elpgal started a great thread over on the main part of the forum about workout gear, and a few of us veered off into talking about other health and fitness topics, and specifically plant-based eating plans. I noticed food-based topics are popular here so thought it was appropriate to move that discussion over, where it can continue - or not, as folks prefer.

To briefly recap, Gryffin shared her sleek workout capsule and noted she follows Joel Fuhrman’s Eat to Live plan and likes Gina Hamshaw’s Power Plates cookbook. And FashIntern posted that she was led to plant-based eating by reading Diet for a Small Planet and cooking from Laurel’s Kitchen and the Moosewood cookbooks.

Gryffin, I’ve heard of Joel Fuhrman, but not Gina Hamshaw. Will give her book a look next time I’m in the bookstore. (So thrilled that’s an option again!). Do you have any favorite recipes to share?

FashIntern, I had and still use all of those books.

My interest in plant-forward eating started as strictly health-based. My husband and I both have terrible family health histories and when we started our life together we agreed we wanted a healthy lifestyle. I enjoyed reading Jane Brody in the NYT and got her cookbook. While many of her recipes are veg or vegan, others utilize what she calls “meat as condiment”. We quickly discovered that we loved the flavor and texture of the food - and that was that.

I remain an omnivore with no food off-limits but as a practical matter the overwhelming majority of my meals are veg or vegan and all are whole foods. Diet for a Small Planet influenced me as well to look at the bigger picture of food consumption, as have Michael Pollan’s writings. Laurel’s Kitchen is a fav to this day, and I adore those beautiful Moosewood cookbooks. But to be honest the simpler recipes in Moosewood Cooks at Home are the ones I actually use. Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi are endlessly inspiring.

I started taking cooking classes from an local Aryuveda teacher some years ago and love the Indian-influenced meals. She has gone virtual this past year and now has a world-wide following with people from all over taking her zoom classes. http://www.bespiced.com

These days I get a lot of inspiration from food blogs and my daughters and sons-in-law (one of whom is strictly vegetarian) and I share a lot of our favorite bloggers and recipes. Minimalist Baker, Love and Lemons, Oh She Glows, Cookie and Kate, Pinch of Yum Gimmesomeoven and even Deb Perlman of Smitten Kitchen have some great veg options. For Indian-inspired I like Veg Recipes of India, Cooks Hideout and Healthfood Desivideshi.

My granddaughter is allergic to eggs, so I’m interested in learning about vegan baking. Anyone have any recommendations on that front?