The South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook: Healthy Recipes for Entertaining Family and Friends    by Arthur Agatston Order:  USA  Can Rodale, 2006 (2006) Softcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Martina Bexte There's good news for those currently on the South Beach Diet and planning to stick to it this holiday season! Dr. Arthur Agatson, the creator of the plan, has put together a companion to his original South Beach Diet - The South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook. This beautiful softcover book is not only filled with scrumptious (and calorie wise) recipes to serve up this Christmas, but also offers creations for the other special occasions throughout the year, like Thanksgiving, Easter, Valentine's Day and Mother's Day, to name just a few. And if you're planning special event parties like baby showers, football parties or backyard grilling get-togethers, specific recipe planning is offered for these as well. Once again Agatson shows how to use the basic principals from his original diet book to choose high fiber fruit and vegetables, lean meats and low fat dairy products, and incorporate them into healthy, easy to prepare recipes. Here's a sampling from his Christmas Eve Dinner menu - Spiced Cocoa Eggnog, Holiday Spiced Nuts, Beef Tenderloin with Horseradish, Barley and Mushroom Risotto, Butternut Squash Puree, Baked Pears with Chocolate Sauce and Pomegranate Seeds. If that doesn't whet your appetite check out the Christmas Day menu - Crown Roast of Pork, Apple Onion Chutney, Braised Red Cabbage, Green Beans Almondine, Wild Rice Pilaf, Mixed Green Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette, Chocolate, Almond and Orange Clusters and Holiday Apple Crisp. Each special menu includes a Game Plan advising what part of the menu can be whipped up ahead of time to make life just a little bit easier. Preparation time, cooking times, number of servings and nutritional breakdowns are also provided. The 20 menus and 150 healthy recipes in The South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook are sure to be a welcome supplement to its predecessor, while its beautiful full sized color photographs add extra zest. Even if you're not following a specific diet plan this cookbook deserves a second glance; many recipes contain everyday ingredients, they generally involve short preparation times and would probably never be perceived as diet fare unless the chef chose to reveal that fact! Listen to a podcast interview with Arthur Agatston at WrittenVoices.com Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews