Hamshaw - Power plates: 100 nutritionally complete, one-dish vegan meals for balanced living

MEAL PLANS

My approach to food and nutrition is focused on peopletheir tastes, lifestyles, cultural backgrounds, and health. This makes it hard for me to present meal plans that arent highly tailored to individual needs. I know from experience, though, that meal plans can be a useful tool.

The goal of these seasonal meal plans is to show you how individual recipes and meals might be mixed and matched in order to create a nutritious, sustainable eating pattern. The plans arent prescriptive, and they dont include snacks or sides or sweets, so theyre not intended to meet all of your nutritional needs. But they do provide a snapshot of how balanced meals can amount to a balanced eating pattern.

Depending on how many people you cook for, you may find yourself with leftovers when you prepare the recipes. With that in mind, Ive incorporated some leftovers into the plans for you.

James Ransom

Breakfast

My breakfast tastes are a little nontraditional. I prefer savory breakfasts to sweet, in part because they offer me so much variety. I also appreciate how easy it is to pack protein into savory morning meals in the form of legumes, grains, and different pairings of greens.

This isnt to say that I dont enjoy traditional breakfast foods. I love a hot, creamy bowl of steel-cut oats in the morning, and in this chapter Ill share my favorite shortcut method for preparing them ().

If you like muffins, porridge, pancakes, and other classic breakfast fare, youll find plenty of options in this chapter. But youll also find ideas for breakfast offerings that may seem unconventional, like slow-simmered vegan congee (), which is made with earthy, nutritious tempeh and sweet roasted root vegetables. The nice thing about these savory breakfast recipes is that theyre also suitable for lunch or dinner, making them (and their leftovers) good multitaskers.

What I hope to convey with this array of recipes is that breakfast can be as diverse and playful a meal as any other; it doesnt have to feel like an afterthought or something you make on autopilot. I know that weekday mornings can be hectic, and Ive provided tips on how to prepare some of the recipes in advance so you can fit them into busy and leisurely mornings alike.

SHORTCUT STEEL-CUT OATS

I love the texture of steel-cut oats, but I dont love their cooking time. Bringing them to a boil before bedtime, covering the pot, and letting them sit overnight is an easy shortcut. When I finish cooking the oats the next morning, I like to stir in some nondairy milk, along with a bit of maple syrup for sweetness and a splash of vanilla. As theyre heating up, I prepare any toppings Ill need, like toasted nuts or diced fruit. At the end of the recipe, youll find four of my favorite combinations, one for each season.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

1 cups (225 g) steel-cut oats

4 cups (950 ml) water

Generous pinch of salt

cup (120 ml) unsweetened nondairy milk, plus more if desired

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

OPTIONAL ACCOMPANIMENTS

See note below for seasonal suggestions

The previous evening, combine the oats, water, and salt in a medium pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Remove the pot from the heat, cover, and let sit overnight.

In the morning, add the nondairy milk, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir well, then place over medium-low heat. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes, until the oats thicken. If theyre too thick, add more nondairy milk until you reach a consistency you like.