English Muffin Pizza and Thoughts and Stats on Protein and Inexpensive Healthy Eating

I'm a believer that your life is as complicated as you make it.  Now maybe that statement is over-simplifying things a little, or a lot, but it's true to a certain point.  I think the same is with cooking for your family.  I find cooking an outlet for my creativity.  But every meal doesn't have to be something new and different if you don't want it to be.  I think the best formula for people trying to lose weight, people on the go, or people living with carnivores while they themselves are attempting to be an omnivore/herbivore can be soup and salad.  It's a simple formula but can be as complex, light or filling, and as interesting as you like.  Grill/skillet/bake a piece of meat for anyone that thinks they need it, and you all have supper together.

There are endless salad and soup recipes/ideas.  Lucky for me my husband likes everything I make us, and doesn't care if there's no meat on the table.  As long as it's filling, tasty and satisfying I don't see how anyone could complain about what they're being fed.  The American notion that meat should be at every meal or every day is deep-rooted in our history and therefore understandable.  Kings ate meat, paupers didn't.  Now everyone can eat like a king thanks to factory farming!  But sadly, eating like the affluent has brought with it the 'diseases of affluence' (heart disease, cancer, etc.)

I'm loving all the new studies proving that it is best to 'eat meat sparingly', to eat foods that are in season, and eat grains of the earth.  Eating meat should be reserved for times of famine or cold. It's a very compact source of energy and calories that definitely has its place.  Most of us though, most of the time, aren't hurting for lack of calories in our day.  As I listened to health leacture by a friend, Dr. Tracy Gibbs, a few years ago, I learned that a big portion of Americans are malnourished.  Not meaning that they lack for calories, but they lack nutrition, vitamins, anti-oxidants, fiber, and water.  I also love all the studies proving that we don't need as much protein as we think we do, that too much protein is harmful, and that vegetables have as much protein per calorie as meat 1.  This site lays out the stats nicely.

Here's a simple dish I threw together for today's lunch.  It's a whole wheat english muffin, topped with some Newman's Own spaghetti sauce, thinly sliced zucchini and tomatoes, put under the broiler for a few minutes.  I guess it's just like my pita pizza non-recipe.

Remember, eating healthy does not need to be complicated.  It can be simple if you want it to be.  And even though real food prices are rising, I still think eating healthier is less expensive than eating junk food and meat and dairy.  A bag of chips is more expensive than a bag of potatoes.  And I could definitely eat a whole bag of chips and still be hungry but not eat a whole bag of potatoes in one sitting.  Since changing to cooking vegan my grocery bill has lowered by about 15-20 percent.  I love this site "Raw on $10 a Day" that proves how inexpensive healthy eating can be.  In the long term we know it's cheaper.  Any middle age/ elderly person will tell you how much their pills cost and I'm sure that some of those pills could be avoided with some dietary changes.

A Second Opinion on Learning Disorders and Autism Diagnosis

The other day Dairy Free Betty posted an amazing video from the TED website, here.  It's absolutely amazing and the results could be life changing for many.  Well, it already has been, but I hope it will be for many more.

Inspiration: Vegan Hope

I'm so inspired by this gal on www.veganhope.com and I love the article she posted called " The difference between a “junk food vegan” and a “whole foods vegan” (By John Pierre)  She lost 200 lbs going plant based and her husband lost 90!


Her facebook read, the other day: "Today I went to the eye dr for a check up. I was able to see my eyes, and how they look after being on a healthy vegan diet for almost 2 years. It was yet another affirmation about the way I've decided to live our life. I have no more eye damage from out of control diabetes, and my vision has actually drastically improved.


My husband told me that he remembers crying after one of my eye dr. appointments because he realized what they were saying was that one day I would not be able to see him. Today, that fear is something we never have to worry about again. This way of living and eating does not just control a disease, it heals and cures it - there is no better feeling."

Check out her site for more inspiration and the post reminding us to eat whole foods, not 'vegan' labelled junk food!

Green Smoothies (or pink, or purple, or..)

A friend and I were talking about green smoothies today (because I was drinking one) which reminded me I had this half-composed post about smoothies from a while ago.  Green smoothies are, I think, the easiest, tastiest way to get more vegetables (and fruits) into your/your family's diet.  It's pretty much just whatever fruits and veggies you want, (some do just vegetables and no fruit) mixed into smoothie form.  I've blogged about them before here, but I thought we could use a reminder.

This has been my go-to smoothie for a while now:

-a couple handfuls of spinach/kale/or other leafy greens

-some non-diary milk/maybe a little lite coconut milk/water/coconut water

-peaches or pineapple (a small amount-fresh or canned)

-and frozen strawberries or cherries.  Blend in a blender and serve (does not have to be an expensive Blen-tec or Vita-mix!)

My kids have gotten more fond of green smoothies as time has passed.  They get excited when they hear the blender.  I switched up my regular recipe with this 'hot pink smoothie' the other day:

-1 beet (fresh)

-some non-dairy milk

-a few prunes

-some frozen strawberries

My 7 year old's reaction (after asking if she could have some ice in it...I said 'hot' pink smoothie right?) was "This is the best smoothie i've had in my whole entire life!"  I'm thinking the color may have been the reason she was so in love with it.

It really is the best sweet treat out there.  I choose to do my daily (every-other-daily? -ish?) meditation outside, sitting in the sun (I live in Arizona,) drinking my green smoothie.  It is the best therapy.  And even when it's not great weather outside, or I don't have time to sit for a minute, it makes a great mini-meal on the road in a water bottle.  I drink one (or more a day.)

