A master’s thesis gone viral? That’s exactly what happened to Leanne Brown’s final project in food studies at New York University. After it went viral online as a PDF that has by now been downloaded over 900,000 times, Leanne launched a Kickstarter campaign, which raised an amazing $144,681, making her self-published edition of GOOD AND CHEAP the most successful cookbook project ever recorded by Kickstarter. Workman’s expanded second edition of the cookbook is a New York Times bestseller that has sold 320,000 copies and counting.

Leanne was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30, won the prestigious IACP Judge’s Choice Award, and was listed among the Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink by Food & Wine and Fortune magazines, an honor that recognizes visionaries who are working to change how we look at food. She has given talks to packed audiences at universities, food banks, farmers’ markets, and community events in over 40 cities throughout the country, including SXSW. She delivered the keynote address at BlogHer Food 2015, the world’s largest celebration of women content creators across social media and the web. Along the way, she has drawn praise from luminaries including Michael Pollan, Marion Nestle, and Jamie Oliver.

Leanne’s goal was to create truly delicious, healthful recipes that meet the SNAP (food stamps) budget of $4 a day per person. “Kitchen skill, not budget, is the key to great food,” she maintains. GOOD AND CHEAP is a celebration of the many delicious meals available to those on even the strictest budgets. “There are thousands of barriers that can keep us from eating in a way that nourishes our bodies and satisfies our tastes,” she says. ”Money just shouldn’t be one of them.”

The 31-year-old Canadian-born author now lives in New York with her husband.

http://www.leannebrown.com/