True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple, Pure

Great healthy cooking......yum yum.....many thanks

Sam Fox is a restaurateur. Michael Stebner is an executive chef and of course Andrew Weil is a legendary health guru with international tastes and a surprising expertise in the kitchen. What they've done together aside from writing this book is found and operate True Food Kitchens, a growing chain of restaurants where the emphasis is on food that is (as in the subtitle of this book) "Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple, Pure."What this means can be discerned by going over the recipes in the book. This is not a vegan or even a vegetarian cuisine. This is an international cuisine fit for an epicurean flexitarian! The emphasis is on the fresh, bold, and organic with little meat, some chicken and a bit more fish. Many of the recipes are inspired by Weil's concept of the "Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid." There's a color photo of the "pyramid" in all its glory on page 46--no words, just the foods themselves. At the apex is chocolate (!) followed by red wine, food supplements, spices like ginger and chiles, and foods like fish, beans, avocados, mushrooms, veggies and fruits, etc. (You can see the labeled pyramid at Dr. Weil's website.) At the base of the pyramid which represents foods that should form the bulk of our diet are the veggies and fruits.Weil says that he used the Mediterranean diet as a template in his design of the pyramid. He explains that these foods and not the highly processed foods found in the stores and in most restaurants lead to less inflammation in the body and to a healthy life style. The cuisine (I'd call it an international cuisine based on healthy food choices), Weil writes, "includes fewer foods of animal origin, except for fish and high-quality dairy products like yogurt and natural cheeses." (p. 47)Yes, this is the middle way of moderation between veganism and bacon-corn syrup gluttony (if you will). Vegetarians are not going to be thrilled and vegans are going to be offended. But there are recipes for vegans dishes (e.g., Butternut Squash-Apple Soup with a cashew base on page 97) in contrast to, well, the recipe for a "Bison Umami Burger" on page 140.Dr. Weil doesn't eat beef but believes that bison is a healthy substitute. I would say, perhaps--at least for now until and if it becomes popular, and then the food producers will make it as unhealthy as commercially produced beef. There's a recipe for the (vegan) "Umami Sauce" on page 236. Key ingredients are tamari, nutritional yeast and garlic.I am writing this before dinner and wow are the recipes making me hungry! This is the perfect cook book for me since I've long followed a similar diet and much prefer cooking at home with my choice of ingredients done my way to going out to eat. But compared to the authors of this book I'm just a chef's helper with a limited range. Weil, Fox and Stebner demonstrate a deep and abiding knowledge about and love for food. We're all foodies under the skin, but some like Weil are really in another league. I've read and reviewed several of Dr. Weil's books, always favorably and always with some reservations. I'll skip the reservations here (since they are few and insignificant) and just say that I am amazed at Weil's understanding of food and his vast experience. He has clearly spent a good portion of his life experiencing food, thinking about food, eating food and cooking food! (And yes I thought he was doing yoga.)The book begins with an Introduction that is an interesting conversation about food and the restaurant business among Weil, Fox and Stebner. Next comes "The True Food Pantry," a list and description of somewhat unusual but characteristic ingredients, such as agave nectar, chiles, flax meal, tahini, etc. Then come the recipes in chapters entitled, "Breakfast," "Appetizers," "Salads," and so on to "Desserts" and "drinks." There are mini essays on such things as "True Whole Grains" (page 21) and chapter intros written by Weil or Stebner. The recipes are also introduced and/or commented upon by either Weil or Stebner identified by their initials.The book is beautifully designed and edited, full of easy to read bits of information about food and diet. The full color photos of the foods are gorgeously mouth-watering.--Well, okay, one reservation: this cuisine requires not just a love of food but the time and energy to go to good markets on almost a daily basis and to keep on hand (and fresh!) a number of specialty ingredients. I'm thinking of the pickled cucumbers, the umami sauce, the dashi sauce (requiring, e.g., kombu and bonito flakes) and a variety of chiles and of course fresh fruits and vegetables. The only way you can achieve this is to really immerse yourself in food and to love what you're doing. But I think the reward is well worth the effort because not only will you be eating healthier, you will find that you can eat reasonable amounts delicious food with relish, and because you have spent that extra energy shopping and cooking, you will have help in keeping a healthy weight.Favorite substitution: Kalamata olives for anchovies in the Vegetarian Caesar Dressing on page 233.Favorite tip: When toasting nuts realize that they are still cooking after being removed from the heat source. So as a general rule, "once you can smell the nuts, they are done." (p. 243) I learned this the hard way with sesame seeds and foraged Digger Pine nuts.In a nutshell, this is now easily my favorite cook book.--Dennis Littrell, author of "Yoga: Sacred and Profane (Beyond Hatha Yoga)"

