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Features Columns
Winter Vegetables beyond
Broccoli: Expanding Your
Culinary Horizons 16 By Jill Nussinow, MS, RD
Two delicious recipes, plus the
health benefits of mushrooms,
sweet potatoes, and winter
squash!
What the Heck is “Healthy?”
19 By LaDiva Dietitian, MS, RD
LaDiva chimes in with her
thoughts on the major health
movements in the vegan
community.
Diet Tips for the New Year
by the Raw Food Goddess 22By Chef Angela Elliott
Get Angela’s tips for staying
healthy and getting trim in the
new year.
Cauliflower Chameleon 25 By Robin Robertson
Mac & cauliflower seven different
ways and it’s healthy, too? We’re
in!
From Bryanna’s Pictoral
Kitchen: Kale & Mascarpone
Ravioli 28 By Bryanna Clark Grogan
Culture, history, and a personal
touch accompany this illustrated
recipe from Bryanna.
What’s Cooking? 3
Find out what’s up with the Vegan
Culinary Experience this month.
Guest Column: Thriving on a
Vegan Diet 36 By Jack Norris, RD
Jack gives us his no‐nonsense
advice for maintaining a healthy
vegan diet.
From the Garden: Healthy
Soil, Healthy Food 40 By Liz Lonetti
Learn how to take care of your soil,
so it can take care of you.
The Vegan Traveler: Costa
Rica 42 By Chef Jason Wyrick
Get a glimpse into our first culinary
tour in this magical eco‐friendly
country.
Marketplace 7
Get connected and find out about
vegan friendly businesses and
organizations.
Recipe Index 71
A listing of all the recipes found in
this issue, compiled with links.
see the following page for
interviews and reviews…
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Click on any of the titles to take you to the appropriate piece
Interviews Reviews
Author/Chef Christy Morgan
49
Christy is a highly creative
macrobiotic vegan cookbook
author and vegan chef
extraordinaire.
Marisa Miller Wolfson of
Vegucated 53
Marisa is the driving force behind
Vegucated, a documentary about
three people’s transition to vegan.
Michael Greger, MD 57
Michael Greger is a highly
influential and entertaining
doctor, leading several projects
for the Humane Society,
publishing DVDs, and running a
NutritionFacts.org, a powerhouse
of vegan health information.
Jeff and Sabrina Nelson of
VegSource 60
Get the inside story about Jeff and
Sabrina Nelson, the founders of
VegSource, one of the most
popular and longstanding vegan
sites on the web.
Book Review: Blissful Bites
62 By Jason Wyrick
Interviewee Christy Morgan wows
us with her new cookbook.
Book Review: The Tipsy
Vegan 64 By Jason Wyrick
Delicious, fun recipes centered
around alcohol? Absolutely a fun
read.
Book Review: Vegan Pie in
the Sky 66 By Madelyn Pryor
The trilogy is complete. Get this
book now.
Restaurant Review: Shangri‐
La Tea House 68 By Jason Wyrick
An enchanting vegetarian tea
house in Boise, Idaho.
Product Review: Toffuti’s
Better than Ricotta 70 By Jason Wyrick
Consider this review a warning.
Even the icons of vegan food can
stumble.
Healthy Eats January 2012|2
The Vegan Culinary Experience
Healthy Eats January 2012
Publisher Jason Wyrick
Editors Eleanor Sampson,
Madelyn Pryor
Nutrition Analyst Eleanor Sampson
Web Design Jason Wyrick
Graphics Jason Wyrick
Reviewers Madelyn Pryor
Jason Wyrick
Contributing Authors Jason Wyrick
Madelyn Pryor
Liz Lonetti
Sharon Valencik
Marty Davey
Bryanna Clark Grogan
Jill Nussinow
Angela Elliott
Robin Robertson
Jack Norris
Photography Credits
Cover Page Jason Wyrick
Recipe Images Jason Wyrick
Madelyn Pryor
Milan Valencik of
Milan Photography
Robin Robertson
Bryanna Clark Grogan
Atlanta Photographs Jason Wyrick
Carrots, Kale, GNU Free Documentation
Mushrooms, Peppers License
Compost in Hands, Creative Commons
Hubbard Squash, Volcan
Poas
Beans, Cauliflower Public Domain
Compost Barrel, Sweet
Potato
Christy Morgan & Courtesy of Christy Morgan
Associated Images
Michael Greger Courtesy of Michael Greger
Marisa Miller Wolfson & Vegucated
Associated Images
Jeff Nelson Courtesy of Jeff Nelson
Shangrila Tea Room Jason Wyrick
Casa Metta Wendy & Erich Strebe
WWhhaatt’’ss CCooookkiinngg??
Not only has vegan been in the news quite a bit this past year, but the power of a vegan diet to improve one’s health has garnered mainstream attention. To the non‐vegan populace, a vegan diet often appears as a homogenous edifice, as though vegan is a singular culinary entity, but like
any community, vegans are rife with differences, especially when it comes to health issues. No oil, no nuts, no fat of any kind. Raw foods. Low fat raw foods. Half cooked, half raw, don’t worry about nuts. Mostly whole foods and don’t stress the small stuff. The list goes on with the main camps entrenched in their positions. Sadly, the science of most of these camps compares their diets to the standard American diet, but with little in the way of scientific studies to compare their diets to each other. Yet the entrenchment, and sometimes vitriol, remains. Having gone through being morbidly obese and rampantly diabetic ten years ago to regaining my health nine years ago, I have experienced the effectiveness of going vegan myself. I did a moderately low‐fat vegan plan, though I didn’t eschew oil, nuts, and avocadoes, but instead avoided gorging on them. And, I have seen similar success coming from all the vegan health camps and that says something about the power of going vegan and perhaps about the uncompromising position many of these camps take with each other. Rather than taking a hard, and somewhat unnecessary stand for one diet or another, this issue of the magazine celebrates the diversity of healthy eating in the vegan community, In this issue, you will find a range of healthy recipes with notes for each recipe about how they exactly promote health. What you will not find is an issue with dainty, effete foods that leave you hungry thirty minutes later! The recipes in this issue are meant to stick with you, to keep you satisfied, and to keep you going throughout the day, and, of course, are eminently tasty. Eat healthy, eat compassionately, and eat well!
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Jason Wyrick ‐ Chef Jason Wyrick is the Executive Chef of Devil Spice, Arizona's vegan catering company, and the publisher of The Vegan Culinary Experience. Chef Wyrick has been regularly featured on major television networks and in the press. He has done demos with several doctors, including Dr. Neal Barnard of the PCRM, Dr. John McDougall, and Dr. Gabriel Cousens. Chef Wyrick was also a guest instructor in the Le Cordon Bleu program. He has catered for PETA, Farm Sanctuary, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Google. He is also the NY Times best‐selling co‐author of 21 Day Weightloss Kickstart Visit Chef Jason Wyrick at www.devilspice.com and www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Madelyn Pryor ‐ Madelyn is a lover of dessert, which she celebrates on her blog, http://badkittybakery.blogspot.com/. She has been making her own tasty desserts for over 16 years, and eating dessert for longer than she cares to admit. When she isn’t in the kitchen creating new wonders of sugary goodness, she is chasing after her bad kitties, or reviewing products for various websites and publications. She can be contacted at [email protected] or [email protected].
Bryanna Clark Grogan ‐ Author of 8 vegan cookbooks, Bryanna has devoted over 40 years to tasty, healthful cooking, 23 as a vegan. She was a frequent contributor and reviewer for Vegetarian Times magazine for 5 years, and, more recently, wrote and published a subscription cooking zine, “Vegan Feast”, for 5 years. She is moderator of the Vegsource “New Vegetarian” forum. Bryanna has conducted cooking workshops and classes locally (including a 5‐day Vegan Cooking Vacation on beautiful Denman Is.), and at numerous vegetarian gatherings in North America. Bryanna’s recipes appear in the The Veg‐Feasting Cookbook (Seattle Vegetarian Association); on Dr. Andrew Weil's websites; in No More Bull! by Howard Lyman; and in Cooking with PETA. Bryanna also developed the recipes for the ground‐breaking book, Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes.
Robin Robertson ‐ A longtime vegan, Robin Robertson has worked with food for more than 25 years and is the author of nineteen cookbooks, including Vegan Planet, 1,000 Vegan Recipes, Vegan Fire & Spice, and Vegan on the Cheap. A former restaurant chef, Robin writes the Global Vegan food column for VegNews Magazine and has written for Vegetarian Times, Cooking Light, and Natural Health, among others. Robin lives in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. You may contact her through her website or blog: www.globalvegankitchen.com and www.veganplanet.blogspot.com.
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Jill Nussinow, MS, RD, The Veggie Queen ‐ Jill is a Registered Dietitian and has a Masters Degree in Dietetics and Nutrition from Florida International University. After graduating, she migrated to California and began a private nutrition practice providing individual consultations and workshops, specializing in nutrition for pregnancy, new mothers, and children. You can find out more about The Veggie Queen at www.theveggiequeen.com.
Liz Lonetti ‐ As a professional urban designer, Liz Lonetti is passionate about building community, both physically and socially. She graduated from the U of MN with a BA in Architecture in 1998. She also serves as the Executive Director for the Phoenix Permaculture Guild, a non‐profit organization whose mission is to inspire sustainable living through education, community building and creative cooperation (www.phoenixpermaculture.org). A long time advocate for building greener and more inter‐connected communities, Liz volunteers her time and talent for other local green causes. In her spare time, Liz enjoys cooking with the veggies from her gardens, sharing great food with friends and neighbors, learning from and teaching others. To contact Liz, please visit her blog site www.phoenixpermaculture.org/profile/LizDan.
Angela Elliott ‐ Angela Elliott is the author of Alive in Five, Holiday Fare with Angela, The Simple Gourmet, and more books on the way! Angela is the inventor of Five Minute Gourmet Meals™, Raw Nut‐Free Cuisine™, Raw Vegan Dog Cuisine™, and The Celestialwich™, and the owner and operator of She‐Zen Cuisine. www.she‐zencuisine.com. Angela has contributed to various publications, including Vegnews Magazine, Vegetarian Baby and Child Magazine, and has taught gourmet classes, holistic classes, lectured, and on occasion toured with Lou Corona, a nationally recognized proponent of living food.
Jack Norris ‐ Jack Norris is a Registered Dietitian and President of Vegan Outreach. Jack won VegNews magazine's Columnist of the Year award for 2003 and 2004. Jack writes a nutrition blog at JackNorrisRD.com. He is the author of Vitamin B12: Are You Getting It?, co‐author of Vegan for Life, and maintains www.VeganHealth.org. Jack co‐founded Vegan Outreach in 1993. Vegan Outreach produces Why Vegan and other booklets. Their Adopt a College program directly hands booklets to over 500,000 students every semester. In 2005, Jack was elected to the Animal Rights Hall of Fame. Jack earned a degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from Life University (Marietta, GA) in 2000 and performed his dietetic internship at Georgia State University in 2001.
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LaDiva Dietitian! ‐ Marty Davey is not only LaDiva, Dietitian!, but a Registered Dietitian with a Masters degree in Food and Nutrition. She became a vegetarian in 1980 when she discovered that there were more chemicals in cattle then attendants at a Grateful Dead concert. Her family is all vegan, except the dog who drew the line at vegetarian. She conducts factual and hilarious presentations and food demos. While her private practice includes those transitioning to a plant‐based life, LaDiva's most popular private consulting topic is "I'm too busy and I don't cook." Her website is www.ladivadietitian.com. Sharon Valencik ‐ Sharon Valencik is the author of Sweet Utopia: Simply Stunning Vegan Desserts. She is raising two vibrant young vegan sons and rescued animals, currently a rabbit and a dog. She comes from a lineage of artistic chef matriarchs and has been baking since age five. She is working on her next book, World Utopia: Delicious and Healthy International Vegan Cuisine. Please visit www.sweetutopia.com for more information, to ask questions, or to provide feedback.
Milan Valencik ‐ Milan Valencik is the food stylist and photographer of Sweet Utopia: Simply Stunning Vegan Desserts. His company, Milan Photography, specializes in artistic event photojournalism, weddings, and other types of photography. Milan is also a fine artist and musician. Milan is originally from Czech Republic and now lives in NJ. For more information about Milan, please visit www.milanphotography.com or www.sweetutopia.com.
Eleanor Sampson – Eleanor is an editor and nutrition analyst for The Vegan Culinary Experience, author, and an expert vegan baker with a specialty in delicious vegan sweets (particularly cinnamon rolls!) You can reach Eleanor at [email protected].
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Welcome to the Marketplace, our new spot for finding vegetarian friendly companies, chefs, authors, bloggers, cookbooks, products, and more! One of the goals of The Vegan Culinary Experience is to connect our readers with organizations that provide relevant products and services for vegans, so we hope you enjoy this new feature! Click on the Ads – Each ad is linked to the appropriate organization’s website. All you need to do is click on the ad to take you there. Become a Marketplace Member – Become connected by joining the Vegan Culinary Experience Marketplace. Membership is available to those who financially support the magazine, to those who promote the magazine, and to those who contribute to the magazine. Contact Chef Jason Wyrick at [email protected] for details!
Current Members Casa Mettá Tierno Tours Sweet Utopia (www.casametta.com) (www.tiernotours.com) (www.sweetutopia.com) Milan Photography LaDiva Dietitian!, MS, RD Jill Nussinow, MS, RD (www.milanphotography.com) (www.ladivadietitian.com) (www.theveggiequeen.com) Urban Vegan Bad Kitty Creations GoDairyFree.org (http://urbanvegan.net) (www.badkittybakery.blogspot.com) (www.godairyfree.org) Bryanna Clark Grogan Robin Robertson (www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com) (www.globalvegankitchen.com)
Non‐profits
Vegan Outreach Rational Animal Farm Sanctuary (www.veganoutreach.org) (www.rational‐animal.org) (www.farmsanctuary.com)
The Phoenix Permactulture Guild (www.phoneixpermaculture.org)
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LaDiva Dietitian’s
Click & Cook Video
LaDiva, HELP! Can I make easy, healthy food that will give me hair as great as yours??? Yes!!! Take me into your kitchen via your laptop or iPod or whatever device floats your boat. Every month I’ll send you links to simple, yummy VIDEO recipes. You can print off the PDFs, or follow along with the video to create Quick, LOW FAT, no cholesterol healthy dishes. EVERY MONTH YOU GET: ✓ List of ingredients and equipment needed ✓ 3 recipes of mine and cook with me
✓ 1 recipe made by the Planet Pyramid kids.
SO you KNOW you can make it and let the kids have their own kitchen fun ✓ 1 shopping or cooking tip, such as how to buy and store knives, creating a pantry,
how to read a nutrition label in less than a minute Click on the YouTube video links below for a taste of what you will get every month. http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=LaDivaDietitian#grid/uploads All for $5/month or $60 per year. To Order Go to: http://www.ladivadietitian.com/ladivadietitian/Marketplace/Marketplace.html Type VCE in the comments for a $10 discount.
Healthy Eats January 2012|14
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Become a Subscriber Subscribing to the VCE is FREE! Subscribers have access to our Learning Community, back issues, recipe database, and extra educational materials. Visit http://veganculinaryexperience.com/VCESubscribe.htm to subscribe. *PRIVACY POLICY ‐ Contact information is never, ever given or sold to another individual or company
Not Just a Magazine Meal Service The Vegan Culinary Experience also provides weekly meals that coincide with the recipes from the magazine. Shipping is available across the United States. Raw, gluten‐free, and low‐fat diabetic friendly options are available. Visit http://veganculinaryexperience.com/VCEMealService.htm for more information.
Culinary Instruction Chef Jason Wyrick and many of the contributors to the magazine are available for private culinary instruction, seminars, interviews, and other educational based activities. For information and pricing, contact us at http://veganculinaryexperience.com/VCEContact.htm.
An Educational and Inspirational Journey of Taste, Health, and Compassion
The Vegan Culinary Experience is an educational vegan culinary magazine designed by professional vegan chefs to help make vegan cuisine more accessible. Published by Chef Jason Wyrick, the magazine utilizes the electronic format of the web to go beyond the traditional content of a print magazine to offer classes, podcasts, an interactive learning community, and links to articles, recipes, and sites embedded throughout the magazine to make retrieving information more convenient for the reader. The VCE is also designed to bring vegan chefs, instructors, medical professionals, authors, and businesses together with the growing number of people interested in vegan cuisine. Eat healthy, eat compassionately, and eat well.
Healthy Eats January 2012|15
Broccoli has made the charts and most people
(except a former president and a few other people)
eat it willingly. My brother‐in‐law has developed a
crush on broccoli and loves to eat the small side
shoots both raw and cooked. Personally, I prefer
lightly cooked broccoli. What I have discovered is
that many of us have forgotten that winter
vegetables reach far beyond broccoli and its
cruciferous cousins, kale, collards, cabbage,
cauliflower, kohlrabi and Brussels sprouts. These
cruciferous vegetables are great sources of the
class of antioxidants called isothiocyanates and
sulforaphane which have natural anticancer and
detoxifying abilities.
Winter is also traditionally the season of roots and
tubers, from the somewhat lowly radish and carrot
to the more exotic parsnip, turnip, rutabaga, celery
root, Jerusalem artichoke and a variety of both
sweet potatoes (yam, standard, hana, Japanese
white, purple Okinawan) and potatoes of many
varieties. They are all great sources of complex
carbohydrates that are immensely satisfying in a
stick to the ribs way. The orange and yellow sweet
potatoes, as well as carrots, are excellent sources
of Vitamin A which help boost your immune system
which is often necessary in the winter. The rule
with roots, as with all vegetables, is that the more
highly colored the vegetable, the more
antioxidants it contains. So purple potatoes have
more antioxidants than white potatoes, and carrots
have more antioxidants than parsnips. Pay
attention but do not avoid your favorite vegetables
because they contain fewer antioxidants. All
vegetables have something to offer.
Most winter roots or tubers work well in braised,
roasted and in soups. I love to mix up the
vegetables so that there is a good variety of colors
and textures. One of my favorite dishes is Herb
Roasted Root Vegetables which is simple to make.
Unfortunately, it is not easy to do without oil, so
those on oil‐free diets, please forget that I said
that. Instead combine your root vegetables to
make tasty stews. The cover
photo of my latest book, The
New Fast Food™:The Veggie
Queen Pressure Cooks Whole
Food Meals in Less than 30
Minutes, is Autumn Sunset
Stew which contains a variety
of different vegetables.
At this time of year, we cannot forget about winter
squash which technically is a fall vegetable but
since it stores so well, it is around almost all winter,
or in most places until around March. I love the
sweetness of squash in soups, side dishes and
added to my other roasted roots. Winter squash is
also a great source of Vitamin A. Again, the more
Winter Vegetabled beyond Broccoli: Expanding Your Culinary Horizons
By Jill Nussinow, MS, RD, aka The Veggie Queen™
Healthy Eats January 2012|16
brightly colored the flesh, the
more antioxidants it contains.
My favorite squash varieties
change often, depending upon
the individual squash. If you
see one that looks interesting,
please don’t hesitate to buy it
instead of the more standard
acorn or butternut. There is a
world of squash awaiting you.
Since I live in Northern California, I cannot leave
mushrooms off the winter vegetables list even
though they are technically fungi. Whether they
are wild (and edible) or store bought, mushrooms
are incredibly flavorful, low in calories and
generally immune boosting. Shiitake also has
anticancer properties. Oyster mushrooms in larger
amounts might also help to lower your cholesterol.
All mushrooms are a wonderful source of fiber.
There texture boosts many dishes and I add them
to my winter vegetable stews.
There are also green vegetables in winter such as
leeks with their oniony, but better and more
subtle, flavor which I prefer to stronger‐flavored
storage onions. They are wonderful way to start a
soup and what would Potato Leek Soup be without
them?
To augment the vegetables that you can buy in
winter, I suggest that you grow sprouts so that you
always have fresh vegetables without maintaining a
garden. You can get top notch supplies from The
Sprout House.
My last winter vegetable
recommendation is to either make
your own fermented vegetables or
to buy some. The beneficial bacteria
in fermented vegetables, which
includes sauerkraut and kim chi, will
help keep your immune system
healthy and provide more Vitamin C
because these products are made
with cabbage or napa cabbage. I love to add
fermented vegetables on top of brown rice and
steamed vegetables.
To make your vegetables, fresh or frozen, if you
must, more palatable, I suggest that you add herbs
and spices, as well as ingredients such as ginger
and garlic. These additions are nutrition boosters
which are incredibly sources of antioxidants in
small packages. A number of recent studies confirm
this such as this one in the Journal of Nutrition.
Herbs and spices appeal to me for their flavor; their
elevated nutrition profile is an added bonus. The
following recipes will help you boost your intake of
winter vegetables.
Garlic, Greens and Bok Choy
with Sweet Ginger Sauce Serves 4
This tastes great and can be served with soba noodles or colored rice, or your favorite grain
or noodle.
1 tablespoon oil (optional for oil-free diets) ½ leek, sliced, some green part OK 2 medium garlic cloves, crushed with flat side of a knife 1 1-inch thick slice of gingerroot, halved
and smashed with flat side of a chef’s knife blade
1 teaspoon minced ginger 2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce 1 teaspoon sesame oil Salt and ground black pepper
Healthy Eats January 2012|17
1 teaspoon agave syrup or other sweetener, if desired
1 ½ pounds mustard or other greens (1 large bunch), washed well, leaves trimmed from ribs and cut into 2-inch pieces
3-4 stems green garlic, sliced into 2-inch diagonal pieces or 6 cloves garlic, minced and divided 1-2 cups sliced bok choy 1-2 cups pea shoots (also called pea sprouts) 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add the leeks, garlic and ginger. Saute for 1-2 minutes. Add the mustard and other greens. Add the broth and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients except for sesame seeds. Cook until greens are cooked through and the liquid is almost absorbed. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds. ©2012, The Veggie Queen™
http://www.theveggiequeen.com
Late Winter Green Soup with
Nettles, Garlic and Leeks Serves 4 to 6
This is a wonderfully easy blend of very fresh ingredients that needs little more than some salt but you can easily add thyme and bay leaf when cooking it. Nettles are wild greens but you can
substitute other greens if nettles (which really do sting) are unavailable.
1 tablespoon olive oil (optional) 1 medium onion, diced 1 cup chopped green garlic or 4 cloves regular garlic, minced 1 cup chopped leeks, green and white parts 2 cups potatoes, diced 1 bunch nettles, carefully removed from stems 6 cups vegetable broth ½-1 teaspoon salt Freshly ground black pepper, to taste Sauté onion, garlic and leeks for 3 minutes. Add the potatoes and broth. Lock lid on cooker and bring to high pressure. Reduce heat. Cook for 4
minutes. Quick release the pressure. Remove the lid, carefully tilting it away from you. Blend with a hand blender. Add salt and pepper, to taste. ©2012, The Veggie Queen™
http://www.theveggiequeen.com
The Author
Jill Nussinow, MS, RD is the
author of The Veggie Queen™:
Vegetables Get the Royal
Treatment cookbook and the
ebook, The New Fast Food: The
Veggie Queen™ Pressure Cooks
Whole Food Meals in Less than
30 Minutes due out in paperback
this fall. You can see and read more about what Jill
does at http://www.theveggiequeen.com. Find Jill
on Facebook at The Veggie Queen or follow Jill on
Twitter.
Healthy Eats January 2012|18
The word “healthy” is so overused that, when adorning any food packaging, it resembles a plaid‐panted used car salesman. It’s right up there with that other nutrition word devoid of real meaning, “moderation.” Marion Nestle got it right in her book, Food Politics, where she explains the food industry’s specific use of a vague term in order to create public pablum. Roget’s Thesaurus lists “good”, “healthful”, “large” and “salubrious” under the term. But are all things stated to be healthy really so? Let’s look at a number of diets purported to be “healthy” and see if they are just large in their hype or truly a salubrious regime.
