596-191-0

The term ``low-fat'' is often equated in the mind with ``no-taste,'' and people frequently fall off the low-fat wagon when they find low-fat food just doesn't deliver the punch that a large dose of cholesterol provides. Food writers Baggett ( International Chocolate Cookbook ) and Glick ( Skinny Soups ) determined that low-fat cooking could be made more appealing and hence easier to stick with. Drawing on their own nutritional and cooking know-how, they have created recipes that are kind to the body and tasty enough to make one forget they are low-fat. The writers do a commendable job of informing the reader about fat, good and bad cholesterols and which foods contain the good ones. For people who really need to change their eating style, the book will give them the information they need to restock pantry shelves and restyle cooking methods for low-fat dining. Readers should peruse the introductory material carefully, as Baggett and Glick pass on a lot of cooking tips and suggestions that help to reduce fat content. The medical establishment currently recommends that only 30%, or less, of your daily calories come from fat. This is possible, using Baggett and Glick's recipes. The recipes are well-written and can be tackled by anyone with minimal cooking experience. The only matter the authors don't discuss, it seems, is how wine can help eliminate cholesterol from the body. Prevention Book Club main selection; Meredith Book Club selection. (Mar.)