Eating natural whole-foods, in their raw and unmodified state, is one step towards eating right. Celebrating seasonal produce, is another. Adopting age-old production methods, and experimenting with foreign traditional foods and recipes, is a third. It is all part of enjoying and getting the most from your food. That is what Nick Barnard's 'Eat Right' is all about.
Nick is the co-founder of Rude Health - a brand that regular blog readers will be familiar with. Their ethos is around the best possible natural products, which make the most of whole-grains, nuts, seeds and fruit; through a range of snacks, drinks and cereals. 'Eat Right' takes things one step further, and expands its reach to what you can achieve with ancient natural ingredients like milk, raw veg and ancient grains. Whether it is the wonders of butter and cheese, or the benefits of Sauerkraut; you are sure to learn something new.
The book doubles as an educational reference, in the benefits of certain food groups from all over the world; as well as a recipe book, giving ideas on how you could integrate these foods into your diet.
A particular favourite feature of mine from the pages of 'Eat Right', which demonstrates the beauty of this book, is the piece on Kimchi omelettes. Kimchi is a pickled cabbage from Korea, which to most will sound like a fairly uninteresting and perhaps even unappetising food group. However, Nick Barnard convinces you to experiment... He does so by providing an in-depth dive into the benefits of Kimchi "it is low in calories and high in fibre, rich in vitamin C and carotene, vitamins A, B1 and B2, and calcium and, of course, alive with highly beneficial lactic acid bacteria." Then, he provides a recipe for Kimichi omlettes, as well as instruction on how to make your own Kimichi. You are left with an urge to experiment with this interesting food group of pickled vegetables; certainly an urge that I haven't had before...
I have experimented with a number of the recipes from 'Eat Right', and I've enjoyed them all. My top recommendations for hungry cyclists includes the Sprouted Spelt Berry Muffins, and the Seedy Energy Balls. The muffins aren't too sweet, and they are a relatively low-fat cake option (everyone needs cake!). The energy balls make use of the much touted Tahini, combined with nuts, seeds and fruit, to provide a tasty high-energy, high-protein snack.
If you're looking for some new ideas for healthy, seasonal recipes; or you're keen to learn more about the benefits of natural ingredients, raw vegetables, pickles and traditional preserves; Eat Right is a very good read.
Check out my other Rude Health blog posts and recipes here (Link)
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| The Sprouted Spelt Muffins proved to be a great, not too sweet snack, for my NF200 Challenge |
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| Flapjacks are always popular, and this is a great recipe in Eat Right |
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| This is one on my list of recipes to try - it looks like a great summer recovery dish! |