FRESH From Lake Austin Spa Resort

Award Winning Cookbook Reflects Concepts from the Kitchen

AUSTIN, TX - The newest wave of trendy diets does not reveal anything revolutionary to Chef Terry Conlan.  After 16 years as the award-winning executive chef at Lake Austin Spa Resort, Chef Conlan still takes all the latest food gimmicks and, rather unceremoniously, tosses them aside.  He does what he enjoys most-creating innovative, healthy cuisine that is deliciously satisfying and, above all, made from the freshest ingredients available.  This is evidenced in his award-winning cookbook, FRESH: Healthy Living from Lake Austin Spa Resort.

Chef Conlan's simple philosophy about food-keep it fresh, reduce the fat and make it flavorful-helped draw attention to Lake Austin Spa Resort at a time when other spas still insisted on doling out meager portions and policing calories.  He insists on presenting guests with a range of enticing choices that reflect the wonderfully rich and diverse regional cuisines of the Southwest, Mexico, Caribbean, Mediterranean and Asia. 

"The problem with the concept of spa cuisine, at least as it is generally perceived, is that it's just too limiting to take us where we want to go, which is everywhere, and to let us eat what we want to eat, which is everything," Chef Conlan writes in his cookbook, FRESH.

FRESH, a finalist in the International Association of Culinary Professionals 2004 Cookbook Awards in the health and special diet category, features more than 200 healthy recipes from the kitchens of Lake Austin Spa Resort.  Chef Conlan, a self-described "foodie," explains his own sensible approach by proclaiming that the possibilities of healthy, genuinely satisfying eating are almost limitless. That results in an eclectic, seemingly unlimited menu for guests.  Dishes on the Lake Austin Spa Resort menu include diverse, appetizing options such as Wild Mushroom Pizza with Truffle Oil, Duck Confit with Pickled Red Onion and Roquefort Crumbles, Bleu Cheese Stuffed Beef Tenderloin with Blackberry Demi-Glace, Smoked Salmon Filet with Indian Corn Pudding and Cranberry Gastrique, and Roasted Chicken with Sage and Citrus.  And for vegetarians, only in Texas do they find Chicken-Fried Portobello Mushroom Steak with Roasted Garlic Mashers and Cream Gravy. 

Devoted guests of the resort have long marveled at the excellent gourmet cuisine served here.  The lessons learned in the dining room and from Chef Conlan's cooking demonstrations encourage mindful eating habits that are nutritionally balanced and varied in presentation and taste. 

Even dessert isn't forbidden here.  Indulgence seems necessary when a warm cup of Double-Chocolate Cappuccino Pudding Cake tempts you with only four grams of fat.  The ingenious kitchen staff also lightens up other traditional favorites such as Sweet Potato Pie, Chocolate Mousse Pie, Crème Brûlée and Blueberry Cobbler (topped with a dollop of frozen yogurt, of course) to the point that there's no reason to feel guilty for having dessert.

Dining at the resort, whether in the main dining room or the Aster Café in the LakeHouse Spa, commands a celebration that Chef Conlan lists as a key ingredient for healthy eating.  Friendly conversation bounces around the tables at breakfast, lunch and dinner.  The feast of senses that began with the food continues as guests linger into the twilight before making their way to a book discussion, to the spa for a relaxing massage or onto the dock for a moment of solitary stargazing.

FRESH: Healthy Cooking and Living from Lake Austin Spa Resort ($30, published 2003) is available by calling 1-800-847-5637, or by visiting lakeaustin.com.

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