And the Winner of the China Study Cookbook is….

For those who received this post already in an email, I apologize.  I hit ‘publish’ before I was finished!!

Anyway, as I was saying, we’ll get to the winner in a minute.  First, I wanted to share the results of the “What’s Your Favorite and Least Favorite Fruit” survey we did.  Man, you guys were all over the place.  So many different tastes out there.  29 different fruits were listed.  Hard to believe that as many people dislike cantaloupe as love it; same with mango.  And not one person listed grapes as either their fave or most disliked.  Crazy!  Anyway, here you have it:

The #1 most loved fruit is strawberries.  #2 is a tie between peaches and mango.  #3 tie between blueberries, pineapple and watermelon.

The #1 most disliked fruit is a tie between papayamango and Granny Smith apples. Tied for #2 would be melons (both cantaloupe and watermelon), kiwi, and rhubarb.

Ok, that was fun.  Thanks for participating! Now, onto announcing the winner of The China Study Cookbook by LeAnne Campbell, PhD.  The winner is…….Tracy Habenicht! Congratulations, Tracy!  To claim your prize, e-mail me at Shelly@plantifulwellness.com with your address so I can forward that onto the publisher.  

Thanks, all.  Another giveaway coming soon!

🙂

 

 

Summer Fruit Cobbler

Summer Fruit Cobbler. Vegan. Oil-free. Gluten-free*

A fruit cobbler is one of my favorite desserts.  I take it or apple pie over something chocolatey any day! We were having company and I wanted a dessert that would be nice for a chilly evening, and that incorporated seasonal fruit.  Most fruit crisps are loaded with fat and lots of sugar, but not this one! The only fat is naturally occurring in the oat flour.  No added oils or butter.  I used peaches, mango and blueberries and they tasted wonderful together, all warm and saucy.  For an extra special treat, serve warm with non-dairy ice cream.  🙂

*gluten-free if using certified gluten-free oat flour.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

Sweetened with fruit, the whole fruit, and nothing but the fruit, so help me God!  These oatmeal cookies almost shouldn’t be called cookies because they are good for you!  The sweetness in these babies comes from banana, applesauce and date paste, as well as raisins and, as a treat, a few chocolate chips.  Of course if you add chocolate chips, that changes things, but the heart of the cookie will still be super healthy.  Be aware these are only slightly sweet.  They are perfect for our family as our palettes have adjusted to less sugar/sweets (which can happen for everyone – just takes patience!).  If you aren’t there yet, you may want to add more raisins and/or chocolate chips, or more date paste.

**Date paste is made by soaking whole, pitted dates until soft and much of the water is absorbed, and pureeing in food processor or blender until smooth.  Here’s how: 1) Soak 1/2 lb dates with 1/2 cup water several hours, until much of the water is absorbed.  2) Use food processor or blender to create a creamy, smooth paste.  Store in freezer (it doesn’t get hard!) and use in baked goods such as this one, as a fruit spread etc.  Chef AJ has many recipes using dates in her great book Unprocessed.

* gluten-free as long as certified gluten-free oats and flour are used.

Food Over Medicine Review – Win Your Own Copy!!

A few weeks ago BenBella Books asked if I would review a copy of a few new books, and host a giveaway.  I LOVE this stuff!  Reading, especially on the subject of health and nutrition, is a passion of mine….and who doesn’t love giving stuff away?!?!  For now, I’m focusing on one of the books, Food Over Medicine, by Dr. Pamela Popper and Glen Merzer.  I will get to the review and giveaway for the other book, The China Study Cookbook by Leanne Campbell,  in a few weeks (hint: it’s AWESOME).

I sort of felt like I was cheating when I said I’d review Food Over Medicine because 1) I’d already read it (ordered it the day it came out and had it read 2 days later) and 2) I know the authors personally.  These two issues are insignificant, however, because the book is amazing and I’d read it again in a heartbeat.

