The Numbers

What is your total cholesterol (TC) count? Most of my friends reply that their TC is a little high but that their doctor isn't worried since their HDL ("good" cholesterol) count is high in proportion to their LDL ("bad" cholesterol) count. I'll tell you why their doctor isn't worried- it isn't the doctor's TC! But I won't argue with you about that point. What I will tell you is that people can dramatically lower their cholesterol without drugs simply by eating smarter.

Baby steps...
A few years ago Chris and I started to eat oatmeal every morning. Chris pours boiling water into a bowl with 1/3 cup of rolled oats and lets that sit for 20 minutes. I then add a little honey, 1 cup of blueberries, and 2 T milled flax seed. Initially, I hated the flax seed because when mixed with oatmeal and water, the consistency was sticky and glutinous, like cement. Then I discovered that by adding a little more water, stirring thoroughly, and eating it almost immediately, the flax seed gave the oatmeal a nutty quality to it. I now look forward everyday to my oatmeal and flax breakfast.

Chris currently eats his oatmeal with 2 T chia seeds. But he adds his chia seeds to the dried oatmeal and lets it sit in the boiling water for the 20 minute soak.  The chia seeds give the oatmeal crunch and doesn't render it gooey like flax does. Both flax and chia seeds are excellent sources of the omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

 

Oatmeal, water, honey, and chia seeds

Since we've been eating a plant-based diet, our TC has dropped. My TC was 173 mg/dL in 2011 and has since dropped to 153 mg/dL. Chris' TC was 195 mg/dL and that has dropped to 177 mg/dL. My sister-in-law, who wishes to remain nameless so we'll call her Dennis' Wife (DW), is turning 63 in a few weeks and she just sent me her total cholesterol (TC) numbers for the last 30 years. You can see, below, that her TC was slowly creeping up to 225 after  menopause. It went down by 30 points when she took red yeast (which has the same active ingredient as statin drugs). But her most recent TC count shows that she could attain an even lower TC by following a whole foods, plant-based only regime. Yea DW!!!

 

Hummus revisited

I was becoming disillusioned with my hummus. It seemed too dry and not very flavorful. So I went back to the drawing board and added more liquid, salt, and garlic. The extra liquid was the ticket along with the extra blending time.

Cilantro and Jalapeno Hummus:

Ingredients
1 c dried chickpeas
3 T minced garlic (we used the waterlog garlic from costco)
1 big handful of cilantro
1/2 t salt
2 jalapenos
3 limes plus enough water to make a total of 8 oz

Instructions
1) Follow my instructions for cooking the chickpeas that I posted on April 16 (The more you toot)
2) Place all ingredients in the blender (Blendtec). Blend 3 times using the "Sauces" button.

The more you toot

Beans beans the magical fruit
The more you eat, the more you toot
The more you toot, the better you feel
So eat your beans at every meal

I don't mean to be crude, but the fact is if you don't prepare beans correctly, they can cause you discomfort and loss of a social life. Luckily, Chris has not divorced me yet, because we are essentially eating the same foods. Just don't light a match in our house.

Legumes have complex sugars that aren't easily digestible. The bacteria in your colon ferments these sugar which produces the dreaded flatulence. You can take steps to remove these sugars. Soak the beans overnight. This releases the sugars into the water. Remove that water and use fresh water to cook the beans. I go an extra step by boiling the beans for 2-5 minutes and discarding that water as well. Then I cook the beans in my pressure cooker. I am happier and so is my family.

Chris bars

Last week was girls' weekend out for me. My BFFs, Mary and Jen, and I drove to Vegas for a relaxing weekend. Mary and Jen are NOT vegan but they tolerate my vegan ways by stopping off at Trader Joe's regularly for hummus and carrots. When we went out to Lotus of Siam for a Thai dinner, I ate Tofu with Panang Curry (it tasted great) which really isn't on the Esselstyn regime but it will have to do in a pinch since the only acceptable item on the menu was beer.

While I was away, Chris was experimenting with his fake Larabars for his upcoming trip to Joshua Tree National Park (to relax, I drink beers by the pool while Chris hikes across the desert ;). The bars have nuts in them and nuts are not on the Esselstyn diet. But Chris rationalizes that he needs high caloric foods when he is hiking or backpacking and nuts seem to have a high calorie to weight ratio. The bars are very tasty and fairly inexpensive if you can buy the dates in bulk (go to Costco for a good sized 3.5 lb tub). Put them in ziploc baggies since they can get sticky.

