Tam's Healthy Kitchen
Vegan Pantry
As a Holistic health practitioner I see the MindBody as one holographic unit. The MindBody is wonderfully designed self healing machine, like any fine machine it needs the proper fuel in order to operate efficiently.
The average American diet of fast food cheese burgers, fries, diet soft drinks, low quality packaged foods, coffee etc; doesn't come close to being worthy of your sacred body temple.
The standard American diet has been linked to Heart Dis-ease, High Blood pressure, Type 2 Diabetes, and Cancers. These avoidable dis-eases are a direct result of unnecessary stresses on the MindBody.
Even Autism and ADHD have been linked to digestive problems, food irritants, and allergies, created for the most part by our inadequate toxic diet. Sadly we all have or know some one who has been affected by dis-ease.
The statistics of Heart Dis-ease, High Blood pressure, Type 2 Diabetes, and Cancers are alarming. . Where did it all begin? These dis-eases were virtually unheard of before 1900; Heart dis-ease was so rare that it wasn't even listed in the medical journals. What happened around 1900? The American society became more affluent, began to leave the rural areas to live in the big cities. People could afford to eat more animal foods and did. The same is true for the African American community when we migrated up North and to the Midwest, to the big cities; all of a sudden we too began experiencing diseases that had been confined to the rich.
Even in Asia, its new wealthy capitalistic society has brought with it more animal foods and the cancers associated with them. Quiet as it's kept the cure for all those dis-eases I mentioned and more already exists.
Certainly, If you could get access to this preventive, curative agent for yourself and your loved ones you'd do what ever it took to get it, wouldn't you? Well you already have access to it, in fact you were born with it, it's your immune system, you are wonderfully made?
The American diet inhibits healthy immune function, with all that artery clogging cholesterol, fat, steroids, antibiotics, high levels of pesticides, and parasites contained in Meat and Dairy products. On the other hand a well balanced whole food vegetarian diet supports immune function and has been proven to prevent and even reverse dis-ease.
I feel you; you're probably thinking "I Can't live on rabbit food I'll starve to death!" To the contrary, you can live well enjoying all the flavors you love, eating an animal free diet, look and feel year's younger, loose weight, be free of allergies, prescription drugs and actually save your life! I've seen many clients and friends change their whole out look on life simply through a more healthful way of eating.
It's as if some one turned the lights on for them. The first and most noticeable changes you'll experience are improved digestion weight loss, improved elimination mental clarity, brighter clearer eyes and complexion. Many people have the false idea that they are doomed to repeat the same health problems experienced by there parents and grandparents. Though heredity is a factor in predispositions of health, life style choices is far more responsible for our individual health.
We do have a tendency to eat the way our family of origin did, food has a very powerful emotional charge attached to it. That's why I included lots of soul food, holiday, treats and other ethnic traditional recipes that will remind you of "Home". The very act of preparing, handed down family favorites, their flavors and aromas can bring up fond memories of good times spent with our loved ones.
My intention for this book is not to try to scare you into another weird fad diet, or to convince you that you must give up those feel good foods or else! I am simply offering a simple practical way of creating optimum health for yourself and your family for generations to come. These practical steps and recipes can help you to create new healthier traditions in your family.
They have changed my family's life and health for the better. These pages are filled with tried and true hints and recipes that are a result of years of product, and method tasting. testing, and out and out experimentation so you don't have to.
I hope that my books and videos will encourage you to step just a little out of your comfort zone into the brighter world of health by trying new foods and new healthier ways of preparing your old favorites. You'll be off to a good start by preparing your favorites with healthier whole grains, non-hydrogenated/cold pressed fats, sea salt, unrefined sugars and replacing meat with the meat alternatives I offer in this book, a couple of days a week. If you're in generally good health I don't recommend cold turkey especially if you have a family.
At first, do this gradually, mix it in a little at a time, and keep it a secret if you can, I advise you not to make an announcement at the dinner table as you unveil your seitan pot roast. Too much too fast could be a shock and turn them off to any changes in the future. My children will tell you, it wasn't fun as they remember my first attempt at tofu "Mommy what's that white blob floating in the middle of that red stuff?" "Can we go to KFC?" No worries , you're not on your own, this book will keep you from catastrophes like that.
