Have Your Cake and Eat It Too!
By Lisa Lillien
St. Martin’s Press, $19.99, 400 pages
Lisa Lillien’s Hungry Girl 200 Under 200 will make a lot of dessert lovers quite happy. She has managed to create 200 recipes for decadent confections of 200 calories or less. Lillien’s secret ingredient for calorie saving in the majority of the recipes is canned pumpkin and boxed cake mix. Her recipes are also aligned with the point system for Weight Watchers. Hungry Girl 200 Under 200 is logically organized, starting with kitchen essentials and recommended products. The book covers ingredient tips and tricks, including powdered peanut butter, sugar substitutes and even soy milk swaps. There are 14 chapters of various dessert types ranging from cake pops to brownies, cakes and pies ¬– even whoopie pies.
Each recipe is straightforward and simple, usually just one page in length. Calories and portion size are clearly stated, followed by no-nonsense ingredients and directions. When a sugar alternative can be used, it is noted in the recipe. This reviewer especially liked the organization at the back of the book: recipes were organized by categories like dessert for one, 30 minutes or less, five ingredients or less and recipes by flavor. Readers looking to save on calories without denying themselves flavor or indulgence will love this book.
Reviewed by Seniye Groff
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