While America's Test Kitchen - aka the crew behind Cook's Illustrated magazine - is known for painstakingly testing and retesting and then retesting recipes again until they produce flawless results, the recipes that are selected aren't always the most health-conscious.
Apparently, the tide has turned with the new year. That laser focus is now directed at skinnying up normally heavy fare. Nothing is off-limits, not crab cakes, not spaghetti carbonara, not even dessert.
The 300-plus page cookbook tackles 12 chapters and makes the convincing case - at least in the recipes we tried - that "lighter" doesn't have to mean "less flavor."
The tortellini and vegetable soup simmers fresh cheese tortellini with plenty of green stuff - fresh spinach and peas, as well as fresh thyme and basil - for a garlicky, perfect-for-a-winter's-day brew. Even though I neglected to remember a final flourish of garlic and lemon zest, the soup didn't suffer one bit. The gentle kick of basil and thyme gussied up the pillowy-soft tortellini in a chicken-based broth. A light sprinkling of Parmesan added just the right salty, creamy touch.
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The rustic white-bean stew shared the same comfort-food feel as the tortellini. A snap to put together, all it required was opening up a few cans of cannellini beans, dicing turkey kielbasa and fresh kale and tearing up a crusty baguette. The stew, thickened with tomato paste and brightened with fresh thyme, white wine and a can of diced tomatoes, was warm and hearty. The torn pieces of bread on top - liberally doused with vegetable-oil spray - grew golden and toasty after a 15-minute stint in the oven. Tucking a spoon into the crunchy bread, soft beans, flavorful kielbasa and sweet tomatoes was the perfect antidote to a hard day.
But the real test was the spaghetti carbonara recipe. The bacony pasta dish, full of eggs and cream, is not light at all. The Test Kitchen revision called for using fat-free evaporated milk and mayo to replicate creaminess without the calories. Another fat-trimmer was to use only a few pieces of bacon and subbing Canadian bacon for the rest. If ever there was a reason to go to war with Canada, this so-called bacon would be it. That compressed, tasteless "bacon" gives meat a bad name.
Sadly, a comedy of errors keeps me from giving a true review of this dish. The evap milk was a good eight months past its expiration date, and I accidentally dropped in an entire egg when only the white should have been used. Still, I give the Test Kitchen props for giving such a fatty dish a makeover.
I stayed clear of the dessert section because I'm a purist that way. I say go full-fat - just eat much less of it.
If you're looking to make this a leaner year, give "Light & Healthy 2010" a read.
Quick review
"Light & Healthy 2010" (America's Test Kitchen, $35)
Contact reporter Kristen Cook at 573-4194 or kcook@azstarnet.com