Customer Reviews

Kosher by Design Lightens Up: Fabulous food for a healthier lifestyle

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a sumptuous, imaginative cookbook, while at the same time keeping nutritional values high on its list of priorities. I have never seen such healthy meals with such beautiful presentations, and so lusciously delicious to the taste.

Most of the recipes are very unique, and they will take your breath away as you read the ingredients, with their marvelous blend of flavors, and look at the wonderful photography. But wait until you try them! If you want to impress your friends or family with a fabulous meal, make them something from this book.

Another plus considering our busy lives is that the recipes are not complicated to prepare. All the recipes are relatively easy to make (some of them incredibly easy), and don't take long to get from kitchen to table. The ingredients are few compared to the long lists that accompany many gourmet recipes, and make no mistake, these meals may be healthy and simple, but they are also gourmet deluxe in taste and looks.

When you see "Kosher" on a book title, you might think "Jewish food," but these creations have the flavors of the world, with many delectable Asian, Italian, Mexican, and other international dishes, as well as Middle Eastern fare, and even a knock-your-socks-off burger.

My main interest in getting this book was for the soups, and they exceeded my expectations. Those on a budget will really appreciate these wonderful bowls of goodness. Some of them will cost you next to nothing, like the Peasant Soup, Cabbage Soup, and Velvety Roasted Vegetable Barley. Put them together with the incredible Honey Oat Challah, and you will be in gastronomical heaven.

The book has a superb layout, starting with Supermarket Savvy to descriptions of the healthy ingredients that are used in the recipes. It also lists the useful gadgets that will help you in the kitchen and has Ideas for Entertaining. The recipe chapters are: Appetizers; Soups; Salads; Poultry; Meat; Fish; Eggs, Pasta and Dairy; Side Dishes; Desserts. The photography by John Uher is terrific throughout, and also adding to the book with her expertise is Bonnie Taub-Dix, who is spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. "Kosher by Design Lightens Up" is perfect for a Holiday or new house gift, and an absolute must for a new bride.

Susie Fishbein needs no introduction. She has consistently delighted us with her "Kosher by Design" series, and for my money she is The Ultimate Kitchen Diva. Thank you Ms. Fishbein, for this exciting, fabulous cookbook!

This is my sixth Susie Fishbein cookbook. If that doesn't attest to the quality of her recipes, layouts, ideas, advice, and book quality, I don't know what else would.

Kosher chefs spend more time in the kitchen preparing elaborate family meals than your average American. Combine that with the constraints of finding quality kosher ingredients, the time limitations in that most of us lead busy lives today, the fact that you still want to provide eye-catching, yet delicious meals when entertaining guests, AND the fact that you want to provide a more healthy lifestyle for your family....well, that's a pretty big expectation to live up and Susie Fishbein delivers.

I was afraid that I was going to receive a cookbook full of salads and pictures of measly portions of sad-looking tofu. But Fishbein has taken managed to keep sight of her heimishe audience by providing savory recipes with fish, chicken, and beef dressed up with gourmet flavors in a healthy preparation. As it true with most of Fishbein's books, you'll find recipes for foods not often found at your neighborhood shabbos tables (polenta pie, miso or udon soup, or vietnamese summer rolls) but she provides plenty of helpful tips on where to find these more exotic ingredients with kosher supervision. Meanwhile, you'll still find pot roast, london broil, roast turkey, stir fry, lasagna, and dessert -- for those of your eaters who are wary of foreign or healthy foods.

I will warn you that many of her recipes are more elaborate, often with a dozen or so ingredients. But between this book and my Kosher by Design Short of Time cookbook, I've been able to find a nice balance and make a menu where the dishes are healthy, delicious, and not going to kill me right before shabbos.

Moreover, the book begins with a very helpful section on health food buzzwords (organic, GMOS, free-range), unhealthy ingredients to watch out for when reading the labels in the grocery store, and a brief understanding on some of the chemicals used in processing food. There is a brief page on kashrus for those unfamiliar with the practice (which makes me believe that this cookbook is being marketed beyond the frum world), review on the different types of flour, grains, sugars, and oils available, and best of all, there are cute little ingenious tips on how to reduce your caloric intake and small steps on how to change your lifestyle slowly to a more healthy one.

I love this cookbook and know that I'll integrate it among my favorites. I will point out that my favorite recipe in here is a garlic dressing salad which I make for shabbos almost every week. I've had a dozen people ask for the recipe. It's a smash hit.

If you found this review helpful, please let me know!

When Kosher By Design Lightens Up by Susie Fishbein was delivered, I don't know who was more excited - me or Carl. We both enjoyed looking through it. The first few pages of the book explain how to keep a kosher kitchen and make healthy choices in your eating habits. There is a section with definitions and explanations of flours, sugars, oils, etc. The section on entertaining has some great ideas.

The reason you buy a cookbook is for the recipes, though, and this one has some great ones. I cooked the Cabbage Soup this weekend and the recipe is simple and easy to follow. The soup was delicious! There's a picture with every recipe, and the recipes use ingredients that are easy to find. The directions are clear and concise. The recipes in this book are for food that your family will eat - things like Italian Pot Roast, Enchiladas, Salmon Burgers, and Blueberry Pancakes just to name a few. There is an emphasis on making the dishes healthier. There are a lot of recipes that I want to try like the Greek Frittata Ring, Multigrain Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper Pesto and Frozen Pumpkin Pie.

You can see some sample pages here. It's not necessary to be Jewish (I'm not) or keep a kosher kitchen (I don't) to enjoy this beautiful book. This is a great cookbook for beginners and pros alike.

