How to Make & Enjoy Dairy-Free Milks

Guest Bio: Dina Cheney

Dina Cheney is the author of the new book: THE NEW MILKS; 100-PLUS DAIRY-FREE RECIPES FOR MAKING AND COOKING WITH SOY, NUT, SEED, GRAIN, AND COCONUT MILKS (Atria/Simon & Schuster, May 3, 2016), plus the creator of the dairy-free/plant milk resource site, www.thenewmilks.com.

She is the author of six cookbooks:
The New Milks; 100-Plus Dairy-Free Recipes for Making and Cooking with Soy, Nut, Seed, Grain, and Coconut Milks (Atria/Simon & Schuster, May 3, 2016)
Mug Meals (The Taunton Press, Spring 2015)
Meatless All Day (The Taunton Press, 2014)
Year-Round Slow Cooker (The Taunton Press, 2013)
Williams-Sonoma; New Flavors for Salads (Oxmoor House, 2009)
Tasting Club (DK, 2006)

In addition, Dina has contributed recipes and text to numerous magazines, including Clean Eating, Every Day with Rachael Ray (she was the "Taste Test" columnist for more than three years), Parents, Fine Cooking, Prevention.com, Weight Watchers (books), Coastal Living, Cooking Light, Food52, Huffington Post, Specialty Food, and more.

Dina's passion for food is also expressed through her artwork. She styles and photographs many of her recipes, and paints still lifes of fruit, vegetables and flowers. Her photographs have been published in O The Oprah Magazine and on Prevention.com and have been shared on Instagram by Food & Wine, Health, Every Day with Rachael Ray, Cooking Light, and Real Simple magazines.

Recently, Dina founded The New Milks (www.thenewmilks.com), a dairy-free resource site through which she is popularizing delicious and healthful plant-based, alternative, or dairy-free milks.

She's judged the sofi Awards (given out by the Specialty Food Association); conducted over 45 tastings and talks nationwide; and taught over 100 cooking classes through her (former) culinary instruction business, Cooking by Heart. Dina is currently teaching recreational group classes at The Natural Gourmet Institute and The Institute of Culinary Education, both in Manhattan.

More than 200 media outlets have covered her work. Just a few include the New York Times, Food & Wine, Cooking Light, Redbook, Real Simple, NPR's The Splendid Table, Every Day with Rachael Ray, Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Post, Fox News in Boston and New York, NBC News, and Wisconsin Public Radio.

Before embarking on her career in writing and teaching, Dina graduated from Columbia College, Columbia University (Anthropology/English Literature) and the Institute of Culinary Education Career program. She also studied art at the Rhode Island School of Design and The Yellow Barn Studio and Gallery.