Healthy will be defined in this article by a renown scientific panel of one. After consulting me [via texting], myself [via twitter] and I [via carrier pigeon], healthy is defined 1) to not cause the eater any physical detriment; 2) nourish cells and support functions of the human body. [This definition was concluded and enacted in about 5 minutes. Therefore, the panel unanimously voted
to supplant the entire United States legislative branch.] First up is the United States Department of Agriculture [USDA] Dietary Guidelines. The guidelines, represented by a plate, instruct you to fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables. That’s a couple of cups a day and includes legumes as a vegetable. One quarter of your plate should be some other protein source, although legumes are listed here as well. If you really look at the guideline document, you will see that the USDA plant‐based meal plan includes processed soy products every day. Just in case you missed the fat and sodium in flesh items, you can be sure to cover it in some of the mock meats on the market. Whole grains should take up the last quarter of your plate. According to the USDA food guidelines, whole grains are not a source of protein. Well, at least as ascribed on the plate webpage, but they do have a lot of protein in their profiles on the USDA nutrient database page. Confused? Healthily confused? Confused in moderation? To keep it simple, let’s just stick legumes in with protein and whole grains with . . . whole grains, although, many legumes have a lot of calcium. So, what about that blue circle on the plate picture? The dairy group. I actually wrote to the USDA and asked why there isn’t a calcium group since this is what they say the dairy group does for the body and would include a variety of sources such as dark green, leafy veggies and tofu. Tofu and dark green leafy veggies are the highest ABSORBABLE calcium of foods in the US marketplace.
What the Heck is “Healthy?”
By LaDiva Dietitian!, MS, RD, LDN
Healthy Eats January 2012|19
The USDA replied that dairy does more than just serve as a calcium source, such as having high concentrations of potassium and magnesium. I responded that all of these nutrients are more absorbable in soy milk therefore, following their nutrition logic, we should change the name to the soy group. They informed me that they were sticking to their categorization even though 73% of the world is lactose intolerant. They did thank me for my interest. Even though, there is a mountain of evidence that flesh foods raise cholesterol levels, cancer levels and adverse cardiac events, the USDA lists a bounty of these foods as protein sources. They also have a long list of peas, beans, nuts and seeds as sources, which is a great improvement over previous guidelines. However, they do not believe that there is any other source for Omega‐3 fat except from seafood, although the fish get it from plants. Perhaps the USDA is moderately confused. Maybe the fish are, too. Since the USDA began making guidelines Americans have become heavier, sicker and, when looking at our youth, will have a lower mortality age than earlier generations. So, healthy or no? Not even close. Next, gluten‐free. Gluten‐free diets have become very popular. In fact, tennis pro Novak Djokovic says that it is the basis of his current winning streak on the court. Gluten is a protein found in some grains. The most common of these is represented by the word, BROW ‐ barley, rye, oat and wheat. When people with this sensitivity eat a gluten product there are a number of symptoms ranging from nausea, flatulence to depression and poor dental health, according to the Gluten Free Network. It is thought that at least 15% of the US population has gluten sensitivity. The gluten‐free diet does curtail certain grains, be they whole or not. However, there is an abundance of gluten‐free grains to eat and cookbooks galore. Other than the removing gluten
part of your daily noshing, there isn’t much about other foods. So, healthy or no? In concordance of the parameters of this article, Gluten‐Free is declared healthy because it relieves symptoms which cause detriment to the eater and supports cell and human body functions. Vegetarian is usually thought of as healthy. Vegetarian has also been twisted by folks wanting to stretch the definition of the term by throwing in some qualifier such as, I’m a vegetarian, but I still eat fish sometimes. This is not a vegetarian. A vegetarian doesn’t eat flesh products. Period. They do eat flesh by‐products such as eggs and dairy. In most studies vegetarians eat more fruits and vegetables than flesh eaters of every variety. They tend to be healthier than flesh diners. Dr. Tim Key, one of the foremost authorities on vegetarian scholarship and one of the lead authors of the EPIC‐Oxford study, says that vegetarians have lower mortality rates from ischemic heart disease [reduced blood supply to the heart] and some forms of cancer. The position paper by the Vegetarian Nutrition Dietetics Practice Group within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics states: “Vegetarians tend to have a lower body mass index and lower overall cancer rates. Vegetarian diets tend to be lower in saturated fat and cholesterol and have higher levels of dietary fiber, magnesium and potassium, vitamins C and E, folate, carotenoids, flavonoids and other phytochemicals. These nutritional differences may explain some of the health advantages of those following a varied, balanced vegetarian diet." This would lead one to think that vegetarian is healthy. However, there is a caveat with regards to cholesterol consumption and adverse health effects from auto‐immune diseases associated with dairy consumption. Some of the disease states attributed to milk products are: increased mucus, Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Insulin Depended Diabetes and arthritis . Egg
Healthy Eats January 2012|20
consumption, one per day, was linked to higher mortality rates. Healthy or no? No. It’s better than being a total flesh eater and supports cell nourishment and body function. However, it still has intake of items known to cause physical detriment. Now, I can hear everyone mounting their high horses for veganism. This is a vegetarian who got rid of the flesh by‐products. But, before you ride in to town to toast your good health, realize that beer and potato chips can be a vegan diet. So, just be happy that you are doing great things for yourself and for the planet. Of course, you can buy a round of strawberry banana smoothies for everyone. The one issue with vegans is that they do not have a reliable food source of B12. There are plenty of fortified foods out there and supplementation is easy, but to be fair I gotta state the facts. So, healthy or no? Yes. There is no physical detriment by eating a plant‐based diet and it supports human body functions as long as you get your B12. On the other hand, there is one food allowed and readily used by vegans that does cause some detriment ‐ oils. Which leads me to ‐ Oil‐Free. Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn is the father of the Oil‐Free movement. Dr. Esselstyn’s work with reversing heart disease began in 1985. He has found that any amount of oil digested damages the interior lining of the artery. That’s right, even olive oil, coconut oil and nuts. He includes a ban on peanuts although they are a legume. He also cautions about soy because both have a high fat concentration. I saw Dr. Esselstyn last year. He is the perfect spokesperson for health. Healthy or no? Healthy, yes. No caveat, although his website does not mention B12 supplementation. Can I be any more perfect? Depends. Raw fooders come in a few varieties. I’m going to stick with the 80‐20 type. These eat 80% raw and 20% cooked
foods. I know Dr. Doug Graham may have a field day with this, but most raw fooders I know eat a little cooked food. Brenda Davis, RD and Vesanto Melina, MS, RD have two books on raw. They still recommend supplementing B12. The issue I have with going raw is my love of local and my locale. I live where the growing season stops in October. Most of the foods listed in the myriad of raw websites would have to be trucked thousands of miles. There were many raw recipes with sprouting and dehydrating for hours or days at a time. On the other hand, this had nothing to do with the panel’s definition of healthy. So, healthy or no? Yes. Definitely has no physical detriment to the eater and supports cell and all human body functions. The panel is concluded and sends salubrity to all while whipping up this month’s recipes. Next task for the panel is that Mideast Peace thing. . . should be done in time for lunch. Oil‐free salad, of course. The Author
Marty Davey, RD, MS is not only LaDiva, Dietitian!, but a Registered Dietitian with a Masters degree in Food and Nutrition. She became a vegetarian in 1980 when she
discovered that there were more chemicals in cattle then attendants at a Grateful Dead concert. Her family is all vegan, except the dog who drew the line at vegetarian. She conducts factual and hilarious presentations and food demos. While her private practice includes those transitioning to a plant‐based life, LaDiva's most popular private consulting topic is "I'm too busy and I don't cook." Her website is www.ladivadietitian.com.
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Sweet Fruits Every day you must have a giant fruit salad This will help you meet your daily caloric energy‐production needs. If you don’t have time to do a lot of chopping, you can eat your fruit throughout the day, but if possible, make an entire breakfast out of a fruit salad. Fruits are beautiful and satisfying, with interest and appeal to the taste buds. Emphasize a variety of types and colors; and always be on the lookout for new fruits to try. You can try sprinkling a small amount of nuts and seeds on your salad or try adding other dried fruit such as figs, berries, apricots, or dates.
Green Leaves Eat a big bunch of dark, leafy, green vegetables every day Keep recipes simple and try one or two different leafy greens at a time. Start with a small amount (a few leaves) and gradually increase to more greens as you get used to the taste and flavors. Remember, the more greens the better! Try parsley, cilantro, red mustard, green mustard chards, green kale, rapini, kohlrabi, endive, green and red lettuce, radish greens, turnip greens, collards, dandelion greens, beet greens, wild greens, spinach...you get the picture. Anything green! Include a heaping handful of dark green leafy vegetables in your lunch and dinner meals, and use a wide variety throughout the year. One easy way
to do this is to blend greens in sweet or savory green smoothies or in raw soups. Eat as many of these as you like! Drink slowly and chew your smoothies. You can try sprinkling a small amount of nuts and seeds (sunflower, flax, sesame, etc) on your smoothies to encourage chewing.
Raw Plant Fats Include 2‐4 heaping tablespoons of raw nuts and seeds per day Make sure you are getting a variety of raw plant fats by rotating the kinds of nuts and seeds you use in recipes and rotating other fats such as coconut oil, coconut butter, avocados, olives, and olive oil. Limit your consumption to 2‐4 tablespoons of nuts and seeds per day and use only 1‐3 different types of nuts or seeds per day. Do not to go too overboard with the consumption of the oils: limit your intake to up to 4 tablespoons per day. Nuts and seeds must be raw, organic and in an unpeeled natural state. (Some people sell nuts with the thin outer peel removed. It’s okay to buy them without a shell, but make sure the delicate peel is still intact.) It is recommended that you grind them yourself if they are needed for recipes such as pates, sauces, etc.
Vegetables Cruciferous vegetables are extremely important. Include them in your diet every day They contain essential antioxidants and are high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Include broccoli,
Diet Tips for the New Year by the Raw Food Goddess
by Angela Elliott
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cabbage, napa cabbage, bok choy, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts. Kale, collards, mustard greens and other crucifers in your meal plan. In the case of radishes, turnips, and rutabagas, eat their leafy tops too! Start with at least a fist‐size serving, EVERY DAY, and try to double or triple that amount as you become more accustomed to this way of eating.
Grains and Legumes Eat grains and legumes three or more times a week Include legumes such as lentils, peas, garbanzos, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, and amaranth.
Preferably, these should be sprouted and/or dehydrated, but may also be cooked in boiling water. Brown rice is another option for a cooked grain. Adding grains and legumes will decrease the overall nutrient density of your food intake, but provide special nutrients that aid in detoxification and immune system activity, without adding excessive fat. Eating healthy just got a whole lot easier. If you follow the above guidelines, you will feel and look your best. Try a few of these scrumptious healthy recipes today, you'll be glad you did!
Angela’s Recipes for Success
The Stir Fry Broccoli ‐ 2 heads, cut into bite‐sized pieces Mung bean sprouts‐ 1 large handful Bok Choy‐ 1 large handful Cabbage‐ 1 cup, shredded Garlic ‐ 2 cloves, finely sliced Fresh lemon juice‐ ½ cup Himalayan salt‐ to taste Ginger ‐ to taste Black pepper ‐ to taste Curry powder ‐ to taste Red pepper flakes ‐ to taste Mix the first four ingredients (broccoli, sprouts, cabbage, and garlic) together in a large bowl. Mix the lemon, salt, and as many spices as you'd like together. Pour the sauce over the veggies. Let marinate for at least a couple of hours. Drain off any excess liquid and serve.
Basic Green Savory Handful of spinach 3 stalks of celery 2 stalks of asparagus 1 large tomato Bunch up the spinach and juice with the celery the set aside. Juice the asparagus with the tomato. Combine the two mixtures, stir and enjoy!
Happiness in a Bowl 2 cups pineapple chunks ½ cup Satsuma tangerine segments 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries 2 medium firm bananas, sliced 2 sliced kiwifruit, peeled, halved, and sliced 2 tablespoons lime juice
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5 honey dates, soaked and pitted 2 tablespoons filtered water Slice pineapple into bite‐sized chunks. In a bowl, combine the pineapple, tangerines, strawberries, bananas and kiwi. In a food processor or blender, puree the dates, water, and lime juice together. Pour over fruit; gently toss to coat.
Creamy Broccoli Soup 2 cups chopped broccoli 2 cups water Pinch of each (or more to taste): –salt –black pepper –powdered sage –dried thyme –garlic powder 1 ½ cups raw cashews, soaked Place all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.
Delightful Rainbow Salad 1 cup red cabbage 1 cup green cabbage 1 cup baby greens ½ cup jicama ½ cup sprouts ¼ cup snap peas ¼ cup green beans 1 cup kale 1 cup red pepper ½ cup carrots 10 cherry tomatoes 1 avocado ½ teaspoon Himalayan salt 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons lemon juice Ground black pepper to taste Shred the greens into a fine ribbons and toss together with salt, and massage. This makes these cruciferous veggies easier to digest. Thinly slice the red pepper and carrot and add to the cabbages. Add olive oil, lemon juice, and black pepper and toss. Place on a plate. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and arrange on top. Peel and thin slice the avocado and arrange on top of the salad.
The Author Angela Elliott is the author of Alive in Five, Holiday Fare with Angela, The Simple Gourmet, and more books on the way! Angela is the inventor of Five Minute Gourmet Meals™, Raw Nut‐Free Cuisine™, Raw Vegan Dog Cuisine™, and The Celestialwich™, and the owner and operator of She‐Zen Cuisine. www.she‐zencuisine.com. Angela has contributed to various publications, including Vegnews Magazine, Vegetarian Baby and Child Magazine, and has taught gourmet classes, holistic classes, lectured, and on occasion toured with Lou Corona, a nationally recognized proponent of living food.
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Eating a variety of fresh vegetables is important for a healthy diet. And, as most vegans know, vegetables aren’t just side dishes — they deserve to be the star of the show. Lately, it seems, certain vegetables, such as kale, have achieved superstar status among home cooks, restaurateurs, and food writers alike. Still another vegetable that has achieved recent acclaim is cauliflower. This may seem surprising since, despite its noble pedigree, the snowy white cauliflower used to be a bit of a wallflower, often bypassed for its more colorful sister, broccoli. Although white is the most common color of cauliflower, it also comes in orange, green, and purple. Orange or “cheddar” cauliflower contains 25 times more vitamin A than the white varieties; green cauliflower, sometimes called broccoflower, comes in two shapes: the common rounded head and a spiky variation known as Romanesco broccoli. There is also a purple cauliflower, colored by the presence of certain antioxidants. Nutritionally, cauliflower is low in fat and carbohydrates, while being high in fiber, vitamin C, folate, and several phytochemicals. Now, here’s the fun part. In addition to its impressive nutritional resume, cauliflower is also a culinary chameleon. This is true not just because it can be roasted, boiled, fried, steamed or eaten raw, but also because cauliflower is a master of disguise. This versatile brassica has been known to stand in for mashed potatoes, has “shape‐shifted” into grains of “rice,” and has even been served as a “steak.” Cauliflower was always one of my personal favorites, no doubt because my mother battered and fried it crisp on the outside yet soft on the inside. But it was back in the eighties when I was
macrobiotic, that I first discovered that if you puree cooked cauliflower it bears an uncanny resemblance to mashed potatoes. (In fact, cauliflower makes an even better mash when blended with cooked millet.) To this day, people looking to eat fewer carbs often rely on mashed cauliflower. Talk about healthy eats!
Cauliflower is equally at home in the cuisines of India, Italy, Eastern Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Try it in a curry or Asian stir‐fry, topped with tahini sauce, drizzled with lemon sauce or cloaked in a cheesy sauce. It’s also great cold in a salad or served raw with a dip. Among the recipes I’ve developed using this chameleon‐like wonder are:
Curried Cauliflower Soup with Roasted Cauliflower “Rice”
Ziti with Roasted Cauliflower and Tomatoes
Shepherd’s Pie Topped with Cauliflower Mashers
Picatta Cauliflower Steaks
Sicilian Cauliflower Salad with Raisins and Pine Nuts
Cauliflower Chameleon by Robin Robertson
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My most recent discovery is that pureed cauliflower also makes an amazing sauce for vegan mac and cheese, even more dramatic if you use a “cheddar” cauliflower. Over the years, I’ve used a variety of ingredients to make the creamy cheesy sauce for vegan mac and cheese, including potatoes and carrots, along with roasted red, orange, and yellow peppers — and now, cauliflower.
Below is my recipe for Mac and Cauli. This recipe allows you to have mac and cheese “your way” – as saucy as you want it and as cheesy as you like. Note: You can sprinkle the top of the casserole with any remaining “crumbs” of roasted cauliflower – it tastes delicious and looks good, too! Either white or orange cauliflower can be used in this recipe.
Mac & Cauli Serves 6 Time to Prep 30 to 45 minutes
Ingredients 1 small cauliflower (“cheddar” or white), cored, trimmed and cut into 1/4‐inch slices 12 ounces elbow macaroni 2/3 cup cashews, soaked for 4 hours or overnight, and drained 2 cups vegetable broth, or more 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 small onion, chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced Salt and black pepper, to taste 1/3 cup nutritional yeast, or more 1 (4‐ounce) jar diced pimientos, drained 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or more 1 teaspoon yellow mustard, or more Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Arrange the sliced cauliflower on an oiled baking sheet and roast until soft and lightly browned, turning once, 20 to 30 minutes. Set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
While the cauliflower is roasting, cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain well and set aside.
In a food processor or high‐speed blender, combine the cashews and broth and blend until smooth.
Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute longer.
Transfer the onion mixture to the food processor with the cashew mixture. Add 2 cups of the roasted cauliflower and puree until smooth. Add the nutritional yeast, pimientos, lemon juice, and mustard. Season to taste with salt and pepper — the amount of salt needed depends on how salty your broth is. I usually add
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about ½ teaspoon of salt to start. Process to blend well, then taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt if
needed. Now, choose from among these variations:
For a thinner sauce: add up to 1 cup of additional vegetable broth or your favorite plain unsweetened nondairy milk.
For a “sharper” flavor: add more lemon juice and/or mustard, a little at a time, mixing well after each addition.
For a non‐saucy (but flavorful) texture: transfer all of the cooked pasta to a lightly oiled baking dish. For a saucy texture: transfer one‐half to two‐thirds of the cooked pasta to the baking dish and pour in the sauce, stirring to coat. It will be very saucy, but the pasta will absorb some of the sauce.
For a saucy texture with no crumb topping: cover tightly and bake for 20 minutes or until hot. If you like a crunchy crumb topping, sprinkle the top with toasted panko crumbs and bake an additional 10 minutes.
For an even saucier version: omit the baking step altogether, and combine the pasta and sauce on top of the stove (in whatever proportions you prefer) and heat until hot.
For a cheesier version: Stir 1/2 cup of shredded vegan cheddar cheese into the mixture and top with an additional ¼ cup before baking.
The Author
A longtime vegan, Robin Robertson has worked with food for more than 25 years and is the author of nineteen cookbooks, including Vegan Planet, 1,000 Vegan Recipes, Vegan Fire & Spice, and Vegan on the Cheap. A former restaurant chef, Robin writes the Global Vegan food column for VegNews Magazine and has written for Vegetarian
Times, Cooking Light, and Natural Health, among others. Robin lives in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. You may contact her through her website or blog: www.globalvegankitchen.com and www.veganplanet.blogspot.com.
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My maternal grandmother’s family (Guerrini and Roncagliolo) hailed from the province of Liguria, on the “Italian Riviera”. In the mid‐1800’s some of them, along with about 15,000 other mostly northern Italians, emigrated from Liguria to Peru, where my grandmother, Clotilde Roncagliolo (her later married surname was Roncagliolo de Urbina) was born. In time, Italians became the second‐largest European population in Peru and their cooking style greatly influenced modern Peruvian cuisine. But that’s another story! What has intrigued me for years and led to the development of this recipe was the centuries‐old custom of Ligurian women gathering nutrient‐rich, even medicinal, greens and herbs in the mountains and valleys to be cooked and stuffed into ravioli, or added to rice dishes, soups and torta (savory vegetable pies). The particular mixture of herbs in this region is called preboggion and encompasses edible weeds such as dandelion, borage and nettle leaves, among others. The recipe I’m sharing with you in this issue, though it certainly can be made with storebought herbs and greens (but you may, as I do, at least have some kale still growing in the winter garden!), echoes that tradition. The homemade whole milk cheese that was used in Ligurian stuffed pasta was called Prescinsêua and is pleasantly sour and creamy. Some Ligurian cooks still like to make their own. (I like to think that my Tofu‐Cashew “Mascarpone” is similar.) The combination of this cheese with greens and herbs in a thin olive oil crust or simple pasta dough no
doubt helped to keep hard‐working peasants and farmers healthy and strong over the centuries, despite the constant conflicts that eventually sent so many residents overseas looking for a better life. I don't make stuffed pasta dumplings often, but whenever I do, I vow to make them regularly because there really is nothing like homemade ravioli! (It’s a great recipe to make cooperatively with friends or family, by the way.) When I developed this recipe, I wanted rapini (broccoli raab) in the filling (I love it’s bitter edge), and my inspiration was to pair the creamy green filling with a pasta dough featuring corn (polenta to Italians) and with a creamy sauce. It turned out even better than I had imagined because we had the luck to find wild oyster mushrooms in our woods for the sauce, which was a delicious component to the dish. My omni guests hardly uttered a sound while they ate, other than "mmmmm's" and groans of pleasure! While I roll the pasta and fill it (now with a traditional long ravioli rolling pin that I managed to find) I think of generations of Ligurian women, perhaps my own ancestresses, gathering, cleaning and cooking the preboggion; chopping and seasoning and mixing it with cheese, and filling the pasta to cook for a thrifty but elegant and nutritious family meal. Recipe and Pictures Follow
From Bryanna’s Pictoral Kitchen:
Kale & “Mascarpone” Ravioli Health-giving Greens Feature in an Elegant Recipe Harkening Back to My Italo-Peruvian Grandmother’s Past
by Bryanna Clark Grogan
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KALE & TOFU-CASHEW “MASCARPONE” RAVIOLI WITH CREAMY OYSTER
MUSHROOM SAUCE Type: Main dish Serves: 6 (It’s worth doubling the recipe and freezing some for future use!) Time to Prepare: 2 to 3 hours (see notes on “Time Management” below recipe) Ingredients Tofu‐Cashew “Mascarpone” (This makes 2 cups, so you will have 1 cup to use in another recipe or as a spread. It seems easier to blend in the larger amount.)
1 (12.3‐ounces) box extra‐firm silken tofu, drained ½ cup + 2 tablespoons raw cashew pieces, ground very fine in a clean, dry coffee/spice mill or mini‐chopper 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1 pinch salt
Filling 12 ounces kale, tough stems removed 10 ounces rapini (broccoli raab), tough stems removed 3 cloves garlic, sliced 1/3 cup vegan broth ½ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons fresh herbs, such as basil and marjoram, minced 1 cup Tofu‐Cashew Mascarpone, made ahead and chilled 1 pinch freshly‐grated nutmeg
Sauce ½ tablespoon Earth Balance or olive oil ½ pound oyster mushrooms, lightly rinsed, patted dry and sliced into matchsticks
Roux 1 tablespoon Earth Balance or olive oil 1 tablespoon unbleached flour
Blended Mixture for Sauce 1 cup nondairy milk ½ cup (4 ounces) extra‐firm silken tofu or medium‐firm tofu, drained and crumbled ½ cup water ½ teaspoon chicken‐style vegan broth powder or paste ½ teaspoon salt 1 pinch freshly‐grated nutmeg 1 pinch white pepper
Homemade Vegan Pasta 1 ½ cups + 3 tablespoons unbleached white flour ¼ cup soy flour or chickpea flour (besan) ¼ cup corn flour (not cornstarch; this is basically yellow cornmeal ground to a powder)
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¾ teaspoon salt 2/3 cup water 1 tablespoon oil
Garnish ¼ cup vegan parmesan (such as Galaxy Foods Vegan) or chopped toasted walnuts Optional: chopped Italian (flat leaf) parsley
Instructions
To Make the “Mascarpone” (Make this
several hours before you make the filling) Tip: If you have a powerful blender like a
Vita‐Mix, you don’t have to grind the nuts first. Soak them for 10 minutes in boiling water to soften them up and then drain them. Whirl all of the ingredients in a blender at high speed for several minutes. Be patient‐‐ it has to be extremely smooth. You may have to stop the machine a couple of times and scrape the sides and push the ingredients that have accumulated under the blade towards the middle. When as smooth as possible, scoop into a covered container and refrigerate. It will firm up considerably.
