So fortunate to have the wonderful Myrna Robins to review books for us. A foremost journalist, cook, author and cookery competition judge.
She says – As he tells us on the back cover of this hardback, Wicks created more than 100 recipes that should put a spring in our step and makes us feel good. His introduction expands on this, as he lists the benefits of healthy eating, which include increased energy levels, improved productivity, feeling calmer, sleeping better and improving our gut health.
Wicks started out as a trainer a decade ago, published his first cookbook seven years ago, and maintains that a balanced and flexible approach to eating is most sustainable and enjoyable way of living.
In this title he has focussed on simple recipes that are mostly quickly cooked and kept them affordable. The recipes are preceded by several pages of advice on healthier eating. He analyses the main classes of nutrients, why we need them and follows with a list of ingredients we should stock, and the benefits they afford us.
Recipes start with breakfast and brunch ideas and include many you would expect, as in smoothies and others that are more original such as baked porridge carrot cake. A chapter on snacks is followed by salads and light meals while the comfort food chapter contains warming ideas for winter suppers.
In the main courses, as expected, meat is reduced and veggies increased while the finale of sweet treats range from mango, coconut and lime sorbet for sultry days to chocolate mousse with sweet potato as an unexpected ingredient.
They all add up to a great collection of nutritious fare that is neither vegetarian, vegan, nor fat-free, but includes a range of ingredients from every food category. Even some that is processed, normally a dirty word – but think canned beans and pulses, frozen vegetables and you will agree, these are health-giving ingredients. Some recipes are similar to others, which is not surprising given the large number packed into this title.
I find the hyperbole preceding every recipe unnecessary – they are all winners or yummy, or amazing, etc – and I do think that more than 50 photographs of the author (yes five oh) is overdoing the PR stuff. While those with his family are great, the endless portraits of chef Wicks are repetitious and somewhat aggravating.
With all the emphasis on healthy food that makes us feel good, I find it surprising that he never recommends the benefits of using free-range eggs and meat.
FEEL GOOD FOOD by Joe Wicks. Published by Harper Collins Publishers, Dublin, 2022.
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