Ingredients
1 c  chopped cashews (half roasted and salted, half raw)
1  c chopped dates
1/2 c dried blueberries or dried cherries

Instructions
1) Blend cashews first, use the pulse button on your blender until the chunks are less than 1/4 inch
2) Add dates and dried berries, use the pulse button until the mixture can stick together
3) Place mixture into a pan, press into desired shape
4) Place in refridgerator for a day or two

In the above photo, Chris made 2 batches- 1 blueberry and 1 cherry.  They both fit into a strip that was one-third of an 8x8 inch pan. Mikae loved the blueberry bars. The cherry bars had more of a subtle flavor.

Cajun Creole Spiced 10 Bean Soup with Sweet Potato

Today I cooked a salt-free Easter lunch for my Uncle Joe and my parents. It was delish but since Uncle Joe and my parents are no longer young pups, the huge batch of freedom fries that Mikae and I made was only partially devoured. By dinner time, Chris was looking for an extra something to add to his 10 bean soup and, fortunately, he found our freedom fries. This soup is by far Chris' tastiest creation. The Cajun Creole Seasoning along with the sweet potato made this soup both complex and hearty. Chris purchased both the Cajun Creole Seasoning and the 10 bean soup at Sprouts Farmers Market. If you can't buy the 10 bean soup at a store near you, perhaps you can create it yourself. The ingredients are: black beans, lentils, green split peas, pinto beans, small white beans, red lentils, yellow split peas, pearl barley, small red beans, and adzuki beans.

Ingredients
1 sweet potato made into freedom fries (see earlier blog) or use a baked sweet potato
1 c 10 Bean Soup Mix from Sprouts (uncooked)
1/2 sweet onion chopped
6 c water
3 t Better Than Bouillon (see earlier blog)
1 t salt
1/2 t white pepper
1/4 t coriander seed
1 t Cajun Creole seasoning blend spice mix
1 T honey

Instructions
1) Night before, soak the cup 10 bean overnight
2) Bake cut up sweet potato for 20 minutes (we just made freedom fries)
3) Combine the 10 beans, sweet potato, onion, water, Better Than Bouillon, honey, salt, white pepper, coriander seed, cajun seasoning
4) Bring to a boil then simmer for 2 hours

You can see the bits of freedom fries :)

 

Beets, Greens, and Better than Bouillon

Just discovered this amazing organic bouillon that is vegetable based.  It has no hydrogenated oils and seems free of the dreaded monosodium glutamate (aka MSG). It's called Better Than Bouillon and, no, they did not pay me. The only ingredient that might be questionable is the maltodextrin.

Chris used this bouillon on one of his farro dishes that includes beets and the beet greens. Super healthy but word of warning: the beets turn your urine and BM red!

Ingredients

3 beets with greens attached
1 sweet onion
1 c Farro
1/2 c red wine
2 c water
1 t Better Than Bouillon
1 T Honey
1 t salt

Instructions
1) Trim and scrub beets, save green tops for later.
2) Slice beets into 3/8 inch slices
3) Bake beets at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
4) In a medium size sauce pan, combine water, red wine, honey, salt, and Better Than Bouillon, and heat till all is dissolved, almost boiling
5) When the beets are finished baking, "fry" the chopped onion in a large frying pan
6) Add farro to onion and toss for 2 minutes, ensure that onion is evenly distributed with the farro at a fairly high heat
7) Carefully add the broth and wine mixture to the farro and onion, then let simmer for 10 minutes
8) Cut beets into 3/8 inch cubes and add to farro mixture, let simmer for 10 more minutes
9) Coarsely cut up beet greens and add to farro mixture in the last 5 minutes
10) If liquid remains in the frying pan, continue to toss as liquid evaporates

St Patrick was definitely Mexican

Went to my BFF's house for St. Patty's Day and she made this wonderful, marvelous salsa for me. The salsa was suppose to be an appetizer but since she was serving a traditional St. Patty's Day meal complete with corned beef and cabbage, I chowed down the salsa in between a few leaves of cabbage.

This salsa was tasty and hearty with corn and black beans. I can't wait till summer time because I know that our home grown tomatoes will make this salsa 10 times more delectable.  But even without the home grown tomatoes, this recipe is a winner.  When I brought home the leftovers for Chris to sample, he just heated a corn tortilla over the burner and filled it with the salsa. Soooo gooood!

Ingredients

4 tomatoes chopped
1/2 sweet onion chopped
1/2 to 3/4 c lime
2 big handfuls of chopped cilatro
1 can of black beans
2 c frozen corn thawed
1 bell pepper chopped
1 habenero chopped (we used 2 T of Chris' hot sauce )

Instructions
Mix all together and let it sit for at least 1 hour
Eat with chips or heated corn tortillas