Rating: 
Summary: Lots of recipies
Review: It's so hard to find any low-carb recipe books with much to them. This one is better than most, both in quantity and variety of dishes. If you're a diabetic, or want to avoid becoming one, this book would be a good meal-time resource.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: This cookbook rocks! The bean recipes are outstanding, and the chicken skewers with almond dipping sauce is one of my favorites. Contrary to what some of the other reviewers have said, most of the recipes do not require esoteric ingredients (only a few do). Any reasonable grocery store should be able to supply you with enough to make 90% of the recipes here--I used to live in a small town in Florida and had no problem with the limited supermarkets there. I regularly substitute roasted vegetables when she calls for smoked ones with great results, so not having a stovetop smoker is not an issue. Some of the recipes take minimal time to cook, while others are more involved... this cookbook is not meant exclusively for quick cooking, which some people apparently don't realize. (...) Deborah Chud is an excellent chef, and I am thrilled to have found this cookbook! I hope she writes more!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I bought this book because it was rated five stars. However, I was very disappointed with it because of the vast array of expensive and/or uncommon ingredients for the different recipes, such as: White truffle oil, Shaoxing rice wine, tahini, Muscovy duck breasts, verjus, Thai chili paste, ume plum vinegar, cornichons, and ostrich fillets. Also, many of the recipes call for you to add smoked ingredients using a special smoker that you would have to purchase. There is extensive preparation for many of these recipes. I consider myself a good cook, but these recipes are too much work for me. In the last section of the book, the author notes that her son "lived on 'take-out' for 6 months" and said, "Mom, I know your food is good. I just don't like it." Therefore, for those reasons, (...) I am donating this book to my local library.
Rating: 
Summary: worth the price, but falls short in a few areas
Review: The other night I put together a LC Blue Cheese Dressing adapted from this book (added garlic and a bit of lean bacon) -- I never really had considered before the possibility of BC Dressing without the "mix"! That's the sort of ingenuity that makes this book worth the purchase price. Imagine: A sophisticated LC Tomato ketchup from roasted or smoked tomatoes, a sweet-and-salty chinese brined duck that doesn't send your sugar levels through the roof, elegant, simple desserts that don't rely on compensatory (mock-whatever) techniques or artificial sweeteners. That's the other thing I like about _Gourmet Prescription_: Chud doesn't devote her energies to creating high-carb versimilitude at the expense of good taste. No low-carb pizza or spaghetti squash mac 'n cheese...much as I love Fran McCullough's "potato" salad made with cauliflower, I notice that a lot of LC cookbook efforts at satisfying now-forbidden cravings achieve less than stellar results. Better to learn to make the most of foods you *already* love. So why did I leave off a few stars? Here's where I think the book fell a little short: 1) Family friendliness. Even in her own introduction, Dr. Chud admits that her son was eating separate meals from the family while her "test kitchen" was in operation. Paraphrasing: "It's good, Mom, but I just don't like that food." I'd expect a Mom to have more interest in feeding the entire family...hoping that this concept is not antithetical to the term "gourmet". 2) Economy. The meat section of this cookbook is heavy on things like shrimp, ostrich, beef tenderloin and filet mignon - not exactly my staples as an everyday home chef. I realize, again, that these are gourmet items, and chicken gets dull, but I'd like to see more (or some) of what Chud could do to enhance everyday cuts of beef, pork, etc. There are too few kitchen talents out there with LC cookbooks, for her not to extend her range in the interest of gourmands on a budget. When you consider that one of the real challenges for families trying to go "LC" is that carbs function as low-cost food extenders (i.e.: protein is expensive), you are talking about families who are going to rely on these "everyday cuts" even more heavily than high-carb households of similar means. (And many of us who have thyroid disease or concern about recent studies connecting soy to health issues, need "ordinary" protein sources all the more.) 3) This may be a nit...but the book pitches strongly at the start, in reviewing kitchen supplies, for the purchase of a particular brand of smoker -- while merely mentioning as an aside that stovetop smoking may also be achieved in a wok. Having Barbara Tropp's _Modern Art of Chinese Cooking_ already on my shelves, I've found the nerve to start experimenting with Chud's smoker recipes, which mysteriously refer to "cooking according to your smoker's directions". It's always a bit annoying when a cookbook leaves you in the lurch unless you have a very specialized piece of equipment, be it a pressure cooker or vegetable mandoline or what have you. Still in all, this book has expanded my LC horizons, and I would have bought it just for the fruit and vegetable recipes. I hope to see another cookbook from Dr. Chud!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful recipes full of flavor!
Review: This cookbook is excellent. If you like to eat healthfully but don't want to sacrifice flavor, this is a must have book. There are creative and innovate recipes and everything I have tried so far has been excellent. My husband and I especially love the recipes using the stovetop smoker. This is a great way to bring flavor to food without added fat and the cooking process is so easy. I highly recommend this book and hope the author will write another cookbook soon!!