I save money by buying that huge bag of spinach from Costco, putting a couple handfuls in freezer baggies and storing in the freezer.  I just put the spinach leaves in raw; I smash flat, freeze, and then grab them out of the freezer and stick in my blender at smoothie time.


I store a lot of veggies in the freezer and save money not letting produce go bad.  If something looks like it's going to turn and I haven't used it yet, I dice it up and stick it in the freezer.  They've always come out tasting great (squash, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes) and come in handy pre-chopped and ready to go in something great like lasagna or soup.  So don't be afraid to buy too much produce.  It's cheaper, per pound, than any food I know of (packaged food, diary, meat etc.) and now you won't have to be afraid that you'll waste it.

A great resource is Robyn, of www.greensmoothiegirl.com (although there are lots of others who make green smoothies too.)  She teaches people how to transition to a whole foods diet, and although I've never bought her books, I like to read her blog and learn a lot from her you tube video recipes.

I grew some food!

I'm so excited I grew something in this desert I live in (Arizona)! These tomatoes are so sweet and have a really soft, buttery texture. They are so good!

My New Goal

I now have a new goal every time I go to the grocery store: to get something from the produce section I've never gotten before and learn to cook with it. Today it was bok choy, which I hear is one of the top cancer-fighting veggies thanks to it's antioxidants called "glucosinolate" and "indole." I've eaten a lot of it but never actually cooked with it myself. So I recreated these Morning Star veggie cakes that I love. They turned out really well! I look forward to discovering more produce- parsnips, swiss chard and sunchokes, here I come.

Decide to eat a plant based diet for 21 days with the 21 day Vegan Kickstart Program by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

This looks like a fun program to try whether you are already vegan and just looking for new recipes and ideas to get excited about what you're doing, or if you are wanting to try something new to improve your health. It starts September 8th but you can sign up now. I like the PCRM site (http://pcrm.org/) and they have a lot of good information, but keep in mind that they do get pretty political on some stuff, so if that bothers you just ignore it!

http://support.pcrm.org/site/PageServer?pagename=21day_vegan_kickstart

THE Book

"The China Study" Description

The science is clear. The results are unmistakable.
Change your diet and dramatically reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
Respected nutrition and health researcher, Dr. T. Colin Campbell reveals the truth behind special interest groups, government entities and scientists that have taken Americans down a deadly pathEven today, as the low-carb craze sweeps the nation, two-thirds of adults are still obese and children are being diagnosed with Type II diabetes, typically an “adult” disease, at an alarming rate. If we’re eating healthier, why are Americans stricken with heart disease as much as we were 30 years ago?Drawing on the project findings in rural China, but going far beyond those findings, The China Study details the connection between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes and cancer. The report also examines the source of nutritional confusion produced by powerful lobbies, government entities, and opportunistic scientists. The New York Times has recognized the study (China-Oxford-Cornell Diet and Health Project) as the “Grand Prix of epidemiology” and the “most comprehensive large study ever undertaken of the relationship between diet and the risk of developing disease.”“After a long career in research and policy-making, I have decided to step ‘out of the system.’ I have decided to disclose why Americans are so confused,” said Dr. Campbell. “As a taxpayer who foots the bill for research and health policy in America, you deserve to know that many of the common notions you have been told about food, health and disease are wrong.”
“I propose to do nothing less than redefine what we think of as good nutrition. You need to know the truth about food, and why eating the right way can save your life.”Early in his career as a researcher with MIT and Virginia Tech, Dr. Campbell worked to promote better health by eating more meat, milk and eggs -- “high-quality animal protein … It was an obvious sequel to my own life on the farm and I was happy to believe that the American diet was the best in the world.”He later was a researcher on a project in the Philippines working with malnourished children. The project became an investigation for Dr. Campbell, as to why so many Filipino children were being diagnosed with liver cancer, predominately an adult disease. The primary goal of the project was to ensure that the children were getting as much protein as possible.“In this project, however, I uncovered a dark secret. Children who ate the highest protein diets were the ones most likely to get liver cancer...” He began to review other reports from around the world that reflected the findings of his research in the Philippines.Although it was “heretical to say that protein wasn’t healthy,” he started an in-depth study into the role of nutrition, especially protein, in the cause of cancer.The research project culminated in a 20-year partnership of Cornell University, Oxford University, and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, a survey of diseases and lifestyle factors in rural China and Taiwan. More commonly known as the China Study, “this project eventually produced more than 8000 statistically significant associations between various dietary factors and disease.” The findings? “People who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease … People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest and tended to avoid chronic disease. These results could not be ignored,” said Dr. Campbell.In The China Study, Dr. Campbell details the connection between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, and also its ability to reduce or reverse the risk or effects of these deadly illnesses. The China Study also examines the source of nutritional confusion produced by powerful lobbies, government entities, and irresponsible scientists.The China Study is not a diet book. Consumers are bombarded with conflicting messages regarding health and nutrition; the market is flooded with popular titles like The Atkins Diet and The South Beach Diet. The China Study cuts through the haze of misinformation and delivers an insightful message to anyone living with cancer, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and those concerned with the effects of aging. Additionally, he challenges the validity of these low-carb fad diets and issues a startling warning to their followers.

http://www.thechinastudy.com/about.html