Are you curious about going vegan? Perhaps you’re already in transition to a plant-based diet and you find the process — and the food — distasteful. You’re not alone!
Over a decade ago, I started radically transitioning to a fully plant-based diet. It was not difficult for me because I learned that vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, legumes, and nuts and seeds not only provide optimal nutrition but help to detoxify the body of poisons we choose (and don't choose, like environmental poisons) to put into our body. At the same time, I was shocked to find out that eating animal flesh and animal products like cheese, milk, and eggs leads to numerous health problems for the vast majority of people consuming them: Heart disease, obesity, cancer, and more. That information was powerful enough for me to make a rapid change.
But as I delved into “vegan” cooking, I learned very quickly that most recipes on the internet and in vegan cookbooks are just terrible. These foods are nutritionally weak, lacking texture and flavor. Most of them rely on huge amounts of processed fats, refined sugars, refined flours, and shakers full of salt to make the food somewhat palatable, while adding a lot of empty calories.
That’s not how I roll. My approach is to make food that is nutrient dense, delicious, and filling. You saw it in my logo: Smart, Sexy, Nutritious!
Don’t get me wrong, I am not a purist. I do indulge occasionally in packaged foods like sausages and crunchy snacks. But those are not the bulk of my caloric intake; I treat those packaged foods more like condiments in my diet.
When I was around 11 years old, I started reading nutritional information labels on food packaging. I saw all those chemicals and I knew that ingesting them could not possibly lead to truly good health. Sadly, my mother did not embrace my search for healthier options, and I was left to make my own meals. In the late 80s, when I moved to California, I ditched animal milk except for a rare dessert and some cheese, and I sparingly ate meat, chicken, and fish. I was careful when choosing any packaged foods, watching out for chemical additives and the numerous names for sugar and corn syrup. Knowing that I had been severely damaged from all that garbage, I also began jogging: Not extreme-sports-like running but 20-25 minutes a few days each week to assist with the detox process.
Then, around 2008, I learned the majority of my nutrient-dense cooking and eating fundamentals from Dr. Joel Fuhrman. He bucks the standard medical model for the most part, basing his practice on The China Study and data from his own patients, who, following his advice, have mitigated diseases like obesity, cancer, diabetes, atherosclerosis, and even IBD, rheumatoid arthritis, and depression by simply changing to a 90% or more whole-food plant-based diet that he calls Nutritarian.
Most importantly, I didn’t just read his books: I did the experiment myself to collect my own data. In just 6 weeks, I shed 27 pounds and increased my health status to the point where doctors were dumbfounded that lab reports came back showing me in optimal health (they had previously assumed that my rapid weight loss was disease-related). In the same fashion, my husband lost 42 pounds and all previous pre-diabetes and other disease indicators. At the time, I ditched all dairy, eggs, and meat (my husband still ate some very rarely), and we ate seafood once or twice each week.
Finally, we took the plunge into a fully vegan diet on January 1, 2020.
So this is my thing: I am not here to persuade you to go all-in on eating only plant-based food. I’m just going to share what I know because it works for me and my husband. You have free will, so you decide if going vegan or mostly vegan is for you or not, or if you want to dabble, maybe try one recipe a week.
But I’ll be honest: It takes the brain a while to re-wire from eating the rich-tasting, addictive foods that we’ve consumed as “normal,” to enjoying the nutrient dense food that Mother Nature provides for our bodies. Most of us have become addicted to highly processed, chemical-laden, food-like substances. The brain needs time to adjust — during the detoxification and reorientation process — to what we are divinely designed to consume! Six weeks is the perfect amount of transition time.
All that said, I have two levels for you if you decide to subscribe to Va-Va-Vegan News & Recipes:
OPTION 1:
Subscribe for free and receive occasional basic nutrition information, tips for doing vegan-at-home right. Bonus: I’ll share some related personal stories!
OPTION 2:
Become a paid subscriber at $21/month, and you get access to everything I have learned about the plant-based lifestyle! At least twice each month, I’ll post a new recipe, walking you step-by-step through the process. PLUS, you’ll benefit immensely from my nearly 13 years of experience and expertise in detailed articles containing:
Recipes in every category: Appetizers, Salads and Dressings, Side Dishes, Entrées, Desserts, Breakfasts and Smoothies, Cheeses and Dips, Sauces, Meat Substitutes, Fermented Foods, and Extras
Advanced information on nutrition
Tips for meal planning and grocery shopping
Kitchen tools primer
How to stock your refrigerator, freezer, spice cabinet, and pantry
Audio recordings of my posts, as I get them up and running
Tips on social eating (dining out, parties, etc.)
Attain inside knowledge on why cooking at home in the nutritarian way is superior to eating highly processed foods. Discover how natural intact fats, herbs, and spices — not salt and pressed oils — are the key to true palate pleasure. Find out which fats, carbs, and sugars are healthful for the body. Know that you’re not alone: Many people report that their biggest barrier to going plant-based is “I can’t give up cheese.” Learn science-backed nutrition essentials that the FDA and most medical professionals don’t want you to know. Realize that I’m not a licensed doctor who prescribes pills to “cure” your ills.
I started Va-Va-Vegan because cooking and eating a whole-food plant-based diet works for my husband and me in our real, everyday experience! I want to share that experience with you for your benefit.
Here’s the bottom line: I can make it a heck of a lot easier for you to cook great tasting, nutrient-dense, plant-based food at home. So don’t waste your time or money on more YouTube videos, cookbooks, or guesswork. Join me to streamline your experience and have more fun planning, shopping, cooking, and eating!
In the next post, I will share a recipe and talk a little bit more about myself and my journey so far.
Wishing you excellent health and well-being.💖
mmm looks amazing. I've been whole food plant based vegan for animals 8 and a half years xxx