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I’m really good at being a picky eater. That’s been true my whole life. There are certain foods that I never eat and ingredients I always avoid. But, I’m not good at counting calories. I have no idea at all how many calories I consume in a day. I’m completely in favor of eating on the light side, choosing whole grains over refined flour when possible, and minimizing my sugar intake. So, it’s handy to have a good cookbook for lightened up dishes with lists of how many calories, and specifically what types of calories, are in recipes. Virginia Willis’s latest book, Lighten Up, Y'all , does just that, and I received a review copy. This book takes several classic Southern dishes and reworks them into lighter versions. Every recipe has information about total calories per serving and how many grams of fat, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein there are. Saturated fats have been reduced and at least partially replaced by unsaturated, sodium has been cut, and sugar quantities have been slash...

"Delegate almost to the point of abdication" - Warren Buffet I have worked with numerous leaders at all levels and have seen the best and worst practices in how they delegate or they don’t. Here are my 10 principles of delegation that I practice and advocate based on the lessons I have learned by being on both ends of the spectrum. 1. Delegating is not simply about asking someone to do something for you; it’s about setting expectations on desired outcome and offering to help. 2. Delegating does not mean being a slacker but shifting focus instead on right things; as a leader, more often than not, doing right things is more important than doing things right. 3. Delegating something that you typically won’t is the best way to empower your employees; all other empowering talk is cheap. 4. Never take credit for what you delegate; in fact never take credit for anything that you accomplish. 5. Delegation leads to transparency; most employees struggle to get a bigger picture and ...

I have to warn you, I’m going to gush a bit here. A new book has come along that’s not only about one of my most favorite food topics but is also full of interesting information I’d never read before on the subject. The book is Pasta by Hand by Jenn Louis, and I received a review copy. Even Mario Batali, who wrote the foreword, hadn’t tasted or heard of several of the recipes in this book. Now to explain, the “pasta” in the title refers to traditional handmade dumplings or variations on gnocchi from different regions in Italy. Jenn Louis researched the topic at her home in Portland and then traveled from region to region in Italy to learn everything she could about dumpling making. In Italy, these handmade morsels of dough are always called gnocchi with some regionally specific names for certain shapes. For Italians, the word dumpling is thought of only in terms of Chinese-style stuffed dough shapes. However, gnocchi translated to English is dumplings. Whether it’s pasta, gnocchi, dum...

These days it’s becoming more and more likely that when you bring baked goods to a party or other event, you’ll encounter several guests who need to know what ingredients were used and if they need to avoid the item in question. I’ve been trying to bring optional offerings to events when possible like gluten free, dairy free, vegan, etc. The latest book from Gesine Bullock-Prado will make this much easier. Let Them Eat Cake is another treat-filled, fun book just like all her others, but this time, every single recipe also has three additional variations to make it vegan, gluten free, or healthier. I received a review copy. Vegan versions, obviously, replace all animal products with plant-based ingredients. So, eggs are replaced with flaxseed meal or a vegan egg replacer product, honey is replaced with agave syrup, and butter is replaced with a vegan butter substitute. Gluten free versions swap out wheat flour for other varieties, and the liquid quantities may change. For the healthier...