A new recipe book by a Somerset author that embraces eating wholefoods

Back in August 2017 I received the news that I had stage III bowel cancer. This came as a huge shock, as I have always been a fairly healthy eater and enjoyed regular exercise as part of a balanced lifestyle. I rarely drink alcohol and I have never smoked a cigarette in my life.

When I received my diagnosis, I had just turned 40 and with two little ones at home, and a freelance marketing career, I was very much enjoying this stage of my life. We were in the middle of moving to the village of High Littleton, a move we had been looking forward to, but suddenly life seemed very chaotic. I wasn’t sure whether I would live to see my children grow up and my thoughts were all over the place. Thankfully a CT scan confirmed that the cancer hadn’t spread and that we could go ahead and focus on the move before my surgery, which was scheduled for the following month.

Following our move, my husband and I started researching ways to support me and my body through cancer treatment. After ploughing through what felt like endless books, articles and research papers, I came to the conclusion that what made most sense to me was to start eating a mostly plant-based whole foods diet and to cut out any processed foods to support myself through surgery and chemotherapy. I also started using various complementary and alternative therapies to support my body.

The idea of writing a cookbook came to me quite early on during my cancer journey as I started cooking nourishing wholefood dishes to shower my depleted body with nourishment. I documented everything I made by taking pictures with my phone and camera. I also started sharing my dishes on my Instagram. Cooking became my therapy. In the midst of all the chaos, what I ate and drank was the one thing that I felt I could be in control of, other than my mindset, and this had a positive impact on my mind and body throughout my treatment and beyond.

My first investment was a juicer. My husband gave it to me as an early Christmas gift as I started my chemotherapy in the October. The daily fresh juices were a brilliant way for me to get lots of goodness into my body, especially on days when my appetite was low. Other helpful tools were my blender, nutmilk bags, fermenting jars, fresh herbs and spices, a vegetable spiraliser for making courgetti noodles and other spiralised vegetables for salad and side dishes.

I also found spending time in nature nourishing and energising. I feel incredibly lucky to live where I live with so many wonderful walks and views right on my doorstep. Our rural location became even more of a blessing as lockdown approached. In High Littleton we have the stunning woodlands of Greyfield Woods with its majestic waterfall. I often went down there to sit in silence and to boost my energy during my treatment - I still do now.

Eat Naturally - A Cancer Survivor’s Cookbook (Image: Anna Barclay) Early on in my diagnosis we became part owners of an allotment and started growing vegetables of our own, alongside our weekly veg box from Riverford. When lockdown arrived, along came the hottest year I can remember in a long time. We started growing lots of fruit and vegetables at home too, including tomatoes, peppers, kale, courgette, berries and so much more. This made it quick and easy to cook up my recipes with the freshest ingredients. Knowing that all the vegetables were locally sourced, felt important and precious.

I had my first no evidence of disease scan in May 2018 and things have been clear ever since then, but I didn’t find myself in the right headspace to write a book until this year. The years following on from cancer are really tough mentally, possibly more so than going through treatment itself, because suddenly you are all alone and you are left with a head full of spinning thoughts and what ifs.

At the end of last year, I was nudged by a friend, who has known about my book idea from the very start and she asked, 'When is this book of yours coming out?' That was the prompt I needed to finally get the book written and all the recipes finalised. I started working with my publisher, The Book Chief in January and in July the book was launched. It was a lot of hard work, but I am really pleased with how it turned out.

Eat Naturally - A Cancer Survivor’s Cookbook is so much more than just a cookbook. I wrote it to empower and inspire others to introduce more whole foods and plants into their cooking. The book may be written from a cancer survivor’s point of view, but really it is a book for anyone interested in healthy living and eating. It has a foreword by a London oncologist talking about the impact of our diet on our health, a section on mindful eating, useful pantry and bathroom cabinet essentials, a section with words of encouragement, useful facts and tips and it also includes my story which I hope will bring hope to those who need it.

READER DISCOUNT

Somerset Life readers can use the discount code SOMERSET10 to receive 10% off the cover price when ordered via mariahonker.com (To receive the discount please enter the code online before November 18)

Chickpea and sweet potato soup. (Image: Maria Honeker)