On The Today Show With Everyday Food Light
When it came time to start working on the third volume in the Everyday Food cookbook library, the editors and I quickly agreed on what it should offer: a collection of low-calorie, low-fat dishes for all of us who want to eat healthy yet flavorful meals, every day. The “light” issue of the magazine, published each January, is always a top seller on newsstands and a favorite among our subscribers (as we learn from their many appreciative letters and e-mails). In Everyday Food Light, you’ll find a year’s worth of recipes, organized by season, each with fewer than 500 calories (and a minimal amount of fat). We hope you try them all!
And since we know how helpful it is to have the nutritional breakdown beside each recipe, that’s where you’ll find it in the book, just like in the magazine. We’ve also shared our favorite low-fat cooking methods (like steaming and roasting), kitchen tools, and flavor boosters–plus tips for making smart substitutions and other ways to lighten up your favorite dishes (look for “Why It’s Light” in the headnote). Our goal with Everyday Food Light, and with the magazine, is to help you create quick, delicious, and healthy dinners on your own, all through the week.
1 Our latest book, Everyday Food Light, features delicious, healthful recipes, all under 500 calories. It's organized by season, so you can take advantage of the freshest ingredients.
2 On set with The Today Show gang - Carl Quintanilla (Matt Lauer's stand in), Ann Curry, Al Roker, me, and Natalie Morales
3 The first thing I discussed was the Lighter Blue Plate Special meatloaf. The beef sirloin is combined with finely chopped carrots, celery, onion, panko crumbs, and egg white and then brushed with your favorite barbecue sauce before baking.
4 The meatloaf is served with low-fat buttermilk mashed potatoes and blanched olive oil-tossed green beans. This meal is just 327 calories per serving!
5 I then showed how to make Light Chicken Parmesan. Whole-wheat bread crumbs are mixed with Parmesan cheese. The top side of the breast is dipped in flour, then egg white, and then the breadcrumb mixture.
6 The chicken is baked until crisp and brown and is served with a side of whole-wheat spaghetti, tomato sauce, and melted part-skim mozzarella. 389 calories per serving
7 Next, I moved onto the Saucy Shrimp and Grits, our light version of a Southern staple.
8 I explained to everyone that the grits are enriched with a little butter, but no cheese.
9 The shrimp are cooked in a quick tomato sauce seasoned with smoky bacon, onion, and hot sauce.
10 Did you know that most 'fresh' shrimp have already been frozen and thawed? Look for raw 'easy peel' shrimp rather than peeled. They're already deveined and the shell helps preserve flavor and texture.
11 How delicious is that! The shrimp cooks in the tomato mixture until opaque throughout, just 2 to 4 minutes. Serve over the grits, sprinkled with crispy bacon. One serving is just 362 calories and so satisfying!
12 Everyday Food Light teaches us that we can also eat guilt-free desserts. The secret ingredient in Mini Mocha Cheesecakes, 196 calories each, is nonfat cottage cheese, which is puréed in a food processor until smooth and creamy.
13 The cottage cheese is combined with a couple of eggs, confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and vanilla extract. The batter is placed in a muffin tin and topped with a chocolate wafer cookie before baking.
14 Another chocolate-lovers' favorite are Brownie Cookies. I actually discovered these when I had some extra brownie mix and placed spoonfuls of it on a cookie sheet and baked them.
15 So, the next time you crave a rich tasting browinie, reach for one of these lighter cookies instead. They've got just as much chocolate flavor, but far less butter - and thus less fat - per serving. 105 calories per cookie
16 Here are some other creations from Everyday Food Light, all under 500 calories. - Caesar Salad with Spicy Shrimp - The dressing is made with light mayonnaise, reducing calories and fat.
17 Oven-Fried Chicken - Baking the lightly breaded pieces on a wire rack results in 'fried' chicken.
18 Pork Tenderloin with Swiss Chard and Polenta - Instead of water, the polenta gets a flavor boost by cooking it in a combination of skim milk and low-sodium chicken broth.
19 Sauteed Cajun Shrimp - Another flavor boost comes from cooking the rice in chicken broth instead of water.
20 Seared fish with Roasted Potatoes and Tomatoes - In this recipe, flavorful sides complement simply prepared fish without introducing too many extra calories to the meal.
