Fast and Easy
Written: May 04 '01 (Updated May 07 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: All meals can be prepared and cooked in 30 minutes or less.
Cons: The way the different categories are set up.
The Bottom Line: Though there are a lot of average recipes contained in this book, I'd still recommend it due to some of the really good ones I've found.
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| SusanARI's Full Review: Weight Watchers Meals in Minutes Cookbook Books |
Weight Watchers Meals In Minutes cookbook is perfect for those lazy, don't feel like cooking, tired of the same old thing days. Sure you could pick up the phone and order a fatty, greasy, pizza. But swimsuit season is fast approaching. And in the same amount of time it would take for a pizza to arrive at your door, you can have an easy, quick, and much healthier meal prepared.
OVERVIEW
The book contains over 300 recipes that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less, including 100 microwave recipes. Before getting to the recipes, you'll find a section with tips on fixing quick meals including shopping shortcuts, tips on using your blender and food processor, ideas for easy garnishes, organizing your kitchen, advice on microwave cooking, etc. You'll also find nutrition information up front. Each recipe is followed by its exchange, calorie, protein, fat, carbohydrate, calcium, sodium, cholesterol, and dietary fiber information. The recipe section is then followed by a few sample weekly menus.
DISLIKES
The one big fault I find with this book is in how the recipes are divided into categories. I prefer cookbooks to have a separate section for soups and a separate section for appetizers. In this book, all chicken recipes are grouped together under Poultry regardless of whether they are appetizers, soups, salads, or main dishes. Same goes for pork, beef, everything else.
My other dislike is that in a cookbook 406 pages long, only 24 pages are dedicated to pictures of the prepared dishes. Also, the pictures aren't located right next to the recipe they correspond to. Instead they're grouped together in random order in 3 different places in the book.
I often have to adjust the spices to my liking but I find that to be true of most cookbooks. It's a matter of preference. I like spicier foods.
I also don't care for the soups. I'm used to homemade soups that take lots of time to simmer giving all the ingredients time to blend together and really flavor the soup. I don't think that same effect can be achieved in under 30 minutes. Cold soups would be the exception.
LIKES
As mentioned above, all the recipes take less than 30 minutes - including prep time and cooking time. They are easy to follow. A novice cook would have no problem using this cookbook.
I also like the variety offered here. You'll find Mexican and Chinese style dishes in addition to typical "American" dishes. And you'll find a good selection of vegetarian dishes as well as meat based main entrees.
EGGS AND CHEESE
This is the first category of recipes in this book. I really wonder why they included certain recipes such as prosciutto-cheese omelet, and microwave mozzarella sandwiches. Who doesn't know how to make an omelet? And why would I need a recipe to tell me how to slap some cheese and tomato on whole wheat bread and nuke it?
On the other hand, I thought Mexican Eggs in Potato Shells and Western Eggs in Potato Shells were neat ideas.
FISH AND SHELLFISH
The Quick Clam Chowder was a disappointment as was the case with all soups in this book. Might as well have just opened up some canned clam chowder.
I did enjoy the Tuna Teriyaki and the Swordfish Mediterranean which called for tomatoes, olives, and onion...yummy!
Some other recipes included in this section are Mussels in Vegetable Vinaigrette, Mango Shrimp, Fish Amandine, and Mediterranean-Style Shrimp. I am not about to try the last one as it calls for apricots and raisins along with the chick-peas and tomato. Doesn't sound particularly appetizing to me.
POULTRY
I think this book excels in the poultry area. The Kung Pao Chicken was very tasty as was the Szechuan Chicken. I also liked the low-fat version of Chicken Carbonara. It wasn't as thick and rich as my regular recipe for Chicken Carbonara...but it was pretty good. Evaporated skim milk and a couple of tablespoons of half and half were substituted for the usual cream and whole milk.
The Arroz con Pollo, however, was a weak substitute for the real thing.
Some other recipes you'll find in this section are Creamy Cheddar Chicken, Chicken and Mushrooms in Parmesan Cream, Hoisin Duck with Eggplant, Mexican Turkey Pitas, and Harvest Turkey-Chestnut Salad.
MEAT AND VEAL
The Quick Veal Stew which called for pearl onions, tomatoes, and mushrooms was very tasty once I adjusted seasonings. Veal Scaloppine with Tomato-Cream Sauce was also a delight.
Why they chose to include something as simple as a recipe for Veal Sausage with Peppers is beyond my comprehension.
Here you'll also find recipes for Pork Chops with Brandied Fruits, Fruited Ham Salad, and Gyros. Old Fashioned Beef Soup, a microwave recipe for Beef Bourguignonne, and another for Philly Cheese-Steaks were the only beef recipes to be found.
