What IS a Macrobiotic Diet?

"Macrobiotics", translated from Greek, means great life and dates back to Hippocrates. Macrobiotics as we know it today was started by a George Ohsawa, a Japanese educator, who was battling a serious illness. This simple diet cured him.

The macrobiotic diet is a holistic approach to a lifestyle. It utilizes the idea of food containing yin and yang properties which help balance out the body, spirit, and energy.  Yin foods are cold and sweet while yang foods are hot, salty and bold. It can be a "flexitarian plan" in which occasional fish is okay, however most are vegetarian. It does require a fair bit of planning to be on the macrobiotic diet.

Some foods will over stimulate the body. The diet discourages processed foods, coffee, alcohol, high fat foods, extremely cold foods, dairy, eggs, and animal products. In limited quantities, it is okay to have seafood, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and nuts.

Food should be consumed in the most natural state or by preparing with baking, boiling, pressure cooking or steaming. Eating slowly and chewing your food thoroughly is an essential part of the program. The macrobiotic approach also means eating locally, what's in season, organically, and focus on whole grains. (Click on term to read previous blogs relating to these topics.)

The breakdown of a typical macrobiotic diet will vary from source to source. Here is an approximation based on various resources:

• Whole grains, especially brown rice: 50%-60%
• Vegetables: 25%-30%
• Beans and legumes: 5%-10%
• Sea vegetables: 5%
• Fish, nuts, seeds, fruits, miso soup: 5%-20%
• Soup (using ingredients above): 1-2 cups/day

Best bets: Brown rice, barley, whole wheat, fresh broccoli, cauliflower, butternut squash, chickpeas, tofu, sea vegetables like kombu and nori, and vegetable soups. A few servings of nuts and seafood per week are allowed. 1

That's Vegetarian has provided you with many recipes that are in accordance with a Macrobiotic Diet.  Here are a few.  Go back and check these out:

• Pear Crisp
• Spicy Hummus  
• Baked Falafel
• Pumpkin Flax Bread
• Mango Peach Stuffed Peppers
• Baked Stuffed Zucchini (omit cheese)

The macrobiotic approach has been shown to help in healing in prevention and cure in cancer, although it has not been scientifically proven.  The American Dietetic Association also approves the macrobiotic diet as a well balance approach to a vegan diet, if done correctly.

There is so much more information on the macrobiotic diet. Books upon books and websites upon websites. I have included links to some websites for more information on the basics of the diet, food lists, the lifestyle, and the history.

Visit That's Vegetarian's website, blog , and YouTube channel for more information, videos, and recipes!!  You'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"

Pear Crisp

Fall fruits make great pies, cobblers, and crisps. I chose the CRISP option to keep it lower in fat and calories although I do have an awesome crust recipe.  (To be shared at a later date :).)  This is another fun texture recipe.  Big or small pear slices.  The crumbly top.  The sweet and tart of the fruit and lemon juice.

I used pears but you can use apples, berries, or a combination of fruits.  The fall is perfect for pears, apples, cranberries, persimmons, and almonds.  This recipe is not very sweet.  You may want to add more maple syrup or sugar if you want it sweeter.  Maple syrup is an excellent source of zinc and manganese. 

The "crisp" part is nice and light.  You can make as much or as little as you like and use dairy free spread or butter.  Your choice!!  Oats provide a great source for fiber, selenium and manganese.  This is an easy recipe to add a little bit of flax to for those added benefits.    Flax is rich in fiber, minerals and vitamins ~ Magnesium (nerve transmission)*, Phosphorus (formation of cells)*, Copper (iron absorption)*, Thiamin (energy)* and Manganese (cell regeneration)* to mention a few.  (Funky Flax Facts) 

Watch the video, print the recipe, prepare any one of the dishes and you'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"

*Read on...Harvard Help Guide and Healthy Check Systems

Pear Crisp ~ Vegan 

Topping

1c      Quick Rolled Oats

1/3c  Brown sugar

1/2c  Whole wheat flour

1T      Flax seed meal

1t       Cinnamon

1/2t    Nutmeg (Or 1-1/2t Pumpkin pie spice)

1/4c   Butter or margarine (VEGAN)

Filling

8c      Pears (approx 11 pears), quartered lengthwise and sliced*

Juice from one lemon

1T      White flour

1t       Cinnamon

1/4c   Maple syrup

Spray 8” pie dish with vegetable oil. Set aside. (Or use ramekins or lined cupcake tins for individual servings) Preheat oven to 350F.

