Area wellness and lifestyle coach shares the love in debut cookbook
Courtesy of Sandi Kern
Sandi Kern tries one of the recipes featured in her book āDesire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happiness.ā
Desserts are featured prominently in Sandi Kern's new book"Desire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happiness."
Courtesy of Sandi Kern
Sandi Kernās new book features recipes that are intended to help readers keep a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Courtesy of Sandi Kern
Author Sandi Kern, an East Washington resident, is dedicated to helping readers maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Courtesy of Sandi Kern
Recipes involving pears and other fruits and vegetables are featured prominently in Sandi Kernās new book āDesire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happiness.ā
Courtesy of Sandi Kern
The cover of Sandi Kernās cookbook āDesire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happinessā
In the words of Sandi Kern, āSafe, sustainable food is a recipe for success.ā
And her first book, āDesire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happiness,ā is filled with recipes so good you wonāt even realize the dairy and gluten are missing.
While some watched āTiger Kingā and others tried their hand at sourdough bread during COVID-19 lockdown, Kern, who founded and runs the virtual health and lifestyle coaching practice Desire to be Well, penned her debut cookbook. The 187-page book is filled with āinformation and inspirationā and, while it only took a little more than a year to write and publish, the book was in some ways a long time in the baking ā er, making.
āI was sick for about six years,ā said Kern, who lives in East Washington with her husband and two sons. She spent those years battling swelling and digestive issues, and chronic fatigue. āIt just got progressively worse. Nobody could help me. It took a long time to figure it out.ā
She decided to embrace holistic nutrition.
āI took the leap of faith and thatās what made all the difference,ā she said.
That, and the red pepper cashew cream sauce she shares in āDesire to be Well.ā
āThat was the recipe that changed my life,ā Kern said. āI created that out of complete desperation. āIf I donāt have some pasta with cream sauceā¦ā I got my blender. There were all sorts of tutorials. I think thatās probably the recipe that changed my life.ā
Her health struggles and healing through nutrition inspired Kern to go back to school; she earned a certificate in integrative nutrition coaching from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and graduated from The School of Applied Functional Medicine.
āThis is the wave of the future,ā said Kern, whose holistic approach to health focuses on the mind, body and spirit. āThere is no ādisease.ā There is ādis-ease.ā Just because somebody says you have an autoimmune issue doesnāt mean itās forever. I want to try to relay this health information that is so important to so many people ā¦ in a way thatās easy to understand.ā
āDesire to be Wellā is a colorful invitation into the world of cashew cream sauces and silky, kid-approved avocado pies. Before readers are gifted allergen-free dessert recipes ā yes, dessert comes first ā clean blocks of text offer insight into common health issues and tips for cooking with ingredients some may have never used before.
Readers will connect with Kernās personal stories, woven throughout, and selfies ā thereās a photo of her soaking cashews, proof sheās tested all the methods and recipes ā and appreciate the cute conversion charts.
āThis is food that your entire family is going to love,ā said Kern. āAnd theyāre going to benefit. Itās delicious, itās good for you.ā
Though Kern loves coaching and leading groups at her lifestyle and wellness practice, sheās excited to reach more people with āDesire to be Well.ā the book was released on Amazon Oct. 29, just in time for the holidays.
āItās my first book and Iām so excited,ā Kern said. āItās everything that you crave, but done in a healthy way. Itās all about loving yourself through nutrition.ā
She added, āFood is love. Food is medicine. The ultimate act of ā¦ loving your body is nourishing your body with the food it needs to thrive.ā
āDesire to be Well: Recipes and Wellness for Health and Happinessā can be purchased directly through the authorās web site at https://desiretobewell.com/book or at Amazon.com.