Carole Boggs, Lawrence, submitted these recipes from “The Self-Healing Cookbook,” by Kristina Turner.

Strawberry Couscous Cake

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Cake:

1 cup couscous (see note)
1 1/2 cups almond amasake
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup apple juice
pinch sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:

1 cup halved strawberries
2/3 cup apple juice
1 heaping tablespoon kuzu
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/2 teaspoon natural vanilla

In a sauce pan, combine couscous, amasake, water, juice and salt. Heat and stir for 10 minutes, or until couscous swells and becomes soft. Add vanilla. Pour into a cake pan, smooth the surface and add topping.

Topping: Arrange strawberries on top of cake. Dissolve kuzu in juice, add lemon peel, heat and stir until it thickens. Add vanilla. Pour over strawberries and cake. Let cool for an hour in the fridge before serving.

Note: Couscous is a partially refined wheat product that fluffs up quickly when added to liquid.

Apricot Mousse

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1/2 cup dried apricots
1 cup apple juice
1 cup water
1/4 cup agar agar flakes
2 heaping tablespoons kuzu
1/4 cup apple juice
1 tablespoon rice syrup
1 tablespoon sesame tahini

Variation: for extra rich, thick mousse, double the apricots.

Bring apricots, water, juice and agar agar to a boil. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Dissolve kuzu in cool juice. Add to pot, stirring until it thickens. Pour into blender. Add tahini and rice syrup and blend until creamy smooth. Pour into a shallow bowl, small pie plate or pudding cups to cool. Garnish with toasted seeds or an almond. Serves 6.

Barley Mushroom Soup

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1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 cup hulled barley
6 to 8 cups water
6 inch strip kombu
2 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 carrot, diced
1 stalk celery and leaves, diced
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dill
1 cup cabbage, diced
2 tablespoons barley or soybean miso

Variations: Add fresh corn in summer, burdock in winter, watercress in spring or fall.

Exquisitely creamy and tasty when you make it a day ahead of time — but if that’s not possible, at least soak the barley overnight.

Oil the soup pot and saute onion and garlic for a few minutes. Add water, barley, kombu and shiitake. Bring to a boil and simmer 45 minutes. Then, add carrot, celery, bay leaf and dill. Simmer 30 minutes more or until barley is tender. Add cabbage and cook 15 minutes more. Turn off heat, add miso and serve garnished with parsley.