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In 1991, at the urging of her clients, registered dietitian Brenda Ponichtera compiled a collection of recipes that are both healthy and easy to prepare. After only two publishers responded to 65 letters she sent describing her manuscript, Ponichtera rounded up $15,000 and decided to publish the book herself.
Her Quick & Healthy Recipes and Ideas was such a runaway hit that Ponichtera has now published Quick & Healthy, Volume II, which includes recipes, five weeks of menus, weekly shopping lists, food exchanges for weight loss and diabetes, as well as a host of additional dietary tips.
Now the tables have turned: Ponichtera is saying no to editors who want to publish her books. She says that while an average cookbook sells about 25,000 copies, she has sold 300,000 copies of her first book, and has 140,000 copies in print of Quick & Healthy, Volume II.
Q: What's the secret of your success? Most people who publish their own books don't do so well.
A: Marketing. You really have to spend a lot of time and money to let people know about your book. No matter how good a book is, if nobody knows about it, they won't buy it.
Q: Why should people buy your cookbooks?
A: People are in such a hurry today that the last thing they're taking time for is meal planning and preparation. I can provide them with quick recipes and other tools, such as menus and grocery lists, so they're going to have a greater chance of being successful.
Q: How can people buy your books?
A: They're available in most bookstores. You can also order them directly from me, through ScaleDown, 1519 Hermits Way, The Dalles, OR 97058; phone,
(541) 296-5859; fax, (541) 296-1875. Add $2.50 shipping for one book and $1.00 for each additional book.
Q: What's the average preparation time of your recipes?
A: Fifteen minutes, not including cooking time. Once a dish is cooking, you can do something else.
Q: What are some of your favorite recipes in the new book?
A: Three family favorites are Roast Chicken with Vegetables, Eggplant Parmesan, and Creamy Chicken Dijon. The dijon sauce tastes sinfully rich, but uses light mayonnaise and nonfat yogurt.
Some other favorites are Black Bean Salad, Chicken Curry, Chicken Burritos, and Chicken Hungarian Goulash. The seafood and meatless sections are also full of good ideas.
Q: What makes a good quick and healthy recipe?
A: It's best to start with a high-fat, labor-intensive recipe that has been handed down from generation to generation. If I can get something like that and alter it, I usually have a winner.
Q: Do these recipes REALLY taste good? I've been dubious of healthy food ever since I had to throw out a box of chocolate-covered, no-fat donuts. They tasted like plastic.
A: They do taste good. They're triple-tested, and they're also tested on kids, which is important.
There are some really bad no-fat and low-fat products on the market, so you have to be careful. I recommend some specific brand names in the first book. For example, a lot of low-fat cheese is horrible and doesn't melt. I prefer Kraft with 1/3 less fat.
Q: Did you encounter any challenges while writing these books?
A: Sometimes there was a limit to how many recipes we could test each day because my testers can only eat so much. These recipes are so quick to put together that we really could prepare a lot in one day, but there would be too much to sample!
Q: Now that you're so busy publishing and marketing your books, is your family still eating well as they used to?
A: Everyone pitches in. My husband does most of the grocery shopping now; I still do most of the cooking. Our sons, Kevin and Kyle, also cook.
Q: What did you eat last night?
A: A stir-fry. I used onions and green peppers, and we had leftover pork tenderloins and rice.
Q: What kind of a cook are you?
A: I like to cook creatively and not necessarily follow recipes. It was a real effort to write these books because I had to measure everything. That's really not my style.
Q: If you don't like to follow recipes, do you use your books?
A: I look at the books and then kind of wing it.
Q: What's your secret vice, the one food you can't resist?
A: Snickers. I don't keep them in the house. I haven't had one for so long!
BLACK BEAN SALAD
Serve this salad as a main dish or as a side dish. Remember this recipe when planning for potluck.
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (17 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained
1 cup diced red bell pepper
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup nonfat Italian dressing
Combine all except the last ingredient. Pour dressing over mixture and toss well.
Yield: 4 cups (8 servings)
One serving: 1/2 cup
Per serving: 81 calories, 16 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams protein, 0 grams
fat; Exchanges: 1 starch
Alice Cary frequently writes for this publication and may be reached at alice_cary@bookpage.com.
©1996, ProMotion, inc.