Crazy Plates

by Janet Podleski, Greta Podleski, Ted Martin (Illustrator)

Janet and Greta Podleski, also known as The Looneyspoons Sisters, are the high-energy authors of the low-fat cookbook Looneyspoons and its follow-up, Crazy Plates . But to call these sisters cookbook authors may be a they're more like a wacky comedy team touring Hoboken doing the low-fat-zealot routine for admiring audiences. No, Crazy Plates is not just about low-fat recipes. There's much, much more here, including fat facts (a pound of body fat--representative of 3,500 calories--if shaped into a ball, would be the size of a softball and equal four sticks of butter), "Trivial Tidbits" (baking soda used to be added to the water for boiling vegetables until it was discovered that it destroyed the veggies' vitamin C), "You Do the Math" (substituting Canadian bacon for the regular high-fat stuff once a week for a year will cut your fat intake by 1,196 grams), and a lot of corny humor ("Did you hear what happened to the peanut when he walked through the park? He was a salted"). Then there are the recipes--accompanied, of course, by cartoons--like Salmon Davis Jr., broiled salmon steaks in a spicy tomato sauce; Mercedes Buns, cinnamon rolls with less than three grams of fat per serving; My Yammi Spice, oven-baked fries with cumin, paprika, and oregano; and Berry Maniloaf, a lemon and raspberry bread loaf with 161 calories per slice. The recipes are well laid out, not time-consuming, aimed at the home cook with a family to feed, and will please the palate of those wanting gourmet fare without the fat. But how do the Podleski sisters accomplish this rare feat? Spices are an essential ingredient of many Name That Tuna Salad, for example, gets its character from basil, mint, garlic, and Dijon mustard--with no help from that scary sidekick, mayo! This is a book for anyone who wants to cut back on fat without losing flavor, and for those that like a little slapstick with their flapjacks (Peter Pancakes, with bananas and strawberry sauce). --Stefanie Durbin

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food, Canada, Reference

Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Evelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is more than a cookbook, it is chock full of food facts, myths explained, exercise tips and puns. So many puns. Some had me singing along in my head and some had me groaning.
This book is no longer in print. The sisters pulled it off the market and re-jigged many of the recipes due to updated science. I really respect them for doing that, considering the book was still a strong seller at the time.
Many delicious dishes here, and several that you know could be improved by adding a big dab of fat!

[Maki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and inventive ideas.

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this much more than the original Looneyspoons. The tidbits and facts were really interesting, the humour well placed, and more of the recipes resonated with me.

I make an effort to read cookbooks from cover to cover, and my trick to accomplish this is to keep it in the bathroom. Good short lengths to read/scan for the purpose of your visit while also keeping you off your phone.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great recipes, and very entertaining format - dish names are heavy on puns "Rolling Scones", "Forrest Gumbo", "Mercedes Buns", "Do The Coco Motion Cheesecake", etc. Lots of food trivia interspersed in the pages.

The Crazy Plates franchise was enormously popular when it first came out in 1999. Sequel books were also released.

Canadian written and produced, I highly recommend Crazy Plates, which also provides nutritional breakdown (calories, sodium, etc.) for each dish.

[Libby Stoker-Lavelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic cookbook - the only downfall is that there aren't any pictures (besides those on the covers). But I have loved every single recipe I've made from this. Chocolate zucchini bread, stacked quesadilla, everything is delicious. I love all of the sidebar comments, jokes and notes throughout the book (although some people might find this makes each page too busy). My friend Nomi recommended this cookbook and it has served me well.

['Nathan Burgoine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sequel to "Loony-Spoons," this was a Complimentary Copy that these wonderful ladies shipped to every staff of the then-Chapter's company. I've used mine a bit here and there (and certainly recommend "The Rolling Scones," and other such punny dishes). The recipes are easy enough, the end result is tasty, and not quite as fat, salt, and sugar laden as many cookbooks.

[*Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the cookbooks I use often. The Podleski sisters teamed up and made this book and another called Looney Spoons. They contain favorite recipes that are tweaked a bit to make them more healthy. They all are given "punny" names (i.e. "Just for the Halibut") and the descriptions are all written to give you a little laugh. The recipes are good too. I would recommend this one.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

The names are goofy and funny! it looks more like a comic book than a cookbook, but the food ideas are delicious! Lots of recipes that would be great for entertaining (hey, perhaps even for a Book Club). I have made the Berry Maniloaf, which is a lemon raspberry loaf. It tastes AWESOME!!!

[Rexanna Ipock-Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book proves dieting does not have to be humorless. I laughed while I fixed some great food.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

cute and informational

[Belknits · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be fair, I haven't used this book as much as the other two by the same authors, so maybe it deserves more stars - I just haven't tasted it yet!

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this one up at the library last night. It's a cute book with lots of fun facts. The recipe names are cute. I only bookmarked a couple to try.

[Lbaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Low fat and great ideas but a little too cutesy and some of the recipes have been lowered sodium, lowered fat into no flavour.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love these authors and their fun, informative and delicious recipes!
Just wish there were pictures!

[JUDI · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good suggestions but too many ingredients required for the recipes. I am a simple cook and these were more complicated than I like.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorites for weekday meals.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even if you never cooked anything from this book, you would probably love it.

[Julie Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Looneyspoons cookbooks are amazing.
Only 1 dish in that I didn't enjoy.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, like Looneyspoons, lots of recipe ideas.

[Bookerkc]

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