The Autism-Friendly Cookbook

Product Information

Information is what empowers all of us and is what we all effectively run on; we give and receive information on a day-by-day basis. I used gluten-free pasta and dairy-free cheese due to my allergies, so I’ll focus on the sauce which was delicious! Having observed firsthand the remarkable cooking classes that generated the delicious recipes in the “Coach in the Kitchen” cookbook, I am so happy that the book includes detailed information on how to run similar classes elsewhere.

Recipes are categorised by meal with additional guidance on the level of energy needed to tackle them, with options for low-energy or meltdown days, or days when you’re able to take on a new challenge. Hypersensitivity to sound can become unbearable in a kitchen, along with smells – and that is before you actually start cooking or the consumption! If you had told the class of 2018 that – in just under 2 years – we’d have experienced a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, our baby faces would have laughed themselves silly. 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). The more I looked at the ‘just learn to cook’ line, the more it seemed to me there was something amiss.

I spend a lot of time trying to navigate the access issues, and it takes up so much of an emotional cost. However, apparently, I could ‘just learn’ such skills – which is also not possible, due to a spiky profile. With autistic people at its heart, the book also contains helpful tips and advice for parents and teachers looking to find out more.

Indeed, the recipes that are deprived of ingredients like eggs, dairy, or wheat flour are risky if you don’t usually use GF type of cuisine. But we will not keep the standard of ‘everything having to be perfect’ – from the presentation of a recipe to the food combinations. The recipes also offer adaptations for people who are sensory seekers, sensory avoiders or who want to broaden their cooking horizons in the kitchen. 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. Biography: Lydia Wilkins is a freelance journalist based in the UK covering disability and social justice issues.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 more I asked contacts, friends, family about this, the more the frustration was clear - especially when it came to lacking awareness of sensory issues, and how to adapt. At the time of writing, there is no data to officially provide context, but it is blindingly obvious from anecdotes, interviews, or just friendly conversations with autistic people.In The Autism-Friendly Cookbook: No-Sugar, Low-Carb Recipes for Picky Eaters, we've created a culinary masterpiece tailored to the unique needs of individuals with autism and their families. At other points cookbooks would just be inaccessible, given the language used, or even just because the duration they’d take was not a true reflection from start to finish. I want to preface this by saying that l am an experienced cook, who was privileged to receive an education in food as I was growing up. Lydia Wilkins is a freelance journalist based in the UK covering disability and social justice issues. Not all autistic individuals will struggle – but I’d argue that those who don’t are extraordinarily lucky, and probably the product of a degree of privilege, such as if someone in a supporting role has had the time to teach and adapt to your specific needs.