The alternative cooking manual

 A real success since its first publication, this manual has become a reference book that explains why and how to eat differently. Gilles Daveau, a chef and organic restaurateur for twenty-two years, uses the methods and know-how that he passes on in his cooking classes and training courses: a pedagogy for appropriating organic, local and seasonal products at one's own pace and without dogmatism, and for preparing healthy dishes that can be adapted to one's own tastes.

It proposes a global vision of what is at stake around our plates, asking in particular the question of the important place of animal proteins in them without advocating a vegetarian diet. The book is in line with our eating habits, inviting us to revalue vegetable proteins and to prefer quality to quantity of meat consumed. After a review of the nutritional guidelines and basic dietary concepts, a practical section offers simple techniques for discovering an alternative diet through eighteen major families of recipes. All are illustrated by a detailed standard dish, then considered from the perspective of varying the ingredients according to taste, locally available products and the seasons.
Without dwelling on the excesses of the agri-food industry, the author enables us to move gradually towards a diet based on quality products, respect for their seasonality and sustainable production methods that promote pleasure, flavour and cost control. From the choice of products to the composition of meals, through daily food requirements to cooking and seasoning methods, everything is covered in this manual, which is essential for freeing oneself from gastronomic or organic clichés and reclaiming "one's" healthy and eco-responsible home cooking.

Details
Author: Gilles Daveau
Photography: Laurent Barager
Illustration: Clément Luzeau
Publication date: March 2014
Number of pages: 128
Format: 17 x 22cm