Food Over Medicine imparts a lot of information, but it’s a very easy read, due in large part to the conversation style format in which it’s written.  Glen Merzer and Pam Popper discuss everything from health-promoting/destroying foods, to supplements and healthcare.  They talk about screening and diagnostic tests such as mammograms and PSA tests, and whether or not they are beneficial, harmful or useless.  The subject matter is certainly not light and airy but they manage to create an atmosphere in which you feel at ease, as if you’re sitting at the table listening to these two knowledgable, witty professionals.

The best part of the book is that nearly everything they say is referenced.  While some stories are shared, the recommendations are always supported by the science.  That being said, the data is laid out in such a way that the reader is engaged and interested without feeling dazed and confused.  Many common myths are debunked and there are even some tasty recipes in the center of the book, courtesy of awesome vegan chef Del Sroufe.

There is so much contradictory, confusing information out there, it can feel overwhelming.  This book really puts you at ease and makes you realize each of us needs to take control of our own health, and that it isn’t rocket science.  It’s quite simple really.  As the jacket of the book states “overmedicated, overfed, and malnourished, most Americans fail to realize the answer to lower disease rates doesn’t lie in more pills but in the foods we eat.”  If everyone would embrace that reality, and put into practice the information shared in this wonderful, enlightening book, we’d be a much healthier, prosperous nation!

Contest Rules:

Simply leave a comment with your answer to the following question, and you’ll be entered in the drawing to win your own free copy of Food Over Medicine.  One winner will be chosen at random after the contest closes on Friday, July 19th at noon, Pacific time.  Good luck!

Contest Question: Name two veggies; one you absolutely love, and one you wish didn’t exist!

 

Swiss Chard Quesadillas (vegan, low-fat, gluten-free*)

What the heck is that plant? Is it beets? Is it spinach? No! It’s chard, or Swiss chard to which its often referred.  This leafy green is one of the healthiest plants you can eat. It comes in green and white, green with yellow stalks, or the type I grow, green with beautiful red stalks. Foods belonging to the chenopod family—including beets, chard, spinach, and quinoa—continue to show an increasing number of health benefits not readily available from other food families.  Containing powerful antioxidants and phytonutrients beneficial for all aspects of health, this amazing vegetable is an important component to the diet.  And, it tastes great!

Swiss chard and kale growing beautifully in my Tower Garden!

I never knew what the heck to do with chard before I started growing my own.  I grow it in my amazing aeroponic Tower Garden, which I absolutely love.  I never had success with growing my own food before.  The feeling of going out back to grab some homegrown chard, a few cucumbers, some kale and lettuce, or some strawberries, is like none other!  I had read that chard was easy to grow so I bought the seedlings and in no time, I had these gorgeous, huge, green and red leaves ready to be eaten.  The young, smaller leaves are good raw, but the mature leaves are too “green” tasting and bitter for me.  I much prefer them cooked.  The way I prepared them yesterday is my favorite so far.  Up until then I had just steamed them, and eaten with a little sea salt and lemon juice, or added to pasta with marinara sauce.  I’ve enjoyed all preparations, but this one is the winner so far.

*gluten-free if you use gluten-free (i.e. brown rice) tortillas.

Banana Almond Shake (non-dairy, no added sugar or fat, gluten-free)

One of my favorite things used to be banana ice cream shakes from Ruby’s Diner.  Man, I loved those things.  Of course, this is years ago when I used to eat dairy products.  While I was pregnant with my daughter (21 years ago, yikes!), my unhealthy eating led to gestational diabetes.  I was told that the last few months of my pregnancy would be ones with ZERO sugar, not even fruit! I was devastated, especially because I had just started feeling well after dealing with morning sickness for 5 months straight (another reason I wish I’d known more about health and the best ways to take care of myself).  Why am I telling you this?  To illustrate how much I LOVED those darn banana shakes.  8 hours after I gave birth, I was allowed to go back to eating whatever I wanted.  Guess what the first thing I wanted was?  A Ruby’s banana shake!  My sister and her friend brought me one in the hospital and I devoured the entire thing.  If only I’d known what harm I was doing to myself AND my nursing baby.

