I’ve found that these 3 basic and achievable tactics to go a long way in helping me stay largely on track, while still being able to indulge in holiday treats. So for my last newsletter of the year, here goes, short + sweet.

1️⃣ Getting a high-protein breakfast is a gamechanger. For most people, this is probably around 25-35g protein. You’ll find that starting your day this way sets you up for success by keeping your energy steady with fewer crashes and cravings. My favorite is a smoothie, like these or this one.

2️⃣ Next, check in with your stomach and stop eating when you’re 80% full. That’s right, that second helping is usually what makes you wish you were wearing something with an elastic waist. There’s a lag between what your stomach senses and when the message hits your brain, so try to stop when you still feel like you have room. This one is hard, but worth it, IMHO.

3️⃣ Enjoy the desserts you love! But try to stick to the ‘3-bite’ rule and savor every bite. Check out this cake and this fruitcake for some guilt-free treats.

Give the gift of The Vegetarian Reset and win big!

Did you know that I’m giving away a GIANT “care package” of sorts from my Good Things series, worth over $250?

It will be an assortment of coffee & tea, books, condiments, pasta, ice cream and bathroom knick-knacks (the ice cream will be in the form of a gift card). And in some categories, I will even let you choose what you want!

To enter the giveaway, purchase a hardcover copy of The Vegetarian Reset.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org

Gift it to yourself if you don’t have it, or gift it to a special someone who loves to eat well. Multiple copies get multiple entries! (and then, you and your giftee get to do The Vegetarian Reset Challenge with me in January).

Here’s how to participate:

1. Submit a copy of your proof of purchase using this form or clicking the button below. Receipt must be dated Nov 26-Dec 31 2024.

Enter the Giveaway

1. Giveaway closes on Dec 31, 2024 at 11.59pm PT

2. 1 winner will be chosen at random and notified by email in early January - you’ll need to get back to me within 5 days to send me your address so that I can ship you all the good things! Please note that they may come in different packages.

3. Giveaway open to subscribers over 18 years old in the continental US only (Sorry, everybody else - shipping is really expensive!)

4. Assortment of items in the giveaway include a selection of the products from the 6 newsletters linked above, subject to availability, collectively worth over $250.

Wishing you a happy happy everything. See you in 2025 💚🔔

I’m taking a little break this month to recharge (and travel to India for the holidays!).

Your subscription to We Ate Well has been paused for one month. If you are a monthly subscriber, this means that you will not be charged for one month. If you are an annual subscriber, this means your subscription is going to be extended by a month. There’s nothing that you need to do.

In the meanwhile, I wanted to point you to the Weeknight Simple Index which lists all the recipes from Weeknight Simple this year. I’m pretty sure there are recipes you haven’t gotten to yet, and there’s no time like the present!

Going forward, I would love to know if you would rather I paused your subscription when I take time off (probably twice a year), or sent you recipes from other wonderful ‘guest chefs’ here on Substack Would you do me a favor and take this poll?

Weeknight Simple will resume in January, with some fabulous recipes …

Read more

• The Kindle edition of The Vegetarian Reset is on sale for $2.99, until March 31st only! Get it now, and if you would like, get on the waitlist for the next Vegetarian Reset Challenge, which will be in May 2024. (The challenge is a 4-day meal plan from the book, free of refined grains and sugar. You have to get a book for the recipes, and I’ll send you the meal plan+shopping list).

• Try this NY Shuk Preserved Lemon Paste with your pasta. I plan to make a springy pasta with peas, asparagus, onions and parmesan and brighten it up with this paste. I got the paste at Whole Foods.

• I made an extremely pink smoothie using this dragon-fruit puree and loved it. Have you tried dragon fruit before? You can find this in the frozen-fruit section.

• I’ve been looking a while for harissa made with extra-virgin olive oil instead of sunflower oil, and I finally found it at Zwita Foods.

• I can’t stop eating Lesser Evil Popcorn. And I don’t even like popcorn. Try the ghee version..it is decadent.

See you in a few days with April’s Weeknight Simple! And Happy Easter to those celebrating.

xoxo

I am so grateful for the turn my life has taken, the opportunity to appear in your kitchen or at your dining table, and hopefully, impact your life for the better. Thank you for joining this community where food is everything.

To celebrate, I wanted to do a little something different.

Many of you have cooked recipes from the book (or tested recipes for me🙏). But I know that life often gets in the way and it’s hard to free up headspace for cooking something new. And it’s totally OK if the cookbook is just sitting pretty on your bookshelf.

However, the real power of eating this way comes through when we do it consistently. I’ve experienced the transformation and I want you to experience it too! Ergo, The Vegetarian Reset Challenge!

Join me to cook meals from the book for just 4 days: Jan 29-Feb 1st, 2024. All you need is a copy of the book for the recipes - the challenge itself is free. I’m going to give you the extra support you need to make it through the process.

I’ve woven together a pretty special collection of lunch + dinner recipes from the book that are perfect for meal prep and reinvention. And to round it off, I’m giving you options for breakfast too (sweet and savory because I know y’all feel strongly about it).