To Make the Filling Tip: Fillings should not be too wet or they will make the dough soggy and easy to tear. Greens should be squeezed as dry as possible before using. Vegan parmesan substitute will absorb some of the liquid. If a filling seems to wet, add a few fine dry breadcrumbs (1 tablespoon at a time).
Wash and spin dry the rapini and kale. Slice the greens 1/8‐inch thick. Heat the broth and garlic in a large, heavy nonstick skillet over high heat. When the broth boils, immediately add the greens. Turn the heat down to medium‐high and cook until the greens are tenderized, but still bright green and the liquid is completely absorbed, keeping a close watch on it and stirring as necessary to keep from sticking. The mixture should be fairly dry. Remove from heat. Transfer the greens to a food processor and pulse until the greens are minced. Transfer the minced greens to a large bowl and mix in the salt and herbs. Add the pre‐made and pre‐chilled Tofu‐Cashew “Mascarpone”, along with the
nutmeg and vegan parmesan substitute. Mix well. Keep refrigerated until use.
To Make the Sauce Tip: I like to make the sauce ahead of time
because the ravioli cook quickly. Heat the 1/2 tablespoon of oil or Earth Balance in a large, heavy nonstick skillet over high heat. When very hot, add the sliced mushrooms. Sauté until the mushrooms until cooked through and slightly browned. Set aside. Transfer all of the Blended Mixture ingredients, except for the nutmeg and pepper, to a blender and process until very, very smooth. Set aside. Heat the 1 tablespoon of Earth Balance or oil in a heavy medium saucepan over medium‐high heat and, when it’s hot, whisk in the flour. Whisk it for a few minutes, but remove from the heat before it starts to change color (you want a white roux). Scrape this roux into the Blended Mixture and blend for a few seconds. Pour the mixture back into the pot. Stir over medium‐high heat until it thickens and boils. Turn down and simmer on low heat for a few minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg and pepper and stir in the sautéed mushrooms. Microwave Option: Heat the 1 tablespoon of Earth Balance or oil in a large microwave‐safe bowl or 1‐quart Pyrex measuring pitcher on High power for 30 seconds. Whisk in the flour and microwave on High power for 1 minute. Scrape this into the Blended Mixture and blend briefly, then pour it back into the same bowl or pitcher. Alternatively, you can pour the Blended Mixture into the bowl or pitcher containing the roux and mix with an immersion/stick blender until smooth. Either way, microwave the Blended Mixture with the roux mixed in on High power for 1 minute. Whisk well.
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Repeat this twice. Whisk in the nutmeg and pepper and stir in the sautéed mushrooms.
Making the Pasta Tip: You can make the pasta several hours ahead of rolling it out, divide it into 8 equal pieces and keep it refrigerated in a plastic bag or covered container. Tip: Humidity makes the dough more difficult to roll out.
To make the dough by hand or in a heavy‐duty stand mixer, mix the flours and salt in a medium‐sized bowl or the bowl of your machine. Pour in the water and oil and stir with a fork until the dough comes together in a ball. Knead the dough on a lightly‐floured surface for about 10 minutes or in a stand mixer with a dough hook. The dough should be smooth and silky‐looking. Place the dough in a plastic bag and let it rest for at least 10 minutes. To make the dough in a food processor, pulse the flours and salt briefly in a dry food processor bowl, then add the water and oil through the top with the motor running. Process the dough for about 30 seconds or until a smooth ball forms (the dough may seem a bit sticky, but you'll be flouring it as you work). Transfer the dough to a plastic bag and let it rest for at least 10 minutes. To make the dough in a bread machine, transfer the dry ingredients to the bread machine container and add the water and oil on top (or vice versa, depending on the directions for your machine) and turn it on for the dough cycle. Unplug the machine when it finishes kneading, oil the dough lightly, transfer to a plastic bag and refrigerate for at least half an hour. (The dough tends to get warm in the bread machine.)
Rolling out the Dough Do not allow the strips of rolled‐out pasta dry out‐‐ cover them with a clean, damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap while you work. Do not allow any tears in the dough or the filling will seep out. If you find a tear or hole, fold it up and pass it through the rollers again. Roll the dough out as thinly as your
machine will allow (this means the second‐to‐the‐last setting for most inexpensive machines). To roll the dough by hand, divide the dough into eighths and keep the portions you aren't using inside a plastic bag or covered by a clean damp kitchen towel. Roll each piece out on a floured surface until it is about 1/16‐inch thick, flouring as you go to prevent sticking. To roll with a hand‐crank pasta machine or electric pasta‐rolling machine, divide the dough into eighths, keep the portions you aren't using inside a plastic bag or covered by a clean damp kitchen towel. Flour the dough well and run it through the first setting of the machine. Now, flour it lightly again, fold it into thirds and run it through the first setting again. Do this until the dough looks smooth. At this point, flour the dough and run it through each successive setting twice, until it is the desired thickness. Tip: I like the second‐to‐the‐last setting on my machine, number 6, for stuffed pasta. This is pretty standard for the inexpensive hand‐roller machines. The very expensive ones are better‐aligned, so you can more easily use the last, very thin, setting, if you wish. Either way, hang the rolled‐out portions of dough over the backs of chairs covered with clean, dry kitchen towels or on a pasta rack to dry a little for 5 to 10 minutes before filling and cutting. Alternatively, lay the pasta out flat in single layers on baking sheets (any size) lined with baking parchment cut to fit and sprinkled with flour.
To Fill the Pasta Using a ravioli stamp (available in any good cookware store) is one of the cheapest and easiest ways to form ravioli, as it cuts and seals the edges‐‐ I give directions for using one. If necessary, you can use pastry wheel or fluted pasta cutter to cut square dumplings and seal the edges with the tines of a fork. Tip: If you have an old‐fashioned ravioli rolling pin (Norpro makes a good inexpensive one), you can use that according to the directions with the rolling pin. It is fast and easy to use.
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Transfer the rolled‐out dough sheets to a lightly‐floured flat surface and keep covered with clean, dry cloth or kitchen towels when not working with it. Cut the lengths of rolled‐out dough into 2 1/2‐inch‐wide strips. Using half of the dough sheets, place level tablespoon‐sized mounds of cold Filling down the length of the dough at intervals which give you room to cut the dough with your ravioli stamp. To seal, brush water between and around the mounds of filling. Cover each of the dough sheets with another sheet of dough, press the top sheet down between the mounds of filling and cut 2 1/2‐inch squares or rounds with a square or round ravioli stamp (the ravioli stamp will seal the edges) or, cut into squares with a fluted pasta cutter or pastry wheel and seal the edges with the tines of a fork or use a ravioli rolling pin. Cautionary Tip: Don't over‐fill the dough and make sure that no filling gets into the seal on the edges or it may break open when cooking. (If the dough is nice and moist, you don't need to moisten the edges to get a good seal.) Set the filled dumplings aside (not touching) on baking sheets (any size) lined with baking parchment cut to fit and sprinkled with cornmeal or flour. Cover them with dry, clean kitchen towels while a large pot of salted water comes to a boil. Turn the dumplings frequently so that they don't get soggy on the bottom and tear when you try to pick them up. To hold for 3 to 4 hours (no longer), transfer them, still on the floured, baking parchment‐lined baking sheets, sprinkled with flour and covered with plastic wrap or inside of large new food‐safe plastic bags, to the refrigerator. They must be turned frequently so that they dry out evenly and don't get soggy on the bottom, causing tearing when you pick them up. See the Tips below about freezing the dumplings if you must hold off cooking them for longer periods of time.
To Cook the Dumplings Be ready to start cooking your ravioli as soon as they are stuffed or read the Tips on refrigerating or freezing the dumplings at the end of the recipe. Have the plates or shallow pasta bowls hot and drizzled with a bit of olive oil and your sauce warm (either microwave it or heat gently in a double boiler), before you start cooking the ravioli. Use a large pot of boiling salted water. Cook the dumplings in batches which don't crowd the pot, dropping them one at a time into rapidly boiling water. Time the cooking from the time the water comes back to a boil. Watch over them the whole time and stir gently with a slotted spoon to make sure none have stuck to the bottom. When the ravioli are dancing merrily at the top of the water, they are done (taste the edge of one just to make sure). Tip: Don't let the water boil so hard that the dumplings come apart! Freshly‐made or refrigerated dumplings need about 2 to 3 minutes to cook; frozen dumplings need about 4 to 5 minutes. The cooking times are approximate ‐‐ it depends on your dough. Better to start testing a dumpling before it gets overcooked‐‐ it’s a shame to end up with soggy ravioli after all that work!
To Serve When the dumplings are cooked, quickly and gently lift them out with a slotted spoon and divide evenly between onto the hot, oiled plates or shallow pasta bowls. Drizzle each serving with warm sauce and pass a vegan parmesan substitute or a sprinkling of chopped toasted walnuts. You can sprinkle on some minced Italian (flat‐leaf) parsley for color, if you like. Serve immediately and await complements!
Healthy Eats January 2012|32
Mascarpone
Filling
Sauce
Dough
Healthy Eats January 2012|33
Making the Ravioli
Alternate Ravioli Method
Finished Ravioli
Kitchen Equipment Blender Food processor Large, heavy skillet Large pot for pasta Slotted spoon Sharp knife Rolling pin or hand‐crank or electric pasta roller Ravioli stamps or ravioli rolling pin Several baking sheets Pastry brush Plastic wrap, baking parchment A medium saucepan OR a 1 qt Pyrex measuring pitcher Whisk Good to have, but optional: Immersion/stick blender Lettuce spinner Pasta rack Stand mixer with dough hook or automatic bread machine (for kneading pasta dough if you prefer not to do it b hand or in food processor)
Presentation Simple‐‐ plate the ravioli on small dinner plates or shallow pasta bowls, drizzle with some of the sauce and mushrooms, and sprinkle with vegan parmesan and garnished with Italian parsley. It is served on its own as a course, though crusty bread may also be on the table.
Time Management Components can be made a head and assembled at your convenience. The ravioli can be made even weeks ahead of time and frozen. Freezing Ravioli: Stuffed dumplings should not be left on the flour‐or‐cornmeal‐sprinkled baking sheets for more than 3 or 4 hours in the refrigerator, and then they must be turned frequently so that they dry out evenly and don't get soggy on the bottom, causing tearing when you pick them up. So, sometimes it’s advantageous to freeze them and cook them when you need them. Transfer them, still on the floured, baking parchment‐lined baking sheets, sprinkled with flour
Healthy Eats January 2012|34
and covered with plastic wrap or inside of a large new food‐safe plastic bag, to the freezer. Leave until frozen solid. Loosen the frozen dumplings by banging the sheet on a sturdy surface. Transfer the frozen dumplings to zipper‐lock bags or rigid freezer containers with baking parchment in between layers and fasten airtight before returning to the freezer. They will keep for a couple of months if well‐stored.
Complementary Food and Drinks Your favorite wine or sparkling water.
Where to Shop Most large supermarkets have the primary ingredients. You may have to go to a health food store for chickpea flour, corn flour, silken tofu, vegan parmesan, and vegetarian broth cubes or powder or paste, or buy them online from VeganEssentials.com or amazon.com. If you can’t find rapini, you can use any other bitter green, such as turnip or mustard greens.
How It Works The protein, fats and lecethin in chickpea or soy flour act as tenderizers in the dough, just like eggs would, coating the gluten in the wheat flour. The golden color of the bean flour also lends a pleasant golden color to the noodles. The fine corn flour in this particular version makes an even more tender and golden pasta, but is still easy to handle. It is possible to make noodles using only flour and water, but I don’t think they hold up as well or have as much flavor as this version. (Commercial pasta makers who use only flour and water in fresh pasta use high protein durum semolina wheat flour, which is much tougher and requires special machines to make properly.) You can also use tofu as an egg substitute, but it's more expensive, messier (you have to blend the tofu first), and does not lend that golden color to the noodles. This dough is suitable for those who have soy allergies.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 368 Calories from Fat 99 Fat 11 g Total Carbohydrates 50 g Dietary Fiber 6 g Sugars 3 g Protein 17 g Salt 746 mg
Interesting Facts We can safely say that Marco Polo was not responsible for pasta being brought from China to Italy! At that time (1296) pasta had already become a huge trading commodity in what is now southern Italy. In fact there are recipes dating back to 800 A.D. that included dried pasta made with durum wheat. Stuffed pasta very closely resembling the shape of ravioli can be traced back to the 11th century Arab world. The earliest mention of ravioli appears in the writings of Francesco di Marco, a merchant of Venice in the 14th century. The Author
Author of 8 vegan cookbooks, Bryanna has devoted over 40 years to tasty, healthful cooking, 23 as a vegan. She was a frequent contributor and reviewer for Vegetarian
Times magazine for 5 years, and, more recently, wrote and published a subscription cooking zine, “Vegan Feast”, for 5 years. She is moderator of the Vegsource “New Vegetarian” forum. Bryanna has conducted cooking workshops and classes locally (including a 5‐day Vegan Cooking Vacation on beautiful Denman Is.), and at numerous vegetarian gatherings in North America. Bryanna’s recipes appear in the The Veg‐Feasting Cookbook (Seattle Vegetarian Association); on Dr. Andrew Weil's websites; in No More Bull! by Howard Lyman; and in Cooking with PETA. Bryanna also developed the recipes for the ground‐breaking book, Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes.
Healthy Eats January 2012|35
In 1993, I co‐founded the animal protection organization, Vegan Outreach. Since that time, we have distributed over 16 million booklets on modern animal farming and vegetarianism, mostly by handing to pedestrians. In 2001, I became a Registered Dietitian in order to become well‐versed in the science of nutrition so Vegan Outreach could promote a vegan diet in the most responsible way possible. This past July, the book I co‐authored with vegan dietitian Ginny Messina, Vegan For Life, was published. My purpose in writing the book was to set the record straight on all the information circulating about vegan nutrition, based on the latest scientific research. It turns out that similar eating patterns can affect some individuals in very different ways. While a vegan diet is the best thing that ever happened to some people's health, this isn't always the case. And eating a particular way for many years can start out great but not always end so great if you do not follow proper nutrition. The biggest contribution I have tried to make in the arena of vegan nutrition is to prevent failure to thrive, the phenomenon where some people have trouble feeling healthy on a vegan diet. Unfortunately, this focuses on the negative aspects of veganism and all the nutrients that people need to be concerned about. Once you create a pattern, it becomes fairly easy to meet those needs, but it can seem daunting when someone first hears the list of issues. Before I begin talking about the nutritional concerns of a vegan diet, I will share some very positive news. The first study measuring vegans' risk of diabetes was released in 2011 and it found that after only two years of follow‐up vegans had a 60% reduced risk compared to meat‐eaters (the results were adjusted for non‐dietary factors such
as smoking and exercise). The finding was highly statistically significant and one of the most impressive nutrition findings I've ever seen in the peer‐reviewed research (Tonstad, 2011). But back to my focus – making sure you thrive on a vegan diet by covering all your bases. I will start out with what I observe to be the most neglected nutrient in vegan diets: calcium. You have probably heard the theory that osteoporosis is not a disease of calcium intake but rather a disease of calcium loss due to eating animal protein. To make a long, technical story short, it's not true – a typical vegan diet is not protection against osteoporosis. The most important study to date showed that about half of vegans get 525 mg of calcium or less, which is only half of the RDA of 1,000 mg for adults under 50. The same study showed that those vegans had higher rates of fracture than vegans getting more than 525 mg per day, and they had higher rates of fracture than lacto‐ovo vegetarians and non‐vegetarians in the study of whom 95% were getting more than 525 mg of calcium per day. While there are many factors related to bone fractures, the researchers found no variable other than calcium to explain these differences in fracture rates. What should vegans do about this? One way to handle it is to significantly increase calcium intake through eating the leafy greens that are high in absorbable calcium. They include kale, broccoli, mustard greens, turnip greens, collard greens, and bok choy (the calcium from spinach, Swiss chard, and beet greens is not highly absorbed). You need
Thriving on a Vegan Diet By Jack Norris, RD
Healthy Eats January 2012|36
Kale is loaded with absorbable calcium
Beans are an excellent source of lysine
Supplement iodine every three days
Supplement Vitamin D, or better yet, get some sunshine!
to eat 1.5 cups, cooked (or the equivalent raw), minimum, of these foods each day. Otherwise, you should drink a glass of calcium fortified nondairy milk or take a 300 to 500
mg supplement each day. I don't eat that many greens, so I take a supplement.
Vitamin D is also related to bone health. On average, vegans' vitamin D levels are in the healthy range, though somewhat lower than lacto‐ovo vegetarians and omnivores. But I have come across numerous vegans who have suffered from significant fatigue from very low vitamin D levels. It is a good idea for everyone, not just vegans, to get their vitamin D levels tested every few years to make sure they are in a healthy range. I recommend that most people take a supplement of 1,000 IU per day of vitamin D unless you are certain that you are getting enough sunshine. See www.VeganHealth.org/articles/dailyrecs or Vegan For Life for more details about vitamin D and any topic in this article.
Iodine is an often‐overlooked nutrient that is important for vegans. Meat‐eaters tend to get enough iodine from dairy and seafood, but vegans who do not eat iodized salt daily or who do not eat seaweed multiple times a week, can be low in iodine and this can lead to thyroid issues, especially in vegans who eat multiple servings of soy each day. Many plant foods will have small amounts of iodine but it is not found consistently and there is
no way to know if the plant foods you are specifically eating on any given day contain iodine. The RDA for iodine is 150 micrograms. I recommend a supplement of about 75 micrograms per day, about 150 micrograms every other day, or about 225 micrograms every three days. Because iodine quickly leaves your system, you don't want to supplement less than every three days.
With all the to‐do regarding protein and vegan diets, you'd think there would be a plethora of protein balance studies in vegans. Unfortunately, there isn't a single one, so most of what people are saying about protein and vegan diets comes simply from extrapolations. Vegan nutritionists are usually quick to point out that protein is no problem and it is true that even vegans on extremely restrictive diets do not suffer from acute protein deficiency. However, that does not mean that all vegans are getting optimal amounts. In particular, I am concerned about the amino acid lysine, which is found in large amounts only in legumes (including beans, peas, lentils, peanuts, and soyfoods), quinoa, and pistachios. You should be eating multiple servings of these foods each day. For most vegans, this is no problem, but some vegans do not eat those foods. I am also concerned about long‐term, low‐protein vegan diets, especially for older vegans. Older people tend to eat fewer calories, requiring a higher percentage of protein in their diets. A long‐term slight protein deficiency can cause muscle wasting and bone deterioration – so make sure you are getting plenty of servings of legumes, quinoa, or pistachios each day.
Healthy Eats January 2012|37
Vitamin C aids iron absorption
A B12 supplement is necessary for good health
Legumes and nuts are a primary source of zinc
A DHA supplement is highly recommended
B12 is the most important nutrient that is, for practical purposes, entirely lacking in vegan diets that do not include B12‐fortified foods or supplements. Long‐term B12 deficiency can cause neurological problems and stroke, among other things. These days, it seems that most vegans know about the need to supplement with vitamin B12. But if you are vegan and you don't know of the importance of supplementing with B12 regularly (either small amounts every day or in large amounts twice per week), please check out Vitamin B12: Are You Getting It? at www.VeganHealth.org.
In terms of iron, vegan men appear to be fine and their lower, but not too low, iron levels are possibly even protective against colon cancer and
heart disease; the jury is still out on whether high iron stores or intakes contribute to these diseases. Cross‐sectional studies indicate that about 10% of vegetarian women are iron deficient. Iron deficiency anemia is usually accompanied by fatigue. If you suspect you might be suffering from iron deficiency, it's best to be diagnosed by a doctor. Adding vitamin C to meals significantly increases iron absorption by many times. Foods high in vitamin C are orange juice and oranges, of course, but also strawberries, green leafy vegetables (broccoli, kale, collards, Swiss chard, Brussels sprouts), bell peppers (yellow, red, and green), and cauliflower.
Zinc can be low in many vegan diets and is not absorbed as well from plant foods as it is from animal foods. I take a zinc supplement, and have
reason to believe my health benefits from it as I was frequently feeling a cold coming on before I started supplementing; but research on the subject is lacking. Foods high in zinc are legumes and nuts.
Vegans who do not supplement with omega‐3 fatty acids have low blood levels of the long‐chain omega‐3s EPA and DHA. There is a lot of research to indicate that these fatty acids are important for health, but it is not clear that vegans' lower blood levels are indicative of unhealthfully low tissue levels. DHA is the main concern for vegans as the body is fairly efficient at converting the short‐chain omega‐3, ALA (found in walnuts, flaxseeds, canola, chia seeds, hemp seeds, and soy oil), into EPA. DHA is important for nerve tissue and until more is known, I recommend that vegans supplement with 200‐300 mg of DHA every two to three days. Older people convert omega‐3s less efficiently so I recommend 200‐300 mg DHA per day for them. If your blood clots slowly, then you should talk to a physician before supplementing with omega‐3s.
Vitamin A is easy to get in the vegan diet by way of beta‐carotene, but you need to make sure you are eating foods high in carotenes such as carrot juice (by far the food highest food in beta‐carotene), carrots, kale, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, squash, or spinach (1 C cooked) on a daily basis. I add about ¼ cup of carrot juice (which meets over half the RDA) to
Healthy Eats January 2012|38
Beta-carotene rich foods are an easy source of Vitamin A
my morning smoothie to make sure I get enough each day.
And that about does it! I hope that wasn't too much for you, but it is important information to know. My hope is that you will thrive on a vegan diet! References Key TJ, Appleby PN, Spencer EA, Roddam AW, Neale RE, Allen NE. Calcium, diet and fracture risk: a prospective study of 1898 incident fractures among 34 696 British women and men. Public Health Nutr. 2007 Nov;10(11):1314‐20. Tonstad S, Stewart K, Oda K, Batech M, Herring RP, Fraser GE. Vegetarian diets and incidence of diabetes in the Adventist Health Study‐2. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2011 Oct 7. [Epub ahead of print]
The Author Jack Norris is a Registered Dietitian and President of Vegan Outreach. Jack won VegNews magazine's Columnist of the Year award for 2003 and 2004. Jack writes a nutrition blog at JackNorrisRD.com. He is the author of Vitamin B12: Are You Getting It?, co‐author of Vegan for Life, and
maintains www.VeganHealth.org. Jack co‐founded Vegan Outreach in 1993. Vegan Outreach produces Why Vegan and other booklets. Their Adopt a College program directly hands booklets to over 500,000 students every semester. In 2005, Jack was elected to the Animal Rights Hall of Fame. Jack earned a degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from Life University (Marietta, GA) in 2000 and performed his dietetic internship at Georgia State University in 2001.
