by Diana Stobo
Bree Noa Publishing Co, $20.00, 160 pages
This highly unusual, beautifully produced niche cookbook will likely please a small number of diehard health food enthusiasts. The book is of small to medium format, illustrated by many stunning full-page color photos, and includes a large collection of healthy non-dairy milk shake (smoothie) recipes. A six-page introduction describes equipment and lists ingredients you should have, most of which only a true health food store regular would identify. Eleven superfoods (“…nutritionally dense, live foods that nourish, energize, cleanse and heal the body”) are identified (e.g. camu camu, maca root). Virtually all recipes start with a non-dairy coconut ice cream called Coconut Bliss. The recipes use raw ingredients puréed in a powerful blender. Raw fruits and vegetables, nut milk or nut butter, superfoods and supplements are the additional ingredients. The recipes are simple, easy to make in minutes, and claimed to have 300 to 500 calories in a 12- to 16-oz serving. Each lists its nutritional benefits. Many statements are likely to be questioned by readers (“soy products” “are potentially harmful to your health”). To use this cookbook, a visit to a health food store is essential (e.g. yacon syrup, goji berries, tocotrienols powder).