Super Natural Cooking: Five Ways To Incorporate Whole and Natural…

Previewed from the library. After eating just the hedgehog potatoes . . . and plotting to make the "healthier" thin mint cookies (think Girl Scouts), I ordered my own copy. ( )

I love this cookbook. The recipes are interesting and challenging. I live in a college town in California with 5 specialty food stores (can you say heaven?) so I have not had a hard time finding some of the more exotic ingredients, but I could imagine it being a challenge elsewhere.

The Mesquite Chocolate Chip cookies are insanely good. I did feel funny eating powdered wood, but that feeling went away with the first bite.

The book is vegetarian! You really do not notice that until you look for a meat recipe, but I thought it was sneaky seeing as how it was not mentioned on the cover or in the blurb on the back. ( )

I love Heidi's writing style and her approach to cooking: I have her first cookbook, Cook 1.0, and you'll have to pry it from my dead, cold hands. I'm a little bummed that the three dishes I've made from this have been on the very bland side. I'm not giving up, though, just adding more salt! ( )

Super Natural Cooking is not only written in a down-to-earth and easy to read style, but it's also full of delicious-looking photos - a win-win combination in my opinion. My only criticism of the book - as an Aussie - is that the focus of the book is (not surprisingly) US-centric; I've found that a number the foods Heidi discusses are difficult to find in Australia and/or are quite expensive because they have been imported. Having said that, there are enough very simple recipes (particularly sweets and snacks) in the book to start me experimenting. A great introduction to little-used wholefoods. ( )