(Hey lovelies, just wanted you give you a head’s up that links to items in this post are affiliate links. I’ve only included things I personally buy, and you won’t be charged extra should you choose to purchase them. I will receive a small commission if you do, but I use these as much for education as for income. You can of course check out the full FTC requirement for disclosure here.)
Hi beautiful babes!
As we rapidly approach the new year (and if you’re reading this in January and beyond, Happy 2021, hope it’s not a trash-fire), it occurs to your resident food blogger that a lot of omnivorous babes out there will very quickly be looking to better their health, or make a positive change ethically for animals, the environment, or even those reasons and others! Migrant workers take the brunt of the brutality of our slaughter plant system, my beautiful friends. The food system touches us all.
So, in honor of those potential new friends, I thought it might be a good idea to break it down. What on earth does a Whole Food Plant Babe eat? What kinds of things does she regularly keep in her kitchen? What sorts of products does she hiss at like an infuriated cat?
And voila! Here we are!
So, I try to base my diet on a two-fold strategy: What has been scientifically proven to improve the health and longevity of the human race, and what has been proven to be the least harmful approach to the longevity of our environment and the species within it. That leads to the Whole Food Plant-Based (and Vegan!) Lifestyle.
But why the added (vegan)? Isn’t WFPB already vegan? Well, yes and no. The incredibly qualified doctors that promote a WFPB diet for the purposes of health do not call it vegan, for two reasons as far as I’ve been able to assess. The first is that they want their potential adherents to focus on what they CAN eat, and a lot of typical SAD eaters think of vegans as the people that can’t eat meat and cheese and such.
On that front, I get it. A lot of people think about all the things they are losing if they decide to “go vegan,” and completely disregard the fact that comfort foods can absolutely be duplicated in a more ethical way (and very often in a healthier way as well).
The other reason is, rightly, because they are trying to fix people’s health, ethics aside. If people eat a little meat every now and then but otherwise eat a plant-based diet, then that is still a victory! And while I don’t disagree (killing one animal is obviously MUCH less harmful than killing thousands), that isn’t my personal philosophy. So while everyone is welcome here and I will happily give advice on how to lower your dairy and meat consumption, I will not be addressing meat or dairy as a feasible alternative, on any page or recipe. I won’t hate you if you feel the personal need to sub an ingredient, but you won’t see it here.
So, if I only choose whole, plant foods, how could I possibly write recipes?? Aren’t all of my meals some mix of greens and beans with vaguely cooked grains somewhere in there, topped with a heavy dose of smugness and protein deficiency? Not quite. I’m actually taking a big note from Dr. Michael Greger (check out his OG traffic light system here) to show you-
In case you don’t follow links, here’s the difference between my light system and Dr. Greger’s: his yellow light includes unprocessed animal foods, and red light includes processed animal foods. Why doesn’t mine?
BECAUSE PEOPLE RUN YELLOW AND RED LIGHTS
The system proposed above is assuming people will treat the system like they treat the lights they’re based upon. If you’re the kind of person that cruises through yellows sparingly and would never consider running a red, congratulations! You are going to have an extremely healthy diet, and I look forward to debating the ethics of almond milk in the comments. But for all of those who consider yellow and red a little more loosely, this is for you, and the absence of animal products is meant to reflect that.
In a dire situation, sure, maybe you would jump a curb, go through a parking lot, drive through the grass, but most people aren’t going to act that way in their day-to-day lives. Consider animal products your dire moment. The answer to the “but what if you were trapped on a desert island with only animals and exactly NO EDIBLE PLANTS” scenario that carnists love. Otherwise, just eat plants, my friends.
But wait, Babe! A lot of your recipes feature yellow light ingredients. Hypocrite much?
Ah, you’ve seen through me. I am a fraud and a failure!
Or, just maybe, consider this. If your meals and diet are 80-90% green light foods, 10-20% yellow light (like the weekly bowl of whole wheat pasta, the almond milk in your tea or coffee, that tortilla with your veggie burrito, etc), and 2-5% red light foods (like that ketchup with your air-fried sweet potatoes), I think we can all agree that you are still doing good for your beautiful body. If your diet is all tofu, whole wheat bread, and plant milks, clearly you have taken a wrong turn, but if you are using somewhat processed plant products to add a little variety and comfort to your plant-fueled life, then you are doing great!
Okay, okay, but where’s the line between “processed” and “ultraprocessed”?
For me, this is a little bit of a complex answer. I look at the difference through a flowchart of questions:
1. Can I make this at home, but the store-bought alternative is cheaper while being no worse for me (ie, peanut butter, almond milk, pasta, tofu, taco sauce, etc?) If yes, yellow-light!
2. Has the processing improved the ingredient or added nothing harmful (ie, cocoa powder, unsalted tomato juice, unsalted canned vegetables and beans, etc)? If yes, yellow-light!
3. Is the processing either impossible to duplicate in even a well-equipped home kitchen, or adds ingredients that have been shown to be harmful to human health (ie, refined oils, sodas, junk foods)? If yes, red light!