The cookbooks looks good but I was disappointed that there's no calorie count for the recipes. This is supposed to be a "cooking light" cookbook.

I just got this book and I absolutely love it! I was expecting a book with trimmed down versions of recipes typical Jewish cook books like kugel and brisket but this book is much more than that. The recipes are contemporary and things you can eat every day. I've made a lot of the recipes from this book now and most of them are pretty easy and come out excellent. The soup section is especially good as is the chicken/fish section. The carrot cake, chicken tikka masala, and the three sisters soup are some of my favorites!

Ladies and Gentleman - we have a kosher trifecta! Brava to Susie Fishbein and Bonnie Taub-Dix, MA, RD for this collaboration that brings together all three key elements of sustaining a healthy diet: eye-appeal, amazingly delish recipes that are actually good for you!

At first glance, you think these photos are just like the photos you see of air-brushed super-models - just too perfect to be true. But the good news in this case is seeing is believing. The photos by John Uher are the real deal!

My family has loved everything we have made so far.

I do hope that future editions will include calorie info. That would be a huge benefit for my patients who yearn for delicious kosher food and svelte bodies, too!

Rating: 4.5 stars

I am already a big fan of Susie Fishbein's cookbooks and I'm glad to say that her latest one, Kosher By Design Lightens Up, does not disappoint. You definitely don't need to be kosher to appreciate these recipes however I do keep a kosher home so this book was especially practical for me.

For starters, the colorful photographs alone are beautiful and looked very appetizing! The recipes are all very healthy, as promised, but most importantly their taste is not compromised because of it. All recipes that were attempted turned out really well, such as the wheat germ crusted chicken cutlets and the teriyaki butternut squash rounds.

The book includes a great deal of helpful information about nutrition. There is a section that explains supermarket labels, another with clear definitions of food-related items and even a chart listing superfoods with their properties and health benefits. I also really liked the section describing gadgets for healthy cooking. There was clearly a lot of research done for this book which I really appreciated. Another fun part of the book is the ideas provided for entertaining, such as hosting a tasting party and having a spritzer bar.

My mom also loved the cookbook and here are some of her thoughts on it:

"The informational and educational aspects of this cookbook are astounding!"

"Some recipes have an international flare to them and they combine ingredients that you wouldn't have thought of pairing together but the results are wonderful"

"The side dishes are especially unique and tasty"

The only problem that I had with the recipes was that many of them have nuts, which I needed to try to find substitutes for because there is a nut allergy in the family. Asides from that I really enjoyed this book's recipes and all of the valuable nutritional information provided.
[...]

This is a great cook book, one of the best I have ever read/used. I love the fact that the author took the time to outline many great ideas and tips for cooking healthy meals. She includes foods that most people may not have heard of like farro, barley, millet and spelt. She also cautions moderation even with foods that are considered healthy(who knew that one cup of olive oil has 2,000 calories?). But most importantly about this cook book is that it contains delicious, healthy and easy to make recipes

I made the Mexican Turkey Albondigas soup and I only realized that I was eating the plate when I felt some ceramic pieces in my mouth. It was delicious and best of all I did not feel heavy after eating it. I also made the Zuccini Lentil soup, the Healthy Unfried Chicken and the Summer Harvest Quinoa. All delicious, all amazing. Another thing that I really like about this is that the author includes a generous offering for vegans and vegetarians. This is important to me as I have a friend who is an ethical vegan and I now have receipes that I can make for her when she visits rather than just offering her salad and chips. The vegan/vegetarian offerings include Vegetarian Pate Bundles, Asparagus Radicchio, Vegetarian Chili, Roasted Pepper Crostinis and Chummos Canapes.

I am yet to make any of the desserts but they all look beyond yummy. Offerings include Peanut Butter Pizza, Baklava Bites, Crispy Cream Bars and Green Tea Applesauce cake just to name a few.

Another gigantic plus for me is that each recipe has a picture of what the meal is supposed to look like. This may not be important to some but to me, that is a major factor. Another biggie for me is that this book is visually stunning. The pictures are beautiful and make you want to eat the page on which its printed. This is a wonderful addition to any kitchen.

I'm a HUGE fan of Susie Fishbein's - I've had this ordered since beginning of September. This book is amazing first of all because of the beautiful pictures (I'm into those kind of things, some of you might not.) And because of the originality of the recipes. Susie will take something classic like deli rolls and make it into a whole gourmet new food by adding sweet potato to it.
This cookbook and her short on time one are definitely my favorites!

In the latest Kosher By Design cookbook, "Kosher By Design Lightens Up", Susie Fishbein guides the cook with more health concious recipes. Her goal is to make the reader more aware and knowledgeable to eat healthier. Though Susie says she is not into numbers or nutritional analysis, I do think when you write a lighten up cookbook calories counts and nutritional info. should be included (but I think this should be with every cookbook) hence the one star deduction.

The book includes over 145 recipes and 175 full color mouth watering photos. Recipes include: Baklava Bites, Faux Potao Kugel, Huevos Rancheros, Spinach Panko Crusted Trout, Italian Pot Roast, Confetti Chicken, Coconut-Lime Tart and many more. Recipes are not difficult to make and use easy to find ingredients.

Susie also includes sections on Supermarket Savvy (what to avoid at the grocery store), information on grains, flour, oils and more. A lot of great information in these pages.

Oversized 8.5 x 9.5 hardcover book is 336 pages, beautifully designed to open flat for ease of use when making a recipe.

I am not one to own a lot of cookbooks, but this one is a definite, delicious keeper.

~ Lee Mellott