A reasonable effort

How many times have you resolved to change your diet, eat healthier and lose some weight? And how many times did you give up in frustration after a couple of weeks of eating tasteless food and yearning after your favorite dishes? Let's be honest - cutting out a few calories is better than not cutting out anything at all. So if you could find a cookbook that would show you how to shave a few calories off of yummy dishes like macaroni and cheese, brownies, and french toast, wouldn't that be a blessing? Well, here you go: The Complete Light Kitchen by Rose Reisman will help you whittle down your daily intake without making you feel like you're on bread and water rations. Chicken and Eggplant Parmesan for only 312 calories a serving? Bake, don't fry, and use skinless chicken breasts and part-skim mozzarella. Make a pesto cream sauce with low-fat sour cream, use cocoa, oil and yogurt to replace the butter and chocolate in brownies, and egg whites in your omelets. Nothing earth-shattering, but it's nice to have someone spell it all out for you. Each recipe has a nutritional analysis, so you can see how much fat, protein, sodium, cholesterol and fiber is involved. Instead of choosing a radical diet for your New Year's resolution, try easing yourself into healthy eating with this book.