Food to Eat: guided, hopeful and trusted recipes for eating disorder recovery - Paperback

by Cate Sangster (Author), Rd Cde Lieberman (Author)

A recipe book for people with eating disorders? Surely that's an oxymoron!
Actually, no. This book is about so much more than just the food. It's about helping you to even consider the idea of eating normally again. Acclaimed by eating disorder MDs, therapists, RDs, researchers and programs, this is no ordinary cookbook. Whether you have anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder, it is about trusting us and allowing us to guide you to take that "leap of faith" from contemplation to preparation to action (learn more in the book).

But perhaps it is not you that has the eating disorder. Perhaps you are the parent or loved one of someone struggling to recover? Food to Eat provides a practical starting point to discuss food preparation and eating, while providing recipes you can all feel comfortable enjoying. And, you'll gain insight into the thought process many with eating disorders are up against. No, your child or spouse or partner is not just being difficult and oppositional--eating disorders are serious illnesses that hijack our rational thought and our ability to appropriately care for ourselves.

In Food to Eat, Cate and Lori talk constantly in their separate voices. Their strong opinions have been formed through very different but complementary experiences--and as such they make it explicit whose voice you are hearing at any time--Cate's or Lori's.

More than a cook book for eating disorder recovery. It's like making a couple of new friends!

In Food to Eat, you'll find two supports, Cate & Lori, guiding you as you begin to change your relationship with food. They anticipate your fears and thoughts, say them out loud in a lighthearted way and help you get past them. They dialogue about the recipes and nutrition content to set the record straight--about fats, protein, carbs and a range of other nutrients--helping you expand your food selection and normalize your eating. You'll realize quickly that they get it--they really do. Cate will challenge, and Lori responds--much like the two voices that play out in your own head. And of course there are the wonderful, healthy and easy-to-justify recipes--25 of them--from 'breakfast any time', to main dishes and sides, to 'endings any time'. They'll take you from just thinking about eating to shopping and stocking your pantry, to cooking and managing your portions.

Food to Eat:

• Combines the expertise of an RD with 26 years of experience specializing in eating disorders and disordered eating, with the experience of one in the know about living with anorexia, who has made great strides in her own recovery;
• Contains 25 scrumptious, easy to prepare recipes you can feel good about eating, from snacks to main dishes to desserts;
• Acknowledges your eating disorder thoughts and helps you change your beliefs about what is acceptable to eat;
• Provides sensible information and practical strategies for eating, presented in a way you can hear, from people you can trust;
• Guides and supports you in your eating disorder recovery by helping you feel safe eating again;
• Includes recipe exchanges for those working with an exchange list-based meal plan;
• Is an upbeat, colorful, novel recovery tool filled with beautiful photographs and a sense of humor.

Buy it for yourself. Buy it for someone you care about. And take the first step to moving toward recovery.

Author Biography

We're an unlikely pairing--like Godiva and Diet Coke. I'm a Massachusetts dietitian with 26 years experience and an expertise in treating eating disorders and Cate's a driven, working mom recovering from anorexia in Melbourne, Australia. I've got sons in their 20's, she, daughters in primary school. I've got a passion for full flavored foods mindfully eaten, she's had a focus on eating what her anorexia won't forbid. It began with my blog, Drop it and Eat, and the honest comments about her struggle she frequently left on my posts. But really it started with trust. I think she realized I got it, that I knew what she was going through. And that I believed deeply that recovery was possible. I so appreciated her honesty and her determination to move forward along this path toward full recovery. After several months, Cate had a proposal. Would I be interested in contributing to an eating disorder recovery cookbook, by providing information and insights into the nutritional value of the recipes? And these weren't just any recipes--but the 5 main dishes she relied on for many months to increase her intake. These were the very dishes she credited with moving her forward with her eating. And I, the very person who had given her hope that full recovery was possible. It took me about 5 seconds to say yes, but I had a slightly expanded vision for the project. The recipe selection had to be broadened to include great quality, but easy-to-justify recipes. The dishes needed to push those in recovery to stretch out of their comfort zone. Miso soup and salads were out, but granola and crock pot chicken were in. And did I mention desserts? Yes, desserts had to have a place, because that's what true recovery is about--including foods that taste good and that you enjoy, and you can learn to eat in control. Food to Eat is finally available! It has been a difficult process--just like recovery itself--but we have both accomplished a great deal. Through the process of writing, editing, cooking and photographing, Cate has moved significantly from the place she began. I've learned more about the practical aspects of recovery--from mealtime management at our first meal together when we met at an eating disorder conference--to the need for patience and realistic goals. And together, we've created a recovery tool we're quite pleased with! Enjoy the journey with Food to Eat. Lori Lieberman, RD, MPH, CDE, LDN is available for speaking presentations.