Healthy Eats January 2012|39
Here in the Greater Phoenix area we are actually pretty lucky. Although our soils are often maligned, in reality we have a solid foundation for gardening. I know that sounds crazy, and it’s true that our soils are alkaline when most of the veggies we want to grow prefer acidic soil, but our soils are rich with the macro and micro nutrients your plants need to be healthy and in turn provide healthy food for us to eat. There are a few notable exceptions that can be mitigated with a healthy soil building regime; it is up to us to unlock the potential of our native soils! VCE readers are probably more attuned to where your food comes from than most, but you may not realize just how much our soils have changed with current farming practices. Not only is it estimated that our topsoils here in the US are being lost 10 times faster then they can be regenerated, we are washing away vast amounts of fertilizers and other chemicals along with it, causing both environmental damage where the erosion is occurring and also further down the watershed where the silt and chemicals build up, poisoning our oceans. These same farming practices that are promoting the rapid depletion of our topsoil are also responsible for depleting the essential nutrients within the soil. Our choices about what to eat should extend beyond just the ethical treatment of our animal friends and include the ethical treatment of our soils and watersheds and the creatures that inhabit those ecosystems. While it can be daunting to consider the full implication of degrading soils, I suggest starting small – visit your local Farmer’s Market or Community Supported Agriculture supplier to find locally produced sustainable veggies which will
cover your food consumption and learn more about composting which deals with the waste. If you already compost, you are having a two fold impact –first, in reducing the amount of material going to our landfills and second, in creating the key missing ingredient for our local soils – organic material! And the good news is that there are many ways you can compost, even in small apartments. Compost supports healthy soils in many ways. Organic material provides food and habitat for millions of little critters whose purpose is to recycle the basic elements of life. Bacteria and fungus are the key players in the process, indeed without these micro organisms there would be no life on this planet. Plants need to develop symbiotic relationships with the bacteria and fungus in order to have full access to the nutrients in soil. Adding compost to the soil adds beneficial micro organisms and supports macro organisms like worms and insects that further enhance soil texture and improve aeration. Enlisting the worms to turn and aerate your soil saves you work in the
Healthy Soil, Healthy Food by Liz Lonnetti
Healthy Eats January 2012|40
garden while adding fertilizer right where your plants need it, at the root zone. Another critical role compost can play in the garden is moisture control. A good thick layer of compost applied as mulch will retain soil moisture, even in the hottest weather. Organic material in sandy soil can help slow down the rate at which water runs through the root zone and aid in the spreading of water horizontally through the soil keeping the water where plants need it for a longer time. Conversely, compost can help open up clay soils, giving it a lighter texture and improving drainage. Over time the soil critters will work the organic material deeper into the soil, saving you the work of manually digging it in – if you are patient enough to wait for them. You can speed the introduction of organic material into your soil without digging by planting deep rooting crops like sunflowers and alfalfa. After their growing season, just ‘chop and drop’ the entire plant leaving their roots in the soil to decompose while the leaves and stalks create mulch at the surface. Temperature control with desert soil plays a key role in successful gardening, as some crops can only grow in cooler soil temperatures. Lettuce seed, for instance, won’t even germinate above 95° F, so keeping your soil temperatures cool here in the desert is critical to your gardening success. Last summer we used a soil probe thermometer to determine how much of a difference a good layer of mulch makes to soil temperatures. We found that the soil underneath 4 inches of mulch was 14° F degrees cooler than bare soil. Compost can also help stabilize and even reduce the soil pH over time. Compost acts as a buffering agent gradually bringing your soil closer to neutral ‐ amazingly this is true for acid soils, too. The amazing properties of compost can raise the pH of acid soils and LOWER the pH of alkaline soils. Truly composting is the gardener’s friend!
So what about if you only have a small balcony garden in your apartment and have no room for a compost bin? How about trying vermicomposting! If you’ve never heard of it, it’s actually a very simple concept of using Red Wiggler worms to
process your kitchen scraps and shredded paper products. The worms require only a bin to be happy, easily fitting under a kitchen sink, and will do an amazing job of taking your waste and turning it into soil’s best fertilizer! A worm bin is an easy weekend project and there are a lot of tutorial videos and how to videos online that can walk you
right through the process. Cornell University has a step by step guide that you can view here. I would encourage you to give worms a chance ‐ your soil, your plants and ultimately you ‐ will be healthier because of it! The Author
As a professional urban designer, Liz Lonetti is passionate about building community, both physically and socially. She graduated from the U of MN with a BA in Architecture in 1998. She also serves as the Executive Director for the Phoenix Permaculture Guild, a non‐profit organization whose mission is to
inspire sustainable living through education, community building and creative cooperation (www.phoenixpermaculture.org). A long time advocate for building greener and more inter‐connected communities, Liz volunteers her time and talent for other local green causes. In her spare time, Liz enjoys cooking with the veggies from her gardens, sharing great food with friends and neighbors, learning from and teaching others. To contact Liz, please visit her blog site www.phoenixpermaculture.org/profile/LizDan.
Resources www.urbanfarm.org www.phoenixpermaculture.org
Healthy Eats January 2012|41
Costa Rica has risen to prominence amongst
vacation spots, not only because of its laid‐back,
tropical atmosphere, its wonderful Arabica coffee,
the beaches, rafting, hiking, beautiful scenery,
friendly people… Sorry, I lost myself for a moment.
It is easy to drift through memories of such a
wonderful country, so let me get back on track.
Costa Rica has become a primary vacation spot
because of its ecotourism and commitment to
preserving the country’s precious environment.
What better place for a
vegan vacation?
This was the first vegan
tour I had hosted, and I
wasn’t quite sure what to
expect or how it would
turn out, but it exceeded
all of my expectations. We
had a magical group of
guests, a beautiful place to
stay, plenty to do with
some downtime for relaxing, and lots and lots of
great food. Below are some of the highlights from
our trip and writing this makes me look forward
even more to our next tour in Italy.
The Coffee Plantation
Only recently have I developed a taste for coffee,
so a trip to a premier Costa Rican coffee plantation
was in order. Several of the coffee plantations in
Costa Rica used to be owned by German families,
though many of them were either confiscated at
the start of WWII or have been purchased by Costa
Ricans. The Doka plantation is one of the latter.
Located in the Volcan Poas national park, Doka is
situated amongst the
mountains surrounding San
Jose, nestled lined with tight
rows of coffee plants. The
plantation itself is one of the
biggest producers of coffee in
Costa Rica. That means that
nearly two‐thirds of their coffee
production goes to the biggest
coffee purveyor in the world,
Starbucks.
It was a bumpy ride to the plantation. Costa Rican
roads are not in the best of shape and our guide
was putting the pedal to the metal, since we
lingered overly long at our lunch and were in
danger of missing the tour! Fortunately, we made it
with two minutes to spare, got our tickets, and
headed through the gate house down the stone
The Vegan Traveler: Costa Rica Getaway
By Chef Jason Wyrick
Healthy Eats January 2012|42
pathway into the plantation. Our first stop was to
taste some coffee and the plantation had put out a
nice espresso roast for us, but as good as the
coffee was, the view was even better. Coffee plants
as far as one could see rolled down the hill,
softened by a light mist. I couldn’t wait to get
started.
The first part
of the tour
was all about
growing and
harvesting.
Our guide
showed us
coffee plants
in various
stages from
seed to about
three months
of growth.
Once the plants reach the planting stage, about six
months after sprouting, they are taken from the
nursery and put in the ground. It can take about
three years before a coffee plant gives a good yield
and the plants will give a worthwhile yield for
about twenty years. After that, the plants are
replaced and the coffee wood is reused by the
plantation or sold to local restaurants. The mature
plant, which is about four feet high, is covered with
red coffee berries. The harvesting season is only a
few months out of the year and migrant workers
come to pick the coffee berries by hand. They pay
is not great, unfortunately, and one has to pick
rapidly to make a decent living doing it.
Once we were shown how the coffee was
harvested, we learned that the berries are
fermented, which allows easy removal of the
beans, which are actually not beans, but seeds.
They are separated by size, then they sit for a
couple weeks, and then they are laid out on
concrete in the open to dry. The coffee beans are
raked every thirty minutes during daylight to mix
up the crop and keep the beans consistently
exposed to air. I was surprised to learn that a
plantation that produces so much coffee air‐dries
their coffee, but there is probably a reason that
Doka coffee has been one of Costa Rica’s highest
rated.
After we were done with the drying process, we
got to see coffee being roasted. The difference
between a light roast and a dark espresso roast is
only five minutes (15 minutes for the former, 20
minutes for the latter). As the bean roasts, it
expands. Our guide likened it to popcorn! The
starch breaks down into sugar as the bean roasts
and then it caramelizes, giving the beans their dark
appearance. Some oils break down while acids and
other oils form during roasting, which occurred in
small ovens where the beans are constantly
churned. Just the smell of roasting coffee was
enough to pique my interest, but learning about
the science behind it has definitely encouraged me
to roast some of my own at home. We also learned
that coffee is transported over to Germany to be
decaffeinated, then shipped back to Costa Rica.
Frighteningly, low‐grade decaffeinated coffees use
formaldehyde in the extraction while higher quality
ones are often done with just water. I had no idea,
so I now check to make sure my decaffeinated
coffees are created with the water method. The
Healthy Eats January 2012|43
extracted caffeine is used in energy drinks and
other supplements and because both businesses
get use out the bean, the plantation doesn’t pay
for the decaffeination process and neither are the
beans purchased from the plantation.
Of course, we got to try some freshly ground,
freshly brewed coffee that had been roasted just a
few days before. The difference between fresh
roasted coffee and the coffee that has been sitting
ground in a bag for months is like the difference
between fresh cracked pepper and that cardboard
stuff sold in a can. It was full of life, smooth, and
complex without being bitter. My only warning
about going on a tour like this is that it may turn
you into a coffee snob! You can find out more
about the plantation at www.dokaestate.com.
Volcan Poas
Volcan Poas is one of the many volcanoes
throughout Costa Rica and this one is a major
national park. It has two craters, one filled by a
lagoon that bubbles with sulphurous gases. The top
is also one of the highest points in the country.
Because of the incredibly fertile soil on and around
the volcano, the countryside is filled with coffee
plants and strawberries, which were just coming
into season when we got there. As we drove up the
road, we saw several vendors selling fresh‐picked
strawberries. Oh, they were bright red and
beautiful and I so wanted to stop and purchase
some, but alas we were in a rush to get to the
craters before the clouds rolled in and enveloped
the volcano. Luckily, we found some at the farmers
market a
couple days
later and they
were just as
sweet and
delicious as
they looked.
We didn’t
beat the
clouds, but
we still
walked
around the two craters and while I would have
loved to have seen them, walking at the top of a
volcano in the middle of a cloud is both surreal and
special and not an experience I would lightly trade.
The forest itself looked like a scene from a fantasy
movie and along the way, we met a squirrel who
was very happy to have our company (and some of
our Luna bars). We ended up spending well over an
hour walking around the rims of the two craters
before we headed back down the mountain.
The Market
I’m one of those people that can spend hours in a
grocery store, so imagine what it must have been
like to be at a farmers market with a panoply of
fresh fruit and veggies, some of which I had never
seen. In the States, we have chayote squash, but I
counted five different types just at this market.
Some were tiny, some were pale, some were furry,
some were the typical green color, and one type
was white and massive. They pretty much all taste
the same (yes, I bought the different types so I
could try them), but they were very fun to use.
There was fresh pineapple and papaya, samples of
which were being handed out in generous portions
by the vendors. I know several of us went back for
seconds. You know, just to make sure we wanted
some. Firm, ripe avocadoes, star fruit, lush, sweet
Healthy Eats January 2012|44
mangoes, I wanted to take them all home. I also
found tapa de dulce here, which I was very much
hoping to get before heading home. Tapa de dulce
is a large section of a cone of unrefined pure cane
sugar. Its flavor is rich and deep and you can cut a
piece off to mix with hot water and make
aguadulce, a morning drink we had at a local
restaurant. But, the crowning treasure was the
coconut. One of the stalls had a mound of white
coconuts and you pay about $0.50 and pick out
your own. The person at the stall hacks into the top
with a machete, but not all the way through, to
create a lid. You get a straw and then you drink the
sweet coconut water. Sure, you can find these at
some grocery stores in the States, but nothing
beats fresh coconuts from the farmers market.
After a warm day, this is such a nice, refreshing
treat. Once you are done, you can get a spoon and
scoop out the soft, succulent coconut meat.
The Zip Line
What can I say about the zip line? Walking up into
the cloud forest in which our particular zip line tour
is pretty incredible and our guide was well‐versed
on the ecology of the forest. He explained how the
different levels of the forest interact with each
other to create the ecosystem. In fact, the money
made from the zip line is used to preserve the
forest and they are further given a grant by the
Costa Rican government to help their eco
preservation program. During the preliminary part
of the tour, we learned that the ground foliage
helps trap water so it can seep into the ground and
feed the plants and aquifer below. Without those,
the water would run down the mountain in
torrents and that particular aquifer would run dry.
Then we got to the actual zip line. A zip line is a
cable strung between two points with the far end
being lower than the platform upon which you
start. You hook into a harness and pulley system,
which is hooked onto the cable, you tuck your legs
under, and off you go through the forest canopy as
gravity pulls you along the line. Ostensibly, you are
able to observe the different levels of the forest,
but I know from experience that the rush of
speeding down a cable as your pulley whirs
vigorously along means you are concentrating on
only one thing. Getting to the next platform! Once
you are on the next platform, then there is time to
look around and appreciate the natural scenery,
which is absolutely stunning. At the altitude we
were at, there were fir trees mixed with some of
the tropical trees found at the lower levels and we
saw plenty of vines, brightly colored birds, and a
few mushroom colonies growing on the sides of
the trees. Now that was exciting. Not as exciting as
zipping over a stream at the bottom of a canyon
forty or fifty feet down, which we did, but exciting
nonetheless.
Hitting a tree is exciting, too, but in a much
different way, which I also know from experience
since I had such an unfortunate collision on the
next to the last zip line. It basically happened like
this. I hooked onto the cable. I was getting in
position and then my guide slipped and let me go
to soon. I thought, “I think my guide just slipped.
Better get my legs tucked under. That tree looks
awfully close. They wouldn’t put a zip line this close
to a… CRACK!” My right leg hit the tree, my helmet
went flying, and I was spinning down the line about
Healthy Eats January 2012|45
thirty feet above the forest floor. My biggest
concern was hitting another tree since I was
spinning without a helmet. Fortunately, I made it to
the other side, very shaken and trying not to be. I
looked at my leg and the only sign anything had
happened was a slight scuff mark on my ankle.
Strong Vegan Bones 1, Tree 0. I made sure I was
the first one onto the next and last zip line across
the canyon because if I hadn’t been, I might not
have gotten on at all and I didn’t want to quit out.
Hitting a tree is not fun, but at least I got a good
story out of it!
The House
Casa Metta was a beautiful property. Like most
B&Bs, it also serves as the hosts’ home and there is
a guest room upstairs and downstairs and a
separate guest house. The interior was classy with
modern sensibilities and very relaxing. The house
overlooks San Jose, so at night when the clouds roll
out, you can see the city sparkling all across the
central valley and beyond that is the ocean. There
was a spa, a green house, an infinity pool, and
chickens, bunnies, and some very sweet kitties and
friendly dogs. It’s situated in the mountains outside
of San Jose, so it made for a nice balance of being
out in nature and being able to
go into the city, plus there was
some great hiking around the
house. All in all, a wonderful
place to spend a week. Erich
and Wendy Strebe, the
owners of Casa Metta, are
both ex‐pats, but like most
Costa Ricans, they take great
care in making sure their
property is ecologically friendly. For more info on
Casa Metta, head to www.casametta.com.
The Food
We ate well. We ate very well. Ironically, Costa Rica
is not known for its food. Costa Ricans tend to eat
the same thing over and over again and a typical
meal consists of rice and beans (usually gallo
pinto), a meat, sometimes a picadillo, which is a
finely chopped side dish, plantains, small corn
tortillas, fresh fruit, and a sweet drink. The
restaurants advertise that they serve comida tipica.
That means that the fact that they serve the typical
food is a selling point! Not a foodie’s paradise, but
when it is done right, it is soul satisfying (and
obviously easy to do vegan). I wanted more comida
tipica after our restaurant journey to Chubascos. At
our meal, we had gallo pinto, mini corn tortillas,
picadillo de chayote y maiz, picadillo de papas (this
was a picadillo of potatoes cooked with achiote), a
small salad with a magnificent dressing, fried
plantains, aguadulce, coffee, and a strawberry
fresca made from strawberries picked from the
volcano. In fact, I decided to make the fried
plantains and picadillo de chayote y maiz (that’s a
picadillo with chayote squash and corn) as part of
our last meal of the trip. I still think about that
meal every couple of days. One thing about Costa
Rican food, though, is that it is not spicy. At all.
There is one common chile called a peppino and it
Healthy Eats January 2012|46
basically tastes like an unspicy poblano. Good
flavor, no guts. Since all of us on the trip loved
spicy food, we had to find other ways to spice it
up and fortunately we had cayenne pepper and
a couple dried chiles we found hidden at a local
grocery market.
Speaking of which, let me tell you some of what
we ate on this trip, courtesy of yours truly.
Tacos Veracruz with wilted chard and a roasted
peppino
guacamole
, black
bean
tortas
(those are
sandwiches)
drowned in a
tangy roasted
tomato sauce,
a Jamaican
curry with
plantains and
sweet
potatoes, BBQ
ras el hanout
spiced
sandwiches,
“huevos”
rancheros
cooked with
just a touch of
mojo de ajo
and served
with a side of
cinnamon rice
and beans,
fried plantains
in cinnamon
syrup, grilled
chayote
stuffed with
lime‐dressed mango, tofu braised in Costa Rican
coffee over a bed of quinoa verde, a spicy
watermelon and mint salad, and fresh fruit with an
orange coffee cashew dipping cream. We also had
black bean hummus and
chimichurri sauce to
serve with Wendy’s
delicious patacones,
which are fried plantain
rounds that can be
eaten like thick chips. I
have included a couple
recipes so you can get a
glimpse of our enticing
culinary adventure.
Conclusion
Whenever life gets stressful, I think about our
Costa Rica adventure, of being in the kitchen with
our guests, and walking through the misty clouds
around the volcano. I hear the sounds of the
market and feel the giddy excitement of seeing
new, diverse ingredients to play with. I sometimes
think about that tree and wonder how it is doing.
Did it emerge unscathed from our collision, too?
Maybe it will think twice before jumping in front of
an oncoming zip liner. Maybe. Then I assuage such
Spicy Watermelon Salad Serves 4 1 small watermelon, deseeded and chopped Juice of ½ of a lime 3 tbsp. of chopped fresh mint ¼ tsp. of cayenne pepper Slice the watermelon into 1” thick sections. Remove the seeds. Chop the watermelon into bite-size pieces. Juice the lime. Chop the mint. Toss everything together and allow the salad to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving. Picadillo de Chayote y Maiz
Serves 4
1 chayote, deseeded and diced 1 small white onion, diced 1 ear of corn 4 cloves of garlic, minced ½ tsp. of salt 1 cup of coconut water (you can get this from a fresh coconut or skim the condensed coconut cream from a can of coconut milk, which will leave you with the coconut water) Juice of ½ of a lime ½ tsp. of chipotle flakes Cut the chayote in half and remove the seed. Dice the chayote and onion. Slice along the ear of corn to remove the kernels and set them aside. Mince the garlic. Over a medium heat in a dry pan, sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent. Add the chayote, coconut water, and salt and simmer this until the chayote is al dente. Remove from the heat and immediately add the corn and lime juice. Garnish with chipotle flakes.
Healthy Eats January 2012|47
arboreal thoughts with the delight of comida tipica
and a smooth cup of Costa Rican coffee and I am
happy again. I sit back and close my eyes and
remember the tastes and smells and smile. I know
what I’ll be having for dinner.
The Author
Jason Wyrick is the
executive chef and
publisher of The
Vegan Culinary
Experience, an
educational vegan
culinary magazine with a readership of over 30,000. In
2001, Chef Jason reversed his diabetes by switching to a
low‐fat, vegan diet and subsequently left his position as
the Director of Marketing for an IT company to become
a chef and instructor to help others. Since then, he has
been featured by the NY Times, has been a NY Times
contributor, and has been featured in Edible Phoenix,
and the Arizona Republic, and has had numerous local
television appearances. He has catered for companies
such as Google, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, and
Farm Sanctuary, has been featured in the Scottsdale
Culinary Festival’s premier catering event, and has been
a guest instructor and the first vegan instructor in the Le
Cordon Bleu program at Scottsdale Culinary Institute.
Recently, Chef Jason wrote a national best‐selling book
with Dr. Neal Barnard entitled 21‐Day Weight Loss
Kickstart. You can find out more about Chef Jason
Wyrick at www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Healthy Eats January 2012|48
What led you to become a macrobiotic vegan chef? I went vegan after watching the Meet Your Meat video on PETA. Since I had no idea what vegan food was, I started teaching myself how to cook. A friend and I went vegan together and started having potlucks. I discovered then that I loved cooking for others. My friend told me about a culinary school that was almost vegan. It was macrobiotic. At the time I had no idea what that meant but the school was affordable and I was ready for a career change. Were you vegan before or after you became a chef and how did that affect your transition? Going vegan lead me to culinary school. I would have never gone to a meat and dairy centered culinary school. Even before I went vegan I never cooked meat because it grossed me out. 9 years ago there weren't many options for alternative culinary schools, which made my decision easier. I feel blessed that my path led me to macrobiotics because it gave me an understanding of holistic health. I learned so much more than just how to prepare tasty food. I learned about Chinese medicine, how the organ systems work together, and was introduced to so many amazing foods I had never heard of like miso, tempeh, bok choy, daikon, and burdock.
What are the key principles you think are most important to a successful way of eating? Eating vegan, whole foods, less processed food, eating organic local seasonal produce when possible. I feel best when I eat very little sugar, oil, and gluten. I just talked about this on my blog. I follow an 80/20 rule where I eat the healthiest way possible 80% of the time. And then when I have a cupcake or vegan chili dog every once in a while it's no big deal. This is what works best for my health. Your new book, Blissful Bites, is full of an eclectic, tasty collection of recipes. How did you approach writing the book and how did you make the tough choice of which recipes to include? I had been developing and writing recipes for many years for my clients and cooking classes. Then I started sharing those on my blog. When I decided to work on a book I gathered up those recipes, but also created many more to fit into the different chapters I wanted. Being a big advocate for seasonal eating I planned on having an icon for each recipe but then we decided to divide each chapter into seasons. Once we did that I saw which seasons were low on recipes and focused my efforts creating new recipes to go into each season in each chapter.
An Interview with cookbook author and chef Christy Morgan!
Healthy Eats January 2012|49
Each recipe is tested many times before it is chosen to go into the final manuscript. I had wonderful recipe testers from all walks of lives that gave excellent feedback. What was it like getting your first book published? What trials did you go through and how did you overcome them? Getting a book published is not an easy feat. I spent many months working on my book proposal then I sent that out to publishing houses to see how it would be received. I really had two books on my hands, one that talked more in depth about the consequences of our diet and then the cookbook part. So I went back to the drawing board and decided to work on the cookbook and recipes. After reworking my proposal I got a literary agent and he had me a book deal within a month. After I signed the papers it took 3 months to finish the manuscript. Then you go through the editing process and designing the book, which takes another 3 months or so. I had a wonderful team and the book turned out beautiful. I was very blessed to have two wonderful photographer friends, Melissa and Melanie, help me with the photographs. There's a great “behind the scenes” video on my website taken during the photo shoot. The whole process from start to having the book in your hands can take up to a year. What is your favorite recipe from the book? I don't have one favorite and since I always get asked this question I included a chef favorite and fan favorite icon for each chapter in the book. My favorite chapter is probably Breakfast and Brunch of Champions because I love eating and making brunch food. Even as a kid we would do breakfast for dinner all the time because I couldn't get enough pancakes and scrambled eggs. So I've made it my mission to make healthier vegan alternatives to my favorite foods as a kid. You worked in Los Angeles for several years as a private chef. What was that like? Do you have any one particular story that you find inspiring from that time?