What can I say? I was young, dumb and uninformed.  Now that I’m oldER, wiser and quite informed, I still love banana shakes (and anything “banana”) but I know better than to consume them.  I could, of course, just replace the milk and ice cream with non-dairy versions, but that’s not much healthier.  Sure, there’s none of that pesky, unhealthy dairy protein or saturated fat, but there is still a lot of other fat and tons of sugar.  My recipe for this shake has no sugar (only that from whole fruit), and does not contain ice cream, rather, frozen bananas and ice.  It’s truly delicious and a treat I don’t feel the least bit guilty about enjoying!

Interview with a hardcore athlete: How he ran a marathon and finished with energy to spare!

Earlier this month, my daughter Cambria ran her first marathon (SO proud!).  She got the distance running bug from her boyfriend Will Milano, who has been an athlete his whole life.  They ran the race together, side by side the whole way.  Cuties!  Anyway, Cambria, now 21, has been plant-based/vegan since she was 14.  Will on the other hand, has only been eating this health-promoting diet for 6 months.  That is great and we are so excited he’s become so healthy, but what’s truly amazing is how much better he performed running this marathon as compared to the past five, despite training with much less vigor and consistency!!  I wanted to share my conversation with him. Just goes to show the body is meant to survive and thrive on PLANTS!  Congrats Willy!

Willy and Cambria, just after they crossed the finish line. They don’t even look tired!!!

You went plant-based 6 months ago. What was your diet prior to that? Prior to going plant-based I would mainly eat animal products. My day would begin with something like steak and eggs, then more meat and milk throughout the day.  I would sometimes eat fruit, rarely eat veggies, but always had at least some meat.  Like an unfortunate many, I chose to mainly eat foods I thought were commonly found in the Paleolithic era. In hindsight, it seems ridiculous. I realized no one is truly on a Paleo diet. A diet from the Paleolithic era included the animal Glyptodons.  I don’t know anybody eating that today.  Also, Paleo-Indians only ate meat about once a month following a successful hunt, and they ate all of it. There was no to go boxes for later. No one in the Paleolithic era consumed meat every day like modern day Americans do.  Anyway, it just wasn’t working for me. It made my body feel sluggish and unproductive.  I was seduced by the diet because of what I believed I got from the large quantity of protein. I felt it gave me bigger and stronger muscles. For some reason this is what people want. Maybe its because you can see them in the mirror and feel a sense of accomplishment.  However, you cannot see your nerves, lymph nodes, heart or brain. They are all far more important than muscle is to being physically and mentally fit.

What is your typical diet now? People always ask me “if you don’t eat meat or dairy what do you eat?”  Well, my breakfast generally consists of a smoothie or oatmeal. If I have time at lunch I will make some type of a stir-fry with potatoes and veggies. Throughout the day I snack on fruits, veggies and nuts. I even splurge with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or I’ll make a vegan pizza. Dinner is a balanced meal of pasta and veggies, maybe a bean and veggie burrito, etc. If money was no object I would eat a Chipotle burrito every day.  I just add everything they have to offer, minus the cheese and sour cream, and substitute the meat with black beans. I stay away from their pinto beans – they make them with bacon…crazy right?  If I am in the mood for desert I will have fruit or some coconut milk ice cream for special treat. Now, I’m getting hungry…

What was your biggest challenge, if any, going plant-based? I originally set out on the diet for the purpose my own scientific research. I wanted to discover for myself what the hype was all about. The first 3-4 weeks were easy. Then amazing things started happening. Watching the food network wasn’t the same. I began to see things differently. I no longer wanted to shove as much burnt flesh into my mouth as possible, like Adam Richman on Man V. Food. Milk was no longer a delicious treat. I made the connection that it was nutrition for baby cows derived from their lactating mothers, and not food for humans. The biggest challenge was learning that just about everything contains flesh or liquid from lactating mammals. I never suspected animal products in the bread that I loved so much, only to find out that it had whey added. Also if you go to Mexico, even if the waiter assures you its bueno, do not eat the rice. I guarantee it will contain pig lard. 

