McCowan - The Abundance Diet: The 28-day Plan to Reinvent Your Health, Lose Weight, and Discover the Power of Plant-Based Foods

the

Abundance

diet

Grilled Eggplant and Zucchini Lasagna ()

The Abundance Diet: The 28-Day Plan to Reinvent Your Health, Lose Weight, and Discover the Power of Whole Foods by Somer McCowan (Copyright 2015 by Somer McCowan)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except in the context of reviews and fair reference, without written permission from the publisher.

ISBN 13: 9781941252086

First Edition, June 2015

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Vegan Heritage Press, LLC books are available at quantity discounts. For information, please visit our website at www.veganheritagepress.com or write the publisher at Vegan Heritage Press, P.O. Box 628, Woodstock, VA 22664-0628.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

McCowan, Somer.

The abundance diet : the 28-day plan to reinvent your health, lose weight, and discover the power of plant-based foods / Somer McCowan. First edition.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-941252-06-2 (paperback)

1. Reducing dietsRecipes. 2. Vegan cookingRecipes. 3. Cooking (Natural foods) 4. Weight loss. I. Title.

RM222.2.M4336 2015

641.5636dc23

2015002799

Cover Design: Annie Oliverio. Photo credits: Cover and interior food photography by Annie Oliverio. Incidental spot photos from stock photo sources. Cover Photos: (front) Cheesy Cauliflower Potato Bake, .

Disclaimer: The information provided in this book should not be taken as medical advice. If you require a medical diagnosis or prescription, or if you are contemplating any major dietary change, juice fast, or change in your exercise habits, consult a qualified health-care provider. You should always seek an expert medical opinion before making changes in your diet or supplementation regimen. Neither the publisher nor the author are responsible for readers health issues.

Publishers Note: The information in this book is correct and complete to the best of our knowledge. Website addresses and contact information were correct at the time of publication. The publisher is not responsible for specific health or allergy issues or adverse reactions to recipes contained in this book.

Vegan Heritage Press books are distributed by Andrews McMeel Publishing.

Dedication

For my parents, Boni and Milo McCowan, who gave me my love of creating beautiful things in the kitchen and for teaching me that sharing a delicious meal with others is one of the best ways to open hearts and form lifelong friendships. Thank you for always opening your hearts, home, and kitchen to all those you know and love.

Nioise Salad with Smoky Tofu and Creamy Miso Dressing ()

Contents

Foreword

WHEN I FIRST LEARNED the name of Somer McCowans book, The Abundance Diet, I thought it was perfect.

In the most literal sense, a low-fat vegan diet is abundant in that it allows you to eat plentiful amounts of food without having to limit portions, count carbohydrates or calories, or go hungry. For many people, this is a completely new experience. In the clinical research studies that we conduct here at the Physicians Committee, our participants are always amazed to learn that they dont need to restrict the amount that they eat. In fact, most people tell us that eating a low-fat vegan diet is easier than any other weight-loss or get-healthy strategy theyve tried. Choosing the right foods and eating them in abundance is so much simpler, and more enjoyable, than counting calories or restricting portion sizes.

This is because plants provide an abundance of nutrition. If youre looking for the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, plants always take home the gold. Full of fiber, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, plants are nutritional powerhouses. Plants are also devoid of cholesterol and generally low in calories and saturated fat. Eating a plant-based diet increases the nutrient-density of your meals while lowering the calorie-density, which is the perfect equation for health.

Accordingly, a low-fat vegan diet brings an abundance of health benefits. We recently published a large meta-analysis in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics showing that switching to a vegan diet leads to healthy weight lossbut this isnt news to anyone familiar with scientific research documenting the effects of plant-based diets. Studies consistently show that people who remove animal products from their diet are at a healthier weight than people who eat meat and dairy products (even when portions are larger). And the benefits dont stop there! Plant-based diets help people with diabetes to reduce their medications or in many cases, eliminate the need to take them altogether. This way of eating also tackles the roots of cardiovascular diseasereversing damage to the endothelial lining and opening up arteries to allow blood to flow smoothly throughout the body once again. And while youre losing weight and reversing your diabetes or heart disease, you can also lower blood pressure, reduce or eliminate pain from arthritis or migraines, protect your memory from Alzheimers disease, increase energy, and much more. The health benefits youll receive from one simple dietary pattern are abundant indeed, and quite astounding.

The abundance of benefits continues if we look to the environmental effects of our food choices. The meat industry produces more greenhouse gases than all worldwide transportation, in addition to fueling other environmental destruction. Thankfully, the fact that what we put on our plate can affect the health of the planet (in addition to our own health) is finally becoming well-known. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee wrote, The major findings regarding sustainable diets were that a diet higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in calories and animal based foods is more health promoting and is associated with less environmental impact than is the current U.S. diet. By removing animals and their by-products from our diets, we can play a significant role in reducing our environmental footprint and promoting a sustainable future.

Many people are also happy to know that by eating a vegan diet, they are saving the lives of millions of animals and practicing a more ethical lifestyle in this regard as well.

If youre wondering how to get started or how to make it work in your current lifestyle, Somer has created a wonderful step-by-step guide to help you get started. For now, just focus on the next four weeks. Read through this book and let Somers expert advice help you to prepare, and then jump inALL in. Go for it, give it a try, and see what you think when the four weeks are up. Believe me, it will go by more quickly than you think, and youll be delighted with your results!

Eat an abundance of plants and enjoy an abundance of benefits. You wont regret it!

Neal Barnard, M.D.

Introduction

THE WORD DIET is typically associated with hunger, restriction, deprivation, calorie or points counting, meager portions, and special foods. In writing this book, I want to help people associate the word diet with its core meaning: the kinds of food that a person habitually eats. While following The Abundance Diet, you will not have to count calories, weigh your foods, add up points, or eat within certain hours. Ive already done the work for you in planning and creating healthy, delicious, and nutritious recipes that will ensure weight-loss success.