Freekah, Farro, and Kamut

At a potluck event, I brought my usual quinoa salad. Another person brought a similar salad with a meatier taste. I loved it. I asked her what she used in place of quinoa, she told me about the grain Freekah.

I am in love with Freekah. Bob's Red Mill has reasonable prices on it. It is a delicious grain that is high in protein, it is considered a prebiotic. It has other nutrients as well. Freekah is a great alternative to quinoa and it won't give you the gas cramps that many get from quinoa. It does not need to be soaked. According to the package it cooks in 20 minutes...I usually cook mine longer but I am at a high altitude.

After falling in love with Freekah, I tried Farro and Kamut. Both of these I soak overnight in water. Once soaked, the cooking time for farro is about 10 minutes..it is really yummy too. Kamut reminds me of shelled piñons. After cooking it resembles the loom of a shelled piñon. Both of these grains are really yummy...high in protein. They are great meat replacements in vegetarian diets...or supplements in omnivorous diets.

When you place an order with Bob's Red Mill for Freekah, get a bag of Farro and Kamut, you will be happy that you did.

Vegan food review Hilary's Veggie Burgers

Going vegetarian or vegan is easier now more than ever. There are wonderful meat substitute options. My gang love their veggie burgers. One of my favorite brands is Hilary's . I think the adzuki bean burger is really delicious. These taste best when heated in your frying pan with a small amount of oil. The taste is fantastic. This is a veggie burger that even a meat lover will enjoy. Put it on a whole wheat bun with lettuce and tomato and your body and tastebuds will thank you.

We buy these at Sprouts. Natural Grocer might also sell them.

 

Awesome one pot vegan cooking

It is great to find an easy, fun to make, vegan dish.   The recipe by Martha Stewart is once such recipe.   Just omit the Parmesan cheese at the end.   It works perfectly with whole wheat pasta.   The starch of the past makes a bit of a sauce.

http://www.marthastewart.com/1083334/martha-stewarts-one-pot-pasta-recipe

This recipe can be very low fat if you reduce the olive oil!

Giving up animal products is the easy part

Switching to plant based food is tough at times.   Giving up meat and animal products is the easy part...there are tons of unhealthy vegan processed or junk foods out there.   For all purposes potato chips are vegan...tortilla chips.    Chips and guacamole are a vegan food...but it is not a healthy food.   There are many overweight vegans out there..giving up meat and animal products will not necessarily make you thin.   The switch to fruits and vegetables and unprocessed food is what helps...no margarine on that whole wheat bread... And not too much bread, as in many ways it is a processed food. 

  If you spend your days eating broccoli, cauliflower, peas, spinach, and beans..and eating your fruits and vegetables in their natural forms..your body will feel better.. This is what is key to whole foods, plant based living.  Giving up the ease of processed food is definitely the tough part.  I find bulk cooking spaghetti squash helps ... As I can add veggies and beans to it later for a quick lunch.

Green beans are one of my favorite snacks.. I love the bags that steam in the microwave.  

Whole food plant based living

This post is something I want to share with everyone.

One of the many emails I get contained a link to a web site that I feel blessed to know about.

It is http://www.nutritionfacts.org 

The site contains a lot of information about food and it's positive and negative affects on humans. Dr. Greger is all about the science and if new science proves the old science wrong.. He will try to let you know. There are no hidden agendas on this site, just healthy living for all.

His book is fantastic but if you cannot afford it a lot of the information is on the web site in video and articles for all. He has a free email list that gives you a weekly article or video on nutrition. It is a great way to start.

What a gift for all humans.

 

Two weeks - plant based whole foods diet

Well it has been well over two weeks of plant based whole foods diet switch. I feel great. Do not miss meat at all. The challenge of this diet is not eating processed food. There are a lot of vegan processed foods out there... Every day I make myself eat a huge bowl of greens for dinner...if I forget I have it for breakfast. Organic Girl Super Greens are awesome and they are already washed. For lunch I use my old standby Spaghetti Squash. I mix these up by adding different things... Beans, Salsa, Tomatoes, broccoli, spinach, carrots, ..etc all kinds of veggies. Breakfast is everything from oatmeal, tofu scramble, or a portabello sandwich. Sometimes I spurge with rice, quinoa..etc.

Tips for switching to a plant based whole foods diet:

For smaller folks you still need to measure and watch portion size with beans and whole grains like quinoa, rice, ..etc.

Why would anyone quit on this diet ? Easy ITS MORE WORK! Grabbing cottage cheese or a yogurt is way easier. Take time to take care of yourself!

Cooked beans are way tastier than canned. They can be cooked easily in a crock pot.

For now grocery shopping takes a lot longer.

It ok not to be religious about the vegan part. If you happen to buy organic tomato soup and notice it has milk in it.. Go ahead and eat it. This is a lifestyle change.

Watch fat intake..hummus can have a lot of fat and calories! So do nuts.

Getting rid of GMO's and eating more organic unprocessed food is the goal.

If it's too hard try simply adding more plants to every meal.. You will end up eating less of the other stuff.