Joyous Health: A Cookbook Review

Joyous Health Review

Product Review, Wellbeing

I’ve mentioned before that I’m a bit of a bibliophile and thus, I can never be found without a book in hand. For a while now, that book has been my go-to cookbook, Joyous Health: Eat and Live Well without Dieting by Joy McCarthy. I just can’t seem to keep my nose out of it. Whenever I’m feeling like I need some recipe inspiration, or even a little cheering up, it has definitely proven helpful to look through this vibrant and beautifully designed book.

Fun fact: Joy was one of my instructors at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition where she taught one of our social media classes. She was so energetic and awesome as a result of which, I’ve been following her blog ever since. 

“Joyous health is more than the absence of disease or the avoidance of the occasional cold or flu. It is an optimal state of wellness not just physically but mentally and socially, characterized by: a positive mindset, feeling and looking fabulous, good digestion and elimination, restorative sleep, healthy relationships, having energy for exercise and sex, [and] feeling joyous!”

As much as I love a good cookbook, I like a good lifestyle guide even more. Over half of “Joyous Health” is a lifestyle and wellness directory. It’s the perfect book for individuals who are just beginning their wellness journey, and aren’t sure where to start. In the lifestyle guide section of the book, Joy provides her 6-week program to “Joyous Health”, including tips for improving your digestion, improving your emotional health, and a 10-day meal plan complete with easy-to-follow recipes and simple ingredients. It was quite a struggle to keep myself from highlighting the whole book. 

It's not always about food. It's also about choosing to have a joyous attitude.

The book is all-encompassing and approaches health from a truly holistic perspective, featuring everything from food elimination for optimal digestion; how to clean up your beauty regimen; a list of her favourite superfoods; how to give your kitchen a makeover; and how to improve your mental health though activities like yoga, meditation and pursing healthy and positive relationships. 

You always have the power of choice and the power to heal your body. You have choice over your thoughts, actions, words and every morsel you eat.

 The photography and design of the book is stunning. It is bright and colourful, and truly puts you in an atmosphere of joy, hopefulness, and positivity while reading it. I also tend to have a bit of a thing for lists, which there is no shortage of in these pages. 

I made quite a few of the recipes in the book, but one of my favourites was the Curry Lentil Loaf on page 234. It is so filling and delicious, and it makes a huge batch of the stuff. I ended up recently finding a few squares that I froze a couple of months ago and I am so happy to be re-enjoying this recipe. It’s fabulous on its own, or crumbled over a salad (and is especially tasty saturated in balsamic vinaigrette with some goat cheese and sundried tomato). 

“Joyous Health” is definitely a must-have on my health and wellness shelf. Though it actually doesn’t spend very much time on said shelf since I’m so often riffling through it! 

A nice tall glass of cucumber water, garnished with a cucumber slice, featuring my glass straw

My Favourite Summer Health Products

Monthly Favourites, Product Review

Bonjour, lovely people! If, like me, you live in the GTA, you may have been subject to some wet and chilly weather over the past weekend. Oddly, I quite enjoy a nice rainy weekend, during which I enjoy putting my feet up, drinking a butt ton of tea, and binge reading. Here’s to hoping you all spent your weekend enjoying similar comfort! I’m off to work for the rest of the afternoon and before I depart, I want to leave you with my Summer Favourites, a list of the health related tidbits that I’ve been enjoying over the past couple months. I haven’t done one since last November! You may notice that all of my favourite things are food related. I guess it’s pretty clear where my priorities lie.

1) Joyous Health: Eat and Live Well Without Dieting

I am in love with this book. About the first two-thirds of the book is dedicated to advice for improving your digestion and lifestyle over the course of several weeks. The final third is full of amazing recipes complete with a 10-day meal plan to help get you started on your wellness journey. I’m planning on posting a full review within the next week or two, so stay tuned for that!

Cover shot of the "Joyous Health" cookbook by Joy McCarthy

2) Chai Rooibos Organic Tea by Yogi

I can never stay faithful to any one kind of tea for very long, but this tea is the one I am loving right now. It is spicy, sweet, and feels a bit like dessert when you get smacked with late night cravings. I enjoy mine with a splash of almond milk. My kitty, Sonny Wa, was desperate to be in every shot I took of this tea, so I decided to just leave him to it.

Chai Rooibos tea by Yogi (my tabby cat is lounging in the background)

3) Genuine Health Proteins+ vanilla whey protein powder

So, this is my favourite protein powder ever. It makes EVERYTHING I put it in taste like a vanilla milkshake! My dear friend Saar hooked me up with a container for my birthday at the end of June, and I probably only have half a serving left, if I’m lucky. My only advice would be, if you add this protein powder to your smoothies, to drink it right away (which you should do anyway for maximum nutrient density) as I find it becomes weirdly sweet if left for too long.

Genuine Health Proteins+ Vanilla Whey Protein Powder

4) My glass straw

Every morning, I have a cup of warm water with half a lemon squeezed into it. This amazing practice aids in detoxifying the liver, and cleansing the digestive tract. All that acid, however, can be quite harsh on the teeth, so I picked up a glass straw to help out with that. I wouldn’t advise using a glass straw for a smoothie unless you have a straw cleaning brush (which I don’t) because I imagine all those little berry seeds and fibres can get stuck to the inside of the straw. But it is super fun for drinking everything else!

A nice tall glass of cucumber water, garnished with a cucumber slice, featuring my glass straw

5) Styrian Gold Austrian pumpkin seed oil

I first discovered this oil at the Raw Vegan Festival last summer. I tried it at their stall and right away, I knew I had to take home a bottle. It was gone SO fast. It has such a lovely nutty flavour and tastes good drizzled on all things savoury (I have yet to try it on sweet things, so I’ll have to give that a shot soon). I don’t know where you can find it in stores, but if you come across it in your travels, be sure to sample!

Beautiful dark green glass bottle of Styrian Gold Austrian pumpkin seed oil