Are you looking for a Clean Start this year? I recently picked up “Clean Start” by Terry Walters. I am always looking for ways to cook healthier in my house. I subscribe to several cooking magazines and I am a cookbook junkie! I love to try new recipes and “cooking clean” is something that I’ve always wanted to do, but I really didn’t know where to start! I frequent the local farmers market almost weekly and often I find myself just wandering around and I end up buying the same items even though the seasonal produce looks so good….I just have no idea how to prepare it!

This is an excerpt from the book:

“ Clean Start is about enjoying healthy, delicious, clean food every day. It’s about having a relationship with food that’s not based on living up to somebody else’s ideal, or following a strict regimen. It’s simply about making healthy choices, one at a time, and doing the best that you can do, empowered with knowledge and motivated by intention.”

The part about making healthy choices, one at a time, and doing the best you can do….really caught my attention. It’s not about cleaning out your entire pantry and overhauling your refrigerator. It’s about making one new “clean” recipe at a time. That may be daily for some, weekly for others, but the point is to learn how to prepare good, healthy, clean food for your family and make it work for YOU. Now I am not going to be afraid to try those crazy vegetables at the farmers market!

In the book Terry gives you a full list of  the “Clean Start Pantry” so you can have all the ingredients you would need to make any of her recipes. But again…you can make one at a time and you will build up all the supplies over time! I know it can be expensive to overhaul your pantry, that is why trying just one recipe a week will help you build the supplies you need. You only have to buy Sesame Oil once and it will last you forever! That’s just an example…but you know what I mean!

The book is broken down into four sections: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. It really makes me excited to try some of the spring dips and summer salsas! But since it’s winter, here are a few of the mouthwatering recipes she offers: “Hot Spiced Coconut Milk” …YUM! I LOVE coconut milk! Sweet Potato and Cashew Soup with Avocado Cream…Oh my goodness!! It’s to die for and not nearly as labor intensive as it sounds! I’m going to be trying the Sesame Miso Tofu with Asian Greens later this week! Doesn’t this dish look amazing?

Terry Walters is also the author of the food blog Eat Clean Live Well.  You can get the Clean Start book now on Amazon.com. I highly recommend it if you are looking for a healthier lifestyle in 2011!

*company sent book for review