The Healthy Kitchen: Recipes for a Better Body, Life, and Spirit

In Eating Well for Optimum Health, one of Amazon's bestselling health books of 2000, alternative-medicine maverick Andrew Weil revealed his version of the ideal diet (and backed it up with scientific proof): a variety of unprocessed, or "whole" foods; just-picked, organic vegetables; whole grains; "good" fats, such as the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish and nuts; fresh herbs and spices instead of heavy sauces; and a minimum of meat and dairy products. Eating this responsibly is certainly an admirable pursuit, but home cooking of this caliber can be intimidating, requiring much more energy than it would to pull up to the drive-through and order a burger and fries. In The Healthy Kitchen, Weil successfully teams up with Rosie Daley, formerly chef at the ritzy Cal-a-Vie Spa, to show how to cook with confidence within these dietary guidelines, creating dishes that are not only good for you, but are also fun to prepare, beautiful to look at, and delectable.
For those of you predicting a tofu-fest, have no fear: Weil stresses he's "unwilling to eat food that is boring, artless, and devoid of pleasure even if it's somebody else's idea of healthful." Indeed, the gorgeous color photography in The Healthy Kitchen will get you drooling over healthy entrées like Warm Chicken and Asparagus Salad and desserts like Lemon Yogurt Sorbet. You can be proud to serve these recipes to your family and friends--many of the appetizers and entrées are perfect party foods, sized to feed a dozen. Some recipes are notably more complicated than others--Cold Vegetable Pasta Primavera involves grilling five different veggies; baked Vegetable Wontons are time-consuming if you're not familiar with the folding process. However, Daley and Weil advise working your way up to these more complex dishes.
Sprinkled throughout the book are witty and wise health tips from Weil and cooking shortcuts from Daley. The two admit they don't agree on all cooking matters; Weil would substitute cashew milk for coconut milk and adds his two cents on making the Thai Shrimp and Papaya Salad spicier, for example. The Healthy Kitchen seems to be influenced a bit by Martha Stewart's Healthy Quick Cook, with Weil's text shaded in that unmistakably Martha sage-green, and Daley's in what Stewart might call bisque. Both books emphasize seasonal fresh foods and boast sumptuous photography and tempting menu suggestions. However, Weil and Daley outdo her with calorie and nutritional breakdowns for each dish, shopping guides for easy meal planning, and tips on encouraging children to help out in the kitchen (and develop lifelong healthy eating habits in the process). --Erica Jorgensen
Price: $24.95

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CR Gibson Bon Appetit Deluxe Kitchen Binder

This deluxe recipe binder is sized to conveniently organize and store recipe cards, clippings, and print-outs. The refillable three-ring binder has pocket pages which each hold 2 5"×7" recipe cards, full-sheet protector pages for newspaper or magazine clippings, and a tie-clasp storage envelope for small items. The red faux leather cover has a cut-out with a raised plate/fork/knife/spoon.
Includes 12 PVC-free transparent pocket pages, 12 PVC-free sheet protectors, 24 5"×7" design-coordinating recipe cards, and 12 recipe dividers.
The binder is capable of holding approximately 60 pocket pages. Refill packs of 20 pocket pages and 40 recipe cards are sold separately.
Price: $32.00

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Ultra Thin Professional Digital Kitchen Food and Nutrition Scale, in Elegant Stainless Steel

The Ozeri Ultra Thin Digital Kitchen Scale is designed for the culinary perfectionist who desires superior accuracy in function and sleekness in form. Updated with the latest generation in sensor technology, it provides precise results in graduations of 1g or 0.1oz. The Ozeri Ultra Thin Digital Kitchen Scale is also less than half an inch in thickness. It is one of the lightest kitchen scales on the market and offers easy portability. It also boasts an elegant stainless steel surface. The Ozeri Ultra Thin Digital Kitchen Scale comes equipped with 2 Lithium removable batteries for long life. It also features oversized buttons that generate an audible click confirmation for the fast-paced cook, and an automatic Tare button that quickly calculates the net weight of your ingredients by subtracting the container weight, whether the container is a bowl, tray, plate or anything else. The Ozeri Ultra Thin Digital Kitchen Scale has a capacity range from a mere 0.1 ounces to 11 lbs. The scale also displays results in both the US and international metric systems (grams | ounces | pounds | kilograms). The large screen features a new bright LCD with an improved viewing angle for the on-the-move chef. The Ozeri Ultra Thin Digital Kitchen Scale also includes a 1 minute automatic turn-off that preserves battery life while giving you time to confirm each measurement (batteries included).
Price: $59.99

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The Kitchen Sessions with Charlie Trotter

FROM BEEF TO SEA SCALLOPS AND SALAD A DETAILED PRODUCTION OF HOW TO COOK INSPIRED MEALS. THIS IS A SET LIKE NO OTHER DONT EXPECT THE ORDINARY HERE!

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