This is the third book that nutritional therapist Barbara
Cousins has published. The first in the trilogy Cooking Without was a self-published recipe guide for her growing client
base of people who were dumbfounded by a diet free of gluten, wheat, sugar, yeast
and dairy. The second book focussed entirely on free from recipes for a vegetarian
diet and this final instalment aims to take all she has learned in her own
journey but also that of her clients and make it easy and accessible.
The book begins with an in depth introduction complete with
case-histories and examples of people healing their health conditions through
improving and refining their diets. All useful and inspirational stuff... It is
when she delves into the dreaded ‘detoxification’ realm that I lose the ability
to pay attention. Many nutritionists put great emphasis on the need for detoxification
to help the body rid itself of toxins, something that medically is unproven,
often falsely marketed, expensive and even exploitative. However, pushing
through my cynicism I read on and discovered that Cousins, far from referring
to detoxification as a physical process, sees it holistically. Predominantly
for her it is an emotional and spiritual process. Detoxification for Cousins is
about ridding yourself of unhelpful childhood beliefs, trauma, low self esteem
and confusion. What a relief! She believes that if we are carrying around
unresolved pain and negative coping strategies we are bound to have food problems,
be they digestive or psychologically linked to food. This may not apply to
allergies specifically but is well recognised in relation to intolerances, IBS,
emotional eating, eating disorders and food phobias. The introduction is
somewhat of an invitation to those who are experimenting with a free from diet
to see what it can do for them holistically.
The cookbook itself is comprehensive and detailed but when
Barbara says something is simple, she means it. Some of the ‘recipes’ are no
more than a vegetable with a dressing on it or fruit with a coulis, no
gastronomic genius needed to work that out on your own really, but other
options are very creative and helpful. A variety of patés, summer and winter soups
and salads make for new and interesting lunch options whereas larger meals from
many cuisines are sumptuous dinner dishes. I can get bored of eating very
simple meals that are easy to transport to work and this book has made me look
forward to packed lunches again.
All recipes are portioned for two people, easy to halve if
you are cooking for one (as I so often have to) or simple to double if you are
catering for more.
For me the highlights of the book are the things I can’t buy
ready-made like Thai curry paste, quiche and creamy risottos, things that can
taste pretty awful without dairy, wheat or a flair for cooking.
Verdict: 7/10
Where the book bothers to provide a recipe for egg and
chips, omelette and filled baked potato I roll my eyes... these things I can do
by myself and find mildly patronising, but on the whole I think the book is a
useful addition to any free from kitchen shelf, perhaps more than most because
of Barbara’s compassion and genuine desire to make life easier is her
motivation. The lack of pictures is a bit boring but it kept the price to £10.99
and I cannot complain too much about that!
To buy the book on amazon click here
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