Low-Carb Meals: Cookbook review and Chicken Couscous recipe

Lately, I have been  receiving many emails offering review copies of cookbooks. I had to decline most of them since I felt that they would not be according to my family’s taste and hence I would not be able to do justice to them. This particular book “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Low Carb Meals” caught my eye since my husband has been complaining that my love for blogging is wreaking havoc on his waistline. Like most members of his family, he is a foodie but a health conscious foodie, which made me request a copy.
Low Carb Meals Recipes

Quick facts about the book:
Title: The Complete Idiots’ Guide to Low-Carb Meals, Second Edition
Authors: Lucy Beale & Sandy G. Couvillon
Publishers: Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Price : US$18.95 CAN$20
Where to buy: Amazon or bookstores such as Barnes & Nobles
 

Low carb diets such as the Atkins Diet/South Beach diet, which gained widespread popularity in the late 1990s are still one of the most popular diet regimes for weight watchers. Apart from weight loss, reducing (not eliminating) your carb intake can yield numerous health benefits such as lowered blood pressure, regulated sugar and insulin levels and much more.This book helps readers to differentiate between “good” and “bad” carbs and provides tips for putting the glycemic index to work for them.

With over 300 low carb recipes, it covers everything from breakfast to late night snacks, even desserts . In fact, it  has an entire chapter on low carb chocolate desserts.
The book is written in a concise, no nonsense manner. I liked the handy tips offered in the “Recipe for success”notes at the end of most recipes.
The first recipe that I tried from the book was Chicken Couscous found on Page 52 in the Chapter on Lunches.I had been planning to try couscous for a long time and this was perfect. The flavors blended together very well.
The recipe is for 6 servings of 3/4 cup each.  Each serving has 11 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber and 15 g protein.
Chicken Couscous Salad Low Carb Meal recipe

Chicken Couscous

Recipe Source: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Low Carb Meals
  Ingredients:
1/2 cup couscous
3/4 cup boiling chicken broth
2 cups diced cooked chicken
2 large tomatoes,diced
1/4 cup green onion,chopped
1/4 cup radishes sliced
1/2 cup cucumber,chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh parsley,snipped
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, minced, or 1 tbsp dried mint
Salt and pepper to taste
Pine nuts or slivered almonds for garnish (optional – I used mint leaves instead)
Method:
1) Place couscous in a 2 quart casserole dish or bowl, and cover with boiling chicken broth; cover and let sit for 10 minutes until stock is absorbed.
2) In a medium bowl, combine chicken, tomatoes, green onion, radishes and cucumber.
3) In a pint size screw top jar, combine olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, mint, salt and pepper; shake well.
4) If couscous does not absorb all liquid, drain before adding dressing and chicken.
5) Pour olive oil dressing over couscous , fluff with fork, and mix in chicken and vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with nuts (if using) and serve.

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