Eat Clean, Play Dirty:

Recipes for a Body and Life You Love by the Founders of Sakara Life

by Danielle Duboise & Whitney Tingle

“Food should make you feel sexy,” say Danielle Duboise and Whitney Tingle, founders of the popular organic nutritional program, Sakara Life. 

In their debut book, Eat Clean, Play Dirty, the duo delivers delicious recipes and reinvigorating rituals to achieve nutritional harmony, a way to nourish the body and feed the spirit simultaneously. It’s about saying yes to kale and to dessert; to early-morning asanas and late-night dancing. It’s about prioritizing health without making sacrifices.

Since delivering their first meals by bicycle in 2012, Whitney and Danielle have changed thousands of lives across the country and garnered a long list of celebrity devotees including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba, and Oprah. With Eat Clean, Play Dirty, they have gathered the vibrant, delicious dishes that clients and fans crave and make it possible to recreate the Sakara magic in their own kitchens.

Changing the dialogue we have with our bodies and our plates, the cookbook empowers each of us to become our own chef and ultimate healer by using food as medicine. Each delicious recipe, from the Eat-the-Rainbow Wrap, Orgasmic Coconut Yogurt, Red Beet Burger, and the Everything Bagel with Garlic Schmear is designed to:

balance our body
heal our gut
flood our body with ample nutrients
shed excess weight
reduce inflammation
eliminate sugar cravings
balance our hormones and mood
give us the tools to create a body we love living in

Every recipe is backed by Sakara’s roots in nutritional science—honed over years of studying with doctors, scientists and healers of all kinds. Alongside the recipes, readers will learn about superfood ingredients from around the world, discover the phytonutrients needed for true vitality, unearth the secrets of the microbiome, and master tangible lifestyle tricks for balancing lifelong health with ultimate happiness. It’s Sakara’s signature blend of science, sexiness, irreverence, and light-filled intention.

The ultimate wellness cookbook has arrived. Celebrate abundance. Say yes to body love. And don’t forget to break some rules.

Review

I was hesitant on trying anything from this cookbook because it just seemed overwhelming!  If you are Vegan/Vegetarian then this is probably right up your alley.  But I have to admit the gorgeous photos drew me in and I was looking at the recipes to see if it was possible.  If you have seen any of my other reviews on the cookbooks I have received from Abrams Books through their Dinner Party program, you would know I have two massive meat eaters in the house and not many of these would go over with them very well.  However, I do have a friend that this is right up her alley, so after trying one of the recipes I passed the book on to her because this is her type of food.

Before I get into the recipes, the book does go into their 9 pillars of health and I have to agree that good health begins with your gut and the more colorful foods you eat that are clean and not saturated with the bad stuff, the better you will feel.  The book talks about each pillar and what the founders think you should try and achieve.  The pillars are listed below but you can read more details on this page of their website

Pillar 1 – No Calorie Counting

Pillar 2 – Plant Protein

Pillar 3 – Eat your Water

Pillar 4 – Greens

Pillar 5 – Good Fats

Pillar 6 – Eat the Rainbow

Pillar 7 – Nutrient Dense

Pillar 8 – Sulfur-rich Veggies

Pillar 9 – Body Intelligence

For Memorial Day, we met my family at my sister’s house for a cookout.  My sister is a Vegetarian and so I knew I should bring something she could eat as well.  Enter the Tumeric + Meyer Lemon Squares.  These are packed with whole foods and Turmeric which is a natural anti-inflammatory.  You could make these squares year round but they are perfect for summer.  I also decided to jazz them up a little bit and added chopped pistachios across the top.  I learned after the first time to do this right after you put the custard-like topping on the crust so that it firms up with the pistachios already in place.  These were a hit with all of my family and there weren’t many squares to bring home to enjoy later!

Overall, if you are a Vegan/Vegetarian or want to eat more plant-based meals then I suggest giving this cookbook a try.  Perhaps borrow from your library before purchasing to make sure it fits with how you cook.  There are some ingredients that I have not heard of and am not sure where to purchase, but there are plenty of recipes that would fit into our family’s lifestyle.

Turmeric + Meyer Lemon Squares

For the Crust:

1 3/4 c almond meal
1/2 c tapioca flour
1/4 c melted coconut oil
1/4 c maple syrup (I happened to have bourbon barrel maple syrup on hand so that is what I used)

For the Filling:

1/3 c freshly squeeze Meyer lemon juice (or regular lemons if you can’t find Meyer lemons)
2T cornstarch
1 cup full fat coconut milk
1/3 c maple syrup
2T coconut oil
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Zest of 1/2 Meyer lemon or regular lemon
1/2 Meyer lemon, thinly sliced (I used the pistachios I mentioned)

To make the crust:

Preheat the oven to 350° and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the almond meal and tapioca flour until combined.  Stir in the oil and syrup and mix until combined.  Press the mixture into the bottom of the pan and bake until the crust is lightly browned around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. (19 minutes worked in my oven).

To make the filling:

In a medium pot, whisk together the lemon juice and cornstarch until no lumps remain.  Whisk in all the remaining ingredients except the lemon slices.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the filling thickens, about 8 minutes.  Remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.

Pour the filling over the crust and refrigerate for 3 hours or until completely set.  Life the bars out of the pan and cut into 16 squares.  Top each with a slice of lemon and serve.