Beans and Rice

We've been eating a lot of this lately.



And of course, a side dish of veggies and some kind of sauce to go with it. Most of the time I use Chef AJ's Yummy Sauce, some variation of a nutritional yeast based cheese sauce, Mary McDougall's mushroom gravy, or just dump some store-bought salsa on top.

It's not always plain old beans, either. One of our new favorites is Chef AJ's Red Lentil Chili.



While she enjoys hers over potatoes, we prefer rice or Happy Herbivore's cornbread.



I still can't get our son to go along with this meal (He's still as picky an eater at 30 as he was at 3), but now my younger brother and his wife eat this way a couple times a week for dinner and he said he takes leftovers with him to work every day. I'll make a McDougaller out of him yet!

As you may be able to tell, now that summer's heat is here I'm not doing as much experimenting in the kitchen. I've made some of the simple recipes Chef AJ demos in this video:



but mostly it's been some old tried-and-true sauces over beans and rice, beans and potatoes, beans and pasta, beans and quinoa, beans and faro, etc. with veggies. I pop the rice into the rice cooker, the veggies into the microwave, and when all is done, mix them together in the rice cooker to keep warm until my husband and I feel like eating. People have told me I could also cook the veggies in the rice cooker at the same time, but I prefer the softer bite from microwaving. So one extra dish to wash, no biggie. My kitchen stays a bit cooler (it stays a steady 85 during the summer months, thanks to being on the top floor with a flat roof overhead), and every degree counts. 

Casseroles and other dishes that require the oven will have to wait for October again. With the Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook coming out in early September, I'll be itching to try new meals about then. For now, we're happy with our monotonous meals of beans and rice.

Kale Salad

Gee, Jeremy Duncan (Zits comic) and I are of the same opinion!

Cooked kale, fine, but not raw, no matter what is done to it it feels like eating sharp, pointy objects.

Free McDougall Resources

Jeff Novick took the time to write a list of all the free McDougall resources that can be found on-line from Dr. McDougall. He lists all the things on the web site, such as the forums, newsletter archives, videos, printable recipe cards, etc., plus a few off the main web site, such as the McDougall YouTube, FaceBook, and Twitter sites.

Those are the official resources.

What isn't mentioned are all the unofficial ones, such as blogs like this one, the McDougall 12 Day and McDougall Weight Loss Programs lists on Yahoogroups, recipe sites such as Fat Free Vegan (which isn't always 100% McDougall), and all the unofficial McDougall Facebook communities. And all of Jeff's sites, too.

There's a lot of free information and support out there for the McDougall program!

I suggest everyone who follows the McDougall program go to that post and bookmark all those links for future reference. Jeff has been known to delete messages on his own forum willy-nilly so don't count on it being there forever.

Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook Coming Soon

From the Esselstyn website:

Spreading the word about plant-based eating has become an Esselstyn family affair. Ann Crile Esselstyn and Jane Esselstyn are a mother-daughter team with decades of experience developing delicious, healthful dishes—including the recipes for the New York Times bestsellers Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, and My Beef with Meat by son, Rip. Now, Ann and Jane are pleased to announce the release of their cookbook.

The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook is filled with stunning photography and more than 125 plant-based, oil- and nut-free recipes that make it easy to make your heart healthier, one delectable meal at a time.

ON SALE SEPTEMBER 2014 
Preorder today:
Amazon • Barnes & Noble

The Weaver Family - and The Potato Song

I guess instead of posting Star McDougallers on his web site first, Dr. McDougall is now doing them on his Facebook page. 

Today, the story is about the Weaver family - Rachael, Michael and children - and in the references at the end is the link to the Potato Song the family wrote and sung for the McDougall's at Vegetarian Summerfest 2013.



I'm gonna be humming this all day now!

And will go nuke up some potatoes for lunch.