VeganMoFo: Get Healthy, Go Vegan

Dr. Neal Barnard has been one of my vegan heroes since I first went vegetarian over 12 years ago. His book Foods That Cause You to Lose Weight was the second vegan cookbook I ever owned, picking it up at the Barnes & Noble in New York City's Union Square in the winter of 1999. (If you're curious, my first vegan cookbook was Cooking with PETA, which I'd purchased a couple months earlier.)



When I learned that Dr. Barnard was releasing a new cookbook earlier this year, I was really excited to get my hands on it. I was so fortunate that Da Capo Lifelong sent me a review copy of The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook and gave me permission to publish one of the book's recipes (see below)! I quickly made several recipes from the new book (including the Fire-Roasted Tomato Black Bean Chili, Fettuccine with Roasted Peppers and Zucchini, and Curried Chickpea Spread seen in this post), but I also read it cover-to-cover.



Replete with easy-to-understand information about nutrition's impact on overall health and disease (both prevention and reversal), this is a great book to recommend to people who are new to veganism and new to healthful eating. In fact, I suggested it to a friend whose father was just about to embark on a vegan journey (read about his experience here). He loved the book and even wrote my friend an e-mail detailing the delicious Sweet Potato and Black Bean Brunch Burritos he'd made from the book!

I love this book for its quick, easy, and healthful recipes and I love Dr. Barnard for being so committed to promoting health and disease-prevention through nutrition.

Fire-Roasted Tomato Black Bean Chili

1/2 yellow onion, sliced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can fire-roasted tomatoes
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, with liquid
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons chipotle powder
2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup TVP crumbles (optional)

1. In a large saucepan on high heat, saute the onion in 1/4 cup water until it starts to turn brown.

2. Add 1/4 cup water and stir. Add garlic and cook for 3 minutes.

3. Add the tomatoes, lime juice, cilantro, beans and their liquid, cumin, chili powders, oregano, salt, and TVP crumbles, if using.

4. Reduce heat to minimum and cook for 10 minutes.

From the book The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook by Neal Barnard, MD and Robyn Webb. Excerpted by arrangement with Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com Copyright © 2010.

[Notes: I omitted the onion and did not use the TVP crumbles. Also, instead of doing this in 4 steps, I simply added all the ingredients to the pot at once and cooked until heated through. I took it to a 4th of July potluck and it was so delicious that I was asked for the recipe!]