Are celebrity cook books making us fat?

WOMAN eats nothing but celebrity recipes for a week. It’s not just her waistline that balloons.

Jamie oliver

WE'RE inundated with cooking shows and recipes from big-name chefs who have turned themselves into TV stars. But how healthy is it to cook like a celebrity chef? Will cooking and eating the dishes created by the experts for a week mean I balloon to Matt Preston-like proportions (before his recent dieting efforts, which I'm guessing he avoided celeb cookbooks for)?

In body+soul this week, Victoria Hannaford put celebrity recipes to the test with a week preparing and eating dinners out of celebrity cookbooks.

Here's what happened:

When it comes to my usual cooking, I'm a fan of a one-pot wonder, and eat vegetables and pulses along with lean cuts of meat.

But for one week, I'm going to cook dishes devised by some big names. I hunt down recipes and invite my friends over to sample the dinners. I also enlist the help of body+soul nutritionist Lisa Guy to give her verdict on the meals.

Before I get started, however, there's the shopping. It takes an hour longer than my usual whip around the supermarket.  When I hit the dairy section, I find my hand passing over the low-fat yoghurt and reaching for the double cream - and have a moment of horror when I check out the fat content.

The final grocery bill is much bigger than usual; I end up spending about three times more than my normal weekly shop.

Taste-testing

When I get cracking on Gary Mehigan's Tuscan beef stew, I suddenly realise it has a whopping 1.15 kilos of meat - and this recipe is designed to serve four! My friends love the dish, but baulk at the pancetta and its visible fat lining.

I have a serious Nigella moment on Tuesday as I pour double cream into her Mughlai chicken curry.

Gordon Ramsay's macaroni cheese on Wednesday is a total shocker. Loaded with cheese and cream, most of it goes uneaten when we see the pools of oil gathering in the base of the baking dish.

Kylie Kwong's omelette with sweet and sour tomato sauce is simple, but manages to impress.

Stephanie Alexander's chickpea salad is the closest to something I'd usually make - and it's one of the easiest to prepare, with a simple list of ingredients.

Jamie Oliver's tomato and chorizo salad is also a big hit, although my guests refuse the recommended sides of Spanish ham, goat's cheese and bread.

On Sunday there's the baked Italian sausage dish from Bill Granger. I look at it going into the oven and feel pretty certain it's loaded with fat. My friend Kym eyes it with suspicion.

"It's got sausage, bread and potato; it's a bit stodgy," he says, and pokes his food. "I think I'm going to die at this table." After a week's worth of rich food, I'm starting to feel the same way.

The verdict

Body+soul nutritionist Lisa Guy ranks the dishes Victoria cooked in order of healthiness and offers advice for making them healthier.

Jamie Oliver: Best Chorizo and Tomato Salad in the World
Calories: 355
Fat: 29g
Saturated fat: 9g
Lisa says: "Adding bread, ham and cheese to this meal would have added 283 calories per serve (for a total of 640). You could also lower the saturated fat content by choosing a low-fat sausage. As it stands, the tomatoes in this dish are an excellent source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant."
My reaction: I assumed this would have more fat, but I think my guests and I dodged a calorie bullet by refusing to eat it with the recommended sides.

Nigella Lawson: Mughlai chicken curry
Calories: 562
Fat: 33g
Saturated fat: 8g
Lisa says: "This dish is a good source of protein (thanks to the chicken), but you could definitely use a low-fat yoghurt in place of all that cream - and Greek yoghurt would be helpful to lower saturated fat content even further."
My reaction: I'm surprised this one wasn't higher in fat and calories. It wasn't my favourite dish, though - there wasn't a vegetable in sight.
Gary Mehigan: Tuscan beef stew
Calories: 1009
Fat: 64g
Saturated fat: 20g
Lisa says: "If you eat the recommended serving of crusty bread, it'll add another 184 calories per serve. The potatoes provide complex carbohydrates, so you don't need it. It also has the second highest saturated-fat content per serve, but it's a good source of protein. The olive oil is healthy to cook with as it won't turn into a harmful trans fat when heated."
My reaction: I'm totally shocked. I had no idea it would be so laden with calories.

Stephanie Alexander: Chickpea salad with broccoli and goat's cheese
Calories: 319
Fat: 16g
Saturated fat: 4g
Lisa says: "This is the healthiest meal here. It contains chickpeas, which are an excellent low-fat protein source, high in fibre, B vitamins and iron. The broccoli has many health benefits such as helping the liver detox, as well as being rich in vitamins and minerals."
My reaction: I'm not surprised. This dish was one of my favourites and I can see myself making it on a regular basis.

Bill Granger: Baked Italian sausages
Calories: 763
Fat: 47g
Saturated fat: 14g
Lisa says: "This dish had the third highest calorie and fat content per serve, but it also uses healthy olive oil which is beneficial for cardiovascular health.
For a healthier take, you could substitute a low-fat sausage to lower saturated fat content too."
My reaction: This was the least favourite among my guests, and to be honest, I wasn't a big fan either.

Kylie Kwong: Omelette with sweet and sour tomato sauce
Calories: 637
Fat: 58g
Saturated fat: 8g
Lisa says: "This dish contains a lot of vegetable oil, and you could also reduce the peanut oil content to lower the fat content. The omelette is a great source of protein and zinc, for a strong immune system, and the garlic and ginger in this dish will help boost circulation."
My reaction: I like this dish a lot - it's a great twist on the humble omelette. As tasty as it was, I'd definitely take Lisa's advice.

Gordon Ramsay: Macaroni cheese
Calories: 884
Fat: 58g
Saturated fat: 32g
Lisa says: "This is my least favourite based on nutritional value. It contains saturated-fat-rich double cream, butter and two types of cheese, and white pasta that is low in fibre. Too many of these kinds of fats in the diet can lead to high cholesterol, weight gain and cardiovascular disease."
My reaction: I had no idea you could transform macaroni cheese into a less healthy dish, but apparently you can - I feel a bit ill even thinking about it.

Craving more? Read about the latest celebrity diet fads in Body+soul