That third one is key. I regularly make sweets for my children, and love some air-fried “french-fries,” both made without oil or unnecessary additives like petroleum-based coloring. But on the very rare occasion I get vegan Ethiopian food or some other delicacy with friends and family, I’m not going to question whether or not they oiled their pans.
At the end of the day, you decide how many times you’re willing to run yellow and red lights. Just know that, like with real traffic lights, you’re rolling the dice when you do.
Soooo, can you, like, be a little more specific?
My babes, I love your energy. I too am a Type-A queen who thrives off of specifics. As such, let’s go through the kitchen, food by food. I’ll give you a breakdown of things you CAN choose to nosh, both the blue-collar staples, and the things you might keep an eye out for seasonally and the ones you save for clearance racks and special occasions. I am basing this off of living in the northern portion of Texas (or North American hardiness zone 7, if you’re a gardener), with access to multiple grocery stores and things like Amazon and Thrive Market. My area has one pseudo-vegan grocer, and no exclusively vegan restaurants, yet I make it work every day without breaking the bank. If you find something to be outlandishly hard to find or insanely expensive, let me know! Either I can help you find a cheaper alternative, or you can educate me! I’m totally open to both.
So, that being said, let’s start with what lots of people use as the base for their meals, and add in ingredients from there.
Grains
| Everyday | Special Occasions (check the sales) |
| Rolled oats Brown rice Cornmeal Pearled barley Whole wheat bread Whole wheat pasta Whole wheat tortillas Corn tortillas Whole wheat flour | Steel-cut oats Quinoa Wild rice Amaranth Kasha Millet Kamut Bulgur Teff Vital wheat gluten |
Next on the list, the true pillar of any whole-food diet and the number one dietary indicator of longevity:
Beans and Legumes
| Everyday | Special Occasion (Check the sales) |
| Green lentils Black beans Kidney beans Pinto beans Black eyed peas Edamame White beans (Lima, Navy, etc) Chickpeas Tofu (some big box stores have it for under $2) Silken tofu | Red lentils (check here if you don’t have a nearby Asian grocery store) Mung and split mung beans Pink beans Roman beans Adzuki beans Cow peas Pidgeon peas Soy beans Split peas and yellow split peas Tempeh TVP Soy curls |
From here we move into the real meat and potatoes of the list. As far as my daily targets go, I keep these somewhere between vegetables and grains in my mind, but these powerhouses are full of fiber and an array of vitamins and minerals.
Starchy vegetables
| Everyday | Special Occasions/seasonal |
| Russet potatoes Sweet potatoes Parsnips Corn (frozen or canned, fresh seasonally) Beets Peas Pumpkin puree | Okinawan sweet potatoes (purple!) Red and yellow potatoes Fingerling potatoes Pumpkins, whole Butternut squash Acorn Squash Spaghetti squash Plantains Kohlrabi |
Now we move to a very important portion of this list, vegetables. For the sake of keeping these tables more succinct, I’m going to put greens in a separate list, so keep scrolling if you’re hunting for romaine and spinach.
Vegetables
| Basic | Seasonal/Special |
| Carrots Bell peppers Brussel sprouts (frozen) Tomatoes (especially non-BPA canned or unsalted juice) Cucumbers Broccoli (frozen) Cauliflower (frozen) Radishes Green beans (frozen) Cabbage (red, green, Napa) Mushrooms (button, cremini) Yellow squash and zucchini (frozen) Bok choy | Sprouts (alfalfa, beans, etc) Artichokes Brussel sprouts Asparagus Leeks Green beans (fresh) Broccoli (fresh) Cauliflower (fresh) Eggplant Mushrooms (shiitake, Portobello, oyster, King oyster, enoki, beech, wild, etc.) Okra (fresh) Rhubarb Rutabaga Snap peas Yellow Squash and zucchini (fresh) |
Next up are also certainly vegetables, but they are so critical to the diet that they deserve their own home. You should also try and prioritize cruciferous veggies, but definitely pay special mind to this section.
Greens
| Basic | Special/Seasonal |
| Iceberg lettuce (least nutritious) Romaine lettuce Spinach (fresh or frozen) Kale, curly Collard greens (fresh or frozen) Mustard greens Turnip greens | Beet greens Sorrel Butter lettuce Arugula Gai lan (or Chinese broccoli) Purple and Lacinato kale Swiss Chard Watercress |
This is probably my favorite section. This babe loves some sweet, fresh fruit, and for good reason. Fruit consumption is critical to your health, and between the varieties that are available year-round, to the rotating rogue’s gallery of seasonal options, your taste buds will never be bored.
