The Power of Food: 100 Essential Recipes for Abundant Health and Happiness

Hart healed his own body by improving his lifestyle and claims that his 12 action steps, such as "affirm your greatness" and "strengthen your vision," will lead to "powerful results" for his audience. After describing his recovery from depression, pre-diabetes, and asthma, Hart details his food rules: choose "living foods" over processed 80% of the time is the most prominent. He defines "living foods" by six categories: nuts, seeds, grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables. The book consists of chapters for each category and includes a variety of creative recipes such as Amaranth-Stuffed Squash, Sun-Dried Tomato and Lentil Salad, and Flourless Hemp Peanut Butter Cookies. Recipes are vegan with the exception of honey; many are entirely raw, with thoughtful alternative oven instructions when a dehydrator is required. Oddly, he uses canned peas in a couple recipes. Hart is enthusiastic about a mindful lifestyle based on natural foods, but unscientific. Most of his sweeping claims, such as "Want to stay alive longer? Eating [flax seeds] will help you do just that" or "Eating more fiber on a daily basis keeps toxins flowing through your digestive system and ensures no unwanted waste builds up in your precious arteries," lack referential evidence. Readers who can overlook Hart's generally unsubstantiated claims about his favorite foods may find recipes of interest or new food to try. (Aug.)