Rating:
Summary: Low-Carb Foods at Their Best
Review: Dr. Chud's lower-carb cookbook "The Gourmet Prescription" is excellent. I found this book in a catalog and ordered it immediately. My husband is currently on the Adkins Diet and I was interested in expanding the amount of low-carb recipes that I have so he won't lose interest. Dr. Chud's book came to the rescue. It is divided into the Preface, which is worth reading, a section on Proteins, and a section on Carbohydrates. There are recipes for fish, poultry, pork, veal, beef, lamb and ostrich as well as salads and vegetables, beans and lentils, and fruits and fruit desserts. Try the Roasted Salmon with Herbs, the Grilled Chicken Breasts with Sun-Dried Tomato Ketchup, and Fresh Bean Salad with Parsley Buttermilk Dressing to name a few. Dr. Chud offers many recipes using roasting and stove-top smoking. Each recipe offers a nutritional analysis of calories, proteins, carbohydrates, fat, cholesterol, sodium, and fiber. And the photographs are wonderful! If you are on a lower-carbohydrate eating plan or thinking about starting one, buy this book. You will feel wonderful. Hopefully, Dr. Chud will come out soon with a sequel!
Rating:
Summary: Prescription For Tasteful and Healthy Lifestyle
Review: Dr. Deborah Chud's "The Gourment Prescription" is terrific. I started the Zone Diet in late June 2000 after heart surgery; quickly I found that while I was eating healthy, my diet was becoming boring. I knew that this would make it difficult to stick with the diet for the long-term. By accident I stumbled upon this book and was delighted to find the high-flavor recipes that would allow me to stay in the zone and stay satisfied with eating both healthy and tastefully. Dr. Chud has a knack for creating innovative dishes by weaving together the right spices, cooking methods, and preparations that are generally easy to prepare. The recipes are clearly written, easy to follow, and replete with scrumptious pictures that make you want to prepare the foods and more importantly feast on them! While the cookbook has plenty of variety, there is an emphasis on Asian and Hispanic dishes. I hope that in the next edition Dr Chud will consider innovating with selected Italian dishes. If you buy this book, and have not cooked these foods before, you will need to place some trust in the cookbook and have some patience in stocking your pantry with spices; some of which I have never cooked with but am not having difficulty finding in local markets (for the most part). The vegetable and protein dishes are equally extraordinary in taste. I have learned to trust Dr Chud's judgment whole-heartedly. I found it hard to believe, but today I prepared charred tomato ketchup. This recipe required more cooking preparation than most of the recipes I've tried so far - however, the results were nothing short of spectacular. It's hard to believe that I had been consuming grilled hamburgers over the past few months without this terrific new complimentary flavor. While I am using this cookbook as a bible for staying in the zone, let me be clear that I would not hesitate for a moment, in preparing the elegant meals from this cookbook for guests who are not on the zone diet. I am happy to say that I have shed over 30 pounds using the Zone, Dr. Chud's cookbook, and exercise in a 2.5 month period. Thank you Drs. Sears and Chud!
Rating:
Summary: At last! Healthy Recipes for Sophisticated Palates
Review: Deborah Chud's visually beautiful collection of delicious low-carbohydrate recipes fills a distinct void. Numbers of us who have been ejoying the health benefits of "Zone" type diets, have been struggling to find or convert recipes that suit our senses...recipes that have the sophistication of those usually found in "Bon Appetit" or "Gourmet" magazines. From Spiced Turkey Kebabs and Pork Tenderloin with Plum Sauce to Broiled Swordfish with Red Pepper-Orange Sauce, the entrees are suitable for dinner parties for less health-conscious friends, and yet most are simple enough to encorporate into daily menus. On this July 4, my guests were treated to a grilled turkey breast accompanied by several of Deborah's side dishes, including a delicious fruited slaw and a warm black bean dish. Dessert was her Baked Fruit with Warm Blueberry Sauce. The meal got rave reviews, with numbers of requests for the recipes, and I expect, some additional orders of this book! I look forward to additional books from this author.
Rating: 
Summary: More work than it's worth?
Review: This is a beautiful book, and the recipes sound great, but all I had to do was read the first 20 pages to realize ... this is NOT a cookbook for anyone who has a life. Does the author truly expect me to spent 4-6 hours every Sunday smoking vegetables for the upcoming week? I am convinced that I can be healthy by practicing moderation and learning to listen to my body - perhaps the Zone and low carbs can help - but until I can be a full-time, stay-at-home cook, I will need to rely on other "real-world" cookbooks.
Rating:
Summary: At last! An end to low-carb boredom!
Review: As someone who's followed the Protein Power way of eating for over four years, I've invested considerable time searching out low-carb recipes in a high-carb world. Too many of the cookbooks and recipes I've come across contain artificial sweeteners and other questionable ingredients -- I like my food whole and unprocessed. That is what makes Dr. Chud's book such a delight. Real food, innovatively prepared, elegantly displayed. I have not purchased a smoker (which many of the recipes call for), but it is my feeling that many can be prepared using an alternative method, such as roasting, that would not require additional equipment. As for the dishes themselves; thus far, I have only made two: curried turkey kebabs and curried slaw with fruit. In my humble opinion, the slaw recipe alone is worth the purchase price of the book, which is very modest considering the beautiful photography and excellent layout. The Gourmet Prescription is far and away the best low-carb cookbook I've seen.
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