After a while a 'yet another' book authored by one or more partners in a restaurant can begin to grate. Unless you are a devotee of that particular establishment you start to question the purpose of the book. Of course, a chef at the top of his or her game, renowned for innovation or a particular speciality can still manage to pull a rabbit out of the literary-culinary hat, but for those lower down the 'food chain'?It is unfortunate that this book brought these thoughts to a head. Here you get the considered wisdom of a partner and a chef behind 'True Food' (a U.S. restaurant that promotes its mission statement that every dish served must not only be delicious, but it must promote the diner's wellbeing) as well as a restauranteur. The end result is a fairly hefty tome that is well-illustrated and designed (in the interests of clarity it should be declared that only an electronic version of the book was made available for review).The book begins with a fairly lengthy (too lengthy?) introduction that took the form of a written discussion between the authors. This reviewer is not so sure that this really works. Then it is onto a look into the 'True Food' pantry, to explain some of the exotic ingredients used within the recipes such as coconut milk to the reader. Exotic? Then the recipes begin.Visually and superficially there is nothing to complain about. A relatively good design, wonderful photographs and a formulaic pathway throughout the book. But the overall 'feeling' or 'packaging' of this book is just not gelling with this reviewer. When you come to the recipes things are acceptable and all the core bits and pieces you would expect to find are here. A brief introduction, ingredients list, coherent and understandable instructions and great photographs. An interesting selection of recipes and then bang. Something seems to jam the gears. A boulder on the road. For example, you are happily skimming through breakfast recipes and then comes a mini lecture "Avoiding sugar, fat and salt crutches." Why there? Don't know. Valid? Possibly but why not stick all the evangelism and possible finger-waving to its own section if it is really necessary...This reviewer cannot put his finger on what is exactly wrong with this book. It is more a feeling. There is a lack of soul. Now that can sound ludicrous as if you just look at the recipes things aren't bad. But the identity and inner soul of the book appear to be confused, not so defined. It isn't, or shouldn't be, a cultural thing either. There isn't anything to criticise production-wise either. All the important boxes are ticked and many things would receive five YUMs (photographs, general layout, etc). But just still the soul is missing. Perhaps this is more enhanced as the book appears to give the impression of being just MORE than a collection of recipes. Here is a premium product but it just is not fully delivering. It is not firing on all cylinders. It is just, so, maddening.If this book just focussed on the recipes and ignored the various philosophies, mini lectures and general outpourings of gush it would be a good four or possibly even a five YUM (star) book, even at its current price point. Yet when you consider the entire book it just does not feel right. You would be highly recommended to look at this in a bookstore to see if you identify with any awkwardness and can work around it. That is about the best we can say. It would have been easier if the production side had let the book down, or if the recipes needed a boost in some areas. Does 'all heart but no soul" make sense?

Pour avoir mangé en Octobre au restaurant de Walnut Creek, je peux témoigner de l'excellence des mets. Dr Weil a su développer une approche alimentaire nutritive au plus haut point, en compagnie d'un chef et associé. Un excellent livre avec plein de nouveautés gustatives. La salade de Kale est sublime ainsi que les boulettes de bison en soupe! Je le recommande fortement!