For those who wish to try out the lifestyle, don’t trust anything at restaurants unless the servers understand what the term vegan means. Plus, be ready for criticism from closed-minded people. I love when my friends try to edify me and tell me I need meat to survive. I’ll ask them,” Why?” and watch them struggle with an answer. Nobody knows why. They simply adhere to eating meat because it is the norm. Or, my favorite, the myth that animal protein is the only form upon which to survive. Even though plants contain just as much if not more, and have tons of fiber, unlike meat and dairy which have zero.

You mentioned you trained harder for the marathons prior to this last one. In what ways was your training regimen different than this time? For previous marathons I followed a strict training regimen. I trained with a peak of 40 miles a week and one day would include a 20-mile run. I would follow it up with a two-week taper and stretch constantly. This marathon I was burdened with a terrible neck injury that occurred while working full time. I was unable to work or run from the injury. I couldn’t even sleep comfortably. The longest run I did was 13 miles. I was able to train short distances every day because my recovery was great. But I still lacked the miles that I had had in previous marathons.

In what ways do you feel differently, with regards to the marathon and training, than you did before going plant-based?  I have been training my whole life. Since I was 5 years old, I was on the swim team. I know what training well consists of. Before I was strictly plant-based, I would train every other day to allow recovery time. I would even allow two days of rest between weight lifting days because I would be sore for that long. After I went plant-based I would rarely become sore. If and when I did, the muscle soreness would come the same day and be gone in a matter of hours.  Also, my endurance has greatly improved. This plant-based marathon was the first one in which I was able to maintain constant running during, and after. I felt like I could have kept going beyond the 26.2! I was even able to walk the next day. It was by far the best I have ever felt during an endurance race. My girlfriend who accompanied me across the finish line at this marathon also claimed to have the same abilities during and after the race. While I have run 6 marathons, this was her first. She finished in the top 10% of girls her age and never ran more then 13 miles prior to the race. The only thing she did differently than the majority of runners was eat a plant-based diet for the last seven-plus years. This significantly helped her performance as well as mine.

I’m guessing you once believed, as most athletes do, that protein was the key to training.  What are your thoughts on that now? The question of consuming enough protein is slightly rhetorical. 100 calories of broccoli is equivalent to 12 grams of protein. 100 calories of meat is only about 8 grams of protein. You can do the math and imagine if people ate as much broccoli as they did meat. Before I started analyzing all of this, I didn’t realize how much excess protein Americans consume while eating such large amounts of meat. Most of the protein people eat passes through their systems because their bodies cannot absorb that much. Since I have gone plant-based I lost weight, but I have lost no muscle mass or definition. Plants contain more than enough protein the human body needs to stay strong and healthy, and unlike meat, they contain antioxidants.

Do you miss your old eating ways, and do you think you will ever fall back into them? I only miss the way I used to eat when I go out with friends and there is no item on the menu that is meat or dairy-free. Its times like these, while my friends are stuffing their faces, that I miss eating the fattest greasiest burger or bacon cheese fries. But, I have been enlightened and I now know those foods contain very little if any nutritional value, and cause great harm to the body, not to mention the suffering that took place for the animals. I’ll be honest, every once in a while I will crave something made from animals; however, when it is in front of me I don’t want it.