How ever if you have a health condition I recommend you take immediate action and let go of the animal foods right away, completely. My purpose in writing this book, is help those with willing hearts who just don't know where to start( not to create a doctrine of rules).
I have included transitional vegan dishes that are closely reminiscent of your carnivorous favorites; the transitional recipes are cooked and contain animal food alternatives such as tofu, seitan, and TVP. These meat replacements are free of the cholesterol, high pesticide content, steroid, and parasites so abundant in the animal foods. However they are still processed cooked foods that should be used minimally as you transition in to a diet rich in healthful unprocessed, whole plant based living foods.
I am not an advocate of extreme any thing, Ideally a diet of 80% raw, 20% cooked, and some fermented foods will provide the perfect balance of living food enzymes, and vital minerals(vitamins) and trace minerals, proteins, and carbs, plus the satisfying comfort that cooked foods can offer especially on a chilly day.
I know I love to eat, and I love those comfort foods from my childhood. As an African American I grew up on soul food along with the other ethnic cuisine we in the U.S. are so fortunate to experience. I'll share recipes that any dairy & meat lover will enjoy and not miss a thing. The secret is in flavor and texture.
I hope the information will help you as it has many of my clients. I encourage you to do your own research on food additives, artificial sweeteners, pesticides, growth hormones, the inhumane treatment of animals and the effect these realities have on the MindBody....Some things to think about: boneless skinless chicken breast is only slightly lower in cholesterol than a beef steak, it is said that heart dis-ease and stroke which are caused by the cholesterol in animal foods are the" animals' revenge". Imagine the lives of the animals eaten in this and other countries, tortured, unhappy, frustrated, confined to live out their lives in cramped cages, being pumped with steroids and antibiotics so they plump up faster for the market, and then forced to the slaughter aware of their pending death and shaking with fear.
Don't be mistaken animals aren't dumb they know what's happening to them. Be advised that there is an energetic vibration attached to the flesh of these tortured animals, and when consumed that energy becomes apart of the one eating it... could that have anything to do with the prevailing unhappiness, frustration, and fear in our society?... after all you are what you eat. Read this passage from the Essene Gospel of Peace:
"Thou shalt not kill"
"'Thou shalt not kill,' for life is given to all by God, and that which God has given, let not man take away. For-I tell you truly, from one Mother proceeds all that lives upon the earth. Therefore, he who kills, kills his brother. And from him will the Earthly Mother turn away, and will pluck from him her quickening breasts. And he will be shunned by her angels, and Satan (crazy ideas) will have his dwelling in his body. And the flesh of slain beasts in his body will become his own tomb. For I tell you truly, he who kills, kills himself, and whoso eats the flesh of slain beasts, eats of the body of death. For in his blood every drop of their blood turns to poison; in his breath their breath to stink; in his flesh their flesh to boils; in his bones their bones to chalk; in his bowels their bowels t o decay; in his eyes their eyes to scales; in his ears their ears to waxy issue. And their death will become his death."
Are you really willing to trust wealthy bureaucrats of monstrous corporations to choose what your family eats? The very fact that you are reading this book says no! I'm so glad you are ready to take back your health!.
-Jesus from the Essene Gospel of Peace
Healthy eBooks for the soul
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Healthy Meat & Dairy Alternatives for your pantry
Get my new Tam's Healthy Kitchen eBooks
and learn how to use and make these alternatives
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The Vegan Pantry
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What do Vegans Eat?
So you think you have to be deprived to be healthy?
Wrong!
