Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients into Foods & Remedies That Heal

Alchemy of Herbs is a beautifully written and deeply informative guide that shows how everyday ingredients can be transformed into powerful, natural remedies. It’s ideal for those who love cooking, gardening, herbal medicine—and want to nurture their health with simple, effective ingredients. 🌿 What Makes It Stand Out: Grounded Approach: Offers clear, science-backed explanations about the healing properties of common herbs—amplifying confidence in your selections. Easy-to-Follow Recipes: From herbal tinctures and teas to salves and syrups, you can find simple step-by-step directions tailored for kitchen setups—no expensive gear required. Mindful Lifestyle Integration: Beyond recipes, this book weaves in tips on cultivation, sustainable sourcing, and seasonal eating, creating a holistic wellness practice. Accessible for All Levels: Whether you’re a complete beginner or already into herbalism, the explanations are thoughtful, encouraging, and never overwhelming. ⚠️ A Few Notes: Not a Replacement for Medical Care: While many remedies are gentle and supportive, they should complement—not replace—professional medical advice for serious health issues. Ingredient Sourcing Matters: Some recipes work best with fresh herbs from home gardens or trusted suppliers—so having good-quality sources helps. ✅ Final Take: If you’re drawn to turning your kitchen into a wellness center and love the idea of self-care through plants, Alchemy of Herbs is a treasure. It’s beautifully crafted, richly informative, and genuinely empowering. A must-read for anyone looking to deepen their relationship with food, nature, and holistic health.

I was very excited to hear that Rosalee de la Foret was writing her first book. I have thoroughly enjoyed studying with Rosalee for the past couple of years, and immediately pre-ordered her book, knowing that I was in for a real treat. After a couple of months of waiting, I am extremely satisfied with this high-quality publication. Rosalee clearly poured her heart into this book and each section takes the reader on a magnificent journey to the world of herbal medicine. The beginning of the book starts you on your journey with the benefits of herbs and spices, then continues with the latest science proving the effectiveness of our herbal allies. She then guides you in matching the herbs to you, not just to an ailment, providing examples on energetics, helping you to discover your own constitution, and giving an overview of the different tastes and what they will do for you. Included are quizzes to help you determine your own energetic balance, an exercise to hone your new-found skill, and a chapter on how to get the most out of your book, all leading to in-depth information on the five tastes of herbs. Each herb starts with a beautiful photo of the herb, and an intriguing quote from another great herbalist , past or present --even a quote on the herb Ashwaganda from Charaka, one of the founders of Ayurvedic Medicine. I loved each of the quotes and the photographs. For each herb there is a listing of the botanical name, family, parts used, energetics, and taste as well as the properties, uses and preparations. Rosalee then gives delightful recipes as well as even more helpful information on the herb itself. To wrap up the book, Rosalee gives very helpful conversion charts with equivalent measurements and temperatures, as well as a glossary and a recommended resource page on where you can acquire these new herbal allies to begin your new healthy herbal life.

I love this book. I will say it feels a little bit more like an intro to herbalism and using it in cooking, as a couple of the other books I purchased have a lot more herbs and spices listed. But for the ones that are included in the book, I adore the preface to each section that explains the history of the herbs and spices. The writing is very accessible and feels like talking to a friend who knows things.

Wow! That was the first thing that came out of my mouth as I began reading this book. It is by far the best introductory book I have seen in my almost three decades of learning about herbal medicine and herbal support. I was hesitant to buy another introductory herb book as my knowledge is beyond the introductory level. But the recipes in this book are worth every penny. I wish I had this book to start with back then. I think it would have saved me money, time and energy as I explored what I thought was herbal medicine content. The content is not overwhelming and if this is the only herb book you learn from you will have a basic foundation if using herbs for nutritional support and basic home remedies. The foundational content includes an explanation about how herbs serve individuals unlike our current system of One Solution Syndrome for everyone (take a pill for this and then take a pill for that), a well-explained overview of the energetics of herbs and deep dive into the tastes of herbs - which is my favorite part. More than anything else, I love the simplicity of introducing herbs through food and cooking. Food should always be our first medicine - which is how I can easily justify a Cardamon Chocolate Mousse Cake each month since it so good for me! Another aspect I like about the recipes is that they are all very doable: no specialized equipment, no huge orders of exotic herbs and spices and no tricky culinary skills required. The author has done a remarkable job of making herbal support both legitimate to the doubtful and accessible to the open-minded. Most importantly, Rosalee uses her clinical skills throughout her writing and offers recent research to support medicinal applications. She also employs safety and caution and gives specific examples of what some herbs can do (because yes, they really work!) to some individuals. Overall, I think this is the best introductory book on incorporating herbs and their nutritional and medicinal properties to support our health.

