The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet (26 page)

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www.thekindlife.com
, where you can check out my favorite ecofriendly designers, makeup companies, household products, plus all my newest and latest groovy finds.

FINALLY

I believe that following the Kind Diet can lead to world peace. That might sound naïve, but consider this:

World peace begins inside you—literally. In your body and mind. Global peace can only be achieved when the individuals living in the world recognize peace within themselves.

And food plays a big role in that. Food affects how you perceive the world, how angry you get at other drivers, how ossified your resentments become, how much your joints ache at the end of the day. Those things can make or break your inner peace. Luckily, we’re seeing that a varied plant-based diet will make your body more flexible, your mind more open, and your day-to-day experience of life more peaceful.

And to believe otherwise?
That
is naïve.

Yes, some of our problems need to be picked at in a laboratory, others must be hashed out in the halls of government, but what shows up on the dinner table is the foundation of our lives—the base—and it’s the most fertile soil in which to sow the seeds of peace. We
all
need good food, clean air, and clean water. Unless we can breathe and eat and live well, how can we expect to live together peacefully?

I’m not saying that by changing your diet the world is going to change overnight. But by taking care of your body and consciousness, you will impact everyone in your life—whether you see it or not. By choosing kindness as your creed, in how you treat yourself, the planet, and other creatures, you are expressing the greatest power you have. Instead of trying to
achieve
peace, you
are
peace. And that, my friend, is big.

And who knows? Maybe the whole world
will
start the Kind Diet. I’d love to see what would happen if the whole world were vegan for even a month. Eating in a way that supports us on every level, without the industrial toxins, excess hormones, the adrenaline and cruel vibes of meat running through our veins—how might we behave?

But let’s begin with you. And me. And express the lovely peace we feel inside. As we relax and enjoy this beautiful journey called life, we can laugh and wink and play and bring yummy food to our friends’ parties and feel good on every level until the world comes knocking on our doors, asking, “Can I taste that?”

PART III

the recipes

Here’s where the magic begins. In using these recipes, you will transform your kitchen into a powerful place of health and happiness, one dish at a time. You will see your skin begin to glow, your body begin to relax, and your mind settle into peace.

I’ve divided the recipes into two groups, one for Vegans and another for Superheroes, but if you are just starting out on your vegan path, please don’t consider the Superhero recipes off limits. To the contrary, I invite vegans to eat as many of the Superhero dishes as possible as often as possible. Some of them are so good, I would be devastated if you didn’t get to try them. (Try the Maple-Roasted Lotus Root, Sunchokes, and Leeks dish on page
269
or the Arame Turnovers on page
262
if you have any doubts about how delicious Superhero food can be.)

If you are really striving to attain Superhero status, on the other hand, vegan dishes should be an occasional indulgence (see page
141
for more on balancing Vegan and Super-hero diets), but you can indulge in any of the Superhero dishes as often as you like. If losing weight is your priority, I’ve begun this section with tips for quicker weight loss that you can apply while you eat your way to absolute nirvana. So let’s get started . . . now!

TIPS FOR QUICKER WEIGHT LOSS

• Follow the Superhero plan 6 days a week and regular Vegan 1 day a week. You will see amazing results. You will not only get all of your nutritional needs met, your cholesterol will go down, your blood pressure will drop, and you should lose a couple of pounds a week! Add exercise to the mix, and your body will respond even faster. If you don’t want to go 6 days Superhero/1 day Vegan, just allow yourself 3 regular Vegan meals over the course of the week.
  
• Eat as many whole grains and vegetables as you like. I mean it. Go crazy. And when I say whole grains, I mean the grains themselves, not the bread or noodle products. It’s the whole grains that will get your skinny on.
  
• Drink the Weight Loss Tea (Carrot-Daikon Drink) every day on an empty stomach for 10 days. After 10 days, drink it three times a week for 3 weeks. If you want to continue, a couple of times a week should do the trick; do
  not
  drink it every day after the initial 10 days. Too much can make you weak and demineralized. Wait 3 months before repeating the intensive 10-day program again.
  
• That being said, it’s okay to make friends with daikon. It is a natural diuretic, and you can use it in soups, stews, and other vegetable dishes. It’s fine to eat a little daikon every day as a part of your regular meals.
  
• Chew your food extremely well. The more you chew, the more energy you will get from the food and the more satisfied you will feel.
  
• Do your best to eliminate white sugar from your diet completely. It’s fine to eat some natural sweeteners, but white sugar is truly addictive and just makes you crave more. That addictive cycle can slow down weight loss and hijack sanity. Transition to sweeteners like brown rice syrup to break your white sugar habit.
  
