Krieger Ellie - Comfort food fix: feel-good favorites made healthy

This book is printed on acid-free paper. Copyright 2011 by Ellie Krieger. All rights reserved Photography copyright 2011 by Quentin Bacon. All rights reserved Food styling by Lori Powell and Adeena Sussman Prop styling by Natasha Louise King Author wardrobe styling by Nicole Gulotta Author makeup by Suzanne Katz Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600, or on the Web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifi cally disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fi tness for a particular purpose.

No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profi t or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats.

Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. For more information about Wiley products, visit our Web site at www.wiley.com. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Krieger, Ellie. Comfort food fix : feel-good favorites made healthy / Ellie Krieger ; photography by Quentin Bacon. p. cm.

Includes index. ISBN 978-0-470-60309-3 (cloth) 1. Comfort food. 2. Cookbooks. Title. Title.

TX714.K748 2011 641.3--dc22 2010046384 Printed in China 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 For Thom and Isabella acknowledgments Many talented people have put their extraordinary passion, skill and hard work into this book. I am grateful to have the opportunity to recognize them here. thank you Thom and Isabella, for being my hearts center and my most dedicated tasters Mom and Dad, Fran Wilder and Howard Krieger, for giving me comfort in countless ways and teaching me that if I put my mind to it, I can do anything. Robert Flutie and Hilary Polk Williams, for managing the big picture skillfully and creatively while also keeping track of the smallest details. Jane Dystel and Miriam Goderich, literary agents, and Marc Szafran, Esq., for your guidance, expertise, and support. Justin Schwartz, editor extraordinaire.

You said it and I agree: We make a great team. Adeena Sussman, for being wholeheartedly involved in this book and lending your talent to so many of the recipes from concept to development to styling. Chefs Molly Rundberg and Karen Ferries, RD, for your hard work, good company, and educated palates. Dani Koch MacKinnon, MS RD, for the precision and professionalism you brought to each and every nutrition analysis and comparison. Quentin Bacon photographer; Lori Powell food stylist; and Natasha Louise King, prop stylist, for stunning photos that truly capture the foods lusciousness and comfort factor. Lori, thanks also for your creative help with a number of the recipes themselves.

Suzanne Katz, make-up artist, and Nicole Gulotta and Isabel Butel, wardrobe stylists, for helping me look my very best. Janell Vantrease and Jaclyn Rutigliano, publicists, for your flair, enthusiasm, organization, and persistence. All the folks at John Wiley and Sons who have dedicated so much to this book. Food Network, for all your support. introduction Comfort food is the food that makes us feel goodsatisfied, calm, cared for, and carefree. Its food that fills us up emotionally and physically, connecting us back to our first eating experiences that soothed hunger pangs and put us cozily in the arms of our caregiver.

Finding comfort in food is a basic human experience. But what you think of as comfort food is as unique as you are. If your heritage is Italian, risotto and lasagna might hit the spot for you, whereas if youre from down South, it is more likely grits and banana pudding. Chocolate chip cookies might stir warm, fuzzy memories of cooking with your grandma, or you might yearn for the apple crisp you had every year after your familys apple-picking outing. For some its the happy hour wings and nachos that take the edge off a stressful day; for others its creamy potato salad and coleslaw that bring them back to happy childhood moments. What comforts you is shaped by your individual memories, experiences, and food traditions.

It also depends on whether you are a man or woman. Studies show women tend to go for fuss-free, sweet snacks like cookies and chocolate while men like to be pampered with homemade soups and pasta dishes. There is chemistry involved toofoods rich in carbohydrates can trigger compounds in your brain that have a calming effect. No matter what you yearn for, you will find it here, where over 150 recipes cover every corner of the comfort food realm. In this book, you are sure to find your familiar feel-good favorites, as well as discover some delicious new ones. Food is one of the most glorious and joyful parts of life and it should make you feel good, but not just while you are eating it.

I believe food should provide well-being for the long term too. Unfortunately, while many typical comfort foods taste good, they leave us overstuffed and uncomfortable; and because they are laden with calories, sodium, and saturated fat, over time, they could make us feel quite awful, contributing to health issues like overweight, diabetes, and heart disease. Happily, the dishes in this book are edible proof that you dont have to choose between your favorite foods and your well-being. Thats because each recipe here is fixed, or redesigned, so it hits just the right comfort spot, giving you your fix without the unhealthy downsides. I dont rely on artificial ingredients and additives to achieve this, as many make-over cookbooks do. Rather, I use all-natural, real foods, employ a few simple techniques and swap-outs (see ) and I follow my tried-and-true Usually-Sometimes-Rarely food philosophy.

By amplifying the healthiest Usually ingredientsfruit, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, nuts, seeds, beans, and healthy oilsand strategically using Sometimes foods like white flour or dark chocolate and even Rarely foods like cream, butter, and bacon, I am able to create recipes with all the full-flavored appeal you yearn for, but in a more balanced, healthier way. With these recipes, in addition to the immediate pleasure of taste, you get the lasting sense of well-being, knowing the food you and your loved ones are enjoying could contribute to a full, happy life down the road. Now thats what I call comforting. About the Nutrition Facts and Comparisons I dont cook with a calculator at hand to get a certain nutrient profile from a recipe. Rather, I set out to make a delicious dish with all the familiar tastes and textures you expect, using the principles laid out in my Usually-Sometimes-Rarely food philosophy. Incredibly, when I do so, the numbers tend to work out on their own.