Why The Failsafe Cookbook is Critical
The Failsafe Cookbook by Sue Dengate, is specifically designed for those suffering from food intolerance symptoms or allergies. For those who have food problems but do not know what the cause is, the Failsafe Cookbook is a must have while on a restricted diet and to conduct a food elimination diet.
So, what does “failsafe” mean? It is a bit of an oxymoron really but Sue Dengate has used it as the title of The Failsafe Cookbook as an acronym to mean; Free of Additives, and Low in Salicylates, Amines and Flavour Enhancers. In dictionary terms, you can read it here.
The Failsafe Cookbook will provide you with a combination of information related to food intolerance symptoms and recipes. I have often been asked the difference between The Failsafe Cookbook and Fed Up which were both written by Sue Dengate.
My response would be to say that Fed Up is more information based with a nice amount of recipes and The Failsafe Cookbook is more recipe based with less information. It is worth reading both.
The Failsafe Cookbook Review
We used The Failsafe Cookbook daily and to be honest, I don’t know how we would have gotten through our food elimination diet and food problems without it. Read on for the run down.
- The Failsafe cookbook is a soft cover so you need to be a bit more careful in the handling and you WILL handle it a lot. You will do well to buy a cookbook holder as this will help protect your cookbooks whilst cooking.
- It has some great information on food intolerance, food additives and how Sue Dengate did her food elimination diet.
- Most of the recipes are easy, with little error, if any at all.
- There is a handy additives list on the last page of the the Failsafe book that you can cut out and put in your purse. This food additives list is not as thorough as the one contained in Additive Alert by Julie Eady. The additives list in Additive Alert is cardboard in comparison to The Failsafe Cookbook where the wallet list is only paper.
- The recipes in The Failsafe Cookbook are easy to prepare and very family friendly.
- On the down side, there are no glossy pictures in The Failsafe Cookbook so you have to create a visual in your head of how the recipe should look as an end result.
- As a result of my research into food, I understand that processed sugar is very bad for your body. Those who are suffering from food intolerance symptoms or food problems are recommended not to have unrefined sugars as they are higher in naturally occurring chemicals. There are quite a few recipes in this book that contain processed sugar as an ingredient because it is considered more tolerable. My suggestion is that you use golden syrup or pure, organic maple syrup as a substitute where possible.
- There is a great index at the back of The Failsafe cookbook referenced via food intolerance symptoms. For example, you can look up Tantrums and you will have an explanation and a possible cause.
- It has recipes for breakfast, lunches, snacks, main meals (including vegetarian meals), something sweet, food for special occasions, some alternatives for gluten free cooking including dips, sauces, etc.
- The down side of this cookbook, in my opinion, is that it still allows things like gelatine (cow body parts – yuck) and white sugar in recipes (white sugar is bad for the body). Just avoid using these products or find a replacement that is failsafe.
- The Failsafe cookbook is focused on staying on a restricted diet indefinitely. I believe me, need to use The Failsafe cookbook to aid us until we work out where we have a food issue. Foods that we can tolerate should be consumed until we can heal the body but our body needs nutrients from all raw foods and our aim should be to eat from the tree of life freely.
Contents of The Failsafe Cookbook
The Failsafe Cookbook contains over 305 pages of information and recipes. From inside the book:
Contents:
- Page 1 – Are you Affected by Food Chemicals?
- Page 5 – What Every Parent Should Know About Food Intolerance
- Page 15 – Avoid these additives
- Page 17 – How we did our elimination diet
- Page 23 – A rating scale
- Page 25 – The 13 Commandments
- Page 26 – The Fridge List
- Page 27 – Failsafe substitutes
- Page 28 – Weights and Measures
- Page 31 – Breakfasts
- Page 39 – Lunches and snacks
- Page 40 – Lunches
- Page 49 – School lunches
- Page 52 – Snacks
- Page 59 – Finger food for babies and toddlers
- Page 60 – Drinks
- Page 66 – Icypoles and icecups
- Page 69 – Main Meals
- Page 69 – Soups and Stews
- Page 73 – Meat
- Page 90 – Chicken
- Page 99 – Seafood
- Page 102 – Vegetables and vegetarian meals
- Page 118 – Salads
- Page 121 – Eggs
- Page 124 – Pizza and Pasta
- Page 132 – Something Sweet
- Page 132 – Desserts
- Page 158 – Muesli bars, muffins, cakes, biscuits and slices
- Page 173 – Sweet treats
Page 183 – Others
- Page 183 – Fats and oils
- Page 185 – Spreads
- Page 188 – Dips
- Page 190 – Sauces
- Page 194 – Odds and ends
- Page 199 – Food for Special Occasions
- Page 199 – Birthday parties
- Page 202 – Christmas cakes and puddings
- Page 204 – Easter
- Page 204 – Salicylate and amine recipes
- Page 209 – Eating out
- Page 211 – Failsafe weight loss
- Page 214 – Travelling, camping and hiking
- Page 218 – Failsafe gardening
- Page 221 – Medications and remedies
- Page 224 – What about nutrition?
- Page 228 – Gluten-free Cooking
- Page 247 – Shopping List
- Page 255 – Checklist of Common Mistakes
- Page 262 – Frequently Asked Questions
- Page 269 – Symptoms of Food Intolerance
- Page 297 – Support and Further Information
- Page 299 – Notes and References
- Page 305 – Index
- Pate 315 – Nasty Additives Wallet List
Important. Where to buy The Failsafe Cookbook
On the whole, I believe The Failsafe Cookbook has been an absolute life saver during those times when we had food problems. If you use The Failsafe Cookbook in conjunction with Friendly Food, you will have ample resources during those difficult times when you are suffering from food intolerance symptoms or food problems. You can purchase your copy by clicking on the picture of The Failsafe Cookbook at the top of this post or by clicking here.
