The Self-Healing Cookbook: A Macrobiotic Primer for Healing Body, Mind and Moods with Whole, Natural Foods

by Kristina Turner

Happy 15th Birthday to The Self-Healing Cookbook! Now available in the 9th Revised Edition, this playful, user-friendly guide to macrobiotics has become a well-loved classic (over 180,000 copies sold). A favorite repeat seller in natural food stores and alternative health care clinics, it has been used a textbook for college classes in Holistic Health, and as a handbook for nutritional counselors training at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Cooking, Health, Nonfiction, Nutrition

209 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1988

Reviews

[Jeffrey William · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is so great! i got it for free when i visited a nice natural physician in royal oak named stephen brink. i hardly had enough for the visit and he gave me the book. it's light in its approach, very digestible, no pun intended! it follows some macrobiotic principles for sure, but has a more softer feel to it. the main points are; taking time to enjoy and taste your food, the balance of food, yin and yang factors, emotion and thoughts connecting to food, and some more things i can't remember right now. recipes included. i don't follow it strictly, but keep certain principles in mind whenever possible.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was too "out there" for me. It's kind of new-agey with guided visualization and smelling your produce to see if it tells you that it's okay to eat and that your body wants that particular piece of fruit. It does have some sound nutrition principles which I agree with such as eating more complex carbohydrates and using fresh produce. Adding seaweed to everything is a bit much. And to truly do what you're supposed to with this diet would stress me out to no end. I have a hard enough time getting something resembling healthy food on the table at an appropriate hour, but to try to figure out if I have enough yin and yang and sweet and sour and energizing and calming and what-have-you, too much, I say, too much.

I also believe (and maybe I've missed it by a mile) that the Lord didn't intend for eating to be such a process. I'd have to sit down with charts to prepare each meal to make sure it's all balanced. And then talk to everyone in the family (all 6 of us) to see how they're all feeling right then to know what foods they need to stabilize whatever emotion is out of whack. Not going to happen here. I need to plan a few weeks in advance. I need a quick way to meal plan, not hours.

I found the organization somewhat confusing. Some people found the 'homemade' look charming but I found it distracting and it was difficult read.

While the author has good intentions this is not a book that I will reference again.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite macrobiotic book so far. It's a combination of explanation about the macrobiotic lifestyle and a compilation of fantastic recipes. It's very accessible, and it's fun. It's written with a lot of heart, and I found it very comforting to read in small doses as a very effective support for my lifestyle change. The recipes are easy and delicious. What I like about her recipes, too, is that they're colorful and (again) fun. I highly recommend this book. It's a great book to start with if you're new to macrobiotics.

[Erinina Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Self Healing Cookbook by Kristina Turner

This simple coloring book looking cookbook is an easy introduction to healing the body with macrobiotic principles. I enjoyed it's approach to balancing the bodies symptoms, rather than prescribing 'diets' to fall within. The whole idea is to listen to what your body needs, and to start recording how certain foods make you feel, so that hopefully you will need less actual 'healing.'

[Sunshine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good book for an introduction to macrobiotics. Even though it's called the self-healing cookbook, anyone can use it. It's more about learning how to choose what to eat, to trust your instincts and slow down. I have a new respect for foods now that I've learned how they combine to affect your mood and well-being. The illustrations are hand drawn and the type looks old-fashioned, but this cookbook is a diamond in the rough.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book. It is definitely my favorite macrobiotic cookbook so far. The font and illustrations are reminiscent of a 1970s church cookbook, making it a fun, easy read.

It has most of the standard macrobiotic recipes you see in all the cookbooks of this type, but also so fun new ones I haven't seen before. But, the best thing about this cookbook is all the charts helping you to choose foods to correct mood problems and/or mild physical symptoms.

[Hannah O'Reilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Self-Healing Cookbook is a unique book about the mind-body connection with eating. It feels less like a cookbook (although it does have some recipes) and more like a guide to finding the best balance of food for your body. Based in macrobiotics, this book provides a good overview of macrobiotic principles, as well as exercises to get in touch with your body and your health needs.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good explanation of macrobiotics with clear visuals and funny line drawings(reminiscent of those in Alicia Bay Laurel's "Living on the Earth"!). includes recipes, some diagnosis, and cleanse instructions. i checked it out from the library, but i'd like to own it for future reference.

