Food--What the Heck Should I Cook?

September 2, 2019
Hyman, the director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine, provides his prescription for healthy eating, along with more than 100 recipes, in this follow up to Food: What the Heck Should I Eat?. The opening chapters make the case for the “pegan” diet, a portmanteau Hyman uses to describe the workable middle ground between paleo and vegan. He suggests organic protein, be it from plant or animal, along with antioxidants and omega-3 fats; excess sugar, gluten, and processed foods are to be avoided. Alternative flours play a vital role in dishes like orange-blackberry almond scones, which use a blend of almond and millet flour, and zucchini latkes with lemon-basil guacamole where grated zucchini and almond flour provide the base for the small, vegetable-filled pancakes. An eye-opening variation of the Indian dish, kitchari, contains instructions on preparing rice with coconut oil then quickly cooling it to create “an indigestible starch that doesn’t raise blood sugar the way white rice normally does.” Many of Hyman’s friends also contribute recipes, including Dr. Oz, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hugh Jackman, Mark Bittman, and David Bouley. José Andrés offers Tichi’s gazpacho, named for the chef’s wife and spiked with Oloroso sherry. Medical advice, natural ingredients, and a splash of celebrity come together in this exuberant collection.