18 Months a Vegan. Pictures before and after

September 2013

August 2014

    That's me in September 2013 on the left and me August 3, 2015 on the right.  Weight loss is achievable and sustainable.  I didn't have surgery, take a magic pill, join a gym or get hypnotherapy. All I did was spent some time reading about a whole foods plant based way to eat, bought 1(one) cookbook to get some basics, set a date and changed course.       
     It took about 3 months to unlearn what I thought was a healthy diet and accept that everything my body needs can be provided by plants.  I lost 40 lbs in 2 months.  Then I learned about calorie dense, nutrient poor, harmful food like oil. Make no mistake; there is no such thing as healthy oil. Learning to cook without it took less than a minute. No kidding.  The list of alternatives to oil is long and deliciously simple.  I picked vegetable soup stock for cooking and applesauce or bananas for baking. When I cut down on nuts, which are healthy but calorie dense, my weight loss gained momentum.
      After a year I plateaued.  THAT's when I joined a gym and started getting some exercise.  You can't out exercise a bad diet, but you can benefit tremendously from exercise and a healthy diet.  I broke through my plateau and lost an additional 15 lbs.  Now I'm 13 lbs away from my goal of losing an even 100.  Now, in the home stretch, I'm drinking more water.
     I didn't start out with a step by step plan.  There was that 1st step that put me in motion.  The steps that followed were small and simple. I learned by making mistakes, reaching out for guidance and making small changes that led to more small changes.  When you put a lot of small changes together, EVERYTHING changes!

Dr. Kalmus
01Reluctantvegan.blogspot.com

Hospital Food, Will Put You There, Round 3

Hospital Staff Buffet

Round 1:

For those of you who missed my previous post about the food hospitals provide to their own staff (Hospital Food Will Put You There) the struggle continues.  Our meetings are quarterly. Two meetings ago, I complained to the administration that the fresh fruit and fruit salad available at previous meetings was not on the buffet table.  The hospital's radio add refers to it as: "Our community's hub for wellness." which I was sure to mention. I was told the caterer had changed and fruit would be provided at our next meeting.

Round 2:

Fresh fruit and a fruit salad was on the buffet at the last meeting. I was so happy! Our hospital listened to me and the "Hub for Wellness" had taken a step toward making its own staff healthier. I called Dr. Kahn, the Grand Master of Green,  beaming over this remarkable accomplishment! I blogged about it and had more hits than ever before! Yay me, right?

Round 3:

My hospital recently merged with Dr. Kahn's hospital. Yesterday was the first medical staff meeting following the merger. The pictures above were taken with my new LG G4 cell phone with available room light.  I was so impressed with the clarity of the Photos and so disappointed that, clearly, their is no plant based option. I had black coffee and left. Color me sad. 

That sets up Round 4:

When I got to my office I again called the administrator. My complaint about the loss of a healthy option was " duly noted" whatever that means. I'm not giving up!

Honestly.  I don't care what you choose to eat from the buffet. All I'm asking is that if you are providing a breakfast for the doctors at the community's "hub of wellness" put out a basket of fresh fruit and make healthy eating at least a choice!

(drops the mic, walks away...)

You can make a difference in your own life, if nowhere else!

Dr. Kalmus

   

Whole Wheat Bread - Vegan! #OilFree. #NutFree.

Wheat Bread

     I love to bake when it's cold outside. I know its July, but I live in Michigan. We do have 4 seasons here; Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter and 3 months of bad sledding.  Our summer was Sunday when it hit 85.  Now it's Tuesday and its 64 so time to bake!!

     Don't be afraid to eat some bread on your diet. Making it yourself with no oil, no egg, no milk and no nuts reduces the calories significantly. You can eat a few slices and still lose weight!
     Whole wheat bread makes the whole house smell like home.  I like to add different flavors and spices to give it a little kick. You can choose sweet with your choice of  raisins, chopped dates, dried cherries, banana, zucchini, apple sauce, cinnamon, maple syrup, etc. or savory with salt, rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano, onion, garlic, jalapeno  or a combination. That's the beauty of baking it on your own. You get to cater to your personal taste! As a member of PBNSG.org, I choose to make my bread oil free and nut free because I'm trying to make it as heart healthy as possible. That's my choice but you get to do what's right for you! I give it texture using ancient grains like Pearled Farro, also available as Spelt and Pelted Wheat.  Its high in protein with 18 grams per 1/2 cup dry, no fat and 10 grams of fiber and that's just the Farro. The numbers are even better when you include the whole wheat flour.  Pretty good for bread!

Makes 2 loafs.
Plant perfect.

Recipe:
3.5 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 oz rapid rise instant yeast
1.5 cups warm water
1/2 cup Pearled Farro
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
2 TBS dried rosemary

Cook the Pearled Farro per package directions then drain and set aside.

Add the yeast to the warm water and let it activate for 10 minutes. Put the Farro and everything else in a bowl and knead it into dough by hand or with a mixer and dough hook. Once the dough has stopped sticking to the bowl pat it down, cover the bowl with a damp cloth and place the bowl in a warm area to rise for an hour.
Once the dough doubles in size, smash it down, divide it in half, put it in 2 loaf pans, cover it with a damp cloth to let it rise again for another hour. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Once the dough has risen to the top of the pan, bake it for 35 minutes. Let it cool, slice it up and enjoy!