Fruits
| Basic | Seasonal | Special/exotic |
| Apples Oranges Lemons Limes Bananas Strawberries (frozen) Mixed berries (frozen) Blueberries (frozen) Grapefruit Mango (their price fluctuates but always affordable) Prune (buy in bulk) Raisins Coconut, dried (unsweetened) | Apricots Avocado (buy on sale, scoop out and freeze) Berries (black, raspberries, blue, straw, and cherries Cranberries (buy in fall, freeze for year round) Dates Figs Grapes (I find them consistently at Sam’s) Kiwi Melon (cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon) Clementine Papaya Pear Peaches Persimmon Pineapple Plum Pomegranate | Blood oranges Goji berries (check Asian stores under Lycium or Wolfberry) Longan fruit Passionfruit Lychee fruit Black currant Guava Jackfruit (buy 1 whole from an Asian grocer, eat year round. They are massive) Kumquat Rambutan Starfruit Coconut (whole) |
Notice how salt and pepper are not the only listings in this next section? That’s because there are dozens (probably hundreds if I did more research) of fresh and dried herbs and spices to augment foods and unlock some surprising health benefits. I have all of these in my pantry, but feel free to start with a few simple options and expand from there.
Herbs and Spices
| Bare Bones | Added Fun |
| Basil (grow at home with very little effort/cost) Cilantro Parsley Italian Parsley Salt (iodized) Black pepper Crushed red pepper Oregano Garlic Ginger Chili powder Paprika Bay leaves Onion powder Cinnamon Turmeric Vanilla extract Mustard seed Cumin Rosemary Curry powder Oregano Thyme Chives Coriander seeds | Dill Keffir lime leaves Thai basil Mint leaves White pepper Sumac Fennel Seeds Fenugreek Nutmeg Allspice Cloves Poppy seeds Marjoram Garam Masala 5 Spice (Chinese) Everything Seasoning (with or without salt) Umami Powder Mace Saffron Celery Seeds Tarragon Sage Cardamom Caraway Star Anise Cream of tartar |
This section has a hint more culinary inspiration. These are a combination of roots and vegetables added more for the flavor they impart, unlike foods added for their textures or individual tastes (like potatoes, beans, etc).
Aromatics
| Basics | Special (or at a specialty store) |
| Onions (yellow, white, red) Celery Garlic Ginger Scallions/Green onions | Fresh/frozen chili peppers (bird’s eye, habanero, serrano, etc) Galang root Fresh turmeric Shallots |
With the exception of peanut butter and maybe almond milk, this is easily the most expensive corner of the home. The nice thing is, you only need a very small amount day to day to max out their health benefits. If you had to choose only four: pb2, Brazil nuts, flax seeds, and almond milk.
Nuts and seeds
| Basics | Seasonal/Special |
| Peanut butter Tahini Ground flax seeds Chia seeds Peanuts Sesame seeds Brazil nuts (these are more expensive than most basics, but I eat one a week in my oatmeal because cholesterol) Almond milk (unflavored, unsweetened) | Hemp hearts Hazelnuts Macadamia nuts Almonds Cashews PB2 Pecans Pistachios Pumpkin seeds (or any squash seeds!) Sunflower seeds Walnuts |
With the exception of nutritional yeast, vinegars, and a few others, there are a lot of yellow/red light foods here. Use as you feel like you need to, or learn to make your own varieties.
Condiments
| Basics | Special (most of these aren’t expensive) |
| Nutritional yeast (bonus points if its fortified) Capers and olives Pickles and pickled jalapenos White Vinegar Apple Cider Vinegar Apple sauce (unsweetened) Soy sauce or tamari (low sodium) Mustard (Dijon and yellow) Chili garlic paste Baking powder/soda Cornstarch (or tapioca, arrowroot) Sriracha Tomato paste Salsa (or make you own) Hot sauce Coconut milk | Cocoa powder Horseradish Hummus (or make your own) Curry paste (check the ingredients) Wasabi Balsamic vinegar Red wine vinegar Rice Vinegar Tamarind paste Vegan Worcestershire Ketchup (or make your own) Vegan “oyster” sauce Hoisin sauce Agar powder Enchilada sauce (or make your own) Vegan mayo (or make your own) |
Last but not least, everything else! Sweeteners truly depend on how much you like to bake (or not), or if you drink things sweet. I keep a few around for when I bake for others, and stevia for oatmeal and coffee. But if you can, definitely try out sea vegetables and fermented foods, as I have mentioned before.
Other fun additions
| Sea vegetables -Nori -Wakame -Kombu -Dulse (I buy the flakes in bulk when I run low) Fermented Foods -Sauerkraut -Kimchi -Miso -Kombucha -Tempeh (also listed with beans) -Natto -Fermented yogurts (soy, almond, cashew, etc) -Water kefir Sweeteners -Raw cane sugar (or turbinado) -Coconut sugar -Date paste -Agave nectar -Pure maple syrup -Vegan honey (such as this) -Unsulfurated Blackstrap molasses (like this one) -Stevia -Monkfruit -Erythritol -Xylitol |
Did I miss anything? What are your go-to staples in the kitchen? Do you disagree with any of my choices or reasoning? Let me know!
