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CNN Saturday Morning News

Marilu's Menus

Aired November 02, 2002 - 09:22   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: We know, we know. That's all of Halloween candy, keeps staring you right in the face, doesn't it? With the big eating season looming, though, it's Marilu Henner to the rescue with her newest book, "Healthy Holidays."
Marilu, thanks for being here today. We do appreciate it. Actually joining us from New York, of course.

MARILU HENNER, AUTHOR, "HEALTHY HOLIDAYS": Right.

COLLINS: And I had a chance to look at your book, and it's great because there's not -- it's not just a book of recipes. In, there's a little history in there...

HENNER: Oh, no.

COLLINS: ... there's some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) traditions...

HENNER: Not at all.

COLLINS: ... from your family, even some exercises.

HENNER: Oh, absolutely.

COLLINS: This is a great combination.

HENNER: Thank you. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

COLLINS: Where did the idea come from?

HENNER: I couldn't find a book that had everything in it. I wanted to do 24 holidays throughout the year, including holidays like Super Bowl Sunday, and Academy Awards, and Bastille Day, Chinese New Year, St. Patrick's Day, every ethnic holiday, and I wanted to have not only food but I wanted to have 20 elements to it, including how to make this holiday healthier, tender holiday memories, beverages, toasts, party ideas, invitations, decorations, and exercise and calorie charts that's specific to every holiday, scents for every holiday, music, movies, ethnic traditions, a kids' section, and a couples' section.

Because I like to be a full-service host. And I thought this way, I give a lot of people -- people a lot of options.

COLLINS: I didn't know the Academy Awards was an official holiday.

HENNER: Well, I live in Hollywood.

COLLINS: This is news to me.

HENNER: No, but, you know, any excuse to throw a party. I grew up in a very colorful family in Chicago, and we were always celebrating everything. And what was happening is, even as a kid, I found myself overeating, my uniform was always tight in January. As a grownup, I was always putting on that typical seven to nine pounds, and in January I was a mess.

And I thought, if I could just incorporate some little healthy tips throughout my holidays, I won't fall apart, and also if I improve the quality of my food, I won't fall apart as well.

COLLINS: So let's talk about that, Marilu. I think that if I served up anything other than the standard turkey, sweet potatoes and marshmallows on top...

HENNER: No, but...

COLLINS: ... pumpkin pie, all of that, my family would look at me like I was nuts...

HENNER: I have all of that. No, no, no. I have all of that in the book. In fact, Thanksgiving, I have the -- a great turkey and stuffing recipe. I have pecan sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie and everything else. The only thing I don't have is, I don't have refined sugar, I don't have red meat, and I don't have dairy products. So those are the three health robbers I've eliminated from the program.

But I have great substitutions and healthier substitutes, things like date sugar and barley malt and maple syrup and Sucanat and everything else. So you still have sweets, but it's all more the legal sugars, not those ones, you know, not the sugar that will, you know -- not the kiddie cocaine that I keep talking about. Especially the last few days with Halloween. Oh, my gosh, kids are out of control.

COLLINS: Indeed. And some parents, too. I mean...

HENNER: Oh, and some parents.

COLLINS: Not that that would be me. But I'm looking at your Thanksgiving area real quick, because, of course, that is the next holiday coming up. So we want to look at that. And...

HENNER: Right.

O'BRIEN: ... is it right? I'm looking at the pumpkin pie, of course, and seeing...

HENNER: Pumpkin pie.

COLLINS: ... maple sugar. So that's one of the...

HENNER: Yes. COLLINS: ... things you're talking about as far as...

HENNER: Because that's more like...

COLLINS: ... alternatives, right?

HENNER: That's more like a food. It's not, it's not, you know, cooked in cow bones, it's not bleached, it's not processed in a certain way, it's not -- it doesn't have that same, like -- it doesn't make you crazy. It's definitely sweet and it's definitely a pleasure food, but it's not going to spike your insulin the way -- the same way that the refined sugar will.

COLLINS: All right. Marilu Henner, we thank you so much. It's a beautiful book and a really fun read. So...

HENNER: Oh, thank you so much.

COLLINS: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

HENNER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), it's throughout the whole year, including a spa party for New Year's Day, in, you know, in case you want to detox at the end of the holiday season.

COLLINS: Yes, there you go. A little detoxing is nice (UNINTELLIGIBLE) New Year's.

HENNER: Absolutely.

COLLINS: All right, thank you again. The name of the book is "Healthy Holidays." So we do appreciate it, and we hope you have an excellent holiday, Marilu. Thanks again.

