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      Text © 2017 by Blue Hills Press

      Photographs © 2017 by Laura Lea, unless otherwise noted

      Photographs © 2017 by Danielle Atkins: cover, end papers, copyright page, foreword, introduction,

       chapter 1, all chapter openers, and Holy Fudge Black Bean Brownies.

      About the author photograph © 2017 by Kate Davis Photo.

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

       in any form or by any means, electric or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or

       by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the Publisher.

      Publisher: Matthew Teague

      Editor: Kerri Grzybicki

      Design: Lindsay Hess

      Layout: Michael Douglas and Lindsay Hess

      Photography: Laura Lea, Danielle Atkins, and Kate Davis

      Index: Jay Kreider

      Proofreader: Li Agen

      Blue Hills Press

      P.O. Box 239

      Whites Creek, TN 37189

      ISBN: 978-1-951217-00-6

      e-book ISBN: 978-1-951217-11-2

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2019952521

      Printed in China

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      This book was previously published by Spring House Press. This is the first edition by Blue Hills Press.

      The pantry organization as shown below and in other photographs of LL’s kitchen was provided by The Home Edit

       (TheHomeEdit.com).

      Note: The following list contains names used in The Laura Lea Balanced Cookbook that may be registered with the United

       States Copyright Office: 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating; Alice Randall; All-Clad; Alyssa’s Cookies (Healthy Vegan Bites);

       Amazon; Annie’s Homegrown, Inc.; Applegate Farms; Bananas Foster; Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center Clinic; Bundt;

       Canyon Bakehouse; Caroline Randall Williams; Chosen Foods; Cuisinart; Dandy Blend; Dirty Dozen; Deland Bakery; Elvis;

       Environmental Working Group; Fig Newton; Frontier Natural Products Co-op; Gatorade; Glasslock USA; Google; GreenPan;

       Health Warrior; Honeycrisp; Honeyville; Ina Garten; Joyva; Kerrygold; Kirkland’s; Las Paletas; Le Creuset; Lightlife;

       LL Balanced; LunchBots; Magic Shell; Manchego; Melissa Clark; Mestemacher; Mr. Coffee; My New Roots; Nashville Sounds;

       Natural Gourmet Institute; Orblue; Pearson Farm; Pinewood Social; Pink Lady; Ponderosa; Popsicle; Primal Kitchen;

       Publix; Rugby; Sarah Britton; Seafood Watch; Selina Naturally; Soul Food Love; Spaceballs; Spectrum; Terrasoul Superfoods;

       The Farm Midwifery Workshop Program; The Fresh Market; The Kitchn; The Nashville Food Project; The New York Times;

       The Peach Truck; The Post East; Thermos (Foogo, FUNtainer); Thrive Market; Trader Joe’s; University of British Columbia;

       U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Vitacost; Vital Choice; Vitamix; Whole Foods; Wikapedia; Wüsthof; Yeti; Yukon Gold; Zeroll.

      acknowledgements

      For Max, my best friend, who envisioned this book

       on a crisp October night more than 3 years ago;

       who believed in me when I didn’t always believe in

       myself. It’s hard to remember life before you, and I

       couldn’t be more grateful to have you as my partner

       in crime. Also, thank you for graciously eating

       leftovers of the same dishes for 9 months straight.*

      For Mom, whose stews, stir fries, and Bundt

       cakes spoiled me so I could never settle for less.

       Thank you for showing me that the table is a port

       at which our and any family can safely gather.

      For Dad, who always, always shows up, and who

       finds a way to be interested in everything that I’m

       interested in. I am incredibly proud to be your

       mini-me.

      For Mom and Dad, who have consistently given

       the three of us unconditional and unwavering love,

       and who do the hard and right things.

      For Wiwie, who reminds me that the world, that

       people, are fundamentally good. Oh, and who

       keeps me in the best kind of stitches.

      For Jack, who continually shows this introvert

       the power of connection and of forgiveness; who

       I’ve looked up to and admired from wobbles and

       pigtails to today.

      For CC, MK, and Tara, who exceeded any

       expectations I could have had about sisterhood,

       and who brought much needed estrogen to our

       slowly expanding clan.

      For Kate and Vivian, who have shown me a new

       kind of love, and who fill a room with the most

       magnetic and authentic joy; who I am honored to

       watch grow up.

      For Ella, my angel on earth, who set the bar for

       selflessness, courage, and empathy. I take your

       lessons with me wherever I go.

      For Alice, for whom “mentor” is not lovely or

       whole enough a word—who saw beyond my 12-year-

       old frame to the me I was and would be. Thank you

       for my first job in the culinary world and thank you

       for taking the time to write this foreword.

      For my best friends over the years, who chose me

       and choose me over and over again. You keep me

       grounded, hugged, and understood.

      For my new family, who embraced me from

       the beginning, and who my heart is now fully

       intertwined with.

      For Jolene and Ironman, our furry children, who

       never fail to put life in perspective and draw out my

       softest side.

      For the Natural Gourmet Institute, who gave me

       the knowledge and confidence to move forward

       into uncharted territory, and reminded me of parts

       of myself that had gotten buried—for the year that

       changed everything.

      For