Garden to Plate!

Produce fresh from the garden--or grocery store, farmers market, freezer--just get those greens and veggies onto your plate!  You don't have to wash and slice and dice: ladling heated chili from a can (Trader Joe's has some fabulous vegan selections) over a bed of pre-washed greens from a bag does the trick. Those greens came from a garden... and are now on your plate! For delicious holiday recipes (requiring a bit more effort but still quick and easy!) click here.

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9 Servings a Day!

We know we're supposed to eat fruits and vegetables every day--the Center for Disease  Control recommends 9 servings minimum: 4 fruit and 5 vegetable. But what does that actually look like on your plate? Here's a photo of 4 servings of fruit (a large apple is 2 servings!):

and a photo of 5 servings of vegetables. (btw: when I got done photographing the vegetables, I ate them all for lunch!)

If you're finding it a challenge to fit all those health-boosting foods into your daily fare, round them all up in the morning and build your meals and snacks around them. It'll take away the guesswork and free your mind (and conscience)!

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Joy of Indian Cuisine!

Ready for another vegan-friendly restaurant adventure? Parma's Cuisine of India is a great spot for an abundant and well-priced lunch buffet, or more leisurely evening dinner. The staff are attentive and familiar with vegan requests -- and will whip up a batch of vegan naan for you! Before the lunch buffet, I  perused the well-stocked shelves of the India Grocer next door -- great prices, fabulous selections of authentic Indian ingredients, and vegetables I'd never seen before! I'll be going again this week to get the ingredients for all the tantalizing Indian recipes now featuring on PCRM's 21-Day Kickstart India.

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My first pass through the lunch buffet with all vegan selections!

Gorgeous long beans at the India Grocer next door.

Allow time to check out the myriad fresh and prepared selections. This is just a sampling!

Local Vegan/Vegan-Friendly Eats!

Two fabulous spots in Cleveland to enjoy someone else's cooking and a change of scene: Flaming Ice Cube, and The Root Cafe. Both provide a comfortably casual atmosphere, friendly service, and delicious vegan food! The Flaming Ice Cube is near Old  Stone Church, so you can visit a beautiful historic Cleveland landmark and spiritual oasis right in the hub of downtown. Sitting at one of the huge windows of The Root Cafe, in Lakewood, was a great spot for people watching -- like sitting at an outdoor French cafe! Here's what we ate at a recent visit to The Root, from top to bottom: House Beans and Rice with Broccoli and a ring of dressed kale; Wet Burrito with house made enchilada sauce; Raw Kale Chips; and the day's Special salad of Spinach, Blueberries and Bananas with Hemp Seeds (great combo!). Delish!
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Valentine's Day = Pecan Pie!

If you want to WOW your Significant Other, make them this pie! That's my SO's Victory hand signal in front of the pie I made for him over Christmas. A born pecan pie lover -- and later, a true plant-based eater -- he thought his pecan pie-eating days were over. Not so, thanks to Isa Moskowitz, who has once again come up with food perfection in her veganized version: Maple Pecan Pie!  Make it even easier by using, like I did, a frozen vegan pie shell. Happy "V" day!

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Who Loves Hummus?

Jennifer Reilly, RD, co-author of The Cancer Survivor's Guide (see sidebar), has partnered with Trader Joe's and now has her own cookbook -- Skinny Dish! -- with the tag line: Lip-smacking, pound-shedding food you'll crave like a shipwrecked sailor! which totally captures her way of making healthy plant-based nutrition the most fun since... you name it! I demo'd her "I (Heart) Hummus" recipe for a recent Lunch-n-Learn and it was fabulous -- even better the next day! You can use hummus in so many ways: a dip for raw veggies or whole wheat pita bread; spread on a tortilla, covered with any amount or combination of chopped veggies, spinach, sprouts, seeds, and salsa, wrap it up (if you can!) and you've got lunch; or lose the high-fat mayo and slather in sandwiches and on veggie burgers. Low-fat, high-fiber, excellent protein -- what's not to love? You'll love her blog, too!



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