I have a little news to share with you. I’m dying to tell you.
But as a part of this week’s festivities, I promised to share with you which of the recipeas on our site and in our book are my very personal favorites.
News or no news, I keep my promises. Which also explains why today, I took my two children, as promised, to the absolute worst theme park in the history of theme parks. And they had a blast.
I predict listing out my favorite foods will be a lot more fun, and involve a lot less time sitting through the most interesting theatrical reenactment of “Little Red Riding Hood” I’ve ever borne witness too. I wanted to offer myself up to the Big Bad Wolf as a sacrifice three minutes into his sweaty off-key song and dance number. But both he and you should eat these things instead:
Favorite Breakfast
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Book: Pumpkin Cream Pie Oat Bran—as fun as this summer has been, I’m ready for fall. And this creamy, pumpkin breakfast gets me in the mood. (For fall. Cool your jets, Pea Daddy.)
Blog: Creamy Protein Porridge—I know, more oats. But honestly, I love this power packed porridge for breakfast. It’s filling and delicious and has lots of muscle-building protein.
Favorite Soup:
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Book: Carrot Ginger Soup—this soup is like hot, sweet liquid gold. I once gave a container to my girlfriend Deb to take home for her family, and she’d drank the whole thing by the time she got home. She lives two blocks away. And now she doesn’t want to be my friend anymore because I told you that.
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Blog: Spicy African Peanut Stew—I plan on making this a lot this football season. Not that I’ll be watching any football. (Cool your jets, Pea Daddy).
Favorite Salad:
Book: Thai Crunch Salad—I don’t think I’d ever say buying a book would be worth it for one single recipe. Okay, I lied. Buying a book would be worth it for this recipe.
Blog: Kale Sunshine Salad—this tangy salad is totally craveable, and I never knew I could crave kale. You will too.
Favorite Snack:
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Book: My KIND of Bar—this is ‘”kind” of cheating, because this delicious crunchy, salty sweet bar is on the blog too. Don’t say I never gave you anything.
Blog: 2 way tie: Cake Batter Green Smoothie and Chocolate Protein Ice Cream: I eat these daily. They are cold. They are creamy. They are awesome.
Favorite Dinner:
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Book: Teriyaki Tofu—you will love the sweet, gingery sauce on this oven-broiled crispy tofu. Even Gigi begs for it. That’s right, my first grader begs for tofu.
Blog: Tempeh Tamale Pie—I think I once said, “This is so good you will die. And then you will be sad, because dead people can’t go back for seconds.” I just said it again.
Favorite Dessert:
(photo courtesy of Ashley)
Book: Carrot Cake with Cream “Cheese” Icing—the trick is the technique. This moist cake that is the most delicious carrot cake you will ever eat. I promise you that.
Blog: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls—if you’ve made them, you know why they are my favorite. And if you haven’t made them, I am sorry.
Now to that news.
The book has been selling great and I am having a lot of fun doing all of the press and publicity, and really living out our dream.
But as of last week, I hadn’t yet reached all the goals I had for myself, and as someone who is a bit of a control freak, it was a tough feeling realizing that I had to let go and let you–the readers, and God–the big boss, do what you all want.
I had to give up control.
So exactly ten days ago, I wrote my goal up on our dry-erase board and let it be.
And today…it be.
We did it! We made the New York Times Best Sellers List!!!
I don’t even know what to do to express my gratitude.
Except to say thank you, sincerely. You bought the book, you spread the word, you did it. And though it can never be enough, I’d like to give you one of my favorite desserts.
I will pick three winners at random from the comments section to receive a batch of Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls and an autographed copy of the New York Times Best Seller, Peas and Thank You.
Sorry, I just wanted to say it.
To enter, just leave a comment on this post telling me…anything you want! I’m giving up control. For tonight anyway. I’ll leave the giveaway open until Friday at midnight EST.
Thanks again, friends. You did this. And I am so grateful.
