A Change of Appetite: Where Delicious Meets Healthy

by Diana Henry

What happened when one of today's best-loved food writers had a change of appetite? Here are the dishes that Diana Henry created when she started to crave a different kind of diet - less meat and heavy food, more vegetable-, fish- and grain-based dishes - often inspired by the food of the Middle East and Far East, but also drawing on cuisines from Georgia to Scandinavia.

Curious about what 'healthy eating' really means, and increasingly bombarded by both readers and friends for recipes that are 'good for you', Diana disocovered a lighter, fresher way of eating. From a Cambodian salad of prawns, grapefruit, toasted coconut and mint or North African mackerel with cumin to blood orange and cardamom sorbet, the magical dishes in this book are bursting with flavour, goodness and colour. Peppering the recipes is Diana's inimitable writing on everything from the miracle of broth to the great carbohydrate debate. Above all, this is about opening up our palates to new possibilities. There is no austerity here, simply fabulous food which nourishes body and soul.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Health, Reference, Food and Drink

336 pages, Hardcover

First published March 4, 2014

Reviews

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars total
Cleaning up my "currently reading shelf" of cookbooks that have been languishing there while I cooked my way through them. I purchased A Change of Appetite while we were cooking along with Diana Henry for a weekly blogging event I co-host, I Heart Cooking Clubs. Diana Henry was the feaured chef from October 2014 thru March 2015. During that time I cooked six recipes from the book (see the recipes and links to photos/recipes listed below).

A Change in Appetite, tagged "Where Healthy Meets Delicious" has a lighter, more vegetable and grain based dishes tone than some of Diana's other cookbooks. It's a beautiful book, large and heavy with plenty of fish and salad recipes--perfect for me as I don't eat or cook meat and poultry. All the recipes I tried were delicious, light but satisfying and easy to make. Although Plenty and Salt Sugar Smoke are my favorite Diana Henry cookbooks, this one is close and a great one if you are looking for healthier recipes that still dazzle with flavor.

Recipes I tried from this book:
Yogurt with Honeyed Saffron Syrup, Apricot Compote, & Toasted Almonds (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)
Eastern Salmon Carpaccio (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)
Crazy Salad (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)
Seared Tuna with Avocado and Wasabi Puree (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)
Baby Pears Poached in Earl Grey (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)
Watercress Pesto with Fried Egg (http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...)

[Oaktrees · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting challenge, this book. The recipes look and (as far as those I've tried) taste amazing, and for that alone it is well worth the read (and the price). But Henry's little asides about dos and do nots are far too dogmatic and preachy to make the whole of the book truly enjoyable. Strange, that someone who actively denounces weight-based diets for the shams that they are should go out of her way to demonize entire foodstuffs. I know that bashing sugar and refined flours is all the rage these days, and I wholly agree that we should all reduce our consumption of them, but to make them EVIL!!!1! is the opposite of what a "modern healthy" cookbook should aspire to.

[Juli Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some lovely, light recipes here, loaded with spices and fresh flavors. I find many of the recipes too reliant on animal proteins, but still very tasty-looking. However, I really disliked much of Henry's narrative voice here; I found it far too weight-centric rather than health-centric, and a little dogmatic at times.

[Julie Botnick]

Intuitive eating meets moderation meets haute cuisine in this cookbook. It’s not the book for those looking for super simple recipes, calorie cutting/weight loss, or for “eat this, not that” text. The recipes are abundant, varied, and rich.

One big plus is the wonderful menus she puts at the top of each page, showing you how to make a feast out of the individual dishes.

[Mary C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found two of Diana Henrys cookbooks for a great price on Amazon and ordered them in, I had constantly been drawn to her food on social media but her recipes weren't available unless you subscribed to the paper she works for. Totally understandable but I have no need to read any more newspapers!!

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of good ideas, smaller plates and light fare. Lots of herbs, fish, veggies…sometimes the ingredient list is a little too long, I find. Love the many middle eastern influences, but I find she uses an awful lot of saffron!

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly I picked this up from charity and thought it looked nice. But it's quite an old book and more interested in diet food ; have a broth and a piece of plain chicken rather than a more modern way to be healthy. It's gone back to charity now

[Cyndi]

I wanted to like this cookbook, but it just took so much effort to even figure out what each recipe was making. No photos. Very long titles.

[Pete Bowler · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kindle

Worthless on kindle as you cannot browse recipes, you have to scroll through each and every page just to see what’s there. Time consuming and annoying

[P Teall Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

The tone was a just-catching-up older British woman benefitting from a fad, which put me off the book. But the simple recipes especially of sauces and dressings are worth the read.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful book, and I love the author's writing, but I didn't find a single recipe I wanted to try.

[Victoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too much preaching

[Robert Hudder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish this book was around ten years ago when I first seriously put myself on the path to eating better. This paragraph sums up eating well and what you need to keep on doing in order to perform considered eating.

