Whether you're inviting a few friends and relatives for a weekend brunch, throwing a baby shower or a backyard barbecue, celebrating Valentine's Day, the Fourth of July, Christmas, or Hanukkah, or launching your South Beach Diet with a Phase 1 kickoff party, The South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook is filled with more than 20 menus and 150 recipes that will make every party or holiday celebration memorable.

        No need to worry about what South Beach Diet dishes go together. We take all the guesswork out of menu planning for you. Whether you're making Shrimp Salad in Cucumber Cups, Roast Turkey with all the trimmings, Crown Roast of Pork with Apple-Onion Chutney, Matzoh Ball Soup, Chicken Cassoulet, Ricotta Cheesecake, or Pumpkin Pie, you can be certain that every recipe meets the South Beach Diet guidelines for healthy eating and great taste.

        Dr. Agatston also provides plenty of practical advice about maintaining your South Beach Diet lifestyle throughout the holiday season and making the best food choices possible whatever the occasion. In addition, full-color photos provide ideas for stylish food presentation, beautiful table settings, and creative centerpieces. And for every menu there are helpful nuke-ahead tips for stress-free entertaining.

        Remember, the South Beach Diet is about living well. This book is your essential guide to preparing satisfying, delicious, and healthy meals for every special occasion.

To see some of the greatest recipes from this South Beach Diet Book in our Cooking & Recipes section, CLICK HERE

Book Reviews:

Reader # 1 from Amazon.com:The famed Miami Beach cardiologist who has helped millions of people worldwide to lose weight and eat healthier with his best-selling South Beach Diet books now addresses the special challenge that can undermine anyone's will power the irresistible lure of diet-busting dishes at festive occasions. As the more than 20 menus and 150 easy, all-new recipes in this cookbook prove, there's no need to give up favorite holiday and party dishes to stay on the South Beach Diet. Dr. Agatston explains that healthy entertaining is not a matter of deprivation, but of simply making as many good choices as possible. His new book provides those choices, putting a healthy twist on favorite entertaining meals for every occasion, whether its a family Christimas Eve dinner, a Thanksgiving feast, a Passover seder, a football fest in front of the TV, or a backyard barbeque with the neighbors.

Reader # 2 from Amazon.com:  The South Beach Diet Parties and Holidays Cookbook is an excellent addition to your cookbook collection whether you are following the program or not.

The oversized soft cover book features 150 healthy recipes. It begins with a chapter on preparing for your special time. This chapter explains simple techniques to make your occasion go smoothly. The book is divided into 2 sections. The first section covers festive parties. 10 parties ranging from a Super Bowl Bash to a Baby Shower to a Tuscan Feast.
The second section includes Holidays throughout the year Mother's Day, Christmas Eve, and Valentine's Day for example. Each occasion includes a complete menu. The Family Buffet party menu includes such fare as dogs n' dips, asparagus and ham spears, baked chicken with artichokes, south beach waldorf salad, penne with homemade sauce and banana orange pops.
Each menu includes when to start preparing. For the Family Buffet, it is suggested you make and freeze your pasta sauce up to a month ahead, make and freeze the pops up to 5 days in advance etc.

The 242 page book also includes a conversion chart at the back and mouth watering photos of the different recipes. Each recipe gives prep time, ingredients, tips, and nutrition information calories, fat, saturated fat, protein, carbs and fiber. Make ahead info is also given which is a handy feature.

The recipes in the book can also be used as regular meal fare and if you are on the program, phase 1, 2 or 3 is listed for each recipe. They are easy to prepare with easy of find ingredients. Lot's of great recipes here! Delicious and nutritious!
 

While being in the healthy foods business for many years, I have had a deaf ear to fad diets. When my husband's physician suggested he try the South Beach Diet to lose weight, I ran to the library to find out what was going on with this popular diet.

Six weeks later, my husband and I have both lost 20 pounds each, easily and effortlessly. I have several of the cookbooks and just received the parties and holidays cookbook. I look forward to trying these recipes which are different creative and flavorful spins on the way that I provide meals for my family. The recipes seem to be a cross between the many ingredients of the first cookbook to 30 minute meals with much less ingredients.

My hats off to Dr. Arthur Agatston and his contributors. Thank you libraries for carrying these books, they are changing peoples' lives.