By Betsy DiJulio
As a longtime foodie, I have a somewhat vast collection of cookbooks. But there are only two that are housed in my kitchen, along with my quintet of recipe file binders: mine and Angela Phillips’.
Admittedly, Angela is a close friend and favorite yogini, but I would want this cookbook at my fingertips regardless. I also freely admit that most of what I cook are my own recipes or those I search on the internet and save on one of my many Pinterest boards. But her book makes me long for the days when cookbooks, held in my lap, were some of my closest companions: repositories not just of recipes, but stories about people, places, and ideas. And not formulaic Pinterest-style “stories,” but authentic narratives that, if written from an optimize-your-life perspective as is so often the case nowadays, it wasn’t evident.
Published in January, The Nourished Soul: Everyday, Simple, Beautiful Cooking for Body, Mind & Spirit, features nearly 75 recipes, each one accompanied by a full-color photo. Though the quality of the photos is, at times, a little uneven, that is not a deterrence. These recipes are keepers and many of the photos are luscious. It is estimated that people only use five to ten recipes in a given cookbook. That is surely not the case with the recipes collected here.
As I shared in my Amazon 5-star review of the book:
Written conversationally by a woman who is clearly comfortable in her own skin, not to mention her kitchen, this cookbook is full of simple recipes you will actually prepare over and over. It feels generous and abundant, but not overwhelming. I would have been happy if the book included only the Small Bites chapter, as there is a wealth of goodness in that section alone, but there is so much more. Deeply flavorful and made from wholesome ingredients, every dish is more than the sum of its nutritious parts. Practical, yet inspirational, this book should be a kitchen staple for all cooks: vegan, veg, or omni.”
Originally wanting one recipe to flow into the next because “I eat the small bites for dinner and the desserts for breakfast, so let’s not get too committed to labels,” it was her husband, Tench (co-owner of the NARO) who recommended a little more structure. That advice resulted in seven chapters that open with an inspirational quote: Small Bites, Condiments, A.M. Bites, Salads, Soups, Savories, and Sweets..
Angela has taught vegetarian cooking classes on-and-off since the 1980s when she would use Ghent restaurant kitchens after hours. Though she now teaches out of her North End home in Virginia Beach, one thing remains the same: her intentionality in regard to human, animal, and planet health. A follower of Michael Pollan’s advice paraphrased by her as “Eat real food, most of it plant-based, and not too much of it,” all of Angela’s recipes are mouth-watering combinations of simple ingredients that deliver in the flavor, nutrition, and presentation departments.
Her uniquely beautiful approach to food styling, whether she has invited a friend for cocktails or a couple for dinner, somehow feels simultaneous unfussy and indulgent. Describing herself as a “hunter,” and one who “can’t stay out of thrift stores,” she leans into objects that are old and beautiful. She incorporates her collections of vintage silver and glassware into glittering and glowing layered tablescapes that you almost don’t want to disturb. Almost.
She credits her mother and her Yaya (grandmother) as her culinary mentors, saying they are and were “beautiful cooks and entertainers.” Though Angela’s heritage is Greek, she is not a Greek cook, yet Yaya’s Greek Potatoes (p. 69) and Mom’s Greek Potato Salad (p. 41) are not to be missed. And I, personally, am a huge fan of her Rosemary Cashews (p. 1) and Sunny “Tuna” Salad (as in sunflower seeds), among others. I am also a fan of how not only her family, but her friends are included in the carefully curated selection of recipes, e.g. Gina Foresta’s Cheddar Cheese Crackers, Larry Mednick’s Blue Cheese Dressing, Martha Mednick Glasser’s REAL Fruitcake, and many more.
In fact, it was a friend’s, “Isn’t it time you wrote that cookbook?” and the suggestion to register for a food writing course at the MUSE about a year prior to publication that lit the spark. The next day, Angela found an upcoming course on a day she could attend and signed up. The best advice from instructor, Rekaya Gibson, aka The Food Temptress, went something like this, “You want to write a cookbook? Well, then, you need to start writing.” Angela’s internal response was “F***!” But she sucked it up and “got after it.”
Asserting that, “Cooking is only one spoke in a full life,” she wanted the recipes to be really simple and quick, able to be prepared from a “really clean” pantry. Only one oil and one sweetener—olive oil and maple syrup—are used in this collection of scrumptious recipes. She even uses olive oil in her granola. Though the ingredients and methods of preparation are simple, the complex flavors are anything but.
Laughing—maybe even scoffing—at the notion of an overly planned and audited combination of components in her diet, Angela cooks, eats, and entertains more intuitively. And we are gifted an honored place at her table every time we open The Nourished Soul, regardless of the page.
Angela would prefer that you purchase the cookbook from her—and she is happy to sign and personalize it—at lalaphillips@icloud.com, though it is also available on Amazon ($32).