Combine sliced pears, lemon juice, white flour, cinnamon, and maple syrup. Pour into prepared pie dish.

In same bowl, mix dry ingredients of topping - oats, brown sugar, flour, flax meal, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add cold butter (or margarine) and mush together with hands until crumbly. Spread evenly over filling.

Bake for 30 minutes or until filling is soft when pierced with a fork. If topping gets too dark, cover with foil.

* Substitute apples, plums, peaches, rhubarb, berries, etc or a combination of a few.

 Pear Crisp Printable Recipe 

BevMo 5cent Sale Wine Pairing Challenge

Getting in at the last minute to provide you with wine Pairings for the BevMo's 5 Cent Sale with the recipes from That's Vegetarian from July on, the last time we did the pairing.  The sale is great, buy a bottle at regular price and the second one is just 5 cents!!  Bummer BevMo is in California and Arizona but you can order online!  Please send me the the name of the wine store in your area when they have a sale like this and we'll be happy to do the pairing for you!

To watch the video, click on Video.  To print the recipe, click on Print. 

Recipe	White	Red	Pink	Splurge
Mango Lime Coleslaw Print	Loredona Riesling '10	Crucillon Garnacha
Baked Falafel Video  Print	Guenoc Sauvignon Blanc Lake County '10	Buscado Garnacha '10		Gruet Pinot Noir '08
Watermelon Mint Print	Canals & Nubiola Cava Brut	Crucillon Garnacha		Luisi Moscato d'Asti '10
Gazpacho Video  Print	Terre dei Sicani Fiano '08	Trumpeter Malbec '09
Caprese Skewers Print	Chateau de Brandey Bordeaux Blanc '10	Trecipressi Chianti '09		Da Vinci Chianti Riserva '06
Vegan Ceviche Video  Print	Chateau de Brandey Bordeaux Blanc '10	Buscado Garnacha '10		Keenan Chardonnay '08
Stuffed Peppers with Peaches and Mango Print	Les Pierres Blanche Macon-Villages '10	Fog Head Pinot Noir '09	Bonterra Rose '09	Dahlia Pinot Noir Reserve '09
Mediterranean Summer Grain Salad Video  Print	Little Black Dress Pinot Grigio '09	Trumpeter Malbec '09		Buena Vista Pinot Noir '07
Baked Stuffed Zucchini Video  Print	Les Pierres Blanche Macon-Villages '10	Baroncini Chianti '08		Enrico Serafino Roero Nebbiolo
Banana Bread Vegan Video   Print	Gen 5 Chardonnay '10	Unruly Red '09

Enjoy making the dishes and pairing the wine.  Check Facebook and Twitter for wine pairing updates to previous recipes through the end of the week for the 5cent sale.  Please share your feedback on  , , and and subscribe for exciting updates and information! 

Go to That's Vegetarian and watch one (or all) of the recipe videos, print the recipe(s), and prepare any one of the dishes.  You'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"

Udder Choices Besides "Milk"

That’s Vegetarian – Udder Choices Besides “Milk”

The hot topic these days seems to be what “milk” alternative is best.  The selections include cow’s milk, soy milk, almond milk, hemp milk, coconut milk, and rice milk, to name a few. People seem to have different reasons for which they choose.  Some stick with cow’s milk because that’s what they know.  Some find the other alternatives are better because of lactose intolerance, possible hormone additives, and/or being vegan, to name a few.  

According to Kristen Rindress, R.D., cow’s milk is beneficial because of the numerous nutrients it provides ~ calcium, protein and Vitamins A, B12 & D.  Soy milk is the closest to cow’s milk in the amount of protein and the added nutrients usually provide the additional vitamins and minerals.

With all the alternative milk beverages, it is really important to read the labels.  They are all different with flavors, sugars, vitamins, minerals, fat and additives.  A brief summary is provided but READ THE LABELS, every brand is different and within the brand there are different products with different compositional make up.  Here is a side-by-side comparison to hopefully help put the data in perspective for you.