I rarely write reviews, but I felt compelled to write this one.Reading through the small handful of negative reviews, I couldn't help but feel like a snob. Seriously though; what sort of food palates do those negative reviewers have? How could anyone with any good aesthetic sense think that this cookbook is below anything but phenomenal? When asking for a review or opinion, you must always consider the source. Everyone has an opinion, but the validity of said opinion must be considered.I must admit that I'm a bit of a cookbook junkie. After every binge of cookbook buying sprees, I swear that I will not buy another one. With this latest purchase I may actually keep that promise. I came across a review of this cookbook along with a few others on a NYC wellness site, while innocently looking for juicing ideas. This was one of 4 cookbooks I purchased. The problem with Amazon is the premise that "you can always return them". Alas, I am keeping 3 out of 4 amongst this latest set of buys. I have to say True Food is not only the best of the bunch, it has immediately become one of my top 5 favorite cookbooks of all time.I love reference books, & have been known to hold onto cookbooks even if I only like 20% of the recipes. This is one of the super rare instances where I would have to say 85% of all the recipes appeal to me, and the 15% that don't, I can tweak the ingredients to my palate (ie. instead of soba noodles for the asian recipes I would substitute naeng myon) or changing or adding the proteins featured or perhaps tweaking with vinegars, juices, honey or spices. The core of all the recipes though are solid. I did notice a mistake on page 85 while reading the Quinoa tabbouleh recipe, as the picture next to it clearly had no quinoa in sight and had strawberries,bulgur wheat and walnuts; ingredients obviously not featured in the facing recipe. Freaked out momentarily thinking that the recipe was left out, but looked in the index under strawberries and found the recipe on page 22. Funny thing was that I had initially dismissed this recipe, but after seeing the picture, added it to my "must makes".As far as menu planning goes, this cookbook is amazing in it's cohesiveness. Usually the "basics" section of most cookbooks use their "basics" in only one or maybe two recipes. I was happy to see that the mushroom broth and dashi were used in several recipes, making menu planning a breeze. There's nothing worse than making a quart of a basic and wasting it because of the lack of usage in recipes. Bravo to the writers for doing this. Seems obvious, but surprisingly a common problem amongst even the best of cookbooks.The recipes are equally influenced by asian, italian and mediterranean/california cuisine. It reminds me of a small restaurant in SF circa 90's called Ori-Italia, but with a very healthy twist (ie. sans the french butter influence)Also, as an avid reader of cookbook and recipe publications for over 20 years, I have to say this is the best balance of healthy eating and gourmet that I have EVER seen. Although I own a few Raw Food and vegan cookbooks, this book has actual palatable recipes that make you believe that healthy yet delicious food is possible. All I can say is, I may actually not buy another cookbook, until these authors come out with another one! Wish they had a restaurant in NYC, but this book will have to suffice I suppose.

I cannot get a lot of the ingredients that are in here, but it has given me an avenue to improvise some things only own.

I originally received this book as a gift , i love it so much i have bought it 6 times to give as gifts to people.The recipes are healthy and 5 star restaurant quality. You can really blow your guests away with some of them.Most of the recipes in this book have become regulars for us

As a health-conscious cook, I look for healthy and high quality ingredients; as a lover of fine food, I look for delicious and appealing fare that is above the ordinary. This books strikes a great balance between the two and does it better than most other "healthy" cookbooks. While some of the ingredients required are not easily accessible (I had to order Chinese black vinegar from Amazon, for instance), most are available at your local health food store. So far I have tried half a dozen recipes, and each one has exceeded my expectations in terms of clear directions, taste, and presentation. I have been a fan of Andrew Weil for years before he became so popular as a trustworthy source of health advice, and I have followed his efforts to find better ways to entice folks into healthier lifestyles, including eating choices. Dr. Weil is right in judging that most people will eat more healthy if it tastes (and looks) good, and with each attempt at sharing his cooking ideas (he co-authored another cookbook a few years ago) he has done better. With the current team that developed recipes for his new restaurant by the same name, he has achieved his goal with this health/food lover, and I can't wait for his new restaurant to open in my neighborhood. Based on current research, a BIG change is needed in the diet of folks in our nation, and both this book and its restaurant should go a long way to leading the way. The kale salad recipe alone is worth the price of the book, although I must disagree with Chef Stebner's opinion that Pecorino Toscano (Dr. Weil's original cheese choice) is not ready for mainstream America--many of us are unable to digest cow's cheese, and the above-mentioned sheep cheeses are wonderful in smell and taste, and would offer many the opportunity to enjoy the recipe at the restaurant:).