Healing Arts Press

Are you overwhelmed at the thought of giving up “convenience” foods?

Most of us are. Our increasingly busy lives make food planning seem more and more like a tiresome chore. Guido Masé is hoping to help restore a reverence for how and what we eat. Specifically he is asking readers to look at consciously adding aromatics, bitters, and tonics to our diet to increase energy and prevent disease.

Part scientist, part folklorist, and part clinical herbalist, Masé has put together an amazing overview of the use of wild plants for medicinal purposes, followed up with inventive recipes, formulas for teas and tinctures, and guidelines for safely incorporating these dynamic plants into our daily lives. While he imparts lots of academic information, he manages to do so in a conversational, sometimes even lyrical, tone. The book is very readable.

For those who are overwhelmed by the large amount of information, I suggest turning to the section on CHOCOLATE. Do a quick read through of all the health benefits of cacao, then make yourself a cup of Mayan hot chocolate, breathe deeply as your blood pressure lowers, and wait for that blissful chocolate feeling to kick in.

A natural adjunct to the current real food movement, this book is a resource you’ll want to return to again and again. SHOP FOR THE BOOK

© Anna Jedrziewski and InannaWorks

New World Library

Are you in the habit of mentally bad-mouthing yourself?

That’s the first thing Eric Maisel is going to ask you to stop doing in this, the latest of a long line of successful books about creativity. The book is written for creative professionals (and soon-to-be creative professionals) but readers from all walks of life will garner valuable tips about adding passion, confidence, and vision to their lives and career.

Maisel has distilled the essence of his decades-long creative coaching into nine “Keys”. Each Key is discussed in simple terms, illustrated with case studies, and activated with understandable directives. Covering topics like mind sets, stress, relationships, and societal influences, he gives readers everything they need to begin changing their lives and careers for the better. Empowering, realistic, and empathetic, the book speaks to the readers inner blocks as well as to their desires.

As difficult as competing in a creative profession is, it is nothing compared to the self-imposed challenges most of us struggle with. Want to free yourself from yourself? Making Your Creative Mark will tell how to start  working toward, and sustain, that objective. SHOP FOR THE BOOK

© 2013 Anna Jedrziewski and InannaWorks.com

Quirk Books

Has the fun gone out of your food?

Put it back in by making dinner a homage to breakfast. Husband and wife team Landis and Hackbarth (visit their blog loveandoliveoil.com) have raised comfort food to a whole new level. With recipes like Steak & Eggs Benedict, Italian-Style Stuffed French Toast, Goat Cheese Monte Cristos, Greek Baked Eggs, Cornmeal Pancakes with Beer-Braised Short Ribs, Pizza Over Easy, Huevos Rancheros Tacos, Breakfast Sausage Ravioli, Parmesan Beignets, Moroccan Chicken Cinnamon Rolls, Donut Fudge Sundaes and Mint Chocolate Chip Pancakes, it’s impossible not to want to start cooking immediately.

Despite the highly creative and sophisticated concepts, the recipes are relatively simple, with non-threateningly brief lists of non-exotic ingredients. Advanced techniques, like making your own pasta dough, are few and far between. When they do appear, they are well explained and illustrated. I collect cookbooks. I’m not an easy sell. I love this one. If you purchase it as a gift, buy two copies because it won’t be that easy to part with it once you’ve seen it. SHOP FOR THE BOOK

© Anna Jedrziewski and InannaWorks

Findhorn Press

Does the food you eat nurture you spiritually?

It was thousands of years ago, as civilization emerged and societies formed by humans strengthened, that our connection to the food we eat began to weaken. Now there is a movement afoot to reclaim that connection. Sometimes called eco-spirituality, sometimes called spiritual ecology, increasing numbers of people are concerned about how their food is grown and how that growing process affects the earth.

Jim Ewing takes us through the history of agriculture on planet earth. He shows us where we lost sight of the interconnectedness of all our human activities, and where that interconnectedness was properly attended to. The book contains a wealth of information both practical and spiritual as he makes the case for returning to a mutually-nurturing model for society’s use of earth’s resources.

Ewing practices what he preaches, living on a small farm with his wife, as he works for change in the food industry. Everything you’ll want to know about putting the spirit back into dinner can be found within the pages of this book. It is a call to action, backed up by real-world information and ideas. It’s a valuable addition to any reference library, and will live happily on your kitchen shelf next to the cookbooks. SHOP FOR THE BOOK

© Anna Jedrziewski and InannaWorks