In the office, most patients show understanding of good nutrition. And yet, when at home they say they have trouble actually eating healthy. The frustrates them and mystifies me. I would like to help. Sometimes I'd like to just come home with them to show them how easy it is to make it work. But that isn’t exactly practical. Instead I’d like to come up with something tangible that would remind them of all the principles and tips they have learned, so they can put them into practice.

Sometimes I think this could be done with an attractive nutrition art poster to be displayed in the kitchen. Sometimes, I imagine kitchen linens featuring helpful suggestions in clever graphics, e.g. “ Eat your greens ! “ For quite a while I have been imagining a deck of cards. Each card would feature one nutrition reminder.

The reminders would have to be attractive, both visually and tangibly.The principles they conveyed would have to be simple and clear. Right now I am trying to cook up a list of catchy little reminder phrases which will help people have an enjoyable and easy time making good nutrition at home. I would like to devote this post to sharing what I have so far, and to solicit your input about what reminders you could use.

Here’s my list so far:

3m3s
Bring your Own Bags
Buy in Bulk
Buy in Season
Buy Local
Celebrate
Cook from Scratch
Cook With Kids
Don’t buy Junk
Dress the Table
Drink Tea
Drink Water
Eat Cultured
Eat Fermented
Eat Low Glycemic
Eat Salads
Eat the Rainbow
Eat While Grains
Explore Cooked Vegetables
Eat Healthy Fats
Eat Fresh or Frozen
Eat with Friends
Eat Fresh Fruit
Eat Organic
Eat Sustainable Fish
Explore Paleo
Grown Your Own Food
Hara Hachi Bu
Keep Sharp Knives
Keep Your own Recipes
Know Your Farmer
Make Extra Dinner
Nuts to You
Order Your Way
Pack Your Lunch
PPP
Purchase Good Containers
Read Labels
Read Cookbooks
Resect Food Allergies and Intolerances
Prep Your Breakfast
Share Recipes
Share Your Garden Surplus
Shop Twice per Week
Sit Down for Meals
Spice it Up
Take Food Pictures
Use a Kitchen Scale

I would really appreciate any other ideas you have about what might help make good nutrition happen for you. Meanwhile, if you haven't already, check our the blog on the website and scroll back to see the last several Food Fridays for more cooking inspiration.

Todays's post is the last in a series of 4 posts about cooking inspiration. It is about cookbooks. As I survey my wide ranging cookbook collection, I can see that they sort themselves into a few key categories:

Reference Material- These are books that encyclopedically categorize a small category of foods or ingredients, ie. The Spice Bible.

Do it Yourself Cookbooks- These are books which have recipes and methods for making that which we commonly think of as " store bought" stuff. These books often collect food preparing techniques which are in danger of being lost from the general population. How many of you know how to make crackers, cheese, pickles or ice cream ? i.e The Home Creamery by Farrell Kingsley.

Cookbook travel- These books explore a region dish by dish. They are often noteworthy for their fabulous photography. i.e. My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz

Health related cookbooks- These are focused on foods, dishes and menus which have health benefits. There are many such books claiming this feature, but not all actually have it. I have included a few which I think have genuine health benefits. i.e. The Autoimmune Paleo cookbook by Mickey Trescott, NTP.

Coffee Table Cookbooks- These books are typically large format, and magnificently photographed. They are sumptuous tomes which are meant to be works of art in and of themselves. Example: Culinaria, eds. Andre Domine, and Michael Ditter

Chef Based Cookbooks- These feature one famous chef who gives presents their unique recipes but also their versions of the classics, i.e. Mastering the Art of French Cooking, by Julia Childs.

Category Cookbooks- These are cookbooks which focus on a particular category of cooking, i.e. The Essentials of Roasting by Williams Sonoma.

Comprehensive Cookbooks- These are cookbooks which aspire to cover everything comprehensively, ie. The Best Recipe, by Cooks Illustrated.

Here are some homegrown photos of my cookbook shelves as they are tonight.

My personal favorites shift every few months. Right now, I am biased toward the health related cookbooks since I believe more and more that one can make healthy food delicious. We understand more than we ever have about food science and human nutrition, and many well educated and creative writers are producing excellent cookbooks by marrying this information with their skill and taste in cuisine.

I also believe that once you taste healthy food from well written recipes, that you will not be able to go back to ordinary unhealthy food.

With this in mind, I am going to plug one cookbook series and two particular books by different authors as my top choices at this time:

The Jonny Bowden series on The Healthiest Foods

Paleo Takeout by Ross Crandall

Nom Nom Paleo Food for Humans, by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

I love all the online recipes and sites. But sometimes, the large glossy photos and thoughtful prose in a traditional paper cookbook is uniquely satisfying. Paper cookbooks also permit annotation. I can tell you all of mine are written in, with dates, who I made the recipe with, and any modifications I saw fit to make.

Take a walk on the culinary wild side, and read a good cookbook. Better food is pleasant step toward better health.