This is not a weight-loss book, but rather a collection of wonderfully delicious recipes to prepare every day in your own kitchen. Simmons has trimmed the fat from these down-home favorites, and throughout the book Richard shares his "Farewell To Fat" wisdom, which has helped so many people to get down the pounds - millions, in fact.
Before Simmons jumps into his favorite subject, the recipes, he tells all in chapter 1, "Welcome to My Kitchen." Here he describes the six basic kinds of eaters (he's two of them); the Three Fat Sisters; his Holy Trinity (Sacred Fat, Sacred Sweet, and Sacred Salt); the Portion Patrol; deciphering the new food labels; how to use fresh spices; what basic kitchen equipment you need; and much, much more.
And then there's the food. These are recipes steeped in American tradition - dishes passed on from one generation to another, and now updated with flavorful twists from Richard's own kitchen. The recipes are easy to fix; and each one includes preparation time, a nutrition analysis with the percentage of calories from fat, and Richard's personal anecdotes about the food.
Throughout the book, Simmons offers easy-to-understand tips and special "tricks" for making everyday food fit into a healthy life plan - no complicated calculations or exotic foods, just Richard at his fun-loving best showing you how to eat well using food you already know. He tells you, among other things, how to get the fat out of food, the most effective low-fat cooking techniques, how to meet the butcher, what to do with leftover potato cooking water, and the secret of the special Simmons Roasted Garlic Potion.