Marisa Churchill - Sweet & Skinny

Copyright 2011 by Marisa Churchill

All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com www.clarksonpotter.com

Clarkson Potter is a trademark and Potter with colophon is a registered trademark of Random House, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request.

eISBN: 978-0-307-95337-7

Photographs copyright 2011 by Holly Stewart

Front cover jacket photograph by Holly Stewart

v3.1

This book is for my mother & father, who have been there for me every step of the way. I also dedicate this book to my two amazing grandmothers, and in loving memory to my theia Kiki. !

Life is too short not to eat dessert.

In fact, dessert is often the very first part of the meal I eat. Rather than putting off the best part, why not start there?

After seeing me with a long spoon plunged deep into a dish of ice cream cloaked in chocolate sauce, people often ask, How do you stay so skinny? Well, enjoying lifes sweeter side doesnt have to mean tipping the scales. And looking good neednt mean a life of dry toast and cottage cheese. At five foot nine, I may have a little extra leeway, but, believe me, I eat plenty of dessert. After all, Im inventing and preparing them constantly.

I am selective about the ingredients I use, eat sweets in moderation, and get plenty of exercise. In this book, Ill show you how to make dessert a guilt-free part of your life. As a professional pastry chef, I share some of my favorite recipes, giving you the skinny on how to start baking smart.

I will teach you how to substitute fat with ingredients that add texture and flavor so you wont feel deprived. Although these desserts contain less fat, they are still rich and satisfying. From simple techniques to clever kitchen tricks, Sweet & Skinny offers a path to eating healthier and baking simpler by lowering fat and cooking smart, with everything in moderation. In fact, you and your guests most likely wont notice that these desserts have less fat, fewer calories, and in some cases no sugar. You can enjoy everything from favorite childhood treats to contemporary dinner party desserts without guilt.

What could a pastry chef possibly know about healthy eating? Working in restaurant kitchens, I had to learn how to balance the fat, manage portion size, and maintain a healthy lifestyle. But my life lessons started even before I went to culinary school. Growing up, I was not a size two cheerleader. I loved to cook, and, even more, to eat! Eventually I learned to seek out ways to increase flavor and create healthier and lighter recipes, which led to a healthier and lighter me.

Later, working in popular San Francisco restaurants like The Slanted Door and Rubicon, I was making the typically rich desserts expected by restaurant patrons. By that time, I was slim and wanted to stay that way. How did I do it? By doing my B.E.S.T.BALANCED diet, EXERCISE, SMALLER portions, and TIME to commit to these three things every day. For me, swimming competitively has been a big help. But with this book as your guide, you dont have to be an athlete to enjoy tempting desserts and still be your healthy B.E.S.T. It is this same philosophy that keeps me in tip-top shape for culinary competitions, like Top Chef and Food Network Challenge!

Baking the Sweet & Skinny way has opened doors for me, with Food & Wine magazine, Macys, and others asking me to create reduced-fat recipes for culinary events. They wanted in on my secrets. Now, I share those secrets with you so that, with a little thought and commitment, but without deprivation, you can do this, too.

Desserts rely on some specific scientific principles that help you to turn out moist and tender cakes, fudgy brownies, creamy custards, proudly puffed souffls, and flaky pie crusts that crackle as you bite into them. I have developed tricks that bend the basic rules and ratios of baking and pastry-making so you can cut the fat and calories and still get it right. Here are my guiding principles:

Start with quality ingredients. As in all cooking, your desserts are only as strong as their foundation. For ingredients that contribute a lot of flavor, its especially worth going out of your way, or sometimes spending a little more, for the best quality. Buy fruit from a farmers market or a good produce store, for example. In , I share my favorite ingredients and tools for stocking your kitchen.

Look for good alternatives. In some cases, a lower-fat ingredient may be substituted for a higher-fat one without compromising flavor or texture. For example, while reduced-fat cream cheese has about 30 percent of the fat in full-fat cream cheese, and about 25 percent of the fat and calories in butter, it performs equally well when appropriately substituted in many recipes.

Learn the right technique. Technique contributes to both texture and flavor in desserts. In and throughout the book, I share tips and techniques to ensure that your whipping, folding, and melting work perfectly. Mastering these basic skills will make cooking a joy.

Create contrast with texture. Contrast excites the palate. Think of a silky custard with a crunchy cookie topping, or hot chocolate topped with cool whipped cream. Some of my favorite tricks for adding texture are using crushed cookies and coarse sugars, and topping warm desserts with something cold.

Find the balance point. Balance is always important in cooking, but it is especially so when reducing sugar and fat. The primary balancing flavors in desserts are the same ones used in cooking: sweet, salty, acid (sour ingredients such as lemon and citrus), and bitter (think of coffee or dark chocolate). In this book, I explain flavor combinations and tell you how and why Ive used certain ingredients to balance a dish.