THE DISH

Made EasyEating • Introducing •Elaine Gordon

Joy to Life magazine is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with food blogger and healthy eating expert Elaine Gordon, whose blog, Eating by Elaine, features tons of delicious, easy-to-make dishes that are nutritious, plant-based and free of common allergens including gluten, dairy, soy and peanuts.

We’re posting some of Elaine’s personal favorite recipes — complete with nutritional content —on the magazine’s website every month, and here, we’d like to introduce Elaine, and let her explain her background and passion for healthy eating and wellness. She also shared her thoughts on the Joy to Life Foundation and the personal connection that inspired her to work with us.

Where are you originally from and where

do you live now? I am originally from Rockville, Maryland, and now I live in Baltimore, Maryland, with my husband and three young children.

How did you get into cooking and into healthy eating? I attribute my love for cooking to my mom and dad and my appreciation for healthy eating to my mom. Growing up, my parents were always in the kitchen together and they both were incredible cooks. My dad always created a special dinnertime ambiance with relaxing music, dim lights and a glass of wine as he started the cooking process. It was a ritual and part of his self care (I’m convinced). Seeing the love both of my parents had for being in the kitchen and entertaining definitely rubbed off on me. I find that not only do I think about food constantly, but I find myself happiest when I’m in my kitchen creating dishes for my loved ones.

When I was a teenager, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. At that time, she started to change many aspects of her lifestyle including her diet. I was so intrigued by the idea that what we put in our bodies can make a difference in our overall health. Since then, I have always strived to eat nutritious foods that nourish my body and contribute to a positive healthy lifestyle. Over the years, I discovered that not everyone knows the health impact of their eating choices. I have grown to love nutrition education as a way to help others live healthier.

Give us a little bit of your healthy cooking background and “credentials.”

Although I was originally an actuarial mathematics major in college, I quickly realized my true passion lies in helping others live healthier. I never stop thinking about food and dreaming about what my next meal will be. So, naturally, I started to pursue an interest in

Joy to Life magazine is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with food blogger and healthy eating expert Elaine Gordon, whose blog, Eating by Elaine, features tons of delicious, easy-to-make and nutritious dishes.

Visit joytolifemagazine.org to find some of Eat Up! Elaine’s best bites, and check out all of her recipes at her website, eatingbyelaine.com.

• Family Ties •

A combo of family connections and the laudable mission of the Joy to Life Foundation inspired Elaine Gordon to collaborate with Joy to Life magazine.

“Joy Blondheim was my dad’s first cousin. My dad grew up in Alabama, and we visited his friends and our relatives in Alabama throughout my life. I love the Joy to Life Foundation’s mission. With my background in public health and my mom’s experience with breast cancer four times throughout her life, I know the importance of proper screening and early detection. I’m amazed and inspired by what Joy has created with this incredible foundation stemming from her own experience with breast cancer. I love that the Joy to Life Foundation raises awareness about breast cancer in general and has become a symbol of hope and support. I truly believe that my mother has survived because of her access to screenings. I know my dad would be so proud of me for being part of this family initiative by contributing my recipes. He instilled a love for cooking in me and this opportunity really ties everything together so perfectly.” public health where I was able to What inspired Eating by focus on my passion for broad-based Elaine? I feel like my entire life has nutrition education. After college, I culminated to my current career as was offered a fancy job in NYC but a full-time food blogger. My readers also was accepted into a motivate me more Masters in Public Health than anything when graduate program. I they send me messages was torn but decided to saying that they cook go with my gut and give from my blog and have the MPH program a try. #inseason become healthier as a And I’m so happy I did! I The new year is result. That really gets immediately fell in love a great time to to the heart of why I with all aspects of public try new recipes. do what I do: helping health and community health education and eventually found myself Follow along with us on social media too. people live healthier lives through delicious and healthy recipes. While gravitating toward I recognize nutrition nutrition education. After is only one aspect of wellness, I do graduation, I went on to become a believe it is an impactful one and Certified Health Education Specialist something that so many can benefit and then eventually became a Masters from improving. When I inspire my Certified Health Education Specialist readers it in turn really does inspire through the National Commission me to get back in the kitchen and for Health Education Credentialing. I create more recipes for the blog. worked for more than 10 years in the corporate wellness space creating Another huge aspect of my inspiration population-wide wellness programs for Eating by Elaine comes from for employers and their employees. On my family’s food allergies and food the side, I started a food blog just for sensitivities (including my own!). fun as a creative outlet and a way to Growing up, my brother had life share my healthy recipes. It continued threatening food allergies during to grow over the years, and eventually a time when food allergies were I got picked up by The Washington not as common. I was inspired by Post and became a regular contributor my mom’s efforts as I watched her to their wellness section where I got to navigate teachers, camps, playdates, create monthly healthy recipes with Halloween, birthday parties, etc., accompanying articles that explained to look out for my brother in a world the health benefits of the featured where “gluten-free and allergyingredients. As the blog continued to friendly” were not even really terms. grow, so did my passion for creating I started developing food sensitivities nutritious dishes I could share with and food allergies myself later in life more than just my friends and family. and realized the impact that certain I quickly realized I could reach just foods were having on my health. about anyone with a food blog. Once I was able to identify and eliminate those foods (for me it