I had a meal delivery service and cooked in homes of many clients. It's hard work but lots of fun to be able to cook and be paid for it. I had many celebrity clients and others in the film/tv industry but also busy parents and young professionals. I also cook for people who have health conditions and I'm happy I can help them get better. One woman I was working with could not get pregnant. We got her on a whole foods vegan diet with no sugar or processed foods. I cooked for her for a month and she got pregnant shortly after that. Food is so powerful in healing all that ails you. Most people don't know that Dallas is actually a fairly vegan‐friendly city. Now that you live in Dallas, what differences do you see between the vegan culture there and the one in LA? Any metropolitan city is going to be vegan‐friendly so I'm happy I have some choices for dining out here. But it doesn't come close to the vast choices in LA. I don't mind though because that means I eat at home and cook more. There is a small vegan community here with lots of activism, many potlucks and other gatherings to bring the community together. I think that community is crucial when you first go vegan and when you move to a new town, so you feel like you aren't alone. What recipe do you find yourself cooking most at home? Honestly when I cook at home it's very simple food unless I'm creating recipes for my blog or cooking classes. Right now I'm crazy about soups with the weather being cold. I'm not used to this cold weather having lived in LA for five years where the weather is temperate. It actually snows here in Dallas!
Healthy Eats January 2012|50
I recently made this soup for a soups cooking class that is simple yet so flavorful.
Potato and Leek Soup
With Thyme and Spinach
Makes 6‐8 servings
4-5 cups broth 2 large leeks, white and light green parts, chopped Pinch salt 1 tablespoon garlic powder or 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced 1 teaspoon coriander 3 Yukon potatoes, chunks (about 5 cups) 1 large bay leaf ½ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast Handful fresh spinach 2 teaspoons fresh herbs (I used thyme) 1 tablespoon miso White pepper and salt, to taste
Preparation Take ¼ cup of the broth and bring to a simmer in a stockpot. Add leeks, salt, garlic and coriander. Sauté for a few minutes. Add the next four ingredients with remaining broth (potatoes need to be covered with liquid). Bring to a boil then simmer, covered, until potatoes are soft and tender (about 10 minutes). Remove bay leaf. Puree soup in a blender with miso, leaving some potatoes in the pot if you like the soup to be more chunky. It isn’t necessary to put the whole amount of liquid into the blender. You can use a skimmer or slotted spoon to pull out the veggie bits and add in a cup or so of the soup broth then blend.
Return blended potatoes to pot and add in the spinach and herbs. Heat over a low flame. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot. Do you have any advice for up‐and‐coming vegan personal chefs? It is a good time to go into this field because more and more people want healthy food provided for them. Unfortunately there aren't many schools that provide specialized training in vegan cooking. If you are really committed to learning and perfecting your craft then I suggest seeking out those few schools and enroll. You don't have to have a certification to start a business or work in a restaurant but it doesn't hurt to get those skills on a professional level. What do you have on the horizon? 2012 is already shaping up to be a busy and fulfilling year! My calendar is booked the first few months with cooking classes, consultations with those who want to get their health on track, cooking parties, and private cooking instruction. In March I will be on an east coast book tour, including stops in Ft. Lauderdale, Washington DC, Boston, New York, New Jersey, Portland, Philadelphia and who knows where else. Hope to see all you east coasters! After that the only plan I have is to finish up my next cookbook. Thanks Christy! Contact Info You can reach Christy at http://theblissfulchef.com Facebook www.facebook.com/LikeTheBlissfulChef Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/TheBlissfulChef Bio Christy Morgan, known as The Blissful Chef, has been tantalizing taste buds for years as a vegan chef and cooking instructor. She's on a mission to show that clean food can be delicious, easy to make, and will bring more energy and
Healthy Eats January 2012|51
bliss into your life! Her cookbook Blissful Bites is available now where books are sold. Find out more at theblissfulchef.com.
Healthy Eats January 2012|52
Did you become vegan because of a particular
experience or was it a gradual process and what
was that transition like?
Ten years ago this week I watched a documentary
that opened my eyes to what happens to animals
on farms, in slaughterhouses, in labs, and in animal
shelters, and I decided that as an animal lover I
could no longer in good conscious eat animal flesh.
I had lived with vegetarians for seven years but had
never made the connection; it took a film to open
my eyes, and that's why I gravitate towards film as
an activist tool. Three months later I read a
pamphlet about veganism and went vegan on the
spot. There was a steep learning curve when I went
vegan ‐‐ learning what to eat, how to bear the
questions and jokes from well‐meaning friends and
family, etc. but I was also feeling the benefits. I lost
15 months within just a few months eating, and my
energy level shot through the roof. But most of all,
I loved living out my values every day and
becoming part of a new community of people who
shared those values. It was one of the most
exciting, fulfilling times in my life.
How did you come up with the idea for
Vegucated? What is it all about?
I was sitting in the theater watching Super Size Me,
and I wondered what it would be like to see the
process in reverse, also incorporating ethical
aspects. Then after we held a casting session, we
chose not one but three meat‐ and cheese‐loving
New Yorkers from different demographics who
would go vegan for six weeks, learn what it's all
about, have lots of adventures with us, and let us
track their process on tape.
Getting together a good team for a project of this
scope is not always easy. How did you all meet
and what prompted you to work together?
You got that right! But when you have an issue that
people really care about, people will come out of
the woodwork to help. First of all, it was Mary Max,
my colleague at the nonprofit Kind Green Planet
where I was working at the time, who gave the
project the green light. We were totally on the
same page, and she's the one who made the whole
thing possible. Then I hooked up with Frank
Interview with writer/director Marisa Miller Wolfson of Vegucated
Healthy Eats January 2012|53
Mataska, a vegan NYU film school student who
came on board as an intern and ended up being a
producer. He's the reason we shot it how and when
we did. We found a little shoestring budget crew
and went from there. After the film was edited and
it was time to think about the release, I asked
Demetrius Bagley to come on board to help with
that, given his event producing experience and
social connector skills. Now he wears a bazillion
hats.
What trials did you face getting the documentary
off the ground and how did you overcome them?
Were there moments when you questioned what
you were doing?
Not having taken a film class, not having made a
film, and having no budget are about the biggest
hurdles one can face. I just hooked up with people
who knew what they were doing and cared enough
about the topic that they did it for free or little
money, and once we shot that summer and had
our plot lines and some footage, we were able to
get grants for post‐production. We raised money
from friends and family at every opportunity,
holding fundraisers and asking for donations in lieu
of gifts for birthdays and even our wedding. There
were many, many times when I questioned what I
was doing. In fact, every day I still encounter new
territory and wonder, "what the heck do I do
now?" but I keep going because veganism is my
biggest passion.
How did you go about choosing the three people
you followed and how did they react when you
approached them with the idea of doing a
documentary on them?
They actually came to us. They responded to a
casting call on Craigslist. We interviewed 25 people
and chose ones who represented different
demographics, were likable, funny, and fun to
watch.
What similarities could you see in their paths to
going vegan?
They all were profoundly affected emotionally by
what they saw and experienced, and they all felt
like different people by the end.
What was the most fun thing that happened while
recording?
We went to visit a family egg farm and ended up
rescuing chickens. That wasn't planned and was so
rewarding to see the hens enjoying grass for the
first time and meeting a rooster probably for the
first time. Of course knowing we had saved their
lives felt amazing. That was a real high point of the
whole project.
Healthy Eats January 2012|54
Now a food question! What is your favorite meal
that was made that you recorded?
I'm afraid I didn't have any of my own recipes in
the film, and the favorite meal was the one at Pure
Food and Wine. Their lasagna is a revelation.
What advice can you give aspiring vegan film
makers?
Pick a topic you care deeply about. Gather a team
who cares as much as you do about the issue.
Consider it a marathon, not a race, and take the
time you need to do it right. Hold many pre‐
screenings and be open to re‐editing many times.
And don't just show your friends the film ‐ they'll
be nice. You don't need nice; you need honest. And
be open to alternative distribution models. There
are many ways to connect with your audience
outside the traditional realms.
What exciting projects
do you all have coming
up?
This! Making the film is
half the time and
money; releasing it is the other half. We're really
looking forward to connecting with and
collaborating with vegucators on community
screenings all over the world.
See Vegucated
Buy the movie on DVD or purchase/rent it digitally.
Everyone can see our movie trailer on YouTube,
visit with us on Facebook and chat us up on Twitter
Bios
Marisa Miller Wolfson, Writer/Director/Editor
As a full‐time food activist, Marisa has organized
roughly 70 grassroots workshops and screenings of
award‐winning documentaries about healthy,
humane, eco‐friendly eating all across North
America. She decided to tell a story that hadn’t
been told on film before and completed Vegucated
with the help of colleagues at the FilmShop and the
Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective. She borrowed
heavily from her experience as a sketch comedian
who has performed at the Chicago Improv Festival,
Caroline’s on Broadway, and the March for
Women’s Lives, where she shared a stage with
Gloria Steinem. She has starred in award‐winning
short films and edited the documentary short I
[broken heart] NYC, which screened at the
Bushwick Film Festival and the Last Supper Film
Festival. Her letters and articles have been
published in USA Today Magazine, The New York
Times, and The Chicago Tribune, and her PSAs on
environmental and animal protection issues have
been viewed by thousands. She has enjoyed
vegucating the 1,600+ members of her free online
coaching program Vegan at Heart, which was
featured on Oprah.com. She’s a founding member
of the Sustainable Leadership Council of NYC and
the NYC Foodprint Alliance and is the honored
recipient of Farm Sanctuary’s Farm Animal Friend
Award.
Mary Max, Executive Producer
Mary is the founder and executive director of Kind
Green Planet, the nonprofit animal and
environmental protection organization that
produced Vegucated. A longtime fan of film as an
agent of change, she has helped bring such films as
The Witness and Peaceable Kingdom to
mainstream theaters in New York City. In addition
to maintaining her popular email action alert
Healthy Eats January 2012|55
service, Mary stays busy working to implement a
New York State resolution that allows plant‐based
meals in all New York State schools. She relishes her
role as an active board member of The Humane
Society of the U.S., Humane USA‐PAC, The New
York Coalition for Healthy School Food, and The
Community Fund for Manhattan, an initiative of the
Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer.
She also enjoys serving on the advisory board for
Vote Humane as well as on the advisory council of
Farm Sanctuary.
Frank Mataska, Producer
While earning his Bachelor of Fine Arts in film at
NYU Tisch, Frank worked in production at
environmental documentary company Pangolin
Pictures and the PBS news syndicate “In the Life.”
Upon graduation, Frank took his passion for
environmental education to Jamaica as a Peace
Corps volunteer, where he designed primary school
curricula; empowered at‐risk youth through eco‐
friendly, business ventures; and organized
subsistence farmers around educational
opportunities. Frank recently graduated from Johns
Hopkins University School of Nursing with a
Bachelor of Science in nursing, where he was given
the school’s Community Service Award.
Demetrius Bagley, Producer
Demetrius organizes and leads New York City
Vegan EatUP, one of Meetup.com’s Biggest 100
groups, promoting vegan community and cuisine.
EatUP’s history spans over eight years, 380+ events
and more than 1,500 members. He actively works
on NYC’s Veggie Pride Parades, the NYC Vegetarian
Food Festival and Sustainable Leadership Council
NYC. He godfathered Veggie Conquest, an amateur
vegan cooking competition akin to Iron Chef, plus
produced the politically and financially successful
New York League of Humane Voters’ Gala 2009. He
received the Committee for Effective Leadership’s
2010 Award, plus New York State, New York City
and US Senate accolades.
Healthy Eats January 2012|56
What spurred you on to become vegan and what was that transition like as someone in the medical field? It wasn’t until 1990 when Dr. Ornish published his landmark study showing that heart disease, our number one killer, could be not only slowed down and stopped but reversed with a plant‐based diet that I started eating healthy. This pre‐dated my medical practice, but certainly inspired me to help others prevent the chronic diseases plaguing our country. Have you always been interested in nutrition or did that come about because of your experience with your patients? It was what inspired me to go into medicine. How could it be that hundreds of thousands of people continued to die of diseases we had cheap, simple, easy and delicious cures for?
You've had several pieces published in medical journals, as well as written two outstanding books. However, medical professionals are not always the easiest to persuade. How do you approach getting your ideas accepted by them? By getting my hands on their patients! All the science in the world doesn’t match up against seeing someone you’ve cared for for years miraculously get better. When they see it with their own eyes, their own lab results, it can be powerfully persuasive. What is your general approach with the average person to get them to make a dietary change and what key techniques or ideas have you found have the most impact in affecting that change? I’ve got it easy because people come to me sick, motivated to get better. At that point I just lay out the options so they can make up their own minds. Here are the pharmaceutical options along with the side‐effects; here are the surgical options with potential complications; and here is the diet and lifestyle option with all its fringe benefits.
An Interview with physician Michael Greger!
Healthy Eats January 2012|57
Please tell us about www.nutritionfacts.org and how you got it started! NutritionFacts.org is the first non‐commercial, science‐based website to provide free daily updates on the latest in nutrition research via short, easy to understand video segments. It has hundreds of videos on more than a thousand topics, and a new video is uploaded every day! It arose out of my desire to spread this empowering, life‐changing—life‐saving—information as widely as possible. It's an incredibly informative and helpful website. What is the most surprising effect the website has had? Thanks for your kind words. The big surprise for me was how quickly the site took off. I was imagining toiling for months as interest slowly grew, but thanks in large part to Kathy Preston’s darling blog promoting the site, it started out with a bang! As the Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture at the Humane Society of the United States, you must deal with a lot of emotionally difficult stories. However, there must be some inspiring ones in there, as well. What is your most inspirational story you have from working at the Humane Society? Every week I am inspired working alongside such a talented team, but it’s the victories that keep me going. Huffington Post just released their end‐of‐year list of the top food scandals that rocked the culinary world, and #1 on the list was our groundbreaking “McFib” investigation that forced the largest pork producer in the world back to the table to recommit to a phase‐out of one of the cruelest contraptions in all of agribusiness, the gestation crate for pregnant pigs. What are some of the major changes you have seen in the food and medical industries since you became vegan? The biggest shift I’ve seen is the success of eat‐less‐meat campaigns like Meatless Mondays, which appear to have had a tremendous impact. The
latest Vegetarian Resource Group poll found that 1 in 6 Americans eat vegetarian more than half their meals! In terms of what’s happening in medicine, documentaries like Forks Over Knives and CNN’s The Last Heart Attack have started to shine a few rays of sun onto the enormous potential of dietary changes to combat our top killers but there is so much more to be done. Now on to a food question! What is the meal you make the most at home? Well in terms of frequency it would have to be one of my green smoothie recipes, since that allows me to eat (well, sip) and work at the same time. My current fave is 1 cup unsweetened almond milk, half cup of frozen blueberries, the pulp of a nice ripe Mexican mango, a tablespoon of ground flax seeds, handful of fresh mint leaves, a bulk white tea leaves, and a teaspoon of dried Indian gooseberry powder (also known as amla). Has more antioxidants in one glass than most people get in a week! What advice can you give vegans who want to become doctors and make that part of their practice? I would advise they get a hold of me. I can help them every step of the way—we need more good doctors our there! What new projects do you have in the works? Posting a new video to NutritionFacts.org every day has pretty much taken over my life. Right now my plans are just to keep that up as long as possible! Thanks Michael! Contact Info www.NutritionFacts.org www.twitter.com/nutrition_facts www.facebook.com/NutritionFacts.org Bio A founding member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, Michael Greger, MD, is a physician, author, and internationally recognized
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speaker on nutrition, food safety, and public health issues. He has lectured at the Conference on World Affairs, testified before Congress, and was invited as an expert witness in the defense of Oprah Winfrey in the infamous "meat defamation" trial. He is a graduate of Cornell University School of Agriculture and Tufts University School of Medicine. Currently Dr. Greger serves as the Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture at The Humane Society of the United States. Hundreds of his nutrition videos are freely available at www.NutritionFacts.org.
Healthy Eats January 2012|59
Please tell us a bit about yourselves!
We are Jeff and Sabrina Nelson, we've been veg for 21
years, and our three kids were raised that way. We
operate www.vegsource.com.
What led you to become vegan?
John Robbins' Diet for a New America was a huge
inspiration and the reason we went vegetarian 21 years
ago. Sabrina was moved by what she read about animal
suffering; Jeff was impressed by the health arguments in
the book. About 5 years later Sabrina was diagnosed
with a rare autoimmune disease. Called Relapsing
Polychondritis, the disease kills 40% of people in ten
years from diagnosis. After a year suffering and taking
powerful meds, Sabrina read a book by John McDougall,
MD about the relationship between dairy and
autoimmune disease, and decided to go vegan. Her
autoimmune disease went into remission within weeks
of going vegan, where it has stayed for about 16 years
now. Sabrina's story is online at
http://www.relapsingpolychondritis.com
What is VegSource and what motivated you to get it
started?
VegSource.com turned 15 in October, 2011. The
purpose of VegSource is to provide people with the
most up to date information about all things veggie. We
were motivated to start VegSource in 1996, because the
type of web resource we envisioned for
vegans/vegetarians and everyone else did not yet exist.
So we built it.
What hurdles did you face getting the site off the
ground and making it so popular and how did you
overcome them?
If there were hurdles, we didn't see them. We pretty
much had tunnel vision, and only saw the goal, not the
obstacles. One of things we did: as we learned more
about individuals and organizations who were
promoting veganism we reached out and offered to
build their website and provide hosting for free and help
drive traffic and attention to their work. As a result we
have met many wonderful people and orgs who are
promoting veganism and the vegan diet and were able
to help them establish an internet presence.
You've been running VegSource for quite some time.
How has it changed over the years?
The soul and purpose of VegSource has not changed,
but she gets a facelift every few years. As technology
improves, we try to update as well. We now produce
several DVDs which teach people how to live a healthy
vegan lifestyle, which are available in our store. The
annual Healthy Lifestyle Expo event was started in 2001
with the intention of having a group of people meet for
a dinner. It quickly evolved into a full weekend event,
with thousands of people – and it's still going strong.
We want to give people every tool we can to help them
be successful while they are transitioning to being
vegan; education, information and support.
With all you have accomplished with the site, what is
the one thing you are most proud of with it?
An Interview with VegSource founders Jeff and Sabrina Nelson!
Healthy Eats January 2012|60
I think the most enriching part of being involved in
VegSource has been all the wonderful people that we've
met and befriended as a result. It is so inspiring to see
the great work that people do to spread the vegan
message in the various ways people choose to do it.
There are so many great people who have gotten
behind this over the years, and the number is growing.
One program we are proud of Jeff is the CEO of is
EarthSave International, a non‐profit organization
founded by John Robbins. We created the Meals For
Health program at EarthSave, where a group of low‐
income food bank clients learned how to eat a healthy
vegan diet, in the process reversing serious diseases and
losing lots of weight all documented through a medical
study. We pioneered the vegan Food Coach concept
with the program. Many times vegans want to be
involved in the community and be of assistance to
others, and the Food Coach program has turned to be a
very creative way vegans can share knowledge about
how to eat a healthy, delicious vegan diet. Meals For
Health is a natural fit with the other projects that we are
involved with.
On a related note, what do you find most enjoyable
about running VegSource?
It's fun to meet new people, it's fun to see old friends,
it's great to keep abreast of all the latest news. We
added a Facebook page a couple of years ago
(http://www.facebook/vegsource), so now we are able
to interact directly with many guests. We do VegSource
and related projects because we enjoy them so much;
we never get tired of hearing great stories from people
who discover this information and then transform their
own lives.
How has operating VegSource changed the way in
which you approach vegan advocacy?
Hm, I don't think we consider ourselves exactly to be
vegan advocates. We approach being vegan the same
way we approach everything else we are passionate
about our food, family, friends, music, movies, theater,
books...in other words, passionate about life in general.
The best way we can advocate being vegan – is to just
try to be a nice, interested person. People come to
decide to be vegan in their own timeframe so we never
push it. Many around us have gone vegan, both on and
off the web, but not as the result of our preaching or
urging them to do so.
Now for a food question! What is your favorite recipe
that you make for your family?
Everyone enjoys enchiladas, shepherd's pie, berbere
stew, mac and no cheese but probably the most beloved
dish in our family is something we call Freezer Soup.
Freezer Soup is made with whatever beans are in the
pantry, whatever veggies are in the fridge or freezer, and
sundry leftovers. You never know quite what you're
going to get, but it's nearly always fabulous.
What advice can you give people who want to open a
site to help promote vegan issues?
The same advice we would give to anyone starting a
new venture: have fun with it, enjoy yourself, do what
you love. If you love what you're doing, you'll probably
keep doing it, and get better at it.
What is on the horizon for you?
More news to share, more DVDs, a new documentary,
more live events, more Meals For Health...and always
more fun!
Thanks Jeff and Sabrina!
Contact Info
You can find Jeff and Sabrina at www.vegsource.com.
Bio
Producer, writer, director Jeff Nelson has produced
several hundred nationally‐broadcast television
commercials, has written for episodic television,
produced TV movies and an NBC mini‐series, and written
non‐fiction books. His most recent film is Processed
People. In 1996 Jeff and his wife, Sabrina, launched
VegSource.com, a highly successful vegan website. In
2001 they founded the Healthy Lifestyle Expo, an annual
health event. Jeff also operates the non‐profit
EarthSave Foundation. They live in Los Angeles with
three kids, a dog and a cat.
