The South Beach Diet Cookbook [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Arthur Agatston MD (Author)

Book Description

Series: The South Beach Diet | Publication Date: April 13, 2004

The long-awaited cookbook is here!

Great food that's good for you--that's the foundation of the South Beach Diet and the reason millions of people around the world have adopted it as their lifelong eating plan, shedding unwanted pounds in the process. Created by leading Miami cardiologist Arthur Agatston, M.D., the diet emphasizes good fats and good carbohydrates, the kind that stave off cravings for unhealthy sugary food and promote long-term weight loss. It's not "diet" food--it's satisfying, flavorful dishes that are good for your health and your waistline.

Whether you're already a South Beach Diet success story or brand-new to the program, you'll find a wealth of inspiration in The South Beach Diet Cookbook to keep you on track without feeling deprived. The recipes are simple enough to make every day but delicious enough to serve on any occasion: Oatmeal Pancakes, Buttermilk Salmon Chowder, Caribbean Baked Chicken with Mango, Grilled Filet Mignon with Roasted Garlic Chipotle Pepper Chimichurri, Mexican Lasagna, Sage and Rosemary Pork, Red Snapper with Avocado Salsa, Thai Vegetable Stir-Fry, and Chocolate Pie with Crispy Peanut Butter Crust. Each recipe is marked "Phase 1," "Phase 2," or "Phase 3," so you'll know immediately where it falls in the diet; there are also 25 all-new recipes from the top chefs and restaurants in Miami. Illustrated with 50 full-color photographs and packed with extras like shopping lists and a pantry guide, The South Beach Diet Cookbook is an essential addition to your kitchen shelf.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Cardiologist Agatston (The South Beach Diet) follows up his blockbuster book on weight-loss with this volume of more than 200 recipes, a number of which are culled from the kitchens of chefs in Miami Beach and other cities. Each recipe is designated as Phase 1, 2 or 3 to help readers discern the segment of the diet for which they are appropriate. Carbohydrates are off-limits during Phase 1, but "good carbs" (like whole grains) are gradually reintroduced in Phase 2. Phase 3 segues into a less restrictive but still healthy eating regimen. Among the Phase 1 recipes are the simple Reuben Wrap (which calls for cabbage leaves instead of bread; the author notes readers "will have to have a 'rye' sense of humor for this"), as well as more complex main dishes such as Coconut Chicken and Sage and Rosemary Pork. Phase 2 and 3 eaters will find delicious options such as Sesame Baked Chicken, Crab Royale and Couscous Salad. Noting that a variety of foods and recipes combats the repetition and boredom that are many dieters' downfall, Agatston presents a wide array of choices, with plenty of enticing fish and vegetarian dishes. He also includes breakfasts, snacks and desserts, as well as ideas for home entertaining "South Beach-style" with a focus on fresh veggies, fat-free dips, shrimp and nuts for appetizers, and main dishes of grilled tuna or flank steak. Agatston leaves no stone unturned, even providing shopping lists and recipes for homemade condiments that forgo sugars.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From the Inside Flap

Great food that's good for you - that's the foundation of the South Beach Diet and the reason millions of people around the world have adopted it as their lifelong eating plan, shedding unwanted pounds in the process. Created by leading Miami cardiologist Arthur Agatston, M.D., the diet emphasizes good fats and good carbohydrates, the kind that stave off cravings for unhealthy and sugary food and promote long-term weight loss. It's not "diet" food - it's satisfying, flavorful dishes that are good for your health and your waistline. Whether you're already a South Beach Diet success story or brand-new to the program, you'll find a wealth of inspiration in The South Beach Diet Cookbook to keep you on track without feeling deprive. The recipes are simple enough to make every day but delicious enough to serve on any occasion: Oatmeal Pancakes, Buttermilk Salmon Chowder; Caribbean Baked Chicken with Mango, Grilled Filet Mignon with Roasted Garlic Chipotle Pepper Chimichurri, Mexican Lasagna, Sage and Rosemary Pork, Red Snapper with Avocado Salsa, Thai Vegetable Stir-Fry, and Chocolate Pie with Crispy Peanut Butter Crust. Each recipe is marked "Phase 1," "Phase 2," or "Phase 3," so you'll know immediately where it falls in the diet; there are also 25 all-new recipes from the top chefs and restaurants in Miami. Illustrated with 50 full-color photographs and packed with extras like shopping lists and a pantry guide, The South Beach Diet Cookbook is an essential addition to your kitchen shelf.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Rodale Books; 1 edition (April 13, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579549578
• ISBN-13: 978-1579549572
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (137 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,634 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #20 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Diet > Low Carbohydrate
  • #49 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Diet > Healthy
  • #76 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Vegetables & Vegetarian

More About the Author

Arthur Agatston, MD
Leading Preventive Cardiologist and Creator and Author of the South Beach Diet

Dr. Arthur Agatston is a leading preventive cardiologist and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. A pioneer in the field of noninvasive cardiac imaging, Dr. Agatston's scientific work with Dr. Warren Janowitz, first reported in 1991, resulted in the Agatston Score, a method for screening for coronary calcium that is currently used throughout the world and considered by many experts to be the best predictor of heart disease.

Dr. Agatston has had published more than 100 scientific articles and abstracts in medical journals, including the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Circulation, the American Journal of Cardiology, and the Annals of Internal Medicine. He is a frequent lecturer on diet, health, and the prevention of heart disease both nationally and internationally and participates as a speaker, faculty member, and organizer of numerous academic cardiology meetings and symposia. Dr. Agatston has also served as an expert consultant to the Clinical Trials Committee of the National Institutes of Health and has served on committees of the American Society of Echocardiography, the American College of Cardiology, and the Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging. He is currently on the board of directors of the Society for Heart Attack Prevention and Eradication (SHAPE) and the American Dietetic Association Foundation. Recently, Dr. Agatston received the prestigious Alpha Omega Award from New York University Medical Center for outstanding achievement in the medical profession.

