The Autism-Friendly Cookbook

Product Information

When I told someone I was reviewing this book, their first question was “how is a cookbook for autistic people different to a cookbook for neurotypical people?”.

Finally, each method is finished with ideas to expand the dish or alter it to suit your food sensory preferences. The world would be a very boring place if we were all the same, with no difference, no creativity, no originality. It is the in-between where what makes us human begins and ends. We all have our faults and flaws, our better sides and more positive days. It may be frustrating at times to acquire new skills over time, but there is something beautiful in that. Be kind to yourself. According to the Trussell Trust, more than six in 10 people who were referred to a food bank in 2020 were disabled. And a recent report showed that a disabled person is five times more likely to experience food poverty than the average person. This isn’t surprising to me, given my own experience with the DWP. This sets the tone for section one of the book, which is arguably more important than the recipe section (and probably could have been a book of its own).I opted to try dishes on the complex end of what the book had to offer and implement some of the “expanding your repertoire” suggestions at the end of the recipe.

The result was a tasty, wholesome, and comforting meal, with a warm smoky taste from the chorizo and paprika. Again, the recipe made loads, so whilst it’s a longer cook than many of the recipes, your labour is rewarded with lots of yummy leftovers. Around the same kind of time, my mentor died suddenly. The last thing he’d ever said to me acted as something of a spark to the fuse of an idea. We’d spoken about conversations about me ghostwriting the book of someone we both knew at the time – and the excitement on that was almost child-like, immediately instructing me how to write this, who to talk to, why, and what questions to ask. The voice whispered down the phone line, from thousands of miles away. If I was to ever be offered a contract, send it to me, it said. Knowing that someone, somewhere, has faith in you is a powerful act. I never thought I’d put pen to paper as part of a long form project; that to me was what the ‘boy’s club’ of ‘proper journalists’ would do! I used gluten-free pasta and dairy-free cheese due to my allergies, so I’ll focus on the sauce which was delicious! It was smooth, had a consistent flavour, and went perfectly with my wholegrain gluten-free pasta. The recipe makes LOADS of sauce; I increased the pasta to feed two with leftovers and I still had about half the sauce left, so this is a recipe where your labour is rewarded. The DWP was suggesting I didn’t meet the threshold for support, effectively as I wasn’t ostensibly disabled enough.And when it came to day-to-today life and practical skills, the report suggested that things like cooking can apparently just be learnt. In the end, I had to go all the way to a tribunal, which rounded off an extraordinarily stressful 16 months. That was arduous, in particular, and the whole process beyond humiliating and degrading. I identified with several of the things Lydia mentions, gifting me language to describe something I’ve struggled with all my life but never been able to explain before. Thank you, Lydia!

To be clear, I cannot ‘just learn’ how to do things, to the standard of those considered ‘normal’. There will always be a gap in skill attainment, and my ability to carry out tasks fluctuates. I also have the ‘spiky profile’, meaning my skill attainment is extremely uneven. But by beginning to document issues around accessibility autistic people experience in the kitchen, I hope that my cookbook can at least be the start of an ongoing conversation – and a much needed one at that. There is also information about changes that can be made, as well as information for parents, teachers, and careers.The Kid-Friendly ADHD and Autism Cookbook makes it easy for you, step, by little step, to begin a healthier food journey. Everyone has an interoception system, which is a system in the body that interprets sensations. If your stomach rumbles, congratulations – you must be hungry! One thing was clear: The book was very much needed. I finished writing in a 10 month period in 2021.

The Autism Friendly Cookbook is a companion and guide for autistic people who want to gain confidence and independence in the kitchen. The comprehensive reference guides and clear and informative recipe layout are what sets this book apart from others, making it as accessible as possible to its target audience. Stacy Toth and her husband run Real Everything, a great blog chronicling living paleo as a family. Even though we are not strict paleo, I love Stacy’s cookbooks because she offers amazing, kid-friendly recipes that fit our ADHD Diet. Stacy has been candid about her son’s struggle with ADHD and how food was a huge part of his healing process.My kids love the Berry-Chia Breakfast Crisp, too – which gets in a good serving of fruit and protein first thing in the morning, not to mention some superfoods as well. Katie includes other goodies, such as menu plans and a big section on drinks – I love the Super Mom Coffee Recipes. Deliciously Ella I had to admit that I honestly wasn’t sure. I know how my physical disability and ADHD affect me in the kitchen but being someone who didn’t realise they are autistic until recently, I hadn’t really thought about how my autism impacted my ability to follow a recipe and cook a meal. Whilst I did sometimes wonder whether as an experienced and adventurous cook the food was aimed at me, the advice and advocacy Lydia peppers her book with helped me understand the difficulties my autism presents in the kitchen and gave me the language to explain to others.