BRATTLEBORO — Many people suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and a local author has written a cookbook with a lifestyle section that gives hope to sufferers of this condition and supports the localvore food movement at the same time.
On Thursday, Nov. 10, from 5:30-6:30 p.m., author Dede Cummings will sign books at the Elliot Street Café, 134 Elliot St., in an event co-hosted by Dr. Rebecca Jones and Everyone's Books with a percentage of the sales going to the Vermont Community Foundation to help Vermont farms in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene.
The book signing will take place at the café and will feature local cuisine samples, and local hiking and biking maps, along with info on upcoming farm-to-farm bike tours.
Irritable bowel syndrome and digestive diseases (such as Crohn's and ulcerative colitis) are complex disorders accompanied by a myriad of symptoms, which can make daily living very difficult. While there is not yet a cure for these conditions, a healthy, balanced diet can help alleviate suffering and enable you to enjoy a healthy, productive life.
Whether you have a digestive disease yourself or are looking to cook for a friend or family member with digestive problems, Cooking Well: IBS offers a varied selection of recipes created specifically to help aid digestion and improve gastrointestinal health.
Cooking Well: IBS also includes an overview on IBS and other digestive diseases, lifestyle tips for reducing symptoms and improving overall wellness, dietary suggestions to promote healthy digestion and reduce flare-ups.
Some of the over 100 easy and delicious recipes featured in Cooking Well: IBS include Gluten-Free Banana Granola Pancakes, Butternut Parsnip Soup, Chickpea Salad with Lemon and Parmesan, Cracked Crab with Curry and Ginger Sauce, Wild Rice Casserole, Chicken Tarragon, Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Sauce, and more.
Many local cooks and friends of the author in the southern Vermont region submitted recipes: Julie Potter, Laurie Merrigan, Orly Munzing and the Strolling of the Heifers Cookbook, Thomas Grasso, Lynne Weinstein, Johanna Gardener, Sharon Snider, and many more are featured in the cookbook, as well as local farm share, Circle Mountain Farm.
The Cooking Well series is specially designed to augment the treatment and symptom management of your disease through the benefits of specific, nutrient-rich foods. Featuring delicious and healthful recipes that are easy to prepare, as well as helpful tips and information about the role of nutrition for your condition, this book includes everything you need to improve your daily functioning and enjoy your life to the fullest.
Cummings, author and Crohn's patient, has been a book designer for the past 25 years. After her most recent hospital stay and surgery for Crohn's disease in 2006, she began hiking the Long Trail in one-week sections, beginning to realize a long-term goal that had been put off due to illness. In 2010, she co-authored Living with Crohn's & Colitis with Jessica Black, N.D. Cummings can be reached at dcdesignteamvt@gmail.com or 802-380-1121.