What would your advice be to a person wanting to train for an athletic event? I completed 6 Marathons including one full Iron Man Triathlon in the last two years. I know what aspects of training are required to be successful in endurance races. If you are trying to take your endurance training to the next level, try out a whole-food, plant-based diet and simply cut out as much of your fat, especially saturated, and oils as possible. You will see the tremendous improvement in recovery, energy, and state of mind. It won’t kill you! I have been doing it for 6 months now, even though I only set out to do it for 1. Before you knock it, try it. I gave up animal foods and became a faster, stronger, better athlete! “Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” (Albert Einstein 1921)

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quesadillas (vegan, gluten-free*,soy-free, low-fat)

Doesn’t get much easier than this.

When I bake sweet potatoes, I usually do 1 or 2 extra for leftovers.  They are a quick, easy snack and great for dishes like this.

You can use whatever type of tortillas you like, but I really enjoy the brown rice tortillas.  I don’t need to eat a gluten-free diet but for the sake of variety and not wanting to overdo it on wheat, whenever I can I opt for the alternative, as long as it’s a healthy one.  Many gluten-free alternatives are filled with fat and have little to no fiber.  These brown rice tortillas I get from Trader Joe’s are really nice.

I made this for lunch one day and it took all of 10 minutes.  I couldn’t believe how good it was.  My girlfriend Lori, who likes to be difficult :), says I shouldn’t call these quesadillas because there is no cheese.  I wholeheartedly disagree.  We can eat pizza without cheese and it’s still called pizza, omelets without cheese and it’s still an omelet (though I don’t eat those anymore), cheese-less burritos….you get my point.  So, sorry Lori but these are being called Quesadillas and that’s that!

*gluten-free if you use gluten-free tortillas (i.e. brown rice).

Maple Mustard Taters (vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, oil-free)

Who doesn’t love potatoes?  Poor little guys sure get a bad rap.  If any of you have read Dr. John McDougall’s The Starch Solution, you know they don’t deserve such abuse.  Potatoes are a satiating, healthy food, chock full of fiber and nutrients.  As Dr. McDougall says, it’s the company they often keep that turns them into a bad food (butter, cheese, oil, etc).  Potatoes, without all the bad stuff, should be part of the regular diet, and they definitely are in our house.  Yukon, red, gold, butter, russet, fingerling, sweet….if it’s a potato we eat it.  My sister Julie loves potatoes so much her nickname(s) lovingly given to her by my husband is “tot” or “tater”.  Since she is the one who came up with this recipe, I’m referring to them as taters, in her honor.

These are delicious and super easy to make.  This makes a sizable batch since we had them as our entree, along with steamed broccoli – perfect meal!  The amounts listed are estimates so be sure to taste test and adjust before cooking, if necessary.  It’s hard to mess this one up so not to worry!

Food for Thought: My Afternoon with Pepperoni, Fois Gras and Filet Mignon.

Look at her cute smile!!

I eat a plant-based diet.  Some call it a vegan diet.  I try to stay away from that word when I can simply because the vegan way is considered by many to be extreme, weird and they feel that most vegans have a judgmental, holier-than-thou attitude.  Some of them do, it’s true.  I’ve met many.  And while I struggle with understanding how and why most people don’t consider their food choices, or do but still feel they deserve to eat how they want to eat without regard for their health or the animal’s well-being, I try to be compassionate and non-judging.  It can be difficult, especially after my recent visit to Farm Sanctuary in Orland, CA, for their annual Hoe Down.

Farm Sanctuary has been rescuing sick, injured, miserable animals from factory farms for many years.  These animals, thanks to the staff and volunteers at the Farm, now get to live out the remainder of their lives in peace, free from torture and suffering.   When you visit the Farm and spend time with these beautiful creatures, you can almost feel their gratitude.

Immense sadness came over me as I listened to Susie Coston, National Shelter Director, give a talk about these animals and what life is like in the world of factory farming for cows, pigs, chickens, ducks and turkeys – all sentient beings, i.e., animals who love their babies with all their might just as we do, who cry out when they are sad or feel pain just as we do and whose lives are pure misery because we choose to consume them in excess.  Most people don’t think of birds as being aware and/or having feelings, but they are – I witnessed it myself as a giant turkey let me snuggle him and he snuggled me right back.

