With many of us having to change or alter our lifestyle right now; whether it be working from home or choosing to self-isolate. Nutritionist, Jacki Jazprizza is encouraging the community to use this time to revaluate our views on nutritious cooking.

Having published her first book in December last year, ‘The Very Best of Jacki’s Gastronomical Gossip’, the cookbook features everything from pastas to stir-fry, salads to soups and everything in between including lots of immunity boosters- perfect for right now.

“It’s time to bring cooking back,” Jacki exclaimed, “Sadly the art of learning from your Mother, Grandmother or even distant Uncle is disappearing and I’ve noticed over the last five to ten years, people’s efforts and food prep are skewed.

My biggest influencer in health and nutrition was my Mother, she was the best cook ever and a beautiful and gentle soul too. She didn’t have a lot of formal nutrition knowledge, but she always knew whole food was full of goodness. My parents both grew up in the 1930’s after the great depression and during World War II, people during that time were ingenious on being thrifty and using things up completely, and that flowed onto the meals Mum would prepare.”

“So, last year I thought to myself, ‘Ok, what is my legacy? What is my contribution to the world?’ I’ve helped a lot of people over the years but I wanted something people would remember me by. So, I decided a real hands-on cookbook that helps people to look after themselves would be the trick, and hopefully is just as relevant in another 50 years.

My basic premise has always been putting into practice the theory of healthy eating by educating and imparting knowledge and skills. In the 25 years I’ve been a Nutritionist I’ve put out monthly newsletters for my clients to give recipe ideas and inspiration. Some of the recipes in this cookbook are from the newsletters, some are recipe’s passed down from my Mother and some have also been contributed by clients.”

Ideally, picking up a cookbook these days entails pages of bright and almost too good to be true imagery. Jacki mentioned she intentionally wanted to steer clear of that, “It’s not pretty and full of lovely styled pictures, it’s a working cookbook, I want people to work through and scribble their own modifications on it, it’s a book for everyone, from families, to oldies, Uni students or pregnant Mums, every recipe in there can be altered to your liking.

They are simple but tasty recipes, with basic ingredients you have in your pantry and cheap as chips and now more than ever is the time to get back to making a wholesome meal from next to nothing.

“The feedback I have received about the books contents has been overwhelmingly positive, so I am really happy it’s helped so many people. I want people to change their attitude and find the enjoyment in cooking and preparing a good home cooked meal.”  

With over 250 recipes to enjoy it’s a perfect time to get back to basics and make great meals from common and tasty, simple ingredients that the whole family will enjoy as well as wholesome nutrition to support your immune system. Contact Jacki to purchase a copy. Email markjacki@bigpond.comor 0427 621 318. 



Jacki’s Tip: Spend about 15 minutes a week to sit down on a Sunday afternoon and nut out some basic meals for the weeknights- even factor in a takeaway to support local businesses doing it tough. You can save money and maximise nutrition, enjoy cooking again and have leftovers for the next day. Make your own or my menu planner proforma is in the back of the cookbook.