In 1995, Dr. Agatston developed a diet to help his cardiac and diabetes patients improve their blood chemistries and lose weight. His eating plan worked so well that a Miami TV station asked if it could offer the diet to its viewers. Hundreds of South Floridians went on the diet and lost weight three years running, and its popularity eventually led to the publication of Dr. Agatston's first book, The South Beach Diet, in 2003. Today, the South Beach Diet is a lifestyle approach to healthy eating for millions of people worldwide. There are more than 23 million copies of The South Beach Diet and its companion books currently in print worldwide, including: The South Beach Diet Cookbook (2004); The South Beach Diet Good Fats/Good Carbs Guide (2004); The South Beach Diet Quick & Easy Cookbook (2005); The South Beach Diet Dining Guide (2005); The South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook (2006); The South Beach Diet Taste of Summer Cookbook (2007), The South Beach Heart Health Revolution (2008), The South Beach Diet Supercharged (2008), and his most recent book, The South Beach Diet Super Quick Cookbook (2010). Today Dr. Agatston can also be found on the Web at SouthBeachDiet.com, EverdayHealth.com, and Prevention.com. He also writes a monthly column on preventing heart disease for Prevention magazine.

In 2004, Dr. Agatston founded the nonprofit Agatston Research Foundation for the purpose of conducting and funding original research on diet, cardiac health, and disease prevention. The Foundation is dedicated to improving the heart health and wellness of the nation through research, education, and prevention. In the fall of 2004 the foundation implemented the Healthier Options for Pubic Schoolchildren (HOPS) initiative to provide nutrition and healthy lifestyle education programming, including daily physical activity, to more than 50,000 elementary school children nationally. Data from the initiative, presented at national conferences including those of the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, the American Dietetic Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, and published in 2010 in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, show that children in HOPS schools improved their weight, blood pressures, and academic test scores more so than children in non-HOPS schools. Today the foundation is also working with the University of Pennsylvania on the Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative to further pursue better nutrition in public schools and with the Mayo Clinic and the University of Miami on research projects dedicated to developing healthier lifestyles and to the prevention of cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Agatston lives in Miami Beach with his wife, Sari.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

221 of 224 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars IMPRESSIVE RANGE OF EASY TO MAKE, DELICIOUS, HEALTHY RECIPES, April 21, 2004

By 

Shashank Tripathi (Gadabout) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The South Beach Diet Cookbook (Hardcover)

If you've read the South Beach Diet, it did include some preliminary recipe ideas, but they were few and far between. This follow-up cookbook is being marketed as if it were looking to dovetail on the popularity of its predecessor, but I believe if you have this, you don't even need the original.

The variety of recipes is fascinating, and the diet phase they correspond to in the original diet (which you can easily comprehend from this book alone) is clearly marked.

Mind you, this is not a "low carb" book. It is about lowering "bad" carbs while allowing "good" carbs. The South Beach idea veers around keeping the Glycemic Index low and Agatston does a pretty good job of explaining the nutritional logic for doing so.

The recipes that I have tried so far are quite good in terms of taste. The best thing for me is that none of the recipes includes any fancy condiments that you'd only find in some super-elite department stores on the other side of town. Very handy for a health-conscious bachelor.

Give it a try. Healthy *and* tasty recipes can't be a bad investment anyway!

185 of 191 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty Pictures, April 15, 2004

By 

Ron Atkins "Ron" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The South Beach Diet Cookbook (Hardcover)

Okay, having read the basic bible to the South Beach Diet (ISBN: 1579546463), which I would recommend to you if you are interested in this cookbook, I wanted to try some of the meals Agatston referred to in his book.

The author divides the cookbook into the following sections: breakfast, snacks, soups, salads, side dishes, fish and poultry, meats, vegetarian, and desserts. Each section has approximately 20 recipes, that appear easy enough to prepare and follow the 40% protein, 30% carb, and 30% fat you would expect on a diet plan like this. Also, most of the recipes included carb counts, protein grams, etc. I noticed in the dessert section (my personal favorite of any cookbook) that the recipes employ yogurt, almonds, and fresh fruit extensively. Some sugar substitutes were noted, but not a lot.

The author also dedicates 8 pages of the book to summarizing the diet plan, a long chapter on shopping in accordance with the diet plan, and 5 pages of question and answer type stuff that addresses general questions relevant to the diet. Color photos were available for about 50% of the recipes, which is why I titled this review "Pretty Pictures." I would recommend this book to any reader who enjoyed and plans to use the SouthBeach Diet.

61 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The cookbook that passed our road test!, September 19, 2004

By 

William Davis, Md, Sc "Author of Track Your P... (Milwaukee, WI, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The South Beach Diet Cookbook (Hardcover)

We've now had over 30 patients in our cardiology practice "road-test" and try many of the recipes in Dr. Agatston's companion volume to his popular South Beach Diet. The response has been overwhelmingly favorable, both in taste as well as in weight loss.

The condiment recipes, like South Beach Barbecue Sauce and South Beach Teriyaki sauce, have gotten rave reviews from our patients, as well as some of the unique vegetarian entrees, like tofu cacciatore and baked Portobello caps with melted goat cheese. Dr. Agatston, a professed chocoholic, concludes with 20 recipes for desserts that use some clever substituting to avoid excess sugar, flour, and unhealthy oils.

The Cookbook is also a graphically-beautiful book, with full-color photos accompanying many, if not most, of the recipes.