I teach students in higher ed. They are afraid of herbal therapies due to the ridiculous and often wrong media hype. What I love about this book is simple culinary ingredients used in cooking like himemade mustard, fennel tea,cardamom chocolate mousse cake,sage chicken etc. So easy to find in a grocery store. A great way to introduce people to the world of herbs because they feel the recipes are simple, the ingredients are easy to find and they feel comfortable. Once they make a few of these recipes they feel more empowered to move on in their herbal education. A great book for nutritionists too who want their clients to introduce more culinary herbs into their cooking. They also have facial concoctions and a few "harder" herbs like elderberry and astragalus-- still all extremely safe and gentle and allows the reader to get more adventurous. My daughter has alot of food sensitivities so I appreciate the fact that recipes like the chocolate mousse cake is dairy and grain free. It is a beautiful book with gorgeous photos, easily organized and loaded with amazing information. A real gem and is going on my list of christmas gifts for lots of people this year.

This a well presented and very informative resource, and I look forward to trying many of the recipes, and adding many to my daily diet. Check it out.

I LOVE THIS BOOK! Over the past decade or so, I've taken steps to take back my health by eating more natural foods, exercising, and trying to understand an ailment and why my body is responding in a certain way. Herbs were a natural extension of this, but I always found myself looking for a "cure" instead of a healthy way to incorporate herbs into my daily, healthful routine. Rosalee has changed that with her book. She helps you understand how your body has its own energetics and you can match that to the energetics of an herb to balance yourself. This works so much better than seeking an herb to "fix" an ailment, since what works for one person more than likely won't be as effective for another. I now understand how I can best supplement my health and the health of my family in different, customized ways. And the recipes...YUM! I've known certain herbs are very beneficial for healing and wellness, but getting them down (and keeping them down!) isn't always easy. Rosalee's recipes really are gourmet. People eat food prepared this way because it's delicious! It has been a joy to test these different recipes out with my family and then teach them from the book why what we're eating is beneficial to their health and how to recognize how the herb is making them feel. This really helps the information stick, when we're happy and satisfied with food, the info really sinks in. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in learning more about herbs and for anyone who wants some really delicious recipes for things as varied as Warmed Golden Milk (using turmeric) to Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake. Yes, there are healthful benefits of Cocoa explained in here! I think my favorite is still the Rosemary Tapenade. Heart healthy and simple to make, the flavor is amazing! This book is well worth the price.

This book is definitely worthy of "Coffee Table Book" status, BUT would definitely be the most well-used/abused coffee table book you displayed!!! (Oh, the pictures are divine!) I foresee alot of "May I borrow this??" in the future!! Am considering buying more copies just to leave at coffee shops for perusal/adoption!!! Once it's picked up and read, you might not ever get it back!! As a "Pre-orderer", was given access to a bonus site, which REALLY helped with waiting for "The Big Day"!! Kudos to Rosalee and her partner John G/LearningHerbs for the hard work they did to make the wait bearable!! Am looking forward to checking out "Apothecary: The Alchemy of Herbs Companion Video". No doubt at all that it'll be excellent!!! I'm so grateful I followed up on an article on a online newsletter I subscribe to!! Now for the book itself... I SO appreciate that Rosalee has the gift to write the way she does!!! It is simple to read and understand. I've seen the term "energetics" used before and had no clue as to what that meant. She explained it!!! I really appreciate the fact that she places emphasis on SELF-KNOWLEDGE. A quote/saying comes to mind: "Physician, heal thyself." Rosalee actually gives us tools to better understand that "self" and the fact that there are "other selfs"!!!! I've never seen that before. Many herbals i've read are more "remedies for specific conditions", which have their place, but with this "self-knowledge", could/would be better utilized. The (food) recipes and remedies are simple, not-so-hard-to-make, and look to be "delicious" whether "eaten" or "applied"!!! Rosalee has managed to drag me "out of the armchair" and into the kitchen!!! Thank you so much!!!! Am looking forward to more from her in the printed form. But appreciate the "lots to check out" from the recommended resources!!!!!

Lo que más amo de este libro es que puedes saber el uso medicinal de cada hierba o especie, su uso terapeutico, y hasta como aplicarlo para alguna receta. Lo cual se me hace increíble, porque al estar comprando este tipo de libro, significa que eres medio de una onda holistica o yogi, entonces un regalo hecho a base de hierbas para uso culinario estaría demasiado original.

This book is a must to have. It is filled with very best advices and precious knowledge Everyone can benefit for these all the year around. It is simple, it is thorough and extremely helpful. I would advise it to everyone interested to be efficient in the use of Herbs and Spices of all sorts... Thank You Rosalie and Family team for this sharing. Your Family Name was a prediction of your inclination for Nature !!! Long Life to this Book and those who will apply the ideas. All the Very Best. Marie-Regine aka Christiniam

Great book. I have loved learning about herbs & how to best use them. Highly recommend.

El contenido es de 10, la encuadernación lamentable; se me ha abierto de par en par al poco de empezar a leerlo. Una verdadera pena

Not my first book on herbs though the first one with real recipies. Foods you can cook and serve and eat, not gather a cupboard full of small jars with medicines you will never use. Short and clear explanations. And not only did I find a great book, I also found a great community on Facebook! Thank you Rosalee! Looking forward to more recipies.