The Healthy Firehouse Cookbook: Low-Fat Recipes from America's Fire Fighters - Hardcover

Bonanno, Joseph T.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 068812755X ISBN 13: 9780688127558

Publisher: Hearst Books, 1995

Synopsis

A New York City fire fighter and fitness trainer presents more than two hundred recipes that emphasize healthy, wholesome, and low-fat cookery from firefighters across the country

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

As early as 1923, firehouse cooking had begun to win a favorable reputation in the United States for the enormous, hearty, unpretentious meals that are its trademark. As medical research about diet and stress continued to implicate high-cholesterol and high-fat foods, many firefighters began to realize that their professions alone put them at high risk for early mortality?why not fight the odds of a diet-linked cancer or illness? "I accepted that I could die in a fire," writes Bonanno, a native New Yorker and firefighter, "but I didn't want to die from injuries sustained at the kitchen table." Over time, Bonanno modified many of the traditional firehouse recipes, developing a low-fat aesthetic that was slowly embraced by his fellow firefighters. His book collects these revisionary efforts, plus those of like-minded cooks from fire departments across the U.S. Delicious and simple, the recipes feature lots of carbohydrates and fresh produce. No back-of-the-box standbys here: look instead for sophisticated pairings, such as balsamic vinegar and shallots to heighten the flavor of pan-seared chicken, and cucumber cumin salad dressing, where the pureed vegetables and yogurt replace the traditional oil and vinegar. Bonanno's voice is sensible, direct and slyly humorous. The nine chapters are leavened with quips, jokes and historical notes on America's firefighting traditions, amid recipes for breakfasts, salads, soups, stews, pasta and rice, fish and seafood, poultry and meat, pizza and bread, side dishes and desserts. A key reason to buy this book for someone setting up a household for the first time is the in-depth discussion of fire safety in the kitchen. "More fires start in the kitchen than anywhere else in the house," the author observes, elaborating on safe cooking techniques that may surprise even old hands. Photos not seen by PW. Author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist:

In what's bound to be a much-requested title in the public library, New York City firefighter Bonanno has collected more than 200 recipes--beyond the borough of Manhattan--that still answer the call for filling meat-and-potatoes-like dishes. Contributors are acknowledged; nutritional content is divulged for each recipe. Among the firehouse favorites are buttermilk apple bran muffins, South Bronx turkey salad, three-decade tortellini soup, class-A Alfredo, shepherd's pie, Idaho tacos, and chocolate rice pudding. Bonanno not only tells a few ladder-company practical jokes, but also includes more serious looks at kitchen safety and fire-fighting lingo. Barbara Jacobs

About this edition

• Publisher: Hearst Books
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 068812755X
• ISBN 13: 9780688127558
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 312