Healthy Eats January 2012|61
I’ve been following Christy’s work for awhile and I’ve always been impressed, but she really stepped it up with Blissful Bites. This is one of the more creative endeavors I’ve seen in regards to healthy cuisine in several years and all of the recipes I tried were outstanding. Often, when I am reviewing a cookbook, I am looking through it for new ideas, but Christy’s recipes managed to do more than that. They inspired me to get in the kitchen. Concentrating on East Asian flavors, the recipes are a delicious presentation of a macrobiotic philosophy. Too often, macrobiotic translates to boring. There are only so many brown rice bowls and seaweed one can eat. Don’t get me wrong, the book is full of those types of ingredients, but the way Christy utilizes them places macrobiotic=boring solely in the category of myth. From Pumpkin with Apricot‐Ginger Glaze to a deconstructed sushi to Orange Kissed Almond Macaroons, Blissful Bites is pure delight. There is a lot more than East Asian in the book and you can find raw tacos, untuna salads, gazpacho, and nachos. The book focuses heavily on seasonal recipes, so instead of being broken down into the standard, lunch, dinner, dessert, etc. categories, they are instead broken down into seasonal categories. This mostly works, although that breakdown will not
always be accurate depending on where one lives. For example, I know in my hometown of Phoenix, produce that becomes unavailable to much of the northern U.S. becomes available here in the winter. Also, because Christy comes from an Asian medicine background, she eschews certain ingredients like onions and garlic, so don’t be caught off guard by that. If you agree with that philosophy, the book will be even better for you and if you don’t, the recipes are still incredibly tasty. Blissful Bites was a great book and I am looking forward to Christy’s follow up book, whatever that may be. The Reviewer Jason Wyrick is the executive chef and publisher of The Vegan Culinary Experience, an educational vegan culinary magazine with a readership of about 30,000. In 2001, Chef Jason reversed his diabetes by switching to a low‐fat, vegan diet and subsequently left his position as the Director of Marketing for an IT company to
Author: Christy Morgan Publisher: BenBella Books Copyright: 2011 ISBN: 978‐193561851‐5 Price: $19.95
Book Review: Blissful Bites
Author: Christy Morgan
Reviewer: Jason Wyrick
Healthy Eats January 2012|62
become a chef and instructor to help others. Since then, he has been featured by the NY Times, has been a NY Times contributor, and has been featured in Edible Phoenix, and the Arizona Republic, and has had numerous local television appearances. He has catered for companies such as Google, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, and Farm Sanctuary, has been featured in the Scottsdale Culinary Festival’s premier catering event, and has been a guest instructor and the first vegan instructor in the Le Cordon Bleu program at Scottsdale Culinary Institute. Recently, Chef Jason wrote a national best‐selling book with Dr. Neal Barnard entitled 21‐Day Weight Loss Kickstart. You can find out more about Chef Jason Wyrick at www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Healthy Eats January 2012|63
The Tipsy Vegan is simply fun. With 75 recipes, each utilizing some sort of alcohol, this book is perfect for parties, celebrations, or simply just to impress someone! The book itself is published in Da Capo’s mini‐book format. It’s about half the height of a regular cookbook and I rather prefer this style for books that aren’t loaded with tons of recipes. It makes them much easier to handle in the kitchen and they take up less space in my backpack when I head down to the local coffee shop to catch up on some reading. Whenever I see a cookbook that concentrates on alcohol, I always wonder if it is simply a gimmick or if the recipes are creative and solid. Most of the time, the recipes in these books are just gimmicks. Fortunately, The Tipsy Vegan shows some creative ways to incorporate alcohol that actually enhances the recipe. I particularly liked dressing in Wild Rice under the Influence, and the Hunky Granola Gets Hammered recipe is mouth‐watering. Not that there aren’t some gimmicky recipes in this book. I would say half the recipes are enhanced by the alcohol and use it as an integral ingredient while the other half are simply an excuse to add alcohol. That’s a better hit ratio than most alcohol centered cookbooks, so I was quite happy with it. The titles themselves mirror the light‐hearted approach to the book and sections like Plastered Party Starters
and The Lush’s Lunch let you know what you are in for! All in all, this was a spirited cookbook and I can’t wait to see what author John Schlimm does in the future. The Reviewer Jason Wyrick is the executive chef and publisher of The Vegan Culinary Experience, an educational vegan culinary magazine with a readership of over 30,000. In 2001, Chef Jason reversed his diabetes by switching to a low‐fat, vegan diet and subsequently left his position as the Director of Marketing for an IT company to become a chef and instructor to help others. Since then, he has been featured by the NY Times, has been a NY Times contributor, and has been featured in Edible Phoenix, and the Arizona Republic, and has had numerous local television appearances. He has catered for companies such as Google, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, and Farm Sanctuary, has been featured in the Scottsdale Culinary Festival’s premier catering event, and has been a guest instructor and the first vegan instructor in the Le Cordon Bleu program at
Author: John Schlimm Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books Copyright: 2011 ISBN: 978‐0‐7382‐1507‐5 Price: $17.00
Book Review: The Tipsy Vegan
Author: John Schlimm
Reviewer: Jason Wyrick
Healthy Eats January 2012|64
Scottsdale Culinary Institute. Recently, Chef Jason wrote a national best‐selling book with Dr. Neal Barnard entitled 21‐Day Weight Loss Kickstart. You can find out more about Chef Jason Wyrick at www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Healthy Eats January 2012|65
The Trilogy is Complete Looking at this book is a bit odd for me. I can mark major events in my life by when Isa and Terry’s dessert books have come out. Vegan Cupcakes Take over the World found me leaving my college and heading for graduate school. Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar came out as I left graduate school to live with my then fiancé. Now, Vegan Pie in the Sky finds me a culinary instructor and wife. It has been a cool journey, and these books have been there for the ride. If you have either one of Isa and Terry’s other dessert books, then why are you reading this? Go buy this one now. You know how good they are. If this is your first one, you are in for a treat. There are 75 recipes here and a ton of combinations. First, for those of you who don’t know how to boil water (I am taking to my ex‐roommate here) there are 23 pages of just basic instructions. What is a pie tin? Why is it important, and things of this nature. Once you are comfortable with all those basics, there are pie crusts to master. There are gluten free pie crusts, vodka pie crusts, and much more. What will you put in your pie crust? There are fruit fillings, including cherry, strawberries and cream, and appleberry just to name a few. But you are not done, not by a long shot. There are cream pies,
harvest pies, and even a whole section of chocolate pies. Still, you’re not done exploring pie land. There are toppings, too, including a vegan whipped topping recipe that is delicious. Also, through this book, you will get more than 75 recipes, yes, and each of those recipes will become weapons in your arsenal of awesomeness, but you will also get recipe variations and tips. These are always inspirational and get you thinking of ways to make the food your own. You also get Terry and Isa’s always delightful writing style that make you feel like you are having a conversation with a friend instead of reading a book. So go! Get a copy. Make pie. Eat pie. Repeat steps 3 and 4 often, and enjoy a happy, pie filled existence. After all, everything, including existence, goes great with pie. The Reviewer Madelyn is a lover of dessert, which she celebrates on her blog, http://badkittybakery.blogspot.com/. She has been making her own tasty desserts for over 16 years, and eating dessert for longer than she cares to
Author: Isa Moskowitz, Terry Romero Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books Copyright: 2011 ISBN: 978‐0738212746 Price: $17.00
Book Review: Vegan Pie in
the Sky Authors: Isa Moskowitz & Terry Romero
Reviewer: Madelyn Pryor
Healthy Eats January 2012|66
admit. When she isn’t in the kitchen creating new wonders of sugary goodness, she is chasing after her bad kitties, or reviewing products for various websites and publications. She can be contacted at [email protected] or [email protected].
Healthy Eats January 2012|67
Shangri‐La Tea Room & Café
http://www.shangri‐latearoomandcafe.com
1800 West Overland Rd.
Boise, ID 83705
208‐424‐0273
Hours: M 10:00 – 6:00, T 10:00 – 7:00, W‐
Sa 10:00 – 8:00, Su Closed
I was recently in Boise to teach a class and I happened across Shangri‐La Tea Room and Café, the only vegetarian restaurant anywhere in the city. I travel extensively and when I see that a town has only one vegetarian restaurant, I worry because the quality of the food is often lackluster and the food often seems stuck in the ‘80s. Shangri‐La was a very pleasant surprise. The café is located just a few miles from the university (ok, what isn’t in Boise?) and doesn’t look that impressive from the outside, but the inside is completely different. The café itself is cozy and vibrant. Colorful cloth adorns the ceiling and the café has a New Age vibe to it, done in a tasteful, inviting way. It was refreshing just being in there.
The menu features a mix of vegetarian, vegan, and raw items with an emphasis on soups, wraps,
sandwiches, and salads. Most of the vegetarian items can be made vegan. The food itself is simple, yet prepared so well that the simplicity becomes a virtue. That was what really impressed me about Shangri‐La.
Hummus isn’t usually something to write home about, but their hummus was smooth, had just the right note of lemon and garlic, and was topped with a perfectly balanced pepper and tomato relish that sent it over the top. I also had an incredibly kale salad. Again, not something that is usually note‐worthy, but this one was lightly tossed with a vegan Caesar dressing that made me want to order another round and the crisp grapes were a nice touch. The basil tomato soup was warm, slightly sweet, and loaded with beautiful basil flavor. The owner, Toni, is heavily into raw foods, so quite a few raw foods items adorn the menu, including a chocolate avocado pudding. This is a popular raw foods desert and I had been wanting to try one for quite awhile. I was not disappointed. It was creamy, thick, and tasted like chocolate and not avocado, which I was concerned about. Well done. The tea selection was amazing, too. Shangri‐La had a tea menu several pages long dedicated to organic teas and as a tea connoisseur, it was very hard to choose. I eventually settled on the Bourbon Street Assam. Not only was this tea smooth, clean, and full of body, it was just plain fun. I can see why they chose the name that they did. Like any good tea house, they brought out timers so you could get the proper brew on the tea and the server was very helpful in choosing a tea to go with my lunch.
Restaurant Review: Shangri-La Tea Room and Café
Reviewer: Jason Wyrick
Healthy Eats January 2012|68
All in all, Shangri‐La was a great experience and if I am ever in Boise again, I will go out of my way to have a meal and a cup (or three) of tea there.
The Reviewer
Jason Wyrick is the
executive chef and
publisher of The Vegan
Culinary Experience,
an educational vegan
culinary magazine
with a readership of
over 30,000. In 2001,
Chef Jason reversed his diabetes by switching to a low‐
fat, vegan diet and subsequently left his position as the
Director of Marketing for an IT company to become a
chef and instructor to help others. Since then, he has
been featured by the NY Times, has been a NY Times
contributor, and has been featured in Edible Phoenix,
and the Arizona Republic, and has had numerous local
television appearances. He has catered for companies
such as Google, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, and
Farm Sanctuary, has been featured in the Scottsdale
Culinary Festival’s premier catering event, and has been
a guest instructor and the first vegan instructor in the Le
Cordon Bleu program at Scottsdale Culinary Institute.
Recently, Chef Jason wrote a national best‐selling book
with Dr. Neal Barnard entitled 21‐Day Weight Loss
Kickstart. You can find out more about Chef Jason
Wyrick at www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Healthy Eats January 2012|69
Seriously, wtf? I am rarely offended by a vegan product because I appreciate that someone is taking the time to cater to vegans, but Better than Ricotta is downright insulting. Imagine firm tofu that has been frozen and thawed so that it has that odd flaky texture. Now imagine that that tofu has a mild flavor reminiscent of the ice cream found inside an ice cream sandwich. You would almost have the flavor of Better than Ricotta down, but it would be more accurate if you imagined that that ice cream flavor had been injected into plastic. Plastic texture and ice‐cream flavored plastic. I still have nightmares about the one bite that I had of this stuff. Tofutti’s products aren’t always spectacular or healthy, but they range from solid to pretty good. Maybe they thought they could get away with serving us this garbage because of their name. They were mistaken. Let this review be a warning to you. Do not try this, even on a dare. You will be scarred.
The Reviewer Jason Wyrick is the executive chef and publisher of The Vegan Culinary Experience, an educational vegan culinary magazine with a readership of over 30,000. In 2001, Chef Jason reversed his diabetes by switching to a low‐fat, vegan diet and subsequently left his position as the Director of Marketing for an IT company to become a chef and instructor to help others. Since then, he has been featured by the NY Times, has been a NY Times contributor, and has been featured in Edible Phoenix, and the Arizona Republic, and has had numerous local television appearances. He has catered for companies such as Google, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, and Farm Sanctuary, has been featured in the Scottsdale Culinary Festival’s premier catering event, and has been a guest instructor and the first vegan instructor in the Le Cordon Bleu program at Scottsdale Culinary Institute. Recently, Chef Jason wrote a national best‐selling book with Dr. Neal Barnard entitled 21‐Day Weight Loss Kickstart. You can find out more about Chef Jason Wyrick at www.veganculinaryexperience.com.
Product Review: Tofutti’s Better than Ricotta
Reviewer: Jason Wyrick
Tofutti Brands, Inc. http://www.tofutti.com/ 50 Jackson Drive Cranford, NJ 07016 908‐272‐2400 Can be purchased at: Whole Foods and online Price: $5.49 per tub
Healthy Eats January 2012|70
RReecciippee IInnddeexx
Click on any of the recipes in the index to take you to the relevant recipe. Some recipes will
have large white sections after the instructional portion of them. This is so you need only print
out the ingredient and instructional sections for ease of kitchen use.
Recipe Page Recipe Page
Breakfasts
Buckwheat Blueberry Muffins
Fuel Up Smoothie
Spicy Oatmeal
Teff Pancakes with Spicy Maple
Syrup
Dr. Greger’s Green Smoothie
Main Dishes
Adzuki Beans in Chocolate Chile
Sauce
Roasted Red Pepper Arugula Salad
Deconstructed Sushi with Dulse
Ginger Lemongrass Bowl
Quinoa Salad with Wilted Chard
Smoked Tempeh in Roasted Red
Pepper Sauce
Sweet Potato Caldo Verde
Garlic, Greens, & Bok Choy with
Sweet Ginger Sauce
Late Winter Green Soup with
Nettles, Garlic, & Leeks
The Stir “Fry”
Happiness in a Bowl
Creamy Broccoli Soup
Mac & Cauli
Kale & “Mascarpone” Ravioli with
Creamy Oyster Mushroom Sauce
Potato & Leek Soup with Thyme &
Spinach
72
75
78
81
58
84
88
91
94
97
100
103
17
18
23
23
24
26
29
51
Appetizers/Sides
Apple Pomegranate Salad
Black Bean Lime Hummus
Greens in Creole Tomato Sauce
Flax Olive Crackers
Roasted “Parmesan” Beets with
Seared Beet Greens
Sesame Wasabi Kale Chips
Basic Green Savory
Delightful Rainbow Salad
Spicy Watermelon Salad
Picadillo de Chayote y Maiz
Desserts
African Banana Dessert
Fresh Berries in Almond Brazil Nut
Cream
Walnut Mesquite Cookies
Drinks
Lemon Barley Tea
106
109
112
115
118
121
23
24
47
47
124
127
130
133
Healthy Eats January 2012|71
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Buckwheat Blueberry Muffins Buckwheat is an excellent gluten‐free alternative to wheat, especially for cakes and muffins while blueberries are incredibly high in compounds that fight both cancer and inflammation. There is also strong evidence that blueberries can lower cholesterol. A recent study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry also showed they assisted with memory. Type: Breakfast Serves: 6 Time to Prepare: 20 minutes Ingredients 2 cups of buckwheat flour ½ tsp. of salt 2 tsp. of baking powder ¼ cup of turbinado sugar 2 servings of prepared EnerG Egg Replacer 1 cup + 1 tbsp. of almond milk 2 tsp. of vanilla extract 1 tbsp. of applesauce ½ cup of fresh blueberries 2 tbsp. of sliced almonds Oil for the muffin tins Instructions Combine the buckwheat flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Mix together the EnerG Egg Replacer according to the instructions on the package. Combine this with the milk, vanilla extract, and applesauce. Pour this into the dry ingredients and evenly combine. Stir the blueberries into the batter. Lightly oil six muffin tins. Pour the batter into the muffin tins. Lightly top with sliced almonds. Bake on 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
Healthy Eats January 2012|72
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the sliced almonds.
Kitchen Equipment Muffin Tins Two Mixing Bowls Whisk Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Oven
Presentation Carefully use a thin knife to separate the muffins from the tins and gently slide the muffins out. You will need to wait a couple minutes for them to cool before you do this, or else there is a much greater chance of them sticking.
Time Management Preheat the oven while you are mixing everything together to shave a few minutes off the recipe.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a breakfast scramble and a drizzle of smoky maple syrup.
Where to Shop Buckwheat flour can usually be found at most stores with a healthy eating focus, like Sprouts and Whole Foods. These are the same places that you can find EnerG Egg Replacer. The other ingredients are fairly common. Approximate cost per serving is $0.75.
How It Works Applesauce replaces oil in this recipe, making the muffins tender and adding a touch of sweetness. Sugar is used so that it doesn’t taste like a plain, boring cake, but it’s less than half of what is called for in a traditional muffin recipe. Fresh blueberries should be used. Frozen ones will bleed purple and turn the batter purple as they thaw.
Healthy Eats January 2012|73
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Chef’s Notes I prefer the flavor of buckwheat over wheat and I love blueberries. I thought the muffins needed some extra texture, however, so I added the sliced almonds at the last minute while I was making them and they turned out great. If I’m feeling industrious in the future, I may even smoke the almonds first.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 214 Calories from Fat 18 Fat 2 g Total Carbohydrates 44 g Dietary Fiber 4 g Sugars 12 g Protein 5 g Salt 201 mg
Interesting Facts Buckwheat has been cultivated for human consumption for at least 8,000 years.
Healthy Eats January 2012|74
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Fuel Up Smoothie This smoothie is designed to provide a mix of immediate energy and long‐term energy for exercise such as cycling or arduous hikes. The immediate energy comes most from the bananas while the long‐term energy comes from the almond butter. Both the almond butter and spirulina have vitamins and amino acids (in fact, spirulina has a complete complement of amino acids) that aid in recovery. Type: Breakfast Serves: 1 Time to Prepare: 5 minutes Ingredients 2 bananas 2 tbsp. of almond butter 1 tsp. of freshly grated ginger ¼ tsp. of ground cardamom 2 tsp. of spirulina powder 2 cups of almond milk Instructions Puree all the ingredients.
Healthy Eats January 2012|75
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Blender Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Grater
Presentation Not applicable.
Time Management Drink this right away so the bananas don’t oxidize.
Complementary Food and Drinks A bowl of spicy cinnamon oatmeal.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients are fairly common, except for the spirulina powder, which can be found at places like Whole Foods. Approximate cost per serving is $3.00.
How It Works Banana is the primary thickener for the smoothie, though the almond butter does that, as well. Almond butter creates richness to the smoothie and makes it incredibly satisfying. Ginger gives it a bite while cardamom creates a high note to the drink. Spirulina is added in solely for health and muscle recovery.
Chef’s Notes This is the drink I use in the morning when I am heading out for a long bike ride. It usually keeps me going for at least twenty miles before I really start to feel any hunger and it helps tremendously with the recovery process.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 533 Calories from Fat 207 Fat 23 g Total Carbohydrates 74 g Dietary Fiber 10 g Sugars 43 g
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Protein 10 g Salt 257 mg
Interesting Facts The algae used to make spirulina powder was originally misclassified as spirulina. They should actually be arthrospira.
Healthy Eats January 2012|77
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Spicy Oatmeal Oats are a very high‐fiber, nutrient dense food. That means they do an excellent job of controlling blood sugar and assist the body in removing toxins and flush out cholesterol. In addition, their high‐fiber, high‐protein content helps stave off hunger, making them an ideal weight‐loss food. Type: Breakfast Serves: 1 Time to Prepare: 10 minutes Ingredients ½ cup of rolled oats ¾ cup of almond milk 1 cascabel chile 8‐10 raisins Option: 1 sage leaf, roughly chopped Instructions Combine all the ingredients in a pot. Bring to a low boil and cook for three minutes. Cover the pot and let it sit for three more minutes.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Pot with Lid Measuring Cup
Presentation Remove the cascabel from the oats, rinse it, and top the oats with it. You can do a cinnamon swirl in the oats, as well.
Time Management If you cook this too long, the oats become mushy. That’s why the ratio of liquid to oats is slightly less than normal, as well. It gives the oats a much nicer texture.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a cup of coffee laced with unsweetened chocolate.
Where to Shop Cascabel chiles are about 1” balls and almost always come dried. They are starting to show up in conventional markets, but if yours doesn’t have them, you can head to an upscale market where they are usually in the produce section, a Mexican market, or Whole Foods. Approximate cost per serving is $1.00.
How It Works Almonds and chiles go quite well together, which is why almond milk is used in the recipe. The sweetness from the raisins balances the heat from the cascabel, creating a low level hot and sweet base for the oats.
Chef’s Notes My typical breakfast is a banana and some nuts since I don’t really like to get in the kitchen in the morning. However, I make an exception for this recipe. It’s filling without being heavy, doesn’t require a lot of work, and has chiles. I’ll always make an exception for those.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 213 Calories from Fat 45 Fat 5 g
Healthy Eats January 2012|79
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Total Carbohydrates 36 g Dietary Fiber 4 g Sugars 8 g Protein 6 g Salt 113 mg
Interesting Facts Although oats originated in the Middle East, Europeans were the first ones to domesticate them.
Healthy Eats January 2012|80
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Teff Pancakes with Spicy Maple Syrup Teff is a highly nutritious cereal grain used by athletes across Africa. It is very high in calcium and protein (for a grain), has substantial levels of important minerals and vitamins, is suitable for those with adverse gluten reactions, and contains 8 of the 9 essential amino acids. That’s probably why it is considered one of the superfoods of the world. Type: Breakfast Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 15 minutes Ingredients The Pancakes
1 cup of teff flour 2 tsp. of baking powder ¼ tsp. of salt 1 cup of water Oil for the griddle
The Syrup 1 dried piri piri chile, crushed, or 2 dried chiles de arbol, crushed 6 tbsp. of maple syrup Pinch of ground cloves ¼ tsp. of cracked black pepper
Instructions Making the Pancakes
Combine the teff, baking powder, and salt. Add in the water and thoroughly combine. Lightly spread oil on a griddle or pan and heat it to just above a medium heat. Pour ¼ of the batter onto the griddle and gently rotate the pan at an angle for a few seconds to let the batter spread. Once the top of the pancake no longer looks raw, flip the pancake and cook the other side for about 1 more minute. Repeat until you are out of batter. Option: Make the batter, but leave out the baking powder. Allow it to sit unrefrigerated for about two days. When you are about to make the pancakes, add in the baking powder. This is how you make the Ethiopian pancake injera.
Making the Syrup Crush the chile(s). Warm the maple syrup, chiles, cloves, and pepper over a medium low heat for about 7‐8 minutes.
Healthy Eats January 2012|81
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Mixing Bowl Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Whisk Pan Spatula Pot Stirring Spoon
Presentation Cook the pancakes until they have some light browning on them. I also like to garnish the pancakes with a sprinkle of crushed chiles.
Time Management Start the syrup so it has time to warm while you make the pancakes.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve with a cup of yerga cheffe coffee and a small bowl of fresh fruit.
Where to Shop Teff flour is available at places like Whole Foods. You can also purchase it at many African markets, particularly those that specialize in Ethiopian foods. Barring that, you can purchase it in the Amazon marketplace. Piri piri chiles can be a bit difficult to find, but chiles de arbol are just about everywhere. Approximate cost per serving is $1.00.
How It Works Making the teff pancakes works just like making a traditional wheat pancake. The baking powder reacts with liquid to create bubbles, which create the cake. The pan should be lightly oiled so the cake toasts without sticking to the pan, but doesn’t actually fry. The syrup is a combination of aromatic and spicy, both of which are found in African spice mixes and is a nod to this recipe’s roots.
Chef’s Notes It was fun to make these pancakes, but I wasn’t sure what to put on them. I thought about a spicy chutney, but wanted something quick and something that called back to teff’s African roots. That’s when I came up with the piri piri syrup.
Healthy Eats January 2012|82
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 202 Calories from Fat 18 Fat 2 g Total Carbohydrates 42 g Dietary Fiber 4 g Sugars 18 g Protein 4 g Salt 166 mg
Interesting Facts Teff was originally cultivated in Ethiopia about 4,000 to 5,000 years ago and with the advent of Ethiopian cuisine around the world, it has finally started to spread in popularity to different continents.
Healthy Eats January 2012|83
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Adzuki Beans in Chocolate Chile Sauce Research on chocolate is showing that it can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems and aid in decreasing blood pressure. It also boosts cognition, and more importantly increases serotonin levels significantly, helping with mood swings and depression. Eaten in large quantities without a corresponding level of increased activity, however, can cause weight gain. Chiles are loaded with vitamin C, more so than citrus, and they also boost the metabolism. Adzuki beans are high in fiber and loaded with iron and protein. Type: Soup Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 1 ½ hours + time to soak the beans Ingredients 1 cup of adzuki beans, soaked 8 cloves of unpeeled garlic, pan roasted 2 ancho chiles 4 guajillo chiles 4 cups of water ½ tsp. of cumin seeds 2 whole cloves 4 black peppercorns ¼ tsp. of salt ½ of an onion, minced 2 oz. of Mexican chocolate or unsweetened chocolate 1 chayote squash, diced Instructions Primary Version
Soak the adzuki beans for at least 6 hours, then drain them. In a dry pan (preferably an iron skillet) over a medium heat, roast the unpeeled garlic until the paper is blackened on a couple sides. Peel the garlic after it cools. While you are roasting the garlic, prepare the chiles. Over a medium heat in a dry pan, toast the chiles for about 2 minutes per side. Warm the water over a medium heat and add the chiles, then turn off the heat. Place a weight on the chiles to keep them submerged and keep they submerged for about 15 minutes. Remove the stems and as many of the seeds from the chiles as you can and keep the soaking water. In a dry pan over a medium heat, toast the cumin, cloves, and peppercorns for about 1 minute. Grind the spices. Puree the garlic, chiles, spices, and salt with the soaking water. You should end up with at least 5 cups of liquid (add more water until you get to that point). Option: Press the puree through a fine‐meshed strainer to get it silky smooth.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
In your cooking pot, sauté the onion over a medium heat in a dry pan until the onion browns. Add the chile broth and chocolate and bring it to a simmer. Add the adzuki beans and cook for about 45 minutes, until the beans are soft. While the beans are cooking, dice the squash. Add it about 5 minutes before the beans are done.
