DALLAS, Texas (May 4, 2012)—From macaroni and cheese to battered and fried anything, Americans love comfort food. But, what if your comfort food is the source of your discomfort?
For author Beverly Kotsanis, her goal is to help people feel good with food that’s also good for them. That’s why she co-wrote “Food For Thought: The Free Food Cookbook” (CreateSpace, 2012)
“A large percentage of our population has a gluten intolerance,” Beverly said. “This book will help you become more aware of food allergens,” and help those affected learn to heal.
It’s a hefty paperback chock-full of recipes and information to help readers build a diet that’s free of gluten, casein (milk protein), and many common allergens and toxins, some of which are believed to produce the symptoms observed in children on the autism spectrum.
Using food to heal is something Beverly’s been working on for about 20 years with her husband, Dr. Constantine Kotsanis, a well-known Otolaryngic allergist and founder of the Kotsanis Institute, a holistic practice based in the Dallas suburb of Grapevine that fuses traditional healing, modern medicine, and nutrition to optimize patient health.
“Healthcare has gotten more technologically advanced,” Beverly said, “but it’s forgotten about its foundation.”
That foundation, as “Food For Thought” indicates, is the water you drink and the food you eat and all of the minerals and nutrients in them.
“We wanted to give people the benefit of all of this information,” said Beverly, who is the CEO of the Kotsanis Institute. Readers can learn to stock a pantry free of the “Great Eight Allergens,” and how to find items in restaurants and on the shelves that won’t disrupt a special diet.
Also inside “Food For Thought” are testimonials from patients whose lives were drastically changed by changing their diet. Some, overwhelmed with the symptoms of ADD, autism spectrum disorders, auto-immune disease, and side effects from cancer treatment, were able to find hope and recovery with specially-tailored diets.
But one testimonial you won’t find inside the book is Keller mom Kendra Jean Finestead’s. That’s because her name is on the cover.
Finestead, who co-wrote “Food For Thought” with the Kotsanis’, founded Greater Tots Organization after searching for a way to help her daughter, who is on the autism spectrum. She met the Kotsanis’ at an autism support group meeting and decided she was going to find a way to help other mothers. So she started developing recipes for gluten-free, casein-free foods that were kid friendly.
Or, as she says, Finestead is on a mission to “redefine the happy meal.”
In all, Beverly believes that the more people who discover the benefits of an allergen-free diet, the better.
“It’s about a more holistic way of living,” Beverly said. “[This cookbook] helps people understand that food can be medicine. The person who buys this cookbook is taking responsibility for their own health.”
You can find out more about the trio’s cookbook, available through Amazon.com, at www.foodforthoughtbook.com.
Below is a sample recipe, Beverly’s Pancakes, from “Food For Thought: The Free Food Cookbook.”
Ingredients:
- 2/3 cups rice milk
- 1 teaspoon Ener-G egg replacer powder
- ¼ cup brown rice flour
- ¼ cup potato starch
- 1 tablespoon tapioca flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon honey
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
- Blend rice milk and egg-replacer powder in blender until frothy, about 1 minute.
Add remaining ingredients.
Blend until just mixed.
Place large, nonstick skillet that has been lightly coated with oil over medium heat.
Pour batter into skillet and cook until tops are bubbly (2 to 3 minutes).
Turn and cook until golden brown (30 seconds).
Makes about eight 4-inch pancakes.
2260 Pool Road
Grapevine, TX 76051
817.380.4992
http://kotsanisinstitute.com | info@kotsanisinstitute.com
The Kotsanis Institute is located in Grapevine, Texas - close to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)