• Keep truly indulgent vegan foods out of the house. Yes, you can have a piece of agave-sweetened chocolate cake every once in a while, but having the whole cake staring you in the face every time you enter the kitchen is just cruel. If your focus is on losing weight, choose at-home desserts from the Superhero plan.
  
• Consume salt, shoyu, and miso in moderation. Seasoning should taste mild. Too much salt can set you up to overeat or crave strong sweets.
  

Weight Loss Tea (Carrot-Daikon Drink)

SERVES 1

¹
/
₂
cup grated (into a pulp) carrot

¹
/
₂
cup grated (into a pulp) daikon

¹
/
₄
umeboshi plum

1–2 drops shoyu

¹
/
₄
sheet nori, ripped into small pieces(optional)

Bring the carrot, daikon, umeboshi plum, and 1 cup of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce the heat, and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the shoyu and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes longer. Add the nori, if using. Drink hot, eating the carrot and daikon pulp along with the tea.

• Balance begets balance and crazy begets crazy. Start your day with a nutritious, satisfying breakfast and you will eat better the rest of the day. Skip breakfast and you will go to the opposite extreme of overeating or eating crazy food later in the day.
  
• It’s okay to start your day over if you’ve made some wacky choices. Just sit down, chew some whole grains and veggies, and you will feel fine.
  
• Stop eating 3 hours before you plan to go to bed.
  
• Do some kind of fun exercise three to five times a week. See pages
  126
  –
  129
  for suggestions.
  
• For bonus points, do a hot body scrub every day. See page
  128
  .
  

And while the Kind Diet is amazing for losing weight, don’t think you can’t keep your curves or build muscle on a plant-based regime. If you’re looking to gain weight, simply eat a balanced diet and give yourself permission to really enjoy flour products like bread and noodles; oils, tahini, and nut butters; and tempeh, seitan, and hearty bean dishes.

14

Vegan Recipes

On the following pages you will find some of my very favorite recipes to get you started on your journey. These are recipes I like to serve to people who may be skeptics; they’re easy to make and easy to love, and none of them screams, “Meatless! Vegan!” I think they are all amazing, and when I entertain, they always go over well with our guests.

I want to mention, though, that you can easily perform vegan makeovers on many of the recipes you already have just by making simple substitutions: soy, rice, or nut milk for regular milk; Earth Balance buttery spread for butter; water or vegetable broth in place of chicken or beef stock. And you can make lots of simple meals without referring to a recipe at all—just remember to build your meal around a serving of grains (rice, quinoa, whole grain pasta, and so on), add some protein (some yummy beans, or tofu, maybe tempeh or seitan), then go crazy with as many greens and veggies as you like, either lightly dressed with a vinaigrette or brightened up with a bit of gomashio—so easy to put together and so delicious.

Remember, too, that you can cook from the Superhero section (Chapter
15
) whenever you like. In some ways it breaks my heart to separate them from the Vegan recipes because I don’t want to give you the impression that vegans shouldn’t be eating from the Superhero menu regularly. To the contrary, please eat lots of Superhero foods. It’s all vegan, too, just a little simpler and more strengthening. Likewise, when Superheroes need a little break, they can sample from the richer Vegan dishes. So although the recipes are separated, they’re not . . . dig?

Lastly, please don’t regard these recipes as written in stone; let them serve as a springboard to your brilliant inner chef, and when you make something new and fantastic . . . send me the recipe!!!

A note about the recipes and some of the ingredients I use most frequently:

Salt:
The best salt to use is unrefined sea salt. I refer to it in the recipes as “fine sea salt” because it’s not the big, chunky salt crystals, but the finer white crystals. Sea salt contains 80 minerals needed by the human body, and it reflects the natural mineral composition of our blood. Table salt has had most of those minerals removed and can lead to all sorts of nasty problems like high blood pressure. The brand I use is called Si Salt and it’s naturally sun-dried in Mexico. If you can’t find Si Salt, be sure to choose a sea salt that is unrefined.

Shoyu and tamari:
Shoyu is the Japanese word for soy sauce, and it’s how most soy sauce is labeled in the health food world these days. Shoyu is made from soybeans, salt, and wheat. Tamari is also made from soybeans, but contains no wheat. If you have a wheat intolerance, go for tamari, but I use shoyu in these recipes. It’s important to use a shoyu without sugar, alcohol, or chemical preservatives. I like Nama Shoyu (“nama” means raw) made by Ohsawa brand, and Mitoku and Eden are other good choices. The shoyus that show up at most Japanese and Chinese restaurants are not of good quality and contain added sugar and other nasty ingredients, so make the effort to source out a good one to use at home. A better shoyu can be a little pricey, so try to order it in bulk.