Simplified Version Simmer the chiles in the water for about 10 minutes, then remove the stem and seeds. Puree the chiles with the soaking water, peeled garlic, ½ tsp. of ground cumin, pinch of cloves, ½ tsp. of freshly ground black pepper, and the salt. Bring this to a simmer and add the chocolate. Once the chocolate has melted, add 2 cups of cooked, rinsed adzuki beans and dice chayote and simmer for 10 minutes.
Healthy Eats January 2012|85
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Pan or Iron Skillet Blender Pot Knife Cutting Board Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon
Presentation This definitely deserves a warm colored, Mexican‐style bowl. Make sure everything is well‐stirred together so it looks like the beans are floating in succulent chile broth.
Time Management If you’re quick in the kitchen, you can roast the garlic and chiles and toast the spices all at the same time. Obviously, using canned adzuki beans will make this recipe much quicker, though your beans won’t take in as much flavor as they would if they were cooked in chile sauce.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a side of lightly toasted whole wheat sourdough bread.
Where to Shop Dried adzuki beans are available at places like Sprouts, Whole Foods, and Central Market as well as many Asian markets. Ibarra is a solid brand of vegan Mexican chocolate and it can be found at most Mexican markets and also ordered online. If you can’t find it, go ahead and substitute unsweetened chocolate. Approximate cost per serving is $1.00.
How It Works Pan roasting the garlic creates a flavor that merges the nuttiness of roasted garlic with the pungency of sautéed garlic. Because roasting mellows out the flavor, however, you need quite a bit of garlic. Toasting the chiles caramelizes some of the sugars in them, but more importantly activates some of the volatile compounds in the chiles, which increases the flavors. This is also true of the spices. All of this gets pureed to create as smooth a broth as possible. Both the chocolate and the onion add sweetness and the chocolate is used to create a complex flavor of bitter and sweet. Chayote is added at the very end so that it does not overcook and become mushy.
Healthy Eats January 2012|86
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Chef’s Notes This recipe was created based on an image I had of a dark red chile broth with dark beans floating in it. That naturally led to a Mexican‐inspired dish and everything sprang from that.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 261 Calories from Fat 9 Fat 1 g Total Carbohydrates 50 g Dietary Fiber 10 g Sugars 9 g Protein 13 g Salt 165 mg
Interesting Facts Spanish friars were contentious with each other about chocolate. Some considered it a drink of gluttony while the other side dismissed such claims and spoke about how they simply could not get along without their daily cup.
Healthy Eats January 2012|87
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Roasted Red Pepper Arugula Salad This salad is one of my staple salads. I always feel refreshed and full after eating it, particularly on workout days. The chickpeas have a high‐fiber, high protein content, which is why I value them after exercise. They are also very high in calcium, iron, zinc, and phosphorous. The red peppers are loaded with vitamin C, which helps with iron absorption. The salsa makes a great low‐fat dressing and contains tons of lycopene and vitamin C, as well. The flax oil contains quite a bit of omega 3 fatty acids (in fact, the highest amongst plant oils). Type: Salad Serves: 1 Time to Prepare: 5 minutes Ingredients 2 roasted red peppers, chopped 1 zucchini, chopped into bite‐size pieces 4 green olives, sliced ½ cup of cooked, rinsed chickpeas 4 cups of loosely packed baby arugula 1 cup of salsa (I use Frontera’s jalapeno cilantro salsa) 1 tsp. of flax oil Option: 1 portabella, grilled and chopped Option: ½ of an avocado, chopped Instructions Chop the roasted red pepper and zucchini. Slice the olives. Toss the arugula with the chickpeas, red pepper, zucchini, and olives. Top with salsa and flax oil. Option: Brush the portabella with 1 tsp. of olive oil and a pinch of salt, then grill it, chop it, and top the salad with it. Option: Chop the avocado and top the salad with it (if you mix it with the salad, it loses some texture).
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the flax oil.
Kitchen Equipment Mixing Bowl Knife Cutting Board Measuring Cup
Presentation I try to group the different ingredients instead of simply tossing everything together. That way, each ingredient has a chance to catch the eye.
Time Management Eat this right away or the arugula will wilt under the pressure of the salsa and veggies.
Complementary Food and Drinks This is meant to be a meal all in itself.
Where to Shop I have a Trader Joe’s near my house, so I get the arugula, olives, and roasted red peppers from there. It’s incredibly convenient. Approximate cost per serving is $3.00.
How It Works Arugula has an earthy, peppery note that makes the salad more interesting than if simply lettuce was used. The roasted red pepper gives a lush quality to the salad, the chickpeas make it filling, and the zucchini gives just a touch of extra sweetness and texture. The flax oil is there for health reasons and the salsa serves as the salad dressing. Make sure you get a good quality salsa! It makes or breaks the salad.
Chef’s Notes This is a staple go‐to recipe of mine and I usually have it at least three times a week, either for lunch or dinner.
Healthy Eats January 2012|89
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 350 Calories from Fat 54 Fat 6 g Total Carbohydrates 60 g Dietary Fiber 13 g Sugars 19 g Protein 14 g Salt 665 mg
Interesting Facts Arugula, also known as rocket, is a member of the Brassica family, making it related to greens such as kale and chard.
Healthy Eats January 2012|90
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Deconstructed Sushi with Dulse Dulse is loaded with B vitamins, calcium, iron, fluoride, protein, and fiber, making it a high quality food nutritionally speaking. It is also a strong source of iodine. Sesame seeds are also a great source of calcium and the entire dish is fairly low in fat while maintaining a delicate, well‐balanced flavor that leaves one satisfied and full. Type: Main Dish Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 30 minutes Ingredients ¾ cup of sushi rice 1 ¼ cups of water Pinch of salt 1 tbsp. of mirin or seasoned rice vinegar 2 4” long sticks of pickled daikon radish, cubed ¼ cup of crushed dulse (substitute crushed nori if you can’t find dulse) 1 tsp. of toasted sesame seeds Very small bunch of broccoli shoots Option: 1 avocado, diced Instructions Cook the sushi rice in a rice cooker with the water (or use your cooker’s suggested water level). Combine the salt and rice vinegar. As soon as it is done, spread the sushi out on a plate into a thin. Gently fold the rice vinegar salt solution into the rice. Place the sushi rice in the bowls. Slice the pickled radish into ½” cubes. Crush the dulse. Option: Dice the avocado. Plate the sushi rice, then top it with the pickled radish and optional avocado, then the crushed dulse, then the sesame seeds, and finish it off with the broccoli shoots.
Healthy Eats January 2012|91
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the sesame seeds.
Kitchen Equipment Rice Cooker Wooden Spatula Mixing Bowl Small Whisk or Stirring Spoon Knife Cutting Board Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup
Presentation Use a mix of black sesame seeds and white sesame seeds for an extra nice presentation. Also, you can prop the broccoli shoots in the middle of the bowl to create some height.
Time Management The key to this recipe is all in the rice. The rice needs to be spread out so that the grains don’t collapse into each other as the rice sits, but it can’t dry out too much before you add the rice vinegar or the rice won’t set properly. Make sure as soon as you spread the rice, you fold the rice vinegar into it.
Complementary Food and Drinks A cup of hot gunpowder tea and a bowl of tofu miso soup.
Where to Shop Sushi rice can be found just about anywhere now, though you’ll get the best price if you can purchase it from a bulk bin. However, pickled radish, dulse, and broccoli shoots are not so common. You will probably have to frequent an Asian market to pick up all three, though you should at least be able to get organic dulse and broccoli shoots at Whole Foods. Look for mirin at the Asian market, as well. Approximate cost per serving is about $3.00.
How It Works Sushi rice is a sticky, short grain rice and those types of grains are susceptible to becoming mashed together if they are not treated properly. That’s why I suggest using a rice cooker, which both simmers and then steams the rice, helping to keep the grains separate. That’s also why it is
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
important to spread out the rice and then gently fold the vinegar into it. It keeps the grains clingy without getting smashed. Mirin is a semi‐sweet rice vinegar, which brightens the rice. Pickled radish is fairly sweet and slightly crunchy, giving the sushi texture. Crushed dulse is used for health benefits, but also to give a touch of sea flavors to the rice. Broccoli shoots are used for a delicate presentation and sesame seeds lend subtle depth and nuttiness to the overall dish.
Chef’s Notes This was a very fun recipe to make. I wouldn’t call my typical dishes delicate, so this was an inspiring break from the norm for me.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 153 Calories from Fat 9 Fat 1 g Total Carbohydrates 33 g Dietary Fiber 2 g Sugars 7 g Protein 3 g Salt 228 mg
Interesting Facts Dulse is consumed both as a snack and side dish in North Atlantic European countries like Ireland and Norway.
Healthy Eats January 2012|93
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Ginger Lemongrass Bowl Ginger has been used to mitigate nausea for centuries. More importantly, research is coming out that shows that ginger aids in increasing serotonin levels. Brown rice, of course, is high in fiber and has a low glycemic index. This recipe is relatively low in fat, but because of the satiety of the extra firm tofu and the high fiber brown rice, it is fairly filling for its low caloric value. Type: Main Dish Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 30 minutes + 1‐2 hours to marioasted Rnate the tofu Ingredients The Broth
2 stalks of lemongrass, cut into 2” long pieces 4 thin slices of ginger 1 tsp. of turbinado sugar Juice of 1 lime 2 cups of water
The Rice ¾ cup of short grain brown rice 1 ¼ cups of water 2 tbsp. of soy sauce
The Accompaniments 8 oz. of extra firm tofu, chopped and marinated ¼ cup of rice vinegar 3 tbsp. of soy sauce ½ tsp. of freshly ground white pepper 2 green onions, sliced 3 tbsp. of chopped fresh cilantro 8‐10 straw mushrooms
Instructions Chop the tofu into small bite‐size pieces. Marinate the tofu in the rice vinegar, soy sauce, and white pepper for 1‐2 hours. Cut the lemongrass into 2” long pieces and smash them. Slice the ginger. Combine the lemongrass, ginger, sugar, lime juice, and water and bring it to a low simmer for 20 minutes. While it is cooking, bring the water and soy sauce for the rice to a boil. Add the rice, stir, bring it back to a boil, cover the pot, and cook it for 20 minutes. Slice the green onions. Chop the cilantro. Once the rice is done, place it in the bowl and top it with the marinated tofu, sliced green onions, cilantro, and straw mushrooms. Pour the broth over the rice.
Healthy Eats January 2012|94
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Pot with Lid Pot Mixing Bowl Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Knife Cutting Board Stirring Spoon
Presentation This looks nicest if you mound the rice tightly and drape the condiments over it before pouring on the broth. The mound of rice will start to break apart in the bowl, creating a cool effect.
Time Management This works best when the broth is hot and the rice is warm, as well. Also, if you simmer the broth at too high a heat or it simmers for a long time, you should replenish some of the water. You want about ¾ to 1 cup of broth per serving.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve with a watercress salad and sautéed oyster mushrooms.
Where to Shop Asian markets are some of the only places where I’ve found full stalks of very fresh lemongrass at a decent price. Fortunately, you can also pick up all the other ingredients at most Asian markets. Approximate cost per serving is $1.50.
How It Works The broth is fragrant, light, and bright in taste because of the lemongrass and lime juice. It has a bit of a bite, but not too much, from the ginger. Soy is added to the rice to give it just a bit of flavor. The tofu is marinated in vinegar and soy sauce, which greatly increases its flavor profile, especially from the rice vinegar. All three components of the bowl, the broth, the rice, and the condiments, are prepared separately so that there are layers of flavor to the bowl instead of having a taste that has been melded.
Healthy Eats January 2012|95
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Chef’s Notes The broth is my absolute favorite part of this soup. I serve it over rice noodles or simply simmer mushrooms and tofu in it for a quick, light soup.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 392 Calories from Fat 72 Fat 8 g Total Carbohydrates 62 g Dietary Fiber 3 g Sugars 6 g Protein 18 g Salt 892 mg
Interesting Facts The heat of ginger is created from three volatile oils which comprise a significant percentage of it. These oils are zingerone, shogaols, and gingerols.
Healthy Eats January 2012|96
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Quinoa Salad with Wilted Chard This salad combines several super‐nutritional ingredients and tops them with a flavorful, but low‐fat dressing made from apple cider vinegar and salsa verde. Quinoa has all the amino acids needed by humans, is relatively high in protein, and high in fiber. Black grapes are loaded with antioxidants and chard is high in beta‐carotene, vitamin K, and vitamin C. Type: Salad Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 20 minutes Ingredients The Quinoa
¾ cup of red quinoa 1 cup of water 1 dried chipotle (omit if you do not want the salad spicy)
The Chard 1 bunch of Swiss chard, sliced Pinch of salt Water
The Grapes 1 cup of crisp, black grapes
The Dressing ½ cup of salsa verde 2 tbsp. of apple cider vinegar
Instructions Bring the water and chipotle to a boil. Add the quinoa, stir, cover the pot, and reduce it to a simmer. Cook the quinoa for about 15 minutes, then remove the chipotle. While it is cooking, slice the chard into thick ribbons, including the stems. Simmer it in a very thin layer of water (just enough to lubricate the pan) and a pinch of salt until it is lightly wilted (about 7‐8 minutes). Once the quinoa and chard are done, toss them with the grapes. Combine the salsa verde and apple cider vinegar and pour it over the salad.
Healthy Eats January 2012|97
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Raw Version Use sprouted quinoa and fresh chard. To make raw salsa verde, chop 4 tomatillos and lightly salt them, then let them sit for about 30 minutes. Press on the tomatillos to turn them further into a sauce. Add 1 tbsp. of chopped cilantro, ¼ tsp. of ground cumin, 1 diced Serrano or jalapeno, and the juice of 1 lime. Because the raw tomatillos will be very tart, you can omit the vinegar or replace the lime juice with it.
Kitchen Equipment Pot with Lid Pan Stirring Spoon Knife Cutting Board 1 Large Mixing Bowl 1 Small Mixing Bowl Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon
Presentation Make sure that the chard doesn’t look dessicated. A little springiness to the leaves is best and the color is vibrant. Also, don’t mix the grapes into the salad so much that they get covered completely by the quinoa and chard.
Time Management The chard will take a few minutes to start wilting, but once it does, it finishes fairly quickly, so pay attention once you see the leaves start to collapse.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a glass of iced hibiscus tea and a light, brothy msio soup.
Where to Shop Trader Joe’s has a great price on red quinoa, but if you can’t find it there, see if you can find it in a bulk bin. If you can’t find red quinoa, it’s perfectly fine to substitute other types of quinoa. When shopping for the grapes, look for the large black globe grapes and make sure the skin is crisp and tight. They provide the crunch for the salad! I like choosing chard with red stems for color. Approximate cost per serving is $1.50.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
How It Works Wilting the chard makes it almost have a melt‐in‐your‐mouth quality, but it can be a bit dull without a pinch of salt. That pinch changes everything. Cooking the quinoa with the dry chipotle allows the chipotle to infuse the water, which in turn infuses the quinoa. The grapes lend crispness and sweetness, which balances the semi‐spicy chipotle‐infused quinoa. Combining all three main ingredients gives three very different flavors and textures, which creates complexity in the dish. Finally, adding apple cider vinegar to the salsa gives it more of a salad dressing taste that straight salsa usually doesn’t have.
Chef’s Notes As I was writing this recipe, I could actually taste the salad and I raced home to make it. I love the crisp explosion of the grapes when I crunch down on them mingled with the heat from the quinoa and the chard is just a beautiful addition.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 344 Calories from Fat 36 Fat 4 g Total Carbohydrates 64 g Dietary Fiber 8 g Sugars 15 g Protein 13 g Salt 436 mg
Interesting Facts Quinoa is a close relative of the beet.
Healthy Eats January 2012|99
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Smoked Tempeh in Roasted Red Pepper Sauce The fermentation and culture process of tempeh makes it more digestible than typical soybeans and it also reduces the amount of phythic acid found in soy, making the all the nutrients easily accessible. Some tempeh, particularly that which is traditionally fermented, has B12 producing bacteria in the culture. Type: Main Dish Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 1 to 1 ½ hours Ingredients The Tempeh
16 oz. of tempeh, chopped into large cubes 2 tsp. of olive oil ¼ tsp. of salt
The Sauce 2 large roasted red peppers ¼ cup of water 3 cloves of garlic 2 tsp. of chopped fresh oregano ¼ tsp. of crushed red pepper ¼ tsp. of ground cumin ¼ tsp. of freshly ground black pepper ¼ tsp. of salt Juice of 1 lemon 1 tbsp. of capers
The Rice 1 ½ cups of veggie stock ¾ cup of short grain brown rice Instructions Light your grill or smoker and let the flames die down to a low heat. Cube the tempeh. Toss it in the olive oil and salt. Wrap the tempeh in foil and pierce the foil packet with a fork. Place this off‐center on the grill and allow it to smoke for at least 30 minutes (it can smoke all day, if you have the patience). Just before it is done smoking, make the sauce. Puree all the sauce ingredients except for the capers. Simmer the sauce over a medium‐low heat for about 15 minutes. Once the tempeh is done, add it to the sauce and simmer 5 more minutes. While the tempeh is smoking, make the rice. Bring the veggie stock to a boil. Add the rice, stir, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 20 mintues. Serve the tempeh and sauce over the rice.
Healthy Eats January 2012|100
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Grill or Smoker Foil Fork Knife Cutting Board Pan Blender Pot Lid Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup Stirring Spoon
Presentation Top this with wilted spinach, basil, or some extra oregano for a splash of green. I also fluff the rice before plating it, so it doesn’t clump.
Time Management There isn’t a whole lot to this recipe, even though it has a lot of ingredients. It comes down to boiling rice, blending a sauce and simmering it, and throwing some tempeh on the grill. However, it does take quite a while to properly make as the longer the tempeh smokes, the better it gets.
Complementary Food and Drinks This begs for a salad of mixed spring greens with a few green olives added in for fun.
Where to Shop Trader Joe’s has a good price on their roasted red peppers, but if you’re feeling industrious, you can roast your peppers while the grill is hot. They also sell tempeh and capers fairly reasonably. Approximate cost per serving is $1.25.
How It Works The grill needs to cool down a bit so that the tempeh smokes and cooks, but doesn’t burn during the long smoke time. The foil protects the tempeh from the rough grill bars, allowing you to use less oil on the tempeh to keep it hydrated. Piercing the foil allows the smoke to permeate the foil packet. The sauce is a mix of sweet from the peppers and briny from the capers and lemon while carrying
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some depth from the oregano, cumin, and garlic. It should simmer for a bit before the tempeh is added, however, so that all the flavors can meld and develop. Too much stuff in the pan interferes with that.
Chef’s Notes You can easily substitute a roll for the rice, cook the tempeh as a patty, and turn this into a sandwich!
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 455 Calories from Fat 135 Fat 15 g Total Carbohydrates 53 g Dietary Fiber 8 g Sugars 3 g Protein 27 g Salt 444 mg
Interesting Facts Tempeh is started by soaking soy beans, which begins the sprouting process.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Sweet Potato Caldo Verde This recipe features sweet potatoes and kale. Sweet potatoes, particularly the orange ones, are high in beta‐carotene and much better for blood sugar levels than potatoes whereas kale is also an excellent source of beta‐carotene, is high in calcium and is an excellent anti‐cancer food.
Type: Soup Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 35 minutes Ingredients 2 large sweet potatoes, chopped into 1” pieces 5 cups of water 10 cloves of pan roasted garlic 1 bunch of kale ¼ tsp. of salt ½ tsp. of freshly cracked black pepper 1 cup of cooked, rinsed red beans Instructions Chop the sweet potatoes into 1” pieces (since these will get pureed, don’t worry about getting the size exactly right). Bring the water to a boil and add the sweet potatoes, boiling them until they are soft. While they are boiling, roast unpeeled garlic cloves in a dry pan over a medium heat until the skin has large blackened spots on two or three sides (about 8‐10 minutes total). Peel the garlic. Puree the sweet potatoes in their simmering water along with the roasted garlic. Return the soup base to a simmer. Chop the kale and add it to the soup base. Simmer it for about 5 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat. Stir the salt, pepper, and beans into it.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Pot Immersion Blender Knife Cutting Board Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup Stirring Spoon
Presentation Sprinkle the top of the soup with some crushed red pepper for a splash of contrasting color. Also, make sure not to overcook the kale. It turns a brilliant green color if it is only simmered for a few minutes, but turns grayish green if simmered longer.
Time Management This soup takes a minimal amount of work. The part that really requires the most attention is the garlic. If you can smell the garlic caramelizing, get it out of the pan. It’s ready to go.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a salad of micro greens, sundried tomatoes, and teff croutons.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients should be relatively common, but it’s important to purchase organic kale since the conventional one tends to be susceptible to absorbing pesticides. Approximate cost per serving is $1.00.
How It Works Sweet potatoes puree into an excellent thickener and they have a robust, sweet flavor without being overwhelmed by sweetness. Traditional caldo verde calls for onion, but that’s definitely not necessary with the sweet potatoes. Roasting garlic in a day pan creates a flavor somewhere between the more traditional, oven‐roasted nutty flavor and sautéed garlic, giving the soup lots of depth. The kale is only simmered a few minutes so that it doesn’t lose all of its texture and to keep the nutrients more or less intact while not feeling like there is a salad inside the soup. The beans add heartiness and red beans are used for color.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Chef’s Notes I discovered traditional caldo verde about three years ago and it has become one of my favorite dishes ever since. In fact, it was what got me into eating kale.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 172 Calories from Fat 0 Fat 0 g Total Carbohydrates 35 g Dietary Fiber 7 g Sugars 3 g Protein 8 g Salt 232 mg
Interesting Facts Caldo verde is a popular Portuguese soup, often served at weddings.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Apple Pomegranate Salad Pomegranate seeds are highly correlated with reducing the risk of prostate cancer, diabetes, and hypertension. Apples, aside from being a high‐fiber, low‐calorie food loaded with antioxidants, are suspected of increasing acetylcholine, which assists preventing cognitive degradation. Walnuts contain fatty acids and inhibit the damage saturated fats can do to arteries. Type: Salad Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 10 minutes Ingredients The Dressing
1 small shallot, minced 1 ½ tbsp. of Champagne vinegar or raw apple cider vinegar 2 tbsp. of pomegranate juice Pinch of salt
The Salad 2 Fuji apples, cored and chopped into bite‐size pieces 1/3 cup of pomegranate seeds 3 tbsp. of black walnuts ¼ tsp. of cracked black pepper 1 cup of chopped frisee or escarole 1 cup of baby arugula
Instructions Mince the shallot. Combine the shallot, vinegar, pomegranate juice, and pinch of salt and set it aside. Core and chop the apples. Combine all the salad ingredients, then top with the dressing.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Knife Cutting Board Apple Corer Small Mixing Bowl Large Mixing Bowl Stirring Spoon Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon
Presentation Make sure the pomegranate seeds are prominently showing and that the greens are more towards the bottom. You can easily accomplish that by plating the greens, then lightly tossing a few of them with the remainder of the ingredients.