I intentionally don’t preach about our lifestyle. There are several reasons for this:
1. I don’t like being told what to do, so I feel like telling you what you should do is hypocritical. Tell me you agree with me. Do it now.
2. There are lots of fantastic resources already out there to point out the merits of a veg lifestyle. I can list them out for you.
3. I don’t like to play favorites among all the good reasons to give up eating animals. For health? Because of ethics? To preserve the environment? Because really immeasurably cool celebrities do it? In my mind, there’s no bad reason (and no limit to how much I will suck up).
4. I honestly feel that the value of our site and book is not the “why,” but is instead the “how.” Because once you start eating the delicious way we do, you forget about labels and restrictions and really you just get excited about eating good food.
But this is a week about appreciation, so I thought I’d share a few of the side effects I appreciate about the way we eat.
*We Have Healthier Bodies.
Sure, we get sick just as much as the next person who has two kids under seven who like to pick their noses (are boogers vegan?). But we haven’t had food borne illnesses, like the stomach flu, and we don’t get heartburn or indigestion.
We don’t eat cholesterol-laden or processed foods that physically slow us down. The whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables we eat give us lots of energy. Too much energy. But I can’t complain, because I feel better on less sleep than I got when I ate meat.
We are all at healthy weights–no obesity, diabetes, no shortness of breath, no joint pain–none of the problems that sadly plague a lot of our society. And get this: Pea Daddy weighs the same as he did when we got married—without working out.
Yeah, I kind of hate him too.
*We Are Kinder to Animals.
Even Pea Kitty.
It really does make me proud, though, to see the care with which our girls treat all living things. Lulu wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up so she can “help animals.” I tell her truthfully when I serve her dinner every night that she already is helping them.
But we’re still not getting a puppy.
*We Save Money.
Granted I’m cooking up new recipes more frequently than most people are, and so groceries are a necessary business expense for me. But still, I know we are spending less than we would be were we eating meat from quality, organic sources on a daily basis. Meat costs most Americans 10% of their annual budget and by going vegetarian, families can save on average $4,000 a year (source).
But we’re still not getting an iPad.
*I’m a Better Cook
The entire first year we were dating, I made Pea Daddy the same thing for dinner every night: chicken and rice. And if you ask Pea D the worst thing I ever cooked, he’ll tell you in a heartbeat that it was a cajun chicken burrito that was completely inedible. So I threw it away and made chicken and rice.
Now I see it as a challenge, though, to make delicious meat-free meals that everyone in my family likes. I make food that tastes like the meals that we all grew up with, comforting, hearty homecooked fare, just with a healthier twist. And now if you ask Pea Daddy the best thing I ever cooked, he’d have a hard time coming up with just one answer.
There you have it: a whole lot of “why.” As I said, though, I’m far more comfortable with the “how.”
So here are some simple things you can do with meals that are already in your own repertoire to make them healthier and Pea-friendly:
For chicken: swap in garbanzo beans, tofu, seitan or red lentils
For bacon: swap in tempeh bacon
For butter: swap in vegan margarine (i.e. Earth Balance) or coconut oil
For milk: swap in almond milk, soy milk or rice milk
For cheese, sour cream and mayo: swap in avocado, nuts or nut butter, nutritional yeast, Mmmm Sauce or hummus
For beef: swap in crumbled tempeh, black beans, portabello mushrooms or brown lentils
Easy Peasy.
So maybe the question shouldn’t be “Why?” Maybe the question should be, “Why not?”
But only if that question doesn’t pertain to a puppy,
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Our interview with Grant Butler came out today in The Oregonian’s FoodDAY! Read it here.
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*Reader Appreciation Week Recap:
Day 1: How The Book Came to Be
Day 2: It Bears Repeating: Make My Man Eat Plants
Day 3: The One Where You Show Me Yours
Day 4: Facebook Chat/Lunchbox Secret Weapon: Sunflower Seed Butter
