A food memoir of weight loss, family recipes, digital cookbook and nutrition information for family and friends
H Robert Silverstein, MD, FACC
After 47 years as a cardiologist with 200,000 patient visits, I can firmly say that vegans are my healthiest patients. I certainly agree with you it is not easy. My position is that 90% vegan which is 19 of 21 meals a week will do just fine. Foods should be, prior to preparation, ideally organic and unprocessed whole foods exactly as they grow up out of the ground and in the field.
Sopa de Frijol con Vegetal
1/2 pound dried pinto beans
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried oregano (Mexican variety preferred), crumbled
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic (medium), finely chopped
1 can tomatoes, fine dice
2 teaspoons chili powder
pinch salt
1. Pick over the beans carefully and remove any foreign particles. Put the beans in a strainer and rinse under cold running water. Put the beans, bay leaf, oregano, and cumin in a large saucepan with water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the beans are tender and the liquid thickens, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Do not let the beans boil dry. Check the water level during cooking and add hot water, when needed, about 1/4 cup at a time. There should always be about 1/2 inch of water above the level of the beans.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat in a medium skillet and cook the onion, stirring, until it browns, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomatoes, and ground chili. Cook, stirring, until the tomato juices evaporate, 2 to 3 minutes. When the beans are tender, add the onion mixture to the beans. Add salt, and continue cooking for about 20 minutes to blend flavors. Remove the bay leaf, and serve hot.
Adapted from the original meatless recipe found in “1,000 Mexican Recipes.” Copyright 2001 by Marge Powe, Wiley Publishing, Inc.
Tips
I love pinto beans and found this recipe a long time ago. When the offspring were little I didn’t fix beans at home. I got my bean fix when we went out for Tex-Mex and gorged myself on the refried variety. Nowadays as an Aging Wonder I tend to eat a lot healthier than during my younger days. Give me a good bowl of beans and I’m a happy camper.
Check back for updates and tips on this soup recipe. I’ve got beans on the stove and I am absolutely positive I no longer follow the recipe as written.
Update
Substitute Mayocabo beans instead of pinto beans.
That’s it. That’s the update.
Eating a variety of unprocessed fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes is key when it comes to maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.
Although high intakes of red and processed meats may increase risk of major diseases, a healthy, balanced, plant-based diet can still include small amounts of lean meat trimmed of visible fat (particularly unprocessed white meat) and reduced-fat dairy products.
Source: Why You Should Eat a Plant-Based Diet, But That Doesn’t Mean Being a Vegetarian | SciTech Connect
Sounds a lot like Chinese food if you ask me.
Source: Substituting Beans for Beef Would Help the U.S. Meet Climate Goals – The Atlantic
This article link is for all of my militant Vegan readers.
Enjoy.
Spinach and kale are favorites of those looking to stay physically fit, but they also could keep consumers cognitively fit, according to a new study. The study, which included 60 adults aged 25 to 45, found that middle-aged participants with higher levels of lutein — a nutrient found in green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale, as well as avocados and eggs — had neural responses that were more on par with younger individuals than with their peers.
Source: Lutein, found in leafy greens, may counter cognitive aging — ScienceDaily
Today I made a warehouse club run. I needed mineral water, coffee, and…spinach. Seriously, I just bought a huge tub of organic spinach. I have no clue what I’m going to use the spinach for but at least I’ll be improving my neural responses.
Kale? No thanks.
Source: 88-Year-Old Vegan Climbs Kilimanjaro
That’s 19,341 elevation. One of my offspring lives and works in Aspen CO. He climbs fourteeners for fun. But the offspring is 27.5. This dude is 88!
It’s been two months since I posted a recipe. Too many interesting research articles, bunnies, work…the list is endless. Well the drought is over. I had leftover mashed potatoes in the fridge and told myself “I am not going to waste perfectly fine leftover mashed potatoes”. I hopped online to find a decent potato pancake recipe. But instead, I stumbled on a quiche recipe that used instant mashed potatoes for the crust. One of my go to recipes is frittata that has plenty of potatoes in it. So why not quiche?
Trigger Warning for Easily Offended Militant Vegans
Stop reading now. This recipe has eggs and dairy.
You’ll need:
3 tablespoons EVO
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
1 small (or half a large) sweet onion, chopped
2 cups frozen organic chopped spinach, thawed & drained
2 large mushrooms (white button or baby bella) sliced thin
4 large eggs
1 cup organic half and half
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Two dashes nutmeg
salt & pepper
Slice & serve.
Tips
Why yes, of course you can add cooked diced bacon at step 8.5. Swiss instead of cheddar would be an excellent substitute. If you don’t have any leftover mashed potatoes by all means use one of those deep dish frozen pie shells. If you add bacon and use a frozen pie crust this recipe becomes my world famous spinach quiche that I’ve been making for years. But as I move along the spectrum to more of a WFPB diet I’ve been leaving the bacon out.
I’m not quite sure how I would make this pie palatable for my easily offended militant vegan readers. I need to think about this a little more.
People often call my mother’s recovery a miracle. And while I understand the sentiment, I believe the miraculous thing may be that so much illness could be avoided if people could only move from foods that hurt to foods that heal.
Source: From Hospice to Healthy: How a Plant-Based Diet Saved My Mom’s Life
Great story about love and plants.
“It’s moving people along a continuum, whether people are eating red meat every day and you ask them to start eating a little more white meat, or they’re already on a white meat kick and it’s a little bit more seafood, or moving even further along to alternative proteins or produce. You can’t expect everyone to start loving lentils day one,” Giambastiani says. “Some do, most don’t. What you’re trying to do instead is get people to think about that continuum.”
Source: Google’s Quest To Develop A Plant-Based “Power Dish” More Popular Than Meat
Google? Wow.
In summary, randomized controlled trials that lowered intake of dietary saturated fat and replaced it with polyunsaturated vegetable oil reduced CVD by ≈30%, similar to the reduction achieved by statin treatment. Prospective observational studies in many populations showed that lower intake of saturated fat coupled with higher intake of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat is associated with lower rates of CVD and of other major causes of death and all-cause mortality.
Eat more plants. Eat less of this stuff.
For those readers inclined to go deeper there is a link to the full study report on the AHA website link above.
And for readers who want an opposite point of view go to the article below.
Source: Op-Ed: Vegetable Oils, (Francis) Bacon, Bing Crosby, and the AHA | Medpage Today
garyskitchen.net 