21 Spice-Rubbed Turkey Breast with Sweet Potatoes - A flavor boost comes from a mixture of rosemary, paprika, and lime juice rubbed over lean turkey before roasting. Sweet potatoes cooked alongside soak up the flavorful pan juices.
22 Chicken with Cornmeal Dumplings - Beer flavors this robust chicken and vegetable stew. Pilsner, with its pronounced taste of hops, works best.
23 Light Italian Wedding Soup - This leaner take on a classic soup includes meatballs made with dark-meat ground turkey instead of beef for less fat and fewer calories.
24 Whole-Wheat Walnut-Raisin Biscotti - These crunchy, nut-studded treats contain no butter or oil and are significantly lower in fat than other cookies. Whole-wheat flour provides extra fiber.
25 Angel Food Cake - There's a reason it's called angel food cake - not only is it light as air and divinely delicious, it's also virtually fat-free. It makes an excellent partner for fresh berries or berry sauce.
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Good morning Martha, I watched your segment live and loved your light recipe ideas. I purchased your Everyday Food Light, amazing and delicious recipes. Thank you for another successful and inspiring book. Best wishes
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | February 27th, 2012 at 1:55 am
This spring dh and I are going up another level of eating healthy and this book will help us achieve healthier! SInce this is almost March I hope it's still for sale.
Posted by: Julie | February 27th, 2012 at 8:46 am
I watched your segment on the Today show Martha, and loved your tip on dicing salmon without crushing it. You are right Martha, most of us are trying to eat more healthy meals but we want them to taste good. I think using more flavorful spices and less fat like butter helps. Looking forward to your show today on more tips everyone should know!
Posted by: Cindy F | February 27th, 2012 at 9:12 am
Hi Martha, I love seeing you on the Today Show when ever possible and the variety of subjects you share with us are inspiring and important for us to learn about! The great hosts there certainly are charming and they like to learn new things, too! I love my Everyday Food Light cook book and will be making the salmon burgers real soon! It's so much fun to see the video and I love to view it a lot! Your TV Shows are fantastic! I previewed this weeks shows and all of them are terrific for us to learn a whole bunch of new things that are important for us and you help us in so many ways-thanks a million, Martha! Hope you have a great day! The Daily Wag is so charming today when F,S,&GK meet some fans on the streets of New York City! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | February 27th, 2012 at 10:01 am
I received my copy of Everyday Food and the recipes look great! We have been enjoying the recipes from this nice little magazine since it first came out. Thanks, Martha and crew...
Posted by: Sharon | February 27th, 2012 at 10:14 am
Martha,
I watched you live on the Today show for this segment. Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | February 27th, 2012 at 10:19 am
Hi Martha,
How ironic! I made the yogurt dill sauce on Saturday to eat on a turkey burger and then Sunday I decided I wanted salmon patties so we had those with peas in a cream sauce, low fat of course! I love the horseradish in the Everyday Food salmon burger but left it out for my sister’s portion. She’s such a finicky eater! Anyway, today I will heat up a leftover burger and eat it on a bun with the dill sauce like in your beautiful picture on the cover of Everyday Food Light. I am all for eating meals under 500 calories and actually try to keep within 1200 and 1300 calories a day. I was getting close to getting diabetes when my doctor tested my blood and found a rather high reading. It has to be all that hard candy I love! It’s under control now because I immediately got off of sugar plus excess carbs and I’m always looking for low fat tasty meals. I guess I found them! Thanks. Trish
Posted by: Trish | February 27th, 2012 at 1:00 pm
What a beautiful cover. How can we not be inspired with such great art work and then there is the gifted work developing the recipes.
Finally there is Martha encouraging us to excel. Thanks so much for all the hard work.
Posted by: Margie | February 27th, 2012 at 1:27 pm
The burger looks delicious. Since I have reduced my red meat intake I need all the inspiration I can get! Thanks
Posted by: Stephanie | March 8th, 2012 at 9:49 pm
Martha, I do not get your show in San Francisco as my carrier ATT does not have the Hallmark Channel, so at least i can see you on your blog. I love all the inspiration you give to all of us. Thank You
Posted by: Carol Lacoste | April 1st, 2012 at 11:50 pm