Kat Ashmore has a message for picky eaters and those tasked with feeding them: “If you think you don’t like vegetables, you’re eating them the wrong way.”
Her husband, who once swore he hated Brussels sprouts, is a case in point.
“The first time I served them, piled high in a heap under a spicy caramel glaze, he expected the grayish mush boiled to oblivion that gave them a bad rap for so many of us,” she writes. “Turns out, he quite likes Brussels sprouts and all other veggies too.”
Ashmore has had plenty of practice honing her flavor-making techniques. Growing up in “a family of enthusiastic eaters” led her to culinary school and a career as a corporate recipe developer and producer for “The Martha Stewart Show.” She didn’t fully realize how much that part of her life elevated her self-esteem and overall happiness until she left it behind to care for her two small children. Loneliness set in and overeating filled the void.
“I was burdened by weight, emotionally and physically, and longed for a purpose that had nothing to do with being a mom,” she explains. So in 2020, she launched Kat Can Cook, a healthy recipe blog, as well as engaging social media content under the same name. Her entrepreneurial venture became not only a viral sensation but also an “act of self-care.”
“Big Bites: Wholesome, Comforting Recipes that Are Big on Flavor, Nourishment and Fun” (Rodale, $35) encapsulates her upbeat approach of focusing on what we can add to our plates to make us healthier, rather than what we should subtract.
The recipes I’ve tried thus far are as filling and satisfying as promised: Overnight Coconut Cream Pie Oats for make-ahead breakfasts, Lentil Chopped Salad with Feta and Honey Walnut Dressing for days’ worth of rib-sticking lunches, Fifteen-Minute Turmeric-Spiced Chickpeas with Spinach and Tomatoes for a lightning-fast plant-based dinner in a bowl, and Miso-Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin to tame a meat craving without guilt.
More than new ideas for meal solutions, “Big Bites,” Ashmore writes, is “about falling in love with real food, and in turn, maybe falling in love with yourself.”
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
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