The Complete Christmas Cookbook - Softcover

Healthy food does not have to be boring salads, brown bread and fruit as this handy guide to heart food shows. Specially aimed at those with a heart disorder such as heart disease, angina, high cholesterol and weight problems, it is supported by the medical knowledge of Mark Braimbridge (a cardiothoracic surgeon) and Dell Stanford (a dietitian and nutrition consultant), who give a clear, easy-to-read guide on how to eat healthily and beneficially. Recipes are cosmopolitan, ranging from Mediterranean tuna involtini filled with vitamins to Japanese sushi containing carbohydrate energy, omega-3 fats and vitamins; tasty fig and raspberry mixer drinks with antioxidant flavonoids and Italian biscotti full of fibre. Salads do make an appearance but are enhanced with lentils and ricotta and could be accompanied by focaccia bread made with grapes. Pasta, chicken, kedgeree and lamb and barley stew whet the appetite, fill the stomach and are healthy too, thus avoiding that guilty feeling - especially when followed by a summer pudding full of fibre, folate, potassium and antioxidants. So if you have recently been diagnosed with a heart problem and told to follow a strict diet, don't despair. Sophie Braimbridge offers a whole variety of culinary delights that are good for you and which the rest of the family will enjoy too. - Lucy Watson