[.ca] Cooking with the Diabetic Chef (ISBN 1580400434)

Quotes from the Media:
Connie Martinson Talks Books - "Quote" "...a must for any family with someone who is a diabetic; plus, the recipes are very good."

Epinion Review!:
Still hot off the press, "Cooking with the Diabetic Chef" is the first diabetic cookbook actually written by a chef who suffers from diabetes. As someone who has recently read a lot of diabetic cookbooks (blech!), I am quite impressed. Several months ago, when I first learned that I was a Type 1 diabetic (I have to inject insulin several times a day), I ran around to the library and several bookstores looking for some cookbooks that might allow me to return to normalcy. I was pretty horrified by what I found. While there were a lot of books to choose from, they really didn't contain the sort of food that you might want to eat every day, or that someone else (a non-diabetic) might want to share with you. Cooking With the Diabetic Chef puts all those other books to shame. I've read the whole book and made several of the recipes and it seems to contain nary a clunker. What makes the difference is that it was written by someone who actually eats the food and is a chef to boot. Chris Smith, the author, begins with a forward that explains how devastated he was as a student at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) when he discovered he was a diabetic. Apprenticed at one of New York's most prestigious restaurants, Le Cirque he was unable to keep up with the fast paced environment, feeling tired and run down. When he learned what was wrong he was quite plainly horrified but soon discovered that with proper management he would be able to pursue his dreams. His new book, published by the American Diabetic Association, proves that healthy food doesn't have to be flavorless and bland. One of my favorite recipes so far is the Cajun Sweet Potato (very spicy and to die for). I have also made several of the more normal (which is what I had been looking for) recipes such as blueberry muffins, banana pancakes and crab cakes. All of them were excellent (the lunch crowd at work begged for tastes of the leftovers), not a bit bland or blah, something you would be proud to serve or share with non-diabetics. It's an attractive paperback with photographs that will make you want to try all the recipes. If you know someone who is diabetic, this book would make an excellent gift. It has a good mix of fancy recipes (something you might feed company) and recipes for simple comfort food. It is one of the best cookbooks I have ever read or used and it is THE BEST diabetic cookbook I have ever seen.

CNN Commentary:
ATLANTA (CNN) -- When Chef Chris Smith was diagnosed with diabetes seven years ago, his physician advised him to drop out of culinary school and find a new vocation altogether. "My doctor said it would be just too hard to work around all that food," he says. Instead, Smith decided to put his professional experience to use. He began conducting diabetic cooking seminars and is set to release his first cookbook in June. "Cooking with the Diabetic Chef" is a guide to eating that strives to add intense flavors to food without adding fat, salt and sugar. "I want to break barriers," Smith says. "Most people might have two or three chicken recipes that they know how to make. I want to give them a whole library of ways to prepare chicken. I want to show diabetics that there is variety." "We don't want the diabetic diet to be a sentence," agrees registered dietician Margaret Fowke. "That is probably the biggest concern diabetics have when they are first diagnosed. They say, 'Oh my gosh, I can't have my fried chicken and my chocolate chip cookies.' We feel they must have some flexibility in their diet plans."

Bitter Disappointment:
Cooking is a joy and a hobby for me, when accurate instructions are provided. Regrettably, I was no further into this book than page 8 before discovering a substantive error: Chicken Breast Roulade clearly must require more than 1/8 cup (2 Tbsp.) Chicken Stock in order to produce final portions of 1-1/2 Tbsp. for each of four servings, particularly after it has been reduced by half. Pages 11 and 12 show lovely photographs which, regrettably, are mis-identified. With such careless editing, how can one trust anything else in the contents?

A bitter disappointment as well.:
Nothing impressive about this book. In fact, this is one of those cookbooks I wish I never purchased. Does not go far enough in talking about the relationship of food and diabetes and is filled with only so-so recipes. You would be better off purchasing a good cookbook and cooking recipes centered around protein dishes.