Who knew snuggling with a turkey would be so nice?!

I am a health advocate and the main reason I promote a whole-foods, plant-based diet is because it’s the ONLY diet that offers long-term protection and lowered risk of disease.  The research is pretty clear on this.  What I’m talking about here goes beyond the scope of health.  I talk about that enough.  Today I want you to see the other side of things.  The ethical side.  Almost every person I’ve ever met likes animals.  They may not all have pets, but they would never harm an animal, nor would they approve of harming an animal.  For the industrial farming practices that exist today to be allowed to continue is essentially doing harm.  These animals are not being raised in humane ways.  They live in horrible conditions, suffering greatly, with beaks being cut or burned off without anesthesia, tails cut off without anesthesia, testacles cut off WITHOUT ANESTHESIA!  I’m confident this is not what anybody would want for their cat or dog.  People are outraged when the story of an abused pet comes light.  Why then, is it okay for these farm animals?  The abuse and suffering is no different!  There is a huge disconnect there.  Of course, that disconnect is what allows kind, compassionate people to continue eating animal foods.  They don’t think about what that food used to be (think…pepperoni) or the life it lived.  If everybody was forced to watch one of those graphic documentaries on factory farming or spend time in a CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation), I’m convinced things would be vastly different.  And whether or not these animals were “created” to be eaten is not the issue here.  The issue is the lives they live and the way they are treated, at the hands of humans.  Since animal protein is an unnecessary component of our diets, in other words a luxury, it seems insane that the following stats are what they are.  You may not care to hear these, but I’m going to share with you anyway.

27 million land animals are slaughtered each day.  That’s 1 every 12 seconds.

9 billion land animals are slaughtered each year in this country (most of them chickens; that number was 1 billion a little more than 50 years ago).

24 million ducks go to slaughter every year.

113,152,000 pigs and piglets go to slaughter every year (most are 6 months of age).

250,192,000 turkeys go to slaughter every year.

The average meat eater is responsible for 33 land animal deaths each year. 

What do you think about that last one and the wording?  Responsible.  Like it or not, that’s how it is.  Meat eaters may not take the knife to the throat, but by virtue of purchasing what’s produced, thereby supporting the factory farming industry, they are responsible.  Sounds harsh, I know, but people need to wake up.  The business of industrialized, factory farming is deplorable and needs to change.  The only way that will ever happen is if we stop eating so many animal foods.

This is Stacy. She loves having her belly rubbed.

Don’t be fooled into thinking organic or free-range are any better.  Unless you are farming yourself, or getting these ‘foods’ from a small, local farm, it’s still industrialized farming, no matter how you slice, grill or scramble it.  Hormones may not be added (though be aware – they still exist naturally in the meat), and antibiotics may not be used, but there is no individual care in the mass-production business, and great suffering takes place.  Not to mention what the massive pollution is doing to our lakes, streams, oceans and air.  People who could not care less about animals and their well-being should at least care about the planet we all share.

I’m not insisting everybody quit eating animal products (though the research does support dairy as an unfit food for humans; and, btw, dairy cows suffer the most), merely that we should be eating much less, and consider our food choices before eating with abandon.  We must do something to change the factory farming industry.  Every burger ordered or package of chicken purchased is saying we tolerate these abhorrent practices.  It’s giving these companies permission to continue what they are doing.  These practices are not only causing unnecessary suffering to so many animals in order to satisfy our palates, they are destroying our planet.

You may not care about animals the way I do.  That’s your prerogative.  But I’d be willing to bet money you could never torture one.  Just remember, next time you cut into your chicken breast or bite into that burger, you are eating an aware, feeling, loving creature who suffered immensely for your pleasure.

Just some food for thought…

This sweetie asked me and Chef AJ if we’d pose for a picture. How could we say no?