Veggie Pizzazz

As I slowly switch to a vegan diet (meat and dairy free) with fruits, veggies, leafy greens, whole grains, beans, and nuts, I am falling in love with food all over again! Now when I make a delicious veggie recipe, I just want to dance it tastes so delicious and nutrients. Veggies are full of phytonutrients aka plant nutrients (phyto = plant) that give you health, energy, beautiful skin, and much more. I have experimented with different veggie combinations in my Le Creuset pot this week to perfect the ultimate deliciousness. My best friend Lila and I first tried a combination with black beans, homeini, diced tomatoes, and marinated artichokes with some garlic seasoning.... O M G absolutely delicious. So working from this recipe, I switched to freshly cut tomatoes and added some shiitake mushrooms, which have great anti-cancer benefits! The mushrooms add a nice meaty flavor for those of you who miss it! Here is a picture of my Veggie Pizzazz stew cooking on the stove. Just wash everything, throw in a pot over medium heat, cook for about 10 minutes until it smells delicious then enjoy!

Veggie Pizzazz Stew

For restaurant lovers, YES, we are bombarded by meat and dairy products, but eating vegan at restaurants is possible. Check out these delicious veggie kebabs served on a warm pita with a Greek salad on the side from Ziziki's!

Ziziki's Veggie Kebabs

So now you might be asking why vegan? My first reason is for my health. As Kris Carr says, "The secret to a super-sexy health is a slightly alkaline pH." If you eat too much acidic food, you cause inflammation, irritation, acne, diseases, and much more. And, guess what, a high-protein, animal-based diet (both from meat and dairy) is extremely acidic! Eek! One way your body reacts to an overly acidic diet is to erode calcium from your bones and teeth to neutralize the acids, thus you are now losing calcium if you are overdoing the milk and animal protein, leading to osteoporosis, exactly what you probably did not want! Eek again! After reading several books this summer I have discovered that many doctors know meat and dairy is harmful to your system, so why do industries convince us we need meat and dairy? (shhh... Profit! duhh!) Anyway, I don't want to bore you with all the scientific stuff, but if you are interested in learning more... here is my summer book list:

- Crazy Sexy Diet by Kris Carr
- Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
- Power Foods for the Brain by Dr. Neal Barnard
- The China Study by T. Collin Campbell PHD and Thomas M. Campbell II
- Food Is Medicine by Dr. Brian Clement

My second reason of course is for all the cute animals out there. I just want the cute calves and chicks to be able to play around in the grass instead of being trap in cages for industry. All animals should be treated like your favorite pet :)

Cheers to veggies,
Alexis :)