I would love to hear your comments or feedback after using The Failsafe Cookbook so please, buy your own copy today and tell us what you think below.
Your News On Food brought to you by Eileen Baudinette Food and Health Commentator. © 2009 – 2022 http://thenewsonfood.com ———————–Disclaimer:
I’m no medical expert and information contained on this blog is written through my own experience with the aim of furthering your education on health. It is your responsibility as to how you use this information and I cannot be held liable for any misinterpretation or misuse of the information provided.
Lina Nguyen says
Thanks Eileen.
Another educational resource I had no idea about – until you shared it here. Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge and recommendation with us. So great to know there are so many healthy, practical alternatives and that it’s not the end of the world to have food problems. There’s still a lot out there to be eaten! Love the maple syrup tip, by the way.
Lina
.-= Lina Nguyen´s last blog ..Celebrate Valentines Day alone because nobody cares about you =-.
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Lina,
I love pure, organic maple syrup on buttermilk pancakes. Yum! Agave is another good natural sweetener to use and you can even find it at some supermarkets these days too. Or Stevia as another alternative. Anything but white processed sugar I say. 🙂 Thanks for reading and keep an eye out for my next post as it will be on honey!
Eileen.
Wal Heinrich says
For someone with food intolerances, all the useful books and information they can get will help keep the problem from descending into something worse, so long as they act on it. I have seen bad cases get much worse. It is far better to do the hard yards as soon as the problem is identified than to do the much harder work later on because it wasn’t caught in its infancy. No matter how bad it seems, it can always get worse, and it will if it is allowed to.
.-= Wal Heinrich´s last blog ..Genetically Modified Foods – Are They Worth the Risk? =-.
Eileen Baudinette says
Completely agree Wal. The problem for a lot of people is that they don’t quite know where to start and then what to eat so that can feel really hard. Especially if you are a parent of a child with food intolerance symptoms. At times I had to cook two separate meals every night and was scratching my head before I knew what to give my son to heal him.
Thanks Wal, I appreciate the time you have taken to add your opinions. 🙂
Eileen.
Rachel Price says
i used Stevia extract as a sugar substitute because i am diabetic. Stevia is really sweeter than sucrose.-‘*
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Rachel,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, stevia is a good substitute…just that not everyone likes the taste of it. 🙂 Also, if you are a diabetic then you do have the opportunity to heal yourself and the FDR can show you exactly how. You should also look at cinnamon in your diet too as this can help.
I appreciate you stopping by to post a comment.
Regards, Eileen.
maggie says
This book seems like a good item to be in a person’s hands even if the person does not have allergies. The information provided is very comprehensive. Perhaps, more people will take hold of this book.
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Maggie,
Yes, The Failsafe Cookbook by Sue Dengate is a great resource but what is even better is if people look at incorporating raw foods into their diet. Also buying foods that have no additives and no preservatives can be a great start and it also makes a statement to food manufacturers.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. 🙂
Eileen.
Jeanette says
What a great idea. I’m allergic to dairy and think I have an intolerance towards something else but I haven’t figured out an easy way to find what it is (might be gluten or soy). This book might be what I need to reset and see what is going on.
JeanetteÃ�´s last blog post ..Are You Juiced About Your Health What You May Not Know…
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Jeanette,
Thanks for your comment. Sorry to hear you suffer from food intolerance symptoms. Yes, The Failsafe Cookbook is a great book for doing a food elimination diet which would assist you in finding out what your food problems are. I also recommend Friendly Food. Together, these resources will assist you in finding out the causes of your food intolerance symptoms and then move you forward on the path to healing your body.
Regards, Eileen.
Kate Williams says
We need more cookbooks written specifically for people with food allergies; I’m one of those who is allergic. I learned three years ago I was allergic to gluten and my allergist specialist proceeded to tell me that, technically, everyone is allergic to varying degrees. I don’t know how true that is, but either way I have changed my diet completely—mainly lean protein and raw fruits & veggies now—and I feel infinitely better.
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Kate,
I believe we all have tolerance levels to varying degrees and this is dependent on the state of our health and what we eat. I am glad to hear you have changed what you eat. Your body is telling you (by feeling better) that it is happy with the change. Raw food can have an amazing impact on our body and our mind. Keep up the positive change and feel free to post a comment again in the future. I’d love to hear from you.
Regards, Eileen.
Susie Gleeson says
When I was in my 20’s I was able to get away with eating anything—(or so I believed)where I usually felt good and never gained weight. Well, things have changed and so has my diet. I’m now avoiding wheat, white flour, and I eat very little sugar. Well, I actually feel better than I did in my 20’s. I’m also exercising now! I never realized how much that the food we eat can impact our overall health and well-being. Thanks for your post. 🙂
Eileen Baudinette says
Hi Susie,
It can be a real eye opener when we start to understand how food can impact our health. We can go through life wondering why we feel tired, lethargic or tolerate mild health concerns. We ignore our body’s food intolerance symptoms when we should be listening. Symptoms are the body’s way of trying to get us to pay attention. I hope more people will start to change what they eat to improve their health and therefore their lifestyle. 🙂
Thanks for your comment.
Regards, Eileen.