HENNER: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired November 2, 2002 - 09:22   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: We know, we know. That's all of Halloween candy, keeps staring you right in the face, doesn't it? With the big eating season looming, though, it's Marilu Henner to the rescue with her newest book, "Healthy Holidays."
Marilu, thanks for being here today. We do appreciate it. Actually joining us from New York, of course.

MARILU HENNER, AUTHOR, "HEALTHY HOLIDAYS": Right.

COLLINS: And I had a chance to look at your book, and it's great because there's not -- it's not just a book of recipes. In, there's a little history in there...

HENNER: Oh, no.

COLLINS: ... there's some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) traditions...

HENNER: Not at all.

COLLINS: ... from your family, even some exercises.

HENNER: Oh, absolutely.

COLLINS: This is a great combination.

HENNER: Thank you. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

COLLINS: Where did the idea come from?

HENNER: I couldn't find a book that had everything in it. I wanted to do 24 holidays throughout the year, including holidays like Super Bowl Sunday, and Academy Awards, and Bastille Day, Chinese New Year, St. Patrick's Day, every ethnic holiday, and I wanted to have not only food but I wanted to have 20 elements to it, including how to make this holiday healthier, tender holiday memories, beverages, toasts, party ideas, invitations, decorations, and exercise and calorie charts that's specific to every holiday, scents for every holiday, music, movies, ethnic traditions, a kids' section, and a couples' section.

Because I like to be a full-service host. And I thought this way, I give a lot of people -- people a lot of options.

COLLINS: I didn't know the Academy Awards was an official holiday.

HENNER: Well, I live in Hollywood.

COLLINS: This is news to me.

HENNER: No, but, you know, any excuse to throw a party. I grew up in a very colorful family in Chicago, and we were always celebrating everything. And what was happening is, even as a kid, I found myself overeating, my uniform was always tight in January. As a grownup, I was always putting on that typical seven to nine pounds, and in January I was a mess.

And I thought, if I could just incorporate some little healthy tips throughout my holidays, I won't fall apart, and also if I improve the quality of my food, I won't fall apart as well.

COLLINS: So let's talk about that, Marilu. I think that if I served up anything other than the standard turkey, sweet potatoes and marshmallows on top...

HENNER: No, but...

COLLINS: ... pumpkin pie, all of that, my family would look at me like I was nuts...

HENNER: I have all of that. No, no, no. I have all of that in the book. In fact, Thanksgiving, I have the -- a great turkey and stuffing recipe. I have pecan sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie and everything else. The only thing I don't have is, I don't have refined sugar, I don't have red meat, and I don't have dairy products. So those are the three health robbers I've eliminated from the program.

But I have great substitutions and healthier substitutes, things like date sugar and barley malt and maple syrup and Sucanat and everything else. So you still have sweets, but it's all more the legal sugars, not those ones, you know, not the sugar that will, you know -- not the kiddie cocaine that I keep talking about. Especially the last few days with Halloween. Oh, my gosh, kids are out of control.

COLLINS: Indeed. And some parents, too. I mean...

HENNER: Oh, and some parents.

COLLINS: Not that that would be me. But I'm looking at your Thanksgiving area real quick, because, of course, that is the next holiday coming up. So we want to look at that. And...

HENNER: Right.

O'BRIEN: ... is it right? I'm looking at the pumpkin pie, of course, and seeing...

HENNER: Pumpkin pie.

COLLINS: ... maple sugar. So that's one of the...

HENNER: Yes. COLLINS: ... things you're talking about as far as...

HENNER: Because that's more like...

COLLINS: ... alternatives, right?

HENNER: That's more like a food. It's not, it's not, you know, cooked in cow bones, it's not bleached, it's not processed in a certain way, it's not -- it doesn't have that same, like -- it doesn't make you crazy. It's definitely sweet and it's definitely a pleasure food, but it's not going to spike your insulin the way -- the same way that the refined sugar will.

COLLINS: All right. Marilu Henner, we thank you so much. It's a beautiful book and a really fun read. So...

HENNER: Oh, thank you so much.

COLLINS: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

HENNER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), it's throughout the whole year, including a spa party for New Year's Day, in, you know, in case you want to detox at the end of the holiday season.

COLLINS: Yes, there you go. A little detoxing is nice (UNINTELLIGIBLE) New Year's.

HENNER: Absolutely.

COLLINS: All right, thank you again. The name of the book is "Healthy Holidays." So we do appreciate it, and we hope you have an excellent holiday, Marilu. Thanks again.

HENNER: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com