If you remember,
right before Christmas, I got the news that my aortic valve is shrinking as we
speak, faster than I thought or even ever realized. When I saw that picture(linked to the above blog)
of what my valve could be looking like, something went off, or on, in my brain,
not sure which. And the way I eat had to change. I have loved food all my life
and have indulged plenty, but at the end of that December something just
snapped inside and I just have to keep fats away from my arteries! I will just
have to do my very best, this time!
As a result, I have been looking for and trying on plenty
of vegan recipes, and I have eaten mostly meat and dairy free. Egg whites are about
the only animal product I’ve eaten lately. I don’t use oil in my sautéing,
either, or cheese or even butter. I use a vegetal butter in my grits, but it’s
not fat free – that is, so far, my biggest challenge at home: trying to make
mashed potatoes and grits with fat free vegan butter. It doesn’t exist: you
either get the fat free (with milk) or you get the vegetal butter (with fat). Who
knew that someone raised in Romania, with a carnivore family and meat for
breakfast, lunch and dinner growing up can actually pull this off?!
Here are some examples of dinners I have made lately.
They were all incredibly delicious and so filling. I am not missing meat yet. I
know it will happen, and I even wonder which meat I’ll crave first. But for
now, I am looking forward to my next tasteful and fatless meal!
Gimme Lean vegan sausage with garlic and fresh herbs, over mashed potatoes mashed with Earth Balance butter and light soy milk. My husband made the bread - no milk, eggs or butter in it.
Curried Brussels sprouts with potatoes, tomatoes, onions and herbs, over dirty jasmine rice
Teriyaki vegetable stirfry (broccoli, bell peppers, yellow squash and mushrooms) with Lightlife vegan "chicken" strips, over rice noodles
Bean soup (cannellini beans, potatoes, bell peppers, onion, celery, carrots, tomatoes) with herbs and chilli seasoning.
The biggest challenge is eating out. The only "safe" food I can find is salads - and that is a bit old after a while. And with a full week
of being on the road for work coming up, the stakes are about to get very high.
Hey, I found your blog while researching familial hypercholesterolemia, which a friend of mine may have. I have some experience with vegan food, although not usually fat-free, and I might be able to help suggest foods to try.
ReplyDeleteHave you been told to limit saturated fats, or all fats? If all, do you know if that means just oils, or does it also mean naturally occurring fats (eg. avocado, nuts, tofu)?
Hi, Ed! Thank you for reading and for the comment. About the fats: it all depends on who you ask. Some doctors/ nutritionists/ books/ etc say that for any lipid metabolism problems you must stay away from all fats, while others say that plant based and ' good fats' are OK. Personally, as of late I cut out all animal fat and proteins and I eat nuts, avocados, and some fish moderately ( once a week or so).
DeleteAny soy products don't agree with me at all, which makes the vegan route even more challenging.
Thank you, again, and all the best to your friend!
Hi - I also have hypercholesterolemia and have been following a plant based diet by Dr. Esselstyn. I am having to make some changes as my test results were still too high. I just consulted with him and he stresses eating a lot of greens to heal the endothelium. Anyway I thought I'd tell you about Will at Potato Strong (google for tons of recipes) - he makes mashed potatoes with gravy with no added fat. Only naturally occurring fat in the potatoes. Hope that helps. :-)
ReplyDeleteHi, Sharon,
DeleteThank you for reading and for the tip - I will check it out. Also, now, I am all curious about the "naturally occurring fats in the potatoes" - I'll go read about it. Thanks, again.