Picture! Me with Dr. Joel Kahn, Vegan Cardiologist!!!

Joel Kahn, M.D.   and    Me  on 1/29/2015!

Thats me, down 27% of my body weight since the same time last year with my friend, Dr. Joel Kahn the vegan cardiologist who inspired me to become totally plant based.  Joel is not my doctor, but I started reading his posts over a year ago. It made a lot of sense to make the change now rather than wait for things to start going wrong later.  He's holding some food I made for him, but he's really nice even if you don't feed him.
He is a best selling author (The Whole Heart Solution), writes for Readers Digest, The Huffington Post, Tweets, Blogs, lectures, teaches at the Medical School and posts on Facebook.  He's hard to miss!
Click here or cut and paste the link to learn more about him. See if a plant based lifestyle makes sense to you:
http://www.drjoelkahn.com/2013/dr-joel-kahn/

It can make a dramatic difference in your life.
Works for me!!!

Me in  January 2014

Soul Food! Vegan Stuffed Collard Greens with Dried Cherries

Vegan Stuffed Collard Greens

Vegan Stuffed Collards with Sriracha and Dried Cherries

Last night my wife, Shelley,  and I attended a Plant Based Nutrition Support Group Meeting (www.pbnsg.org) featuring Dr. Esselstyn and his family.  In addition to all the great science, we were challenged to try a variety of green leafy vegetables.  

Shelley surprised me after work with a whole counter loaded with colorful veggies!

I immediately washed my hands, picked out baby spinach, kale, parsley, carrots, celery, leeks, a sweet red pepper, garlic, half a habanero pepper, white pepper, paprika, fresh tomatoes, snap peas, soy and teriyaki sauce and a potato all chopped and boiled in a large pot with 12 cups of water.  I let it simmer for an hour  until half the water was reduced.  The cooked veggies where strained thoroughly and the liquid was kept as soup stock for another day.
I cooked 1 cup of brown rice in 2 cups of water with  a tsp of cumin letting it simmer covered 45 minutes and left it covered for an additional 20 minutes.
I wilted some large collard leaves in boiling water and layed them flat.
I mashed the cooked veggies and rice together until it clumped like a hamburger patty then wrapped some up in the wilted collard green.  I wrapped the rolled leaves in wet paper towel and microwaved them for 3 minutes.   I let them cool and topped them with sriracha sauce and dried cherries.  The sweetness of the cherries delightfully compliments the heat of the peppers.
It was a lot of work but so worth it.
Hopefully, you'll try it and let me know how it came out!

Hospital Food Will Put You There!

I'm on staff at several hospitals which require quarterly attendance at early morning meetings . Its a chance to catch up on what's been going on, earn a Continuing Medical Education credit hour and have a little time to relax with the Hospital's Residents.  Breakfast is always included.  

Today's choices:

Scrambled eggs, Sausage links, Hash browns, Bacon.

HELLO?  Where's the fruit?  Usually there's a big fruit salad or at least some apples, oranges and bananas. This is a big Hospital on the brink of merging with 2 bigger hospitals.  You would think they would have put some thought into the wellness of their own staff!  

I complained to whomever would listen and sat down grumbling over a  dry blueberry bagel and black coffee.  By the way, blueberry bagels do not contain egg, so it wasn't a total loss.

I watched my colleagues chow down enthusiastically on their full plates as we half  listened to a lecture on skin cancer, and they quietly discussed their own personal challenges with weight problems, cholesterol and heart disease.   

Last night, I attended a lecture by Caldwell Esselstyn, M.D. and his family at our local Plant Based Nutrition Support Group (www.pbnsg.org).  Check out the web site. Great source of information and recipes under the "Food" tab.  Dr. Esselstyn, of the Cleveland Clinic, lectured on halting and reversing heart disease and diabetes simply by adhering to a plant based diet and eating no oil.

If you ever get a chance to attend one of his lectures, do it!  His plan is based on good, solid science and large studies supporting him.  His down to earth style is compelling and persuasive. I didn't need to be persuaded; I'm already reaping the benefits!  

Next lecture I'm going to attend will have Joel Kahn, M.D., author of  The Whole Heart Solution who got me started and continues to support and inspire me.

Hope to see you there!!!

My 34 inch waist!

Baked Falafel Plated for Dinner

I'm my own worst critic and needed to make my vegan dinner look pretty for blogging.  I took my baked falafel, sliced it and plated it over lettuce with sliced tomatoes seasoned with rosemary and red wine vinegar.  Its very filling and delicious!
Now its pretty too!

You're welcome, everyone!

Falafel Baked Into a Pita!!!

Baked Falafel

Tuesday night and I got this crazy idea:

What if I roll out some pita dough, stuff it like a dumpling with fresh, uncooked falafel with a little Daiya cheddar substitute and bake it?

It worked!

I tried a few things in the pocket;  cheddar, jalapeño, sriracha and various combination there of.

All good.  I'm just getting started!!!

Falafel for Lunch! Fatoush Salad with Sliced Strawberries on the Side.

My Variation:1 can of drained chickpeas, 1/2 large sweet onion, chopped (1 cup), 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, 6 slices of Jalapeno pepper, 1 TBSP white vinegar , 4 cloves of garlic, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 6 tablespoons whole grain flour 

(adding cilantro about 2 TBS is optional, but I'm not a fan.)

Put everything in a blender or food processor and pulse it until its a rough texture but not pureed. Put it in a bowl and let it sit for at least 30 minutes. If its too gooey, knead in a little flour until you can form it into balls and it doesn't stick to your fingers.

I make patties out of it and like to bake it on parchment paper at 375* for about 10 minutes. The patties are great by themselves or you can put them into a pita pocket with tahini, lettuce, peppers, onions, tomatoes or whatever.  (Traditionally, its formed into walnut sized balls and fried in hot oil until golden brown, but I'm staying away from oil.)

As an alternative, I make my own Pita dough (flour, salt, yeast and water), put the falafel mixture in the center, close it up and bake it at 475* for 5 minutes. I like to put a slice of jalapeno in with it.  But that's me.

Its fun to make!  Enjoy!

Pictures of me at 54 weeks a Vegan!

Well, I just weighed in under 200 lbs for the first time in about 35 years!
Here I am today:

1/14/2015

11/24/2013

Because I eat like this:

chili and salad

sweet potato salad

chili, "cheddar" and baked potato

veggie spaghetti, mushrooms, snap peas

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That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Take a look at Joel Kahn, M.D.'s book too.  Its available to download now, I'm told. Cut and paste the link.....

http://www.amazon.com/Whole-Heart-Solution-Alternative-Traditional-ebook/dp/B00IQ8QS54/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421260907&sr=8-1&keywords=whole+heart+book