Encanto: The Official Cookbook

About the Author

Chef Patricia "Pachi" McCausland-Gallo, born in Barranquilla, Colombia, in 1961, and is a renowned chef, author, and educator known for her innovative, healthy cooking. She holds a B.S. in Foods and Nutrition from Louisiana State University and for the past 10 years taught cooking for metabolism, weight loss, and sports nutrition for Dr. Clyde Wilson at Stanford University. She has studied at the American Institute of Baking and the École Lenôtre in Paris and is a Certified Food Professional by the International Association of Culinary Professionals. In 2010 she was invited to the White House for Michelle Obama’s initiative “Chefs Move to Schools.”

Patricia has written eight cookbooks, including the original Disney title Encanto: The Official Cookbook which celebrates her Colombian heritage. Her notable works include Secrets of Colombian Cooking (2004, 2012), Pasión por el Café (2006, 2008; Gourmand Best Single Subject Food Book in Latin America, 2006), Essentials of Latin Cooking (2009),The Food and Cooking of Colombia & Venezuela (2011), Cook & Lose Weight (2019), and Encanto: The Official Cookbook (2024).

In Cook & Lose Weight: Delicious Diets, Chef Pachi's Lifestyle Family Cookbook offers a revolutionary approach to healthy eating that supports sustainable weight loss.

Professional Experience and Contributions: Patricia has served as an executive pastry chef and owner of bakeries in Colombia. She has been a guest speaker at Stanford University for over a decade and has spoken at Starbucks Headquarters and various international conferences. She has been interviewed on CNN en Español, ABC, and NBC. Patricia McCausland - Chef Pachi was a guest at the White House Event by Michelle Obama's Let's Move Initiative in 2010.

Collaborations and Social Initiatives: Since 2013, Patricia has worked with Dr. Clyde Wilson on nutrition resources to help Americans improve their metabolic rate and achieve sustainable weight loss. She has raised over $200,000 for underprivileged children through her book donations and lectures. Patricia is a founding member of Nutrir Barranquilla (now NU3), feeding over 13,000 children daily in Colombia.

Selected Lectures and Speaking Engagements:
- Stanford University Continuing Studies (various courses, 2015-2023)
- Consulate of Colombia at UNAM Campus, Chicago (2019)
- Starbucks Headquarters, Seattle (2014)
- FANLYC, Panama (2013, 2014)
- The White House, Michelle Obama's Let's Move Initiative (2010)
- IACP Conferences (2004-2014)

Chef Pachi continues to inspire and educate through her culinary journey, emphasizing whole, unprocessed ingredients and practical cooking solutions for a healthier, happier life.

Susana Illera Martínez is an award-winning Colombian author, creative designer, and bilingual writer living in Miami, Florida.

In 2018 she independently published her first book titled Clara, a collection of poems written in her early life, which marked the beginning of her public career as a writer. In 2019 she published Lala, A Different Lizard (Una lagartija diferente). A bilingual picture book that has been awarded and recognized in multiple literary contests and became the first book in the Lala the Lizard® Series, which already includes three titles published in the US (Snow Fountain Press), Spain (Hola Monstruo), and PalBooks (Colombia).

Since 2021 Susana has been collaborating with Disney Publishing Worldwide writing original stories based on the movie Encanto. Her bilingual story El don de una familia (The Gift of Family) was published in the United States with Penguin Random House.