It’s official — it’s spring! Some of my favorite foods will be arriving in the markets soon. In fact, I just had my first asparagus!!! I’m SUCH an asparagus stalker (pun intended). Every late winter I’m in constant contact with a favorite farmer about the expected date of arrival of the elegant long ladies of spring, and I just can’t WAIT! I bring it home and roast it. It’s like candy for me! And yet it’s an unbeatable spring tonic for the liver and gallbladder. Talk about win/win.

Do you struggle with cooking for one? This was BY FAR the number 1 topic request resulting from my recent reader’s survey. Strategies. Practicalities. How to overcome fatigue and inertia to cook just for yourself, when it’s all too easy to stop for take out on the way home. Are  you looking for a way to get in a solo healthy cooking groove?

I’m hearing this refrain a lot among friends lately: I’m soooo tired! Is it life? Politics? Work or family stress? Are we doing too much, trying to absorb too much information, sitting too much, and moving too little? Whatever IT is, I have some terrific food news for you that you can employ to improve that feeling of fatigue.
 

How often have you heard that mellifluous recommendation: eat dark leafy greens.

You know greens are an immensely powerful culinary Rx, right? And arguably the greatest longevity foods out there, exploding with disease-fighting phytochemicals? And that one of the single BEST things you can do to improve your health is to eat plenty of them? But… do you know how to cook them?

I asked, and you answered! When the 2nd edition of The Cancer Fighting Kitchen launched into the world just a little over a week ago, I asked readers who loved the 1st edition to share why, along with their photographs. if they wished. It’s been delightful to hear from some of you!

Does nutrition information sometimes seem overwhelming?

Especially if you are seeking to improve a complex health condition, you may feel like you need to acquire a PhD in order to find your way! Your doctor doesn’t have all the answers, NOBODY seems to have all the answers, so you may feel like it’s on all on you.

Allow me to assist.

The second edition of my award-winning cookbook The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen is coming out next week on Valentine’s Day!!! Jeez Louise, how many cookbook authors get a chance to do a 2nd edition in this day and age? 

Feeling a little… stressed these days? The good news is that to a large degree we have the means at hand to soothe stress. You probably know about stress reduction through exercise and mind-body work such as yoga and/or meditation — but did you know that food can help? 

To keep your health on track, there is no better step to take than upping your veggie intake.

If you’re a busy person looking for healthy cooking solutions, I’ve got something marvelous to share: our new ebook, The Slow Cooker & The Instant Pot: Recipes, Tips & Tricks to Get More Time with Less Pressure.

Reaching for something warm and potent to stave off sniffles? Herbs and spices are your allies, flavor is your friend, and I have some wonderful options for you to experiment with!

It’s amazing to me how we can get so hoodwinked every year into thinking that there’s some new-fangled magic bullet outside of ourselves that we need to try; that we’re going to shed unwanted pounds, get our health back on track, and go to the gym in the middle of the winter (good luck with that). Instead, I think we need to reset a little bit of our thought process around food, and think about the season that we’re in.

As many of you know, in addition to being a chef, author and educator, I’m an artist! My eye is drawn to the colors of food and to my beloved garden beyond my office window, where life changes moment to moment. I have a front row seat at my desk to watch hummingbirds dipping in and out of the flowers arrayed just outside. Hummingbirds symbolize the enjoyment of life and the lightness of being, as they are such magical, fleeting creatures, here and gone.

Here’s my list of best bets for giving:

The first thing you need to do is get YOURSELF a present!  I encourage you to consider this thermos as a little indulgence for you. It has a special leak-proof seal, so you can press a button and it stays closed. It keeps liquid hot for 5 or 6 hours (!!!) and cold stays cold forever. I carry mine around in the winter filled with Magic Mineral Broth or tea. I fill it up with soup when I have an all-day workshop. You HAVE to have it. You have to take care of yourself first!

I’m not just a cookbook writer, I’m a collector! I have a HUGE collection of cookbooks. Due to the limited real estate in my office, I prune it once a year and donate books to our public library, making way for new additions. I watch the new books coming out with an avid, discerning eye, happily choosing only the very best for my personal collection.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday! Not only because it’s a culinary-centric holiday, but because having a day devoted to putting everything aside (whatever the dynamics!) and giving thanks with family and friends seems the ultimate kind of gratitude.

My dear friend and collaborator, who’s always been my mini-shaman, who tends to sprinkle that something something just when I need to hear it, did it again the other day.

I was starting to panic, a little. It was one of those days when I caught myself reaching too far, thinking that I can do everything at any time at the speed of light, like I’m not even human!

After listening to my verbal panic attack, my shaman friend said, “You can begin again at any moment. When you eat a healthier meal, you’re healthier. When you nurture yourself, you’re healthier. Care for yourself in this moment. Be healthier now.”

Ahhhh! That hit the spot.

You might be all fired up about healthy eating… but what if your family’s not?

You’ve had the wake up call. You jumped on the scale and the numbers staring up at you were a little too high. Something slapped you in the face about how you are feeling (hello!), or your doctor sprung unhappy news. We can tell ourselves, I should eat healthy, I should eat healthy… but many of us need a jolt to make the shift.

Mia is my smart as a whip,  24 year old hipster niece who lives in Brooklyn, NY.  When she came to visit me in California, she agreed to shoot a soup session with me, which was incredibly fun, since we started cooking together when she was 8 or 9. The first thing I taught her how to make was risotto.