Time Management If you are not going to eat this right away, coat the apples in the dressing so they don’t turn brown.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve with seared oyster mushroom or chanterelle risotto.
Where to Shop Getting the seeds out of a pomegranate can be tedious, so I try to find packaged pomegranate seeds. Trader Joe’s is usually my best bet for that. Same on the arugula. For the frisee, I typically purchase this at Sprouts or Whole Foods. Approximate cost per serving is $3.00.
How It Works Black walnuts give a soft richness to the salad while the apple lends sweetness and the pomegranate seeds are a mix of sweet and sour explosions. The arugula is peppery and light in texture while the frisee has a bolder body, giving the salad a solid base. The vinegar helps protect the apples, keeping them from oxidizing and the splash of pomegranate juice gives the salad a beautiful color.
Chef’s Notes This salad is very astringent, which comes from the tannins in the pomegranate. Ironically, that is not a taste I really cared for a few years ago, but now I cherish it.
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Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 255 Calories from Fat 63 Fat 7 g Total Carbohydrates 44 g Dietary Fiber 8 g Sugars 28 g Protein 4 g Salt 163 mg
Interesting Facts Some scholars think that the apple in the Adam and Eve story was originally told to be a pomegranate.
Healthy Eats January 2012|108
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Black Bean Lime Hummus Black beans are a high‐fiber, high‐protein food, making them ideal for losing weight due to its high satiety. They are also loaded with folate and thiamin and iron, and are very high in lysine. The vitamin C from the lime juice and chipotle promotes iron absorption and the tahini is loaded with calcium. Type: Dip Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 5 minutes Ingredients ½ tsp. of toasted ground cumin 2 cloves of garlic 1 chipotle in adobo Juice of 1 lime 2 tbsp. of tahini or peanut butter 2 cups of rinsed, cooked black beans ¼ tsp. of salt Instructions Heat a small pan to medium. Toast the ground cumin for about 30 seconds. Add everything to a blender or food processor and puree.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the tahini.
Kitchen Equipment Small Pan Stirring Spoon Blender or Food Processor Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup
Presentation Serve in a bowl ringed with crackers or pita wedges.
Time Management There isn’t much time management to speak of, but if you want to make it even quicker, you can simply not toast the cumin. Well‐sealed, this dish will last up to a week refrigerated.
Complementary Food and Drinks This goes great with tortilla chips, gluten‐free crackers, and toasted pita wedges. Because the flavor is so strong with this dish, toasting the pita wedges gives them an edge in competing with the black bean hummus.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients are fairly common. Approximate cost per serving is $0.50.
How It Works It is important that the garlic goes in the blender first. This ensures that the blades will chop up the garlic. Otherwise, you may end up with whole cloves whipping around the top of the hummus without noticing it. The chipotles give a smoky heat to the dish and the lime juice lightens the dish. The tahini thickens the hummus and also gives it a more satisfying feel. Cumin goes very well with black beans and toasting it accentuates its flavor. However, it needs to be toasted quickly so it doesn’t burn.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Chef’s Notes This is a household favorite and I actually like it better than traditional hummus. The black beans go perfectly with the chipotle and lime juice and the amount of tahini is just right for my tastes. It’s also incredibly satisfying and keeps me full for hours, so I sometimes use it as a lunch.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 175 Calories from Fat 36 Fat 4 g Total Carbohydrates 30 g Dietary Fiber 8 g Sugars 1 g Protein 9 g Salt 236 mg
Interesting Facts Black beans are also called black turtle beans.
Healthy Eats January 2012|111
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Greens in Creole Tomato Sauce This is one of those nutrition super‐combinations. The combination of cruciferous vegetables, of which collard greens are a part, and the lycopene from tomatoes promotes the development of natural killer cells (yes, that is the real word for those cells) within a day. NK cells search out and kill cancerous cells and cells compromised by virus. Type: Side (adding the tempeh turns this into a main dish) Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 30 minutes Ingredients 1 green bell pepper, diced ½ of an onion, diced 5 cloves of garlic, sliced 3 cups of crushed fire roasted tomatoes 1 tbsp. of chopped fresh oregano 1 tsp. of fresh thyme ¼ tsp. of ground cumin 1 bay leaf ¼ tsp. of salt ½ tsp. of freshly ground black pepper 1 bunch of collard greens, mustard greens, or mix of the two, sliced into thick ribbons Option: 16 oz. of tempeh, chopped Instructions Dice the bell pepper and onion. Slice the garlic. Add the bell pepper, onion, garlic, fire roasted tomatoes, oregano, thyme, cumin, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper to a pan and bring it to a simmer over a medium heat. Simmer this for 10 minutes. While it is simmering, rip the collard green and/or mustard green leaves up along the stem to remove them from the hard stem. Slice them into ribbons. Add the collard greens and optional tempeh and simmer this for 15 more minutes, adding water if necessary to keep the sauce from completely reducing.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Raw Version Lightly salt the collard greens after they are sliced and place a heavy weight on them. Allow them to sit for about 2 hours. Crush about 5‐6 Vineripe tomatoes and add in all the sauce ingredients, except the bay leaf, which can be omitted, and only 2 cloves of garlic. Allow this to sit while the collard greens sit, then combine them.
Kitchen Equipment Pan Knife Cutting Board Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon
Presentation Generally, I just serve this alongside a main dish, but you can place it in a clay pot or cast iron pot and serve it family style for a rustic feel.
Time Management This recipe only takes a few minutes of work, and then it’s hurry up and wait. Fortunately, that’s a good time to clean up or prepare your main dish. Note that the longer the sauce simmers, the better it gets, but you may need to add in some water as it cooks if you go longer than 30 minutes.
Complementary Food and Drinks I love serving this with smoked tempeh sloppy joes. It also makes a great pasta topping (I prefer brown rice penne pasta).
Where to Shop I use Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes, which have become common enough that you can find them in most markets. Make sure the leaves on the collard greens are tender, or else they’ll be extra bitter and the cook time will increase almost two‐fold. Approximate cost per serving is $0.75.
How It Works Using fire roasted tomatoes gives this sauce a real depth that it might not otherwise have, and also keeps it from tasting too sweet (the charring on the tomatoes overrides some of the sweetness). The oregano and cumin both provide bass notes to the sauce and give the sauce a heartier feel, even though they don’t add any bulk to the recipe. The collard greens need to be ripped from the stem
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
since the stem is usually fairly hard and takes a very long time to cook. The sauce simmers for ten minutes before the collard greens are added to give all the sauce ingredients a chance to meld.
Chef’s Notes I love how the collard greens condense and get soft with a thick, highly‐flavorful tomato sauce that clings to everything. So delicious. Sometimes, I add a splash of hot sauce to the sauce to liven things up, even more.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 92 Calories from Fat 0 Fat 0 g Total Carbohydrates 19 g Dietary Fiber 5 g Sugars 10 g Protein 4 g Salt 157 mg
Interesting Facts Lycopene is found in red fruits and veggies and is one of the most powerful anti‐oxidants found in plant foods.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Flax Olive Crackers Flax is loaded with omega‐3, omega‐6 fatty acids, and alpha linolenic acids, making these an essential fatty acid powerhouse. Soaking them activates the flax to produce extra nutrients and dehydrating them at a low temperature preserves all the nutrients in the flax.
Type: Raw (mostly) Serves: Makes 1 sheet of crackers Time to Prepare: 12 hours Ingredients 2 cups of flax seeds 2 cups of water 6 cloves of minced garlic 8 green olives, minced 1 tbsp. of minced fresh oregano 1 tsp. of flaky sea salt ¼ cup of pepitas Instructions Soak the flax seeds in the water for about 1 ½ hours (the mixture will become gooey). Mince the garlic, olives, and oregano. Mix this into the flax bowl. Spread this out onto a dehydrator sheet, about 1/8” thick. Dehydrate on 110F for 5 hours. At this point, the cracker sheet should be pliable, but not done. Remove the cracker sheet from the dehydrator. Place another dehydrator sheet on top of the crackers. Flip this over, transferring the crackers to the new dehydrator sheet, which exposes the other side of the crackers. Dehydrate for another 4 hours. Break apart the sheet of flax crackers into more manageable pieces.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Raw Version Omit the olives or use raw, cured olives if you can find them.
Kitchen Equipment Mixing Bowl Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Dehydrator
Presentation Not applicable.
Time Management I prefer my raw crackers to have a bit of pliability, so once it gets to be about an hour before the dehydration time is up, I check them. If they are on the edge of getting crisp, I take them out and leave them as is.
Complementary Food and Drinks I love eating these as a snack or as the chips for spicy guacamole. They also make great raw pizza crusts.
Where to Shop Look for the flax seeds in a bulk bin. You will tend to get a much better price on those than if you purchased them packaged.
How It Works When the flax soaks, they become gooey. That’s not a particularly glamorous culinary term, but it is important because it gets the flax seeds to stick together to form the crackers. Once they soak, the rest of the ingredients are added and to get good flavor in the flax crackers, you have to add a lot of other ingredients. Otherwise, the flax seeds will cut the flavor to much.
Chef’s Notes This recipe was inspired by my wife, who makes the best raw crackers I’ve had and who also has an intense love of olives.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 1716 Calories from Fat 1260 Fat 140 g Total Carbohydrates 110 g Dietary Fiber 85 g Sugars 4 g Protein 64 g Salt 2325 mg
Interesting Facts Flax is cultivated not just for its seeds and oil, but for its fibers, which have been used by humans for over 30,000 years. The earliest documentation of their use is a set of dyed flax fibers found in the Republic of Georgia that dates to 30,000 BCE.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Roasted “Parmesan” Beets with Seared Beet Greens Beets contain an incredibly high amount of betalain. This is what gives the beet its dark, red coloration. Betalains have been shown to be powerhouses for absorbing free radicals. Type: Main Dish Serves: 4 Time to Prepare: 45 minutes Ingredients 4 large beets with beet greens still attached 8 basil leaves, sliced into ribbons 2 cloves of garlic, minced ¼ tsp. of flaky sea salt (use ½ this if the salt is not coarse and flaky) ¼ tsp. of crushed red pepper 1 tsp. of olive oil 2 tbsp. of pine nuts Pinch of flaky sea salt 1 cup of quinoa 1 ¼ cups of water Instructions Remove the beet greens form the beets. Slice the beets into ¼” thick rounds. Roll the basil leaves, then slice them along the width of the roll, creating ribbons of basil. Mince the garlic. Slice the beet greens. Toss the sliced beets, basil, garlic, sea salt, and crushed red pepper and place them in a baking dish. Cover the baking dish. Roast these on 375 degrees for 30 minutes. While they are roasting, bring the water to a boil. Add the quinoa, return to a simmer, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to low. Cook the quinoa for about 15 minutes. Just before they are done, sauté the beet greens in 2 tsp. of olive oil over a medium high heat for about 3 minutes. Crush the pine nuts with a pinch of flaky sea salt, creating pine nut “parmesan.” Spread the quinoa out on each plate, then top with the roasted beets, then the sautéed beet greens, and then the pine nut “parmesan.”
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the olive oil and roast the beet greens along with the beets. Make sure the baking dish is covered or the beet greens will severely dry out.
Raw Version Use sprouted quinoa. Otherwise, the recipe can work as is without cooking anything.
Kitchen Equipment Knife Cutting Board Baking Dish Oven Mortar & Pestle Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup Mixing Bowl Pot with Lid
Presentation Don’t entirely cover the beets with the beet greens. They should provide a strong accent, not a blanket of color.
Time Management This recipe has four steps, but each of those steps is fairly simple. Make sure to start the beets roasting before you move on to anything else and you can leisurely finish each step while they roast.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve this with a spicy lentil soup.
Where to Shop Many markets remove the beet greens from the beets before selling them, which is unfortunate. You’ll probably need to go to a market that places an emphasis on healthy food to get the beet greens. Approximate cost per serving is $1.75.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
How It Works Roasting the beets caramelizes the sugar in them, giving the beets a deeper, rich flavor. They are lightly tossed in oil so that they don’t dehydrate while roasting and so that the basil and spices will stick to the beets. The beet greens have a taste and texture reminiscent of chard and are cooked at a very high heat in order to quickly cook them without cooking out all the flavor. The pine nut “parmesan” gives a nice, gourmet touch and the quinoa makes the dish filling.
Chef’s Notes I like this recipe because it can serve as a main dish or a side, if you leave out the quinoa.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 239 Calories from Fat 27 Fat 3 g Total Carbohydrates 44 g Dietary Fiber 9 g Sugars 11 g Protein 9 g Salt 327 mg
Interesting Facts In ancient Greece, beet greens were sometimes used to wrap wounds.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Sesame Wasabi Kale Chips Kale contains sulforaphane, which is a very strong cancer fighter. It is also very high in beta carotene and calcium. Type: Snack Serves: Makes 4 cups Time to Prepare: 15‐20 minutes in the oven or 6 hours in the dehydrator Ingredients 1 bunch of kale, chopped 2 tsp. of toasted sesame oil 1/8 tsp. of salt ¼ tsp. of wasabi powder Instructions Remove the kale leaves from the hard stems and discard the stems. Chop the kale. Toss all the ingredients together. Oven Method: Spread the kale out on a baking sheet. Bake the kale on 350F for 10‐15 minutes, until the edges are slightly browned. Dehydrator Method: Spread the kale out on a dehydrator sheet. Dehydrate them at 105F for 6‐8 hours.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Low‐fat Version Omit the sesame oil, though they will be a bit dry.
Kitchen Equipment Knife Cutting Board Mixing Bowl Measuring Spoon Baking Sheet & Oven or Dehydrator
Presentation Not applicable.
Time Management The dryer you get these, the longer they will last, assuming you don’t eat them first. Even so, they should last several days in the pantry.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve these with a slightly sweetened black tea for a great snack.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients are common, though if you want real wasabi powder, you may need to hit a nice Asian market or a gourmet market. The other kind is not true wasabi, but simply dyed horseradish. Approximate cost per serving is $2.50.
How It Works The toasted sesame oil creates a full‐bodied flavor while the wasabi adds some obvious heat. The kale dehydrates very well and doing so only serves to accentuate its good qualities and mitigate some of the bitterness.
Chef’s Notes I like wasabi‐dusted nori and I thought this was similar enough that it was worth a try. It turned out even better than I expected and makes for a fairly guiltless snack.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 234
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Calories from Fat 90 Fat 10 Total Carbohydrates 27 g Dietary Fiber 5 g Sugars 0 g Protein 9 g Salt 424 mg
Interesting Facts Kale is a cruciferous vegetable, which means that its flowers are cross-like.
Healthy Eats January 2012|123
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Sharon Valencik, author of Sweet Utopia: Simply Stunning Desserts, www.sweetutopia.com
African Banana Dessert Type: Dessert Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 15 minutes Ingredients 2 Tbsp firmly packed brown sugar ¼ tsp ground cinnamon 2 large bananas, medium‐ripe 2 tsp. of oil ¼ cup orange juice 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/3 cup shredded coconut 3 tablespoons finely chopped or partially ground unsalted peanuts Fresh berries and vegan ice cream Instructions Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Stir brown sugar and cinnamon until well blended. Lightly oil a 9‐inch square baking pan. Peel bananas. Cut each banana lengthwise in half. Place cut side down in baking pan. Sprinkle the bananas with the orange and lemon juices. Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the bananas. Sprinkle with the coconut and peanuts. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until bananas are lightly browned. Serve warm with fresh berries and a scoop of vegan ice cream.
Healthy Eats January 2012|124
The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Sharon Valencik, author of Sweet Utopia: Simply Stunning Desserts, www.sweetutopia.com
Kitchen Equipment Knife Cutting Board 9” Square Baking Pan Measuring Spoon Measuring Cup
Presentation Gently lift the bananas out of the pan, so they don’t break. Then, top them with vegan ice cream and fresh berries.
Time Management The key is to not overcook the bananas and to top them with the ice cream while they are still warm.
Where to Shop Any standard market should have the ingredients.
How It Works This recipe is a contrast of warming and cooling elements and the entire recipe is brightened by the acidity from the citrus juice, which also keeps the bananas hydrated in the oven. The cinnamon sugar should lightly caramelize as the bananas bake and the peanuts lend a satisfying crunch to an otherwise soft dessert.
Chef’s Notes This is such a simple dessert, yet it is healthful and extremely flavorful.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 391 Calories from Fat 135
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Sharon Valencik, author of Sweet Utopia: Simply Stunning Desserts, www.sweetutopia.com
Fat 15 g Total Carbohydrates 60 g Dietary Fiber 5 g Sugars 39 g Protein 4 g Salt 88 mg
Interesting Facts Bananas are slightly radioactive because of their high potassium content!
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Fresh Berries in Almond Brazil Nut Cream Brazil nuts are loaded with selenium, with just a very small handful of nuts accounting for several days’ worth of required selenium intake. Almonds are high in B vitamins and are suspected of lowering LDL counts. Type: Dessert Serves: 2 Time to Prepare: 5 minutes + 4 hours to soak the walnuts Ingredients 3 tbsp. of slivered almonds 6 Brazil nuts Water for soaking ¼ cup of water Pinch of cardamom 1 cup of fresh berries (raspberries and blackberries work well) Instructions Soak the slivered almonds and Brazil nuts in enough water to cover them for about 4 hours. Drain the water. Puree the nuts in ¼ cup of fresh water with a pinch of cardamom. Pour this over the berries.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Bowl Blender Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon
Presentation Add some chopped Brazil nuts to the top of the finished dish. You can roast them to develop a bit of extra color if you want to take the time.
Time Management The nuts can soak up to a day and the longer they soak, the smoother the cream will be.
Complementary Food and Drinks This is a nice, light dessert, particularly after a heavy meal. It goes well with a light roast coffee.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients are relatively common, though you will get the best price if you purchase the nuts out of a bulk bin. Approximate cost per serving is $2.00.
How It Works Almonds are light and sweet for a nut, while Brazil nuts have a richer, deeper flavor. This creates different notes in the cream. The nutty flavors go naturally with the berries.
Chef’s Notes This dessert is shamefully simple for how good it is. It reminds me of when I was young and used to take fresh berries and pour cream over them, but this is way better.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 194 Calories from Fat 126 Fat 14 g Total Carbohydrates 12 g Dietary Fiber 6 g Sugars 5 g
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Protein 5 g Salt 26 mg
Interesting Facts Brazil nuts are huge, growing up to 150 feet tall.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Walnut Mesquite Cookies These cookies are oil free and gluten free and they still taste like dessert! Recipes like that aren’t always that easy to come by. If you want to make them super low in fat, you can omit the walnuts. Type: Dessert Serves: 50‐60 cookies Time to Prepare: 30 minutes Ingredients 3 cups of mesquite flour ¾ tsp. of salt (try smoked sea salt for a true gourmet touch) 1 tsp. of baking powder 1 tsp. of baking soda 1 cup of fine turbinado sugar or maple crystals 3 prepared portions of EnerG Egg Replacer ½ cup of apple sauce 2 tsp. of vanilla extract 2 cups of rolled oats 2 cups of chopped walnuts Oil for the cookie sheet Instructions Combine the mesquite flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar. Prepare the EnerG Egg Replacer according to the instructions on the package. Combine this with the apple sauce and vanilla extract. Combine the apple sauce mix into the mesquite flour. Mix the oats and walnuts into the batter, creating a very stiff dough. Oil a cookie sheet. Drop about 2 tbsp. of dough per cookie onto the baking sheet. Bake these on 375 degrees for 18 minutes.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment 2 Mixing Bowls Whisk Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon 2 Cookie Sheets Oven
Presentation I don’t form these into super neat balls or disks when I drop them on the baking sheet. That way, the cookies have lots of crevices and other interesting textures to them.
Time Management It is much better to underbake these then overbake them. In fact, underbaking them by a minute or so doesn’t hurt the cookies at all.
Complementary Food and Drinks Serve these with a glass of almond milk and chile‐laced coffee.
Where to Shop Mesquite flour is not always easy to find, especially if you don’t live in the Southwest. Whole Foods occasionally has it and Central Market almost always does. You can also order it off of Amazon and in fact, there are quite a few selections in the Amazon marketplace. EnerG Egg Replacer can be found in the healthy eating section of most stores. The rest of the ingredients are fairly common. Approximate cost per dozen is $3.50.
How It Works Mesquite flour is naturally sweet, so the amount of sugar in the recipe is fairly low. It also doesn’t contain any gluten, so it can be worked as much as you want and it won’t get tough. Walnuts give a nice, light crunch to the cookies and oats give it fiber, bulk, and texture. The cookies don’t need to bake very long, just long enough to get the raw taste out of the oats and heat the cookies long enough for them to set. Applesauce in this recipe replaces the oil in a traditional cookie recipe.
Chef’s Notes Mesquite flour is fairly easy to come by in Phoenix, where I live, and I have wanted to make cookies
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
with it for awhile. They turned out even better than I expected, almost shortbread like. It was hard not to snack on the dough while I was making them. In fact, I thoroughly failed at that task.
Nutrition Facts (per cookie) Calories 90 Calories from Fat 18 Fat 2 g Total Carbohydrates 14 g Dietary Fiber 4 g Sugars 7 g Protein 4 g Salt 171 mg
Interesting Facts Mesquite flour is made from mesquite beans. Because of that, they are high in protein and eminently satisfying.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Lemon Barley Tea Lemon barley tea is also used to soothe an upset stomach and to aid with kidney problems. Barley tea consists of a high amount of beta‐glucans, which help lower serum cholesterol, and barley is also though to act as a natural anti‐biotic. Type: Drink Serves: 2 (small tea cups) Time to Prepare: 35 minutes Ingredients ½ cup of barley 4 cups of water 3 tbsp. of lemon juice 2 tbsp. of agave nectar Option: 3 tbsp. of sugar instead of agave nectar Instructions Boil the water and barley for 30 minutes. Strain the barley, reserving the liquid (a mesh colander is good for this). Mix the lemon juice and agave nectar with the barley water while it is hot.
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Kitchen Equipment Measuring Cup Measuring Spoon Medium‐sized Pot Mesh Colander Spoon Knife
Presentation I like serving this in a clear glass as the tea has a beautiful color that should be shown off. If you want to make it fancier, serve it on a small platter and you can also put a slice of lemon on the rim of the cup with a small serving holder of agave nectar or sugar and a teaspoon.
Time Management This is something that has, at most, five minutes of labor to it. Just throw the barley and water in the pot and set it to boil and walk away. Once it’s done, take a moment to strain it and stir everything together and then drink it hot. It is best if consumed immediately.
Complementary Food and Drinks This is something which should be consumed by itself or with something light. You can always add a few veggies to the left over barley and make a meal out of it.
Where to Shop All of these ingredients are fairly common and should be readily available. Approximate cost per serving is $1.00.
How It Works The barley releases a lot of its nutrients into the water as it boils, giving the broth a nutty flavor. The lemon makes the broth come to life and adds a dose of sourness to it while the sweetener turns that sourness around and makes it tangy, creating a perfectly balanced sweet and sour drink.
Chef’s Notes After making this tea, make sure to save the left over barley and use it for something else! It would make for a wonderful quick fix meal with just the addition of some sautéed mushrooms.
Nutritional Facts (individual servings in parentheses, does not include any options)
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The Vegan Culinary Experience – Education, Inspiration, Quality * www.veganculinaryexperience.com Recipe by Chef Jason Wyrick
Calories 108 Calories from Fat 0 Fat 0 g Total Carbohydrates 26 g Dietary Fiber 2 g Sugars 16 g Protein 1 g Salt 2 mg
Interesting Facts Barley was the grain of choice before wheat was domesticated. The staple of the Roman gladiators’ diet consisted of barley. Lemon barley tea is a tradition at Wimbledon.
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