was mainly dairy, eggs, wheat, gluten, peanuts and soy), I felt like myself again. Once again, I was reminded of the great impact food has on how we feel. With those experiences in mind, I decided my blog would not only be a nutritious food blog, but it could help others with food sensitivities and food allergies. Many of my readers find my recipes liberating. I love to prove through my dishes that healthy, allergy-friendly cooking can still be easy and delicious.

When did you start your blog?

I started the blog as a small hobby in 2012 but actually became serious about it in 2017, once I left the corporate world and was able to focus on it more. With three young kids, I try my best to balance my family life with the blog. I have such a passion for recipe development, blogging and food photography now that I find myself wanting to spend more and more time on it. My oldest daughter Riley says she wants to be a food blogger when she grows up and loves to help me out in the kitchen and with photoshoots. And my four-year-old daughter Jade says she wants be a food stylist and food photographer when she grows up. I love the impact this career has had on them. For now, my two-year-old, David, does a fabulous job of eating everything I create in the kitchen. And I must also mention my incredibly supportive husband, Bobby, who encourages me daily to pursue my dreams.

What do you hope readers get

out of your blog? I hope readers of all types of diets can first and foremost realize that cooking homemade meals is doable and does not have to be time consuming. With my busy lifestyle, I have to keep all my dishes super simple. I love to create vibrant and flavorful recipes that are loaded with goodfor-you, wholesome ingredients that are approachable and simple for the everyday home cook.

Second, I love to help readers who have food allergies (or in many cases multiple food allergies) find a safe space to select recipes for their meal planning. At first, navigating healthy eating with all my food sensitivities was difficult. But, once I learned the basic swaps that can be made and started experimenting with new allergy-friendly ingredients, I learned that it is all possible without sacrificing taste. I want to empower my readers to feel confident in their kitchens despite their food allergies.

What would you say to encourage someone who is trying to change their eating habits and incorporate more fruits and veggies?

With any lifestyle behavior change it is always important to identify your “why,” meaning what is motivating you to make this change. With that in mind, having support from family and friends can be extremely helpful in making the goal more achievable.

Healthy eating doesn’t just happen; it really does take active planning. It starts with finding what you love to eat (flavors, cuisines, types of food) and then incorporating healthier methods into your favorite dishes. I think starting with small changes can lead to big results over time. So, rather than changing everything at once, I recommend picking smaller, shorter achievable goals. I have an article on my blog that gets into this concept in more detail.

“Over the years, I discovered that not everyone knows the health impact of their eating choices. I have grown to love nutrition education as a way to help others live healthier.”