Now Eat This!: 150 of America's Favorite Comfort Foods, All Under 350 Calories »

Rocco DiSpirito grew up in Jamaica, Queens, where his mother Nicolina worked in a school cafeteria and taught her son great Italian home cooking. He entered the Culinary Institute of America at age seventeen and, upon graduation, went straight to work in the kitchens of France. He returned to the United States and earned a business degree from Boston University in 1989. He opened his first restaurant, Union Pacific, which earned three stars in "The New York Times" and landed him on the cover of "Gourmet" magazine.

FRIED CHICKEN, MACARONI AND CHEESE, BROWNIES, AND 147 OTHER FAVORITE RECIPES UNDER 350 CALORIES
 
In this delectable cookbook, award-winning chef Rocco DiSpirito transforms America’s favorite comfort foods into deliciously healthy dishes—all with zero bad carbs, zero bad fats, zero sugar, and maximum flavor. What’s more, Rocco provides time-saving shortcuts, helpful personal advice, and nutritional breakdowns for each recipe from a board-certified nutritionist. So prepare your favorite foods without the guilt. Finally, a world-class chef has made healthy food taste great!

Library Journal

Celebrity chef DiSpirito (Rocco Gets Real), a frequent guest judge on The Biggest Loser and Top Chef, shares "Can't-Live-Without Ingredients" from cauliflower (an excellent replacement for white potatoes), Dijon mustard, and egg whites to fresh herbs, garlic, and Greek yogurt (instead of butter). Each recipe lists fat and calories compared with the average fat and calories for the traditional dish. Lower-calorie brownies, gravy, spaghetti and meatballs, and beef stroganoff will delight readers who have been avoiding favorite foods. DiSpirito does well what Marlene Koch's Eat What You Love attempts, and his name will draw interest.