Chocolate Cookies!!! Vegan. Gluten free. Nut free. Oil free. Processed sugar free. Regret free!

Chocolate Cookies!

Ever wake up early, completely refreshed and desperate for cookies? Breakfast toaster pastries?  Donuts?  Well, just in case you do, I came up with this completely plant based, oil free, gluten free, nut free, high protein cookie with NO processed sugar.  It took 15 minutes to prepare and 12 Minutes to bake.  I got a baker's dozen out of the deal and took them to work. They all got eaten. I think they're good. Lets see what you think!

CHOCOLATE COOKIES

1 Cup rolled oats.
2 Bananas.
3 TBS Cocoa powder.
12 Pitted dates.
1/2 tsp vanilla extract.
2 rounded TBS Hemp seed hearts.
3 TBS Maple syrup.

Put everything in your blender and puree it for 2 or 3 minutes. Let it sit for 10 or 15 minutes until it stiffens into a thick dough. On parchment paper, using wet hands, form 12 to 15 cookies and flatten them a little. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes. Let them cool and enjoy with the non-dairy beverage of your choice!

My friends at  PBNSG.org have lots more recipes. Check it out!

Sweet Veggie Caserole Glazed with Maple Syrup and Nutritional Yeast #vegan #wfpbno #WFPBNOThanksgivingSidedish

#OilFree #GlutenFree #NoAddedSugar 

Oh yes you can make AMAZINGLY delicious food free of animal products and even gluten free! Even better still...oil free as well!!!
Honestly. Haven't you been trying to eat healthier?
Its so much easier to do than you imagine. You already have most everything you need in your own kitchen. I got my Nutritional Yeast at Amazon, but everything else is from Kroger's.
 2 cups GF flour, 2 tsp baking soda, pinch of salt, pinch of rosemary, 3/4 cup water, 1/4 cup applesauce.  That's what I used to make the bottom crust.
The glaze is made of a simple reduction of nutritional yeast, maple syrup, vegetable stock and a rounded TBS of GF flour!
The middle is all the good food I use to make vegetable soup plus pineapple and fresh ginger added. All the stock was squeezed out through a strainer and saved for the recipe. Bake it at 375 for an hour, let it cool for 15 minutes then cut and serve.  Simple!



If you want a cookbook, get one of these:

The Engine 2 Diet

The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cook Book

How Not to Die Cook Book

Each one is a great place to start. Who knows? You might learn something!

If not now, when?

Change your mindset and get started!!!

Dr. Kahn and Dr. Kalmus

Plant Based Nutrition Support Group is having a meeting on Wednesday June 24, 2015 at 6:30 pm in Birmingham Groves High School.

Come join us and get started! We can help!

Click Here for my most recent article.

Cauliflower Main Dish with Corn, Carrots and Cherries!

Cauliflower, Corn, Carrots, Cherries

Today I'm sticking with foods that start with "C".  Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable that is nutrient dense with vitamins, minerals, protein, complex carbohydrates and fiber. The cruciferous vegetables are currently being studied for their high content of Glucosinolates and an enzyme, Myrosinase. When combined the enzyme converts the Glucosinolates into  Isothiocyanates  which are thought to help fight Cancer in three ways:

(from Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine)
1) Prevent activation of Carcinogens.

2) Reduce the effects of Carcinogens that have already been activated.

3) Speed up the removal of Carcinogens from the body.

Since enzymes are proteins and are deactivated by cooking its important that the food is prepared properly to maximize its benefits. Activation of this enzymatic reaction is very simple. I just stab the cauliflower repeatedly with my fork. That's it! Once the vegetable has been broken up by either chopping it or simply stabbing it repeatedly I just let it sit there for 10 or 15 minutes allowing the reaction a little time to take place. The Isothiocyanates are heat stable. They maintain their nutritional benefits after cooking. So while I'm letting the cauliflower have its enzymatic reaction, I take the time to prepare a breading. This time I used an acorn squash mixed with gluten free flour and maple syrup.
The carrots are another simple dish. Its just 2 carrots sliced lengthwise then sprinkled with dried cherries. Put them in a paper towel and microwave for 90 seconds. That's how I cook the corn too. Wash it, wrap it in paper towel and microwave it on high for 2 minutes per ear.

Here's a recipe:

Cauliflower with Acorn Squash Breading

1 Head of Cauliflower

1 Acorn squash

3 TBS Maple syrup

4 TBS Gluten free flour

2 TBS Herbs de Provence

     Prepare the cauliflower by "tenderizing it"; stabbing it repeatedly with a fork and set it aside for 15 minutes to allow the enzymes to work.

     Cut the acorn squash in half, remove the seeds. Place it on a microwave safe dish face down, cover it with paper towel and microwave it on High for 10 minutes or until soft. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Scoop the squash into a bowl and mix it with flour and maple syrup. Set it aside for 10 minutes.

     Rub the Herbs de Provence into the cauliflower and steam it covered for 20 minutes. Place the head on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover it completely with the squash breading. Bake it at 375 degrees for an hour.  Let it cool for 5 minutes. Slice it into 1/2 inch thick servings.

Serves 4.

Enjoy!