free indeed

COOKBOOK AUTHOR DEVELOPS RECIPES for People with Food Sen sitivities

Enjoying dinner with family and friends can provide some of life’s most treasured times. However, for people with food sensitivities or intolerance, the aftereffects can be anything but pleasant. Many people experience adverse food reactions after eating trigger foods and medical science is learning that these sensitivities are more much common than previously realized. In fact, over 3 million cases of food sensitivity are treated in the U.S. each year. Symptoms can be dramatic, with a sudden feeling of sickness, or symptoms can be vague, such as bloating, weight gain, acne, depression, joint pain or lack of energy. Sometimes a person can go for years without realizing the cause of their discomfort is food intolerance. But once they make adjustments to their diet the change can be remarkable.

Soon after marrying her husband, Jason, in 2012, Leah Knight realized that she had a problem. Jason, who had struggled with his weight and health for years, had learned that he was sensitive to gluten. Leah, a woman who loved to cook, found that she had very few recipes that worked to accommodate his dietary restrictions. Additionally she was lacking energy herself and didn’t understand how she could be so tired all the time. Looking for answers to solve their eating dilemma, Knight began doing research. She watched “Hungry for Change,” a documentary that proposed the concept that much of the food that is common in the standard American diet is actually detrimental to a person’s health. She also read several books and articles on nutrition and wellness. This new information prompted Knight to change her diet, and soon afterward, she realized that she felt much healthier. As she explains, “I did not even know I had food sensitivities until I began eliminating some of the common trigger foods. Through changing my diet, I experienced the benefits of healthy weight loss, clearer thinking and much more energy.” However, as Knight’s knowledge of health- ful eating increased, so did her frustration about cooking. She tried to make minor modifications to recipes, but as she describes it, “nothing was turning out well!”

As a music major at Dickenson State University, Knight had excelled. There she was named outstanding graduate and earned several awards at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, including the opportunity to sing at the Music Teachers National Association national conference in New York City, and to study for a year at the Frost School of Music in Salzburg, Austria. Knight credits her musical training with helping her learn to be organized, inquisitive and attentive to detail, skills that would help her tremendously as she addressed this new challenge of dramatically changing the way she had cooked and eaten her whole life.

In the summer of 2014, Knight buckled down to concentrate on the task of developing a whole new set of recipes that were nutritious, free of gluten, dairy, soy and processed sugar, that also had a wonderful texture and taste. Starting with favorite family recipes, she worked in her small apartment kitchen experimenting with every part of the recipe including the ingredients, mixing techniques and cooking times. Her tenacious approach paid off as through trial and error she eventually learned what would and wouldn’t work. Knight explains that her experiments taught her surprisingly, small things such as the order in which the ingredients were mixed turned out to be tremendously important.

After successfully creating a collection of recipes, friends encouraged her to develop a cookbook and share them with others. Using an independent publishing house in Indiana, Knight published “Free Indeed; A Guide to Cooking Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free and Free of all Processed Sugars.” Not only does the book contain recipes for gluten-free bread products, but also for appetizers, soups, main courses, desserts and much more. The collection is unique because as Knight explains, “Unlike other cookbooks, it provides over 130 organic recipes that will simultaneously accommodate many dietary restrictions without compromising on taste or texture.” The introduction to the book includes a specific list of products to help a cook know what to purchase at the supermarket as well as clear step-by-step instructions to insure that the recipes turn out with a desirable texture and taste. “It was my intention to make the recipes simple and repeatable, using products easily found at either a grocery or health food store.”

As a select vendor at the Pride of Dakota Showcase, Knight enjoys meeting customers, providing samples and discussing wellness with interested people. Among the many supporters of her cookbook, Dr. Todd Ferguson, a naturopathic doctor from Moorhead, Minnesota, is pleased to be able to recommend the cookbook to patients. As he explains, "'Free Indeed' is a much needed appeal to the senses for the sensitive.”

When Knight reflects on the challenges that forced her to begin the “Free Indeed” project, she can’t help but be thankful for the end product. “Because of the positive change in my life, it has become my goal to help other people who are also trying to provide healthy and delicious meals for their friends and family.”

To Learn More About

Knight’s cookbook, or order a copy for yourself, go to freeindeedcooking.com