The Probiotic Kitchen

Book excerpt: For optimum probiotic nutrition, it's time to say goodbye to supplements and pills and to bring all-natural, all-delicious, real-food probiotic (and prebiotic) meals into your life. Doctors and nutritionists firmly agree that probiotics are essential for everyday health and nutrition. Probiotics add "good bacteria" to the human gut. They crowd out "bad bacteria" and foster the absorption of nutrients through the intestinal walls. Everyone needs probiotics, just as they also need prebiotics, which make probiotics work. Probiotics also aid in the relief of chronic health issues, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), as well as all kinds of occasional belly discomfort. They have anti-inflammatory properties, too. Kelli Foster's The Probiotic Kitchen makes probiotic cooking easier and tastier than it's ever been before. Her recipes feature all the all-natural, probiotic-rich foods that are available now, from yogurts and aged cheeses to miso, kombucha, good old-fashioned pickles—and even chocolate. The more than 100 delectable and utterly appealing recipes in this book use these probiotic-rich ingredients to make incredibly tasty breakfasts, brunches, lunches, snacks, dinners, and desserts. The book includes: Lots of big-flavor main courses, like Cider-Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Sauerkraut and Apples, Fish Tacos with Kefir-Avocado Crema, and Mediterranean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes Substantial salads, such as Herbed Chickpea and Tomato Salad, vibrant soups, like Chilled Sweet Corn Soup with Pesto, and hearty sandwiches, such as Smoky Tempeh and Kale Caesar Wraps Recipes for prebiotic dishes and advice about how to add prebiotics to your meals, since prebiotics are needed for probiotics to work For busy cooks who eat on the fly, more than a dozen portable and delicious smoothies and similar drinks, plus easy-to-pack snacks and lunches Super versatile probiotic sauces, dressings, and condiments that you can use to turn any meal into a probiotic one, from a zesty Orange-Miso Vinaigrette to a sweet-and-sour Creamy Honey-Mustard Dressing