My biggest problem was thinking about food in terms of "healthy" or "unhealthy." I can't think of meals as sets of nutrients. A meal is a colorful assembly of foods--many of which we don't understand in terms of health--that should be, first and foremost, enjoyable. The term "healthy" does negative things to me (in fact, I struggled with whether to put the word on the front of this book). It makes me think of miserable, beige food. It also smacks of preciousness. While at university, I briefly shared a house with a girl who was trememdously into "healthy" food. It was all nuts, seeds, and little bowls of iceberg lettuce. Not only was she one of the most joyless people I have known, she was also self-obsessed. (American journalist Michael Pollan uses the term "orthorexia" to describe an all-consuming and destructive interest in healthy food...)

The recipes themselves lend heavily on the idea of seasonality and sustainability without hitting you over the head. East Asia and the Middle East are dominant themes. There is a real sense that there is a true melting pot of flavours that complement regardless of ethnic origin. It is this clear ability to mix and match good and better food and flavours that make me think I need to look at this book again. It is definitely making it out of the library and into my hands. The question is whether these subtle changes can make me buy it. I think it will.

[Ninja Neko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore Diana Henry and her views on cooking and food. A Change of Appetite was a wonderful read (like Nigella she writes great notes) but unfortunately for me many of the recipes (especially autumn/winter) feature lots of whole grains, which I can't eat (gluten intollerance). Which sucks, Diana writes so well about the pleasures of unknown-to-me kamut and farro that I really want to try them for myself too. Oh well. Still quite a few other recipes I'm going to try out. Food from Plenty remains my absolute favourite for now.

One thing to be aware of: these recipes were inspired by food from all over the globe, so you will need quite a range of spices/cupboard ingredients to cook them all.

And now I'm going to clean out my cookbook shelves so I can order more of Diana Henry's work <3

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always, Diana Henry doesn't disappoint. Lots of delicious recipes and given that I mostly eat the way she describes changing to in the book (mostly seasonal vegetarian, not too many carbs or sugars), pretty much all of them were right up my street. She also includes lots of ideas for healthier breakfasts and lunches, including packed ones, which is really helpful! It's not a specifically vegetarian cookbook but it would still be very useful to vegetarians or even vegans.

The only thing I wasn't too keen on was her penchant for lots of salads with fruit in - I like the mix on occasion, but I find the sweetness often too much in a savoury meal. Other than that I'd happily cook and eat pretty much anything in here!

[Jennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favourite food authors compiles a beautiful book about lush, colourful, healthy dishes. There are quite a few dishes that do contain meat, but they can easily be removed or replaced with other alternatives.

Divided into seasons, orange pomegranate cake and blackberry and apple rye galette are on my radar. The book comes with a ribbon to keep your place as you browse. Rustic dishes and warm inviting colours pepper the pages.

Excellent for new ideas and a menu change up.

A must add for my library.

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Diana Henry's writing, and I pretty much want to eat everything she writes about. This book, with the emphasis on low or slow carbs, lots of vegetables and sources of protein other than red meat is beautifully realised. My copy is now bristling with book marks of recipes I want to make, and I would love to buy some of the photos as prints.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a beautiful book and so much more. The recipes are detailed with important additional possible substitutions. Many of the foods are new to me. Maybe I've heard of them, but haven't given them a try - yet. Cooking from this book will be a healthy adventure for me.

[Liquidlasagna · Rating 5 out of 5]

not fond of 95% of vegetarian or dietary concerns books
but Henry is one of the best for a sophisticated palate

Nigella has a sophisticated palate, but this is up there with Child and Pepin

for her books have true style

[JH · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous food styling and photography!

[LS kitchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely photography and eclectic recipes. I liked the essays throughout the book, especially the one on asking how many diets can one fit in a life and the one on loving breakfast.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is how I wish I cooked, how I try to cook. She has so much more sophistication and knowledge-- but I'm learning! Beautiful, inspiring, highly recommended.

[Therese Hilton-ludwig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really delicious looking recipes. She writes an introduction for each part of the book which is very interesting to read. I'm excited to try out some of the recipes!

[Nicky Abell-Francis]

lovely book delicious meals well worth a look.

[Liz De Coster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a great description, but a very ethereal cookbook with a sort of rustic twist. Not really my style, but recommended for fans of Heidi Swanson.

[Degan Walters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesing recipes but rather than movong away from meat it seems like she's adding a salad and a dessert to a light meal. I don't est that much food at home.

[Neon Snake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised at this. I skimmed it when I first bought it, and whilst it's as lovely to read as all her books, nothing stood out as "must cook".

Then, I sat properly for an hour and read it through recipe by recipe, and there are at least 40 I want to cook, all simple, all healthy. And I don't eat a lot of fish, which unsurprisingly makes up a lot of the book - I suspect that a fish lover would find many more appetising recipes in here than I did.