LEGUMES
Here you'll find several bean soups which I wouldn't recommend.
I did enjoy the Vegetarian Chick-Pea pitas though which had a yummy mixture that called for dillweed, sour cream, and tahini.
Other legume recipes you'll find are Greek Chick-Peas with Veggies, Caribbbean Pigeon Peas and Rice, Cannellini Salad Giardeniera, Southwestern Black Bean and Corn Salad, and Tofu Waldorf Salad.
VEGETABLES
Here I found a couple of cold soups which I enjoyed...Cream of Cucumber & Leek Soup and Creamy Gazpacho. There were several other vegetable soups which I haven't tried.
The Greek Eggplant Rounds were to die for with feta, tahini, and tomato.
Some other recipes you'll find in this section are Endives Gratinées, Italian Squash, Old-Fashioned Cole Slaw, Mixed Braised Salad with Goat Cheese, and Scalloped Potatoes.
BREAD, PASTA, AND GRAINS
I haven't tried any of the bread and grain recipes myself. But I can tell you that some of the ones you'll see here are Cinnamon-Apple Farina, Blueberry Pancakes, Couscous Pilaf, and Southwestern Corn Bread Stuffing.
I really enjoyed the Pasta Puttanesca with its olives, tomatoes, anchovies, and capers. Pasta with Broccoli Rabe was good...but not something I really needed a recipe for. The Salmon and Pasta Salad made with fresh basil was delicious.
SAUCES AND DRESSINGS
I have made the Cucumber-Dill Dressing on several occasions and everybody I've served it to enjoys it. It consists of buttermilk, sour cream, fresh dill, lemon juice, white pepper, and cucumber.
But I haven't tried any of the other recipes in this section such as Apple Butter, Chunky Salsa Dip, or Avocado Relish.
SNACKS AND BEVERAGES
Another category I'm not so familiar with. But there does appear to be some interesting snack ideas such as Honey-Sesame Popcorn, and Santa Fe Peanuts.
Beverages include Cranberry Cooler, Spiced Wine, and Kir Spritzer which is just champagne, seltzer, raspberries, and black currant liqueur.
DESSERTS
I really don't have much of a sweet tooth so I haven't tried any of these myself.
You'll find recipes here for Minted Three Berry Ice, Maple Walnut Fruit Compote, Cappuccino Mousse, Apple-Spice Pudding, Pineapple Orange Cake, and many other desserts.
The dessert section concludes the recipe section of the book.
The old review
This was to be my 100th Epinion and I was feeling some pressure to come up with something different. Or at the very least one of the common "General Comments on Epinions" after writing 100 reviews. But I seemed to develop a form of writer's block and couldn't come up with anything that hadn't already been said or that I felt would be helpful to the Epinions community as a whole. So instead I decided to go back and re-write my very first epinion but that didn't make sense as it was on a computer that I'm sure isn't available at retail stores brand new anymore. So I settled for re-writing this one from my first month here. Though it received high ratings, I felt it would be worthy of nothing more than a Somewhat Helpful now. After deleting that one, of course this one became number 99 rather than 100. And I reserve the right to come up with a general comment or self-congratulatory piece at a later time :)
What follows is the text of my old review on this cookbook
Weight Watchers Meals in Minutes is a cookbook I find myself opening up quite often when looking for a quick and easy meal that is not going to throw off my diet. The book contains over 300 recipes that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less, including 100 microwave recipes.
At the beginning of the cookbook, you'll find a section with tips on fixing quick meals including shopping shortcuts, tips on using your blender and food processor, ideas for easy garnishes, and advice on microwave cooking. You'll also find exchange and nutrition information up front.
The recipes themselves are split up into the following categories: Eggs and Cheese, Fish and Shellfish, Poultry, Meat and Veal, Legume Entrees, Vegetables, Bread Pasta and Grains, Sauces and Dressings, and Desserts. You'll find a microwave symbol next to recipes that can be prepared in the microwave oven and a penny appears on budget recipes.
There are lots of easy tasty recipes. Some of my favorites are Mushrooms Stuffed with Herb Cheese, Pasta with Spinach and Shrimp, Szechuan Chicken, Pasta with Broccoli Rabe, and Pasta Puttanesca.
The recipe section is then followed by a few sample weekly menus.
The one thing I do dislike is that out of a total 406 pages, only 24 are dedicated to pictures of prepared dishes.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
SusanARI
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Member: Susan
Location: Punta Gorda, FL
Reviews written: 101
Trusted by: 113 members
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