Healthy mind, healthy body.

Format: Hardcover

"The Healthy Mind Cookbook" is just what it says, for the healthy minds, and for a healthy mind. I just love the simplicity of this title, and the more profound meaning to what it could mean. What we eat has such a profound impact on both body and mind. As Hippocrates said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” But enough philosophy.

First off, love the cover. It's simple. Second, the layout of this book is perfect for cookbooks. The chapters are categorized by what it is, and it's up to the reader to decide if it's an appetizer or entree or for breakfast or lunch. I frequently have breakfast foods for dinner. I love soup, so the soups chapter with 17 recipes made me happy. There's a total of 93 food recipe in this book, and additional 17 for dressings and sauces. And wait, there's more. There are 15 recipes for drinks, labeled "Tonics and Elixirs" which range from simple 'Almond Milk', to 'Mexican Hot Chocolate' and 'Brain-Berry Smoothie'. Since I just picked up a Ninja system, this is going to be really useful.

And last, but not least, the most useful part of the book is the information that Ms. Katz and Mr. Edelson put together in the first three chapters of the book. The descriptions and information put forth, were worth the time to sit and really study this cookbook. Stress, anxiety, depression, memory, cognition, learning were just some of the areas touched on with correlations to food. The "Culinary Pharmacy" of chapter 2 is a very good resource. The first three chapters have a wealth of information, and for each recipe, the nutritional facts/information were also provided. Instructions on how to store was also useful As well, I love cookbooks where someone already has included the calculations of how much calories a recipe has. I've been trying to do so with a lot of home-cooked meals, and it's so time consuming.

I’ve long been aware that foods affect both my moods and my health. Carbs put me to sleep. Sugar, in particular, makes me irritable. Go back to the Thanksgiving dinner where you just want to sleep afterwards and forget about family and friends for just a half hour. Eating a big salad with fresh organic greens, avocado and an assortment of fresh veggies makes me feel satisfied, but awake. Yes food affects you more than you may think. Nobody really has the time to do the research on their own anymore, because the information is both overwhelming and contradictory. Rebecca Katz and Mat Edelson have done it for you.. As an aging woman, I am aware that I need to be aware of things like memory, and such. This book is about detoxification, about choosing the right foods for the health of your body, and more specifically, your brain. When your brain is healthy, you have no idea what wonderful is. There is quite a list of foods and how they help the brain followed. Lots of recipes, from soup to dessert, snacks, tonics and drinks are all included. I have made a few of the salads, salsas and soups, and have not been disappointed. Don’t leave this one on the shelf!


I received this book from “Blogging for books” and the opinions are my own.