- Tofu - extra firm for meat replacement, silken for egg replacement
- TVP - replaces ground beef
- Vital wheat gluten flour - for making ham, beef, turkey type roasts
- Soy cheeses, yogurts, cream cheese, puddings free of sodium caseinate or casein
- Soy, Rice , Nut , and Oat milk I recommend unsweetened for cooking
- Various prepared sausages, hot dogs, cold cuts, burgers, Bar-B-Q ribs
- Dry chipotle chilies (smoked jalapenos) replaces smoked pork flavor in soul food
- Lentils, beans, peas dried and canned for emergencies
- Whole wheat pastry flour for fluffy whole grain baking
- Whole wheat pasta, Asian rice noodles brown rice
- Vegan mayo I like Veganaise, and other salad dressings
- None hydrogenated Vegan margarine
- Cold expeller pressed oils (not Canola oil)
- All veggies & fruits of your choice for juicing and eating
- B grade maple syrup, dehydrated cane juice
- Sprouted Whole grain breads (with out whey milk or butter added)
- Aluminum free baking powder (rumford)
- Whole grain cereals (free of processed sugars)
- Fluoride free tooth paste (fluoride is a bi-product of aluminum processing it dose not prevent cavities)
- Soy & rice milk ice creams, drumsticks, sandwiches
- Cookies, cakes chocolate chips, and carob made with whole grains, unrefined natural sweeteners, and non-hydrogenated oils
- Chips, pop corn, dips salsa, nuts, seeds
- Herbal teas (caffeine free)
- Unfiltered apple juice
- Brown rice
- Food labels indicate vegan, parve, or "U" meaning animal free when you see the "D" there is dairy
- Sea salt
- Bragg liquid aminos
- none irradiated dry herbs
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The Beginners Vegan Pantry is easier to setup than you think. You don't have to go to the health food store, as you can see in this photo you can actually find an abundance of delicious vegan products in your local supermarket. This is by no means the perfect healthy pantry, but it's a begining. When reading labels notice these identifying words; "PARVE", and "U", mean animal free, but beware of the "D" it means the product most likely contains milk products like "Whey". Watch out for misleading "Vegetarian" and "Non-Dairy " labels that contain casein or sodium caseinate which is none other than milk protein. How they get to legally call it dairy free I don't, that just means that you need to do your own home work, you can not leave it up to them. Fresh is best, frozen is next, and canned is almost banned... Read a comparison below in the article
Fresh vs. Canned & Frozen
I hear you, with busy life-styles canned and packaged convenience foods come in handy. I promise you we don't want this healthy shift to be stressful so I will condone occasional prepared foods. In time you will enjoy the peace of mind that comes with preparing most meals and snacks from scratch, but until then...Rule of thumb when purchasing these convenience products always go for the organic, low sugar, low fat, none hydrogenated, low sodium, and parve varieties. With these tips you can't go wrong. In my upcoming book & DVD series, I will be sharing wonderful recipes for creating your own meat analogs such as pot roasts, ham, sausage,Thanks Giving turkey,dairy free Ice cream, cheeses, salad dressings, eggless cakes & pies etc. In the mean time, remember to always make it fresh, healthy, delicious, and vegan...your arteries the animals, and the environment will love you for it! I wish you happy, healthy eating!
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Fresh vs Canned and Frozen
Vitamin C is water soluble and
sensitive to heat, light, and oxygen,
making it susceptible to loss
during both home cooking of fresh
fruits and vegetables and thermal
processing. For that reason, loss of
vitamin C is often used as an index
of nutrient degradation.
Research indicates that as long
as fresh products undergo minimal
storage and are handled at proper
temperatures, they are superior
to processed products in terms
of vitamin C content. However,
vitamin C degrades rapidly after
harvest, and this degradation
continues during storage. Vitamin
C losses in vegetables stored at
4°C for 7 days range from 15% for
green peas to 77% for green beans.
Refrigeration slows deterioration
of vitamin C, as demonstrated in
the case of broccoli, where losses
after 7 days of storage were 0 at
0°C but 56% at 20°C. It should be
noted, however, that 20°C storage
of broccoli for 7 days is atypical and
would result in a wilted, yellowed
product that would in all likelihood
not be consumed.
By Diane Barrett: food tech of Morningstar farm Maximizing the Nutritional Value of
Fruits & Vegetables 2006