Printable Milk Alternative Table

“What do they taste like?  What can I use then instead of dairy?”  Well, I’m glad you asked. Here you go:

• Soy Milk~Plain unsweetened is rather bland.  You can buy flavored and sweetened soy milk, but that will increase the calories and sugars.  Good in savory dishes.  Many use in coffee and cereal too.
•  Almond Milk~Creamy, rich and slightly nutty.  Good in smoothies, coffee and cereal.
• Coconut Milk~Thick, creamy, coconut flavor.  Good in coffee, tea, pudding, smoothies, and oatmeal.
• Hemp Milk~Nutty, earthy.  Good in potatoes and baked goods.
• Rice Milk~Light, watery, sweet.  Good in desserts, baked goods, pancakes and French toast.

I provide the information; it is up to you to choose which alternative works best for you!!!

Browse our previous blogs for information, recipes and video links.  Prepare any one of the recipes and you'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"

Label Resources:

Nutrition Data Self - Non Fat Milk 

Nutrition Data Self - Goat Milk 

Almond Breeze 

Silk Pure Coconut 

Nutrition Data Self - Coconut Milk 

Living Harvest Hemp Milk 

Rice Dream Rice Milk 

Other Resources:

http://www.nakedfoodcooking.com/nutrition-milk-milk-substitutes/ 

http://vegetarian.about.com/od/vegetarianvegan101/f/MilkSubstitutes.htm 

http://factoidz.com/soy-almond-coconut-and-rice-a-comparison-of-dairy-milk-alternatives/ 

http://nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com/which-non-dairy-milk-is-best.aspx 

http://www.veganbaking.net/vegan-baking-articles/product-reviews/five-types-of-non-dairy-milk-reviewed.html 

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-some-milk-substitutes.htm 

http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com/milk-cow-goat-rice-almond-soy-nutrition-comparison-1668/ 

http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/food_and_drink/847876/top_10alternatives_to_cows_milk.html 

Women's Health, September 2011

Banana Bread ~ Vegan

A dark, rich, moist and robust yet subtle vegan banana bread that pairs nicely with a steamy cup of coffee.  Adding a little coffee to the recipe helps bring out the flavor of the bananas.  Instead of egg we are using flax seed meal, we did the same for our Pumpkin Bread.  I use oil in the video, but subsituting 1/2 cup of non-fat plain or vanilla yogurt in makes it more moist and lower in fat but no longer vegan.  I had suggestions of chocolate chips, carob chips, and peanut butter too!!  


Share your suggestions of favorite things inside or on top of your banana bread by commenting below.


Bananas are rich in Potassium (cell integrity)*, Manganese (healthy bones)*, Vitamin C (iron absorbtion)* and Vitamin B6 (red blood cell production). (Bountiful Banana Benefits)  Flax is rich is fiber, minerals and vitamins ~ Magnesium (nerve transmission)*, Phosphorus (formation of cells)*, Copper (iron absorption)*, Thiamin (enrergy)* and Manganese (cell regeneration)* to mention a few.  (Funky Flax Facts)  



Watch the video, print the recipe, prepare any one of the dishes and you'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"


*Read on...Harvard Help Guide and Healthy Check Systems

Banana Bread ~ Vegan

2 T ground flax seed
3 T water

3 T coffee  

4 large bananas, mashed
2 T olive oil or 1/2c yogurt or 1/2c apple sauce

1/4 c molasses
1 c whole-wheat flour

1 c unbleached white

1 T pumpkin pie spice

1 t cinnamon

1/3 c sugar
1 t salt
1 t baking soda

3/4 c walnuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray the bottom of a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Whisk or blend the flax water and coffee until frothy.  Mix the mashed bananas, olive oil (yogurt/apple sauce), flax and molasses.

Mix the dry ingredients - flour, sugar, spices, salt, and baking soda.

Combine wet and dry and mix until well blended.  Add walnuts

Pour the batter into prepared loaf pan.  Bake for 55-60 minutes.  After 50 minutes check with knife or toothpick by sticking it in the bread.  If it comes out clean ~ its done.  If it has some batter on it, cook a little longer.  If it still needs to cook longer but is already quite browned, place foil over the top to stop it from browning.

Remove and let cool for at least 15 minutes.
Vegan Banana Bread Printable Recipe
Prep time:  15 min ~ Cook time:  60 min ~ Serves 10  ~ 7pp