[Carol Maskus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first health cookbook. It was written a long time ago in the health movement, so it has that charming, homey quality. The ingredients are easy to come by, and many of the recipes are delicious.

Also takes a practical, intuitive approach to teaching macrobiotic philosophy.

[Susanne Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE this book! So many simple ways to heal and feel better with Whole Foods. Love the different charts Kristina provided on Food and Mood. Feel sad? Eat less of this and more of that.......
I've given this book out to dozens of clients!!!

[Laurasmoot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kind of a masterpiece cookbook, theory and workbook about understanding macrobiotic nutrition concepts based on your own experience. I always give a copy to my nutrition clients.

[Kassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a helpful book ---I love the matching your mood to foods section

[Rhonda Kauffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great intro to macrobiotics. And so cute! Great recipes and a wonderful outlook.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart to heart talk with the mind/body/soul.

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I wish I still had a copy.

[Kimba · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could gift this to loved ones, if it weren’t out of print. Highly recommended.

[Tinea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those chatty, dubiously fact-checked, 'back to the land' style, heartwarming, DIY guides for living well. It's full of hokey exercises detailing how to sit quietly with food or enjoy it with friends. Overall, the book is a macrobiotic guide and cookbook, a bit hilariously at times combining a very local northern North America whole foods diet prescription with randomly selected Asian additions (though of course soy, fermented grains, and sea vegetables you can find or make in North America, there were definitely a few imports on the list). I loved that it basically affirmed the diet I practice and share with my friends: combine a variety of whole grains with a variety of legumes and top with fresh, local, diverse vegetables (green leafies plus an assortment of seasonal colors). Flavor with strong spices and herbs for variety. Snack on nuts & seeds, local fruits & berries, and fermented foods. Splurge whenever, but overall avoid sugars, processing (including refined flours), saturated fats, pesticides/gmos, alcohol, and (cough) caffeine. When you start to feel sick, simplify back to the basic whole foods diet of grains, legumes, vegetables.

The book is a fun, quick read with recipes and some great diagrams. A lot of it is devoted to macrobiotic Asian concepts of expansive and contracting foods, yin and yang, but I feel that you're better off turning to a more detailed manual for this stuff-- Turner never really explained the concepts well, so I never quite understood the differences between the seemingly similar foods she was constantly dividing on different lists.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good intro to a macrobiotic diet. Although I know I could never follow it strictly, it helped remind me to keep eating complex carbs like brown rice and beans, despite the whole low carb fad, and just eliminate things like white flour, white rice and potatoes. I could not stomach the sea vegetable kombu, but love the kukicha twig tea. This book also contained an interesting cleanse for women involving soaking in a hip high tub of twig tea and the strained liquid from boiled daikon leaves; it supposedly pulls toxins out through the you-know-what. That's right, Chewbaca's Purse.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just started on this one. Both nervous and excited about all I to learn!

UPDATE: Just finished a few days ago. An interesting more, personal, approach to macrobiotic eating. A little extreme for Matthew and I, especially at this stage in our lives. Maybe for down the road when we're old and decrepit and in need of some healthy revamping :)

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple and unfussy but covers a lot of information. Easy recipes and most ingredients can be found in a grocery store. Makes the concept of changing your diet seem less overwhelming than most food books. I can start making changes by eating a few more veggies and simple grains.

[Kathleen currie]

luvin it so far, thanks lisa!

[Sonali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awesome hands-on interactive workbook!! Great for beginner wellness enthusiasts!

[Cammie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best and cutest cookbook about health that is also written like a reader. It is very doable and so charming.

[Jennefer · Rating 3 out of 5]

a little far out there, but some good ideas

[Daphne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations are enchanting. Just reading the handwritten recipes is healing. My very favorite "comfort" cookbook.

[Mayya Cherepova · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the better macro books out there. Playful, flexible, easy to read. Super useful and inspiring.
Would love a digital version with updated "crunchy" yo's graphics :)

[Steph Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has been my favorite macrobiotic resource guide for about 2 decades.

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Macrobiotics - ideas, suggestions, how to eat more than traditional recipe style cookbook.