Healthy Happy Foods – Book Review

Looking for healthy happy foods?  Food that is healthy and that will lift your mood?  Then you might be interested in reading this book.  

Title: Happy Foods – Over 100 Mood-Boosting Recipes
Author: Karen Wang Diggs
I give it 10 stars out of 10
Format: Paperback, 252 pages

Happy Foods

Introduction

In her book, Happy Foods, Karen Wang Diggs provides a wealth of information and helpful recipes to eat your way to health. Karen is a chef and a nutritionist, so in my mind she not only knows what she is talking about, but she has made the recipe so it is appealing and helpful.

I bought this book because I wanted to feel better, not just happy. Besides having chronic pain, I have food sensitivities and am pre-diabetic. And because I don’t want to have to take medications if I can help it, I want to be proactive in being healthy. This book is a great asset toward that goal.  

The subtitle was also very intriguing to me; the book contains over 100 mood boosting recipes.  I love trying new recipes, there are over 100 to choose from and they will help me feel better!  The trifecta!

Who Is Karen Wang Diggs?

A graduate of California Culinary Academy, she is a former chef at Hong Kong’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel.  As a certified nutritionist, she uses her holistic nutrition knowledge and culinary skills to produce healthy happy recipes.  

What It is About

The book is divided into sections discussing topics of healthy eating. The eight chapters are:

  • You Feel What You Eat
  • Go From Empty to Energized
  • Banish Bingeing and Welcome Satisfaction
  • Sweet Dreams and Serenity
  • Say Goodbye to Sad
  • Delights of Detox
  • Celebrate with Good Mood Foods
  • Complete Kitchen Makeover

These are chapter headings with subheadings that discuss the topic. Included within each chapter are yummy recipes that are easy to make. The recipes are indexed by types like soups, main courses, sweet treats. So you basically have two indexes to find what you are looking for, i.e., topics of the chapters or types of food.

Healthy Happy Foods
FotoshopTofs/Pixabay

She even includes some case studies, which I always find fascinating. I like real life stories that show making changes in our diet can truly affect our health.

One of my favorite recipes is Herbed Turkey Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash. I love pasta, but avoid gluten. Having spaghetti squash as an alternative is a very tasty option.

Another recipe I enjoyed is Turkey Meat Loaf and Mashed Cauliflower.  Actually, that is two recipes.  I am cutting back on meat, but when I want a healthy meat, group turkey seems to be a decent option.  And the mashed cauliflower is supposed to look like mashed potatoes.  She flavors it with garlic and nutritional yeast, two ingredients that add lots of flavor.

What I Like About This Book

I would imagine anyone that likes to eat enjoys cook books.  While this isn’t your run of the mill cook book, the recipes she has in the book are yummy.  So first off, I like the recipes.  Not only are they tasty though.  They are meant to help you feel better!  

Looking at the eight chapters you see that she addresses different topics that we all deal with.  Then within the chapters, she has numerous recipes to address the issue.  

I mentioned I made the Herbed Turkey Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash.   This recipe is found in the chapter titled Go From Empty to Energized.   Before getting to the recipes, the author discusses the endocrine glands, which include the thyroid, the adrenal glands, which produce hormones, and the liver and kidneys.  

Then she provides a bunch of yummy recipes.  Another recipe I have made is Pad Thai Rice Noodles: Happy Foods Version.  This tastes just like the dish you get in the restaurant.  

Healthy Happy Foods
RitaE/Pixabay

Very Few Negatives About This Book

There are very few drawbacks to this book.  They are:

  • Some ingredients are hard to find.  My local supermarket doesn’t have all the ingredients I need for some of the dishes.  I can usually find them in a health food store or a place like Sprouts.
  • Limited Indexes.  Though she has two indexes, I would like one that lists topics in an alphabetical index.  For example if I wanted to find something with nutritional yeast in it, that index would help me.
  • More grain free options.  I am eating very little grains these days, and would like more recipes that are grain free.

So you see the negatives are negligible.  

Here’s a video emphasizing the importance of eating the right foods.

Conclusions

Overall, I think this book is worth owning.  Not only is it chock full of great recipes, but it is also informative with educational and research sections.  If you want to feel better, this book will help you to do so.

I have also written about depression and how to fight it naturally.  Click here to check it out.  

I welcome your comments about this review; was it helpful? Do you want to know more? Is there a certain issue you are dealing with? I can check the index and tell you if that is addressed. And if you use the book, I would love to hear how it has helped you. Thanks!

You can purchase the book from Barnes and Noble buy clicking here.  I do not receive any referral fees for this link. 

Disclaimer

I am not a health care professional.  If you are concerned about trying new recipes, please speak to your doctor about that.  

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Happy Foods

$16.95
10

Recipes

10.0/10

Case Studies

10.0/10

Research Based

10.0/10

Pros

  • Yummy Recipes
  • Case Studies
  • Research Backed

Cons

  • Limited Index
  • Some Ingredients Hard to Find
  • I'd like more grain free recipes

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