Here’s what you get when you sign up for this 4-day challenge:

• A 4-day meal plan (covering meal prep, breakfast, lunch, and dinner) + a handy shopping list. Note: recipes not included except breakfast

• Insider tips and hacks delivered to your inbox along with instructional videos

• Exclusive access to a lively Facebook community for mutual support and accountability

• Bonus live Q&A session for those burning questions

  Sign me up!

Last day to sign up is Jan 24. I hope you’ll join me for this special Anniversary reset.

PS: As of this writing, the hardcover is the lowest price I’ve ever seen it go on Amazon, and the e-book is practically free at $2.99! See more links to purchase at the bottom of this email.

The celebration continues with an exclusive recipe from the book that is perfect for this snowy January. Slurp and enjoy!

French Onion Soup

Serves: 2

I’ve always wondered why it’s so hard to find vegetarian French onion soup in restaurants, given that caramelized onions are the star of the soup. It was a no-brainer to include my version in this book, particularly when I get another chance to showcase my Zucchini Bread. This is an easy and craveable soup that will leave your kitchen smelling amazing.

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp butter or olive oil to veganize

• 2 heaping cups thinly sliced yellow onion (12 oz/340g)

• ¼ cup/60ml dry white wine or water, for deglazing

• 1 Tbsp minced garlic

• 1 Tbsp cornstarch/cornflour

• 1 Tbsp water

• 3 cups/720ml low-sodium vegetable broth or water

• 1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce

• 1 bay leaf

• ¼ tsp dried oregano

• ¼ tsp dried thyme, or 1 sprig fresh thyme

• ¼ tsp fine sea salt

• ¼ tsp cracked black pepper

• 2 slices Zucchini Bread (page 14; 2 oz/55g each)

• ½ cup/56g sharp grated Cheddar cheese (or Gruyère, which is traditional but usually not vegetarian)

Directions

Step 1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. When hot, add the butter and onions and cook, stirring often, until the onions turn a deep brown and the liquid evaporates. As the onions cook, add a splash of wine as needed to deglaze the bottom and scrape up bits sticking to the bottom of the pan. The whole process should take 15–20 minutes.

Step 2. Turn the heat down to medium, add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Stir the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl to make a slurry. Add the slurry to the saucepan and mix well.

Step 3. Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaf, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the broth is rich and slightly thickened, 20–30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.

Step 4. While the broth is simmering, preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.

Step 5. Lightly spray the bread with oil and bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 3–4 minutes, or until lightly browned on both sides.

Step 6. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, sprinkle the cheese on the bread, and preheat the broiler. Broil the bread until the cheese melts, 1–2 minutes. Portion the soup into bowls, top each bowl with a piece of toast, and serve.

Cooking notes

If you have oven-safe soup bowls or crocks, you can place them on the baking sheet in Step 6, fill with soup, place the bread with cheese on top of each bowl, and broil them directly.

Nutrition per serving (best efforts, see disclaimer on v8well.com)

• If you’ve already signed up, Welcome.💚 I’m beyond excited to do this with you! You should have received an email from hello@v8well.com with next steps.

• If you’ve decided that this course is not for you, for any reason, feel free to stop reading. We will be back to regular programming on Friday with a very Christmassy recipe.

• If you were intrigued by the course idea and perhaps a teeny bit on the fence, read on.

I’ve got 3 spots remaining in my Founder’s Circle for The Vegetarian Reset Lab. You’ll need to sign up by Nov 30 in order to get the course for 50% off, in exchange for your feedback on course materials over the next couple of months. This is intentionally a small-group, limited-time offer. Once the offer expires on Nov 30, you will be directed to join a waitlist for the course to officially open enrollment in January for the full price of $297 (still worth it!). We launch in February, which is when everyone will access the course materials at the same time. The course will be online and self paced, with a facility for Q&A with me.

By the end of this program, you will have

• A thorough understanding of how to equip your kitchen and pantry. Diverse sources of vegetarian protein, seasonal vegetables, whole grains, gluten-free swaps and cooking oils - we will go over these often confusing choices, learn how to read labels and choose ingredients that love you back.

• Mastered culinary techniques that put flavor center-stage, while putting protein and vegetables at the center of your plate. Learn how to make hearty and filling soups, blood-sugar friendly smoothies, work with plant-based protein like a pro, make gluten-free breads and desserts from scratch and much more.

• Set your meals up for success. No more guesswork - learn how to balance any meal by adding enough protein and vegetables, and a serving of starch that is right for you. Construct the perfect plate that leaves you satiated by incorporating the 6 tastes in Ayurveda.

• Mastered meal-planning strategies that make weeknights simple and weekends special - Batch prep vegetables using my seasonal produce calendar, spend an hour on the weekend strategically building the base for meals later in the week and reinvent meals with completely different flavor profiles.

But most importantly, The Vegetarian Reset Lab will give you the confidence and clarity you need to finally stay consistent, see the results you want and build the vibrant life you’ve always aspired to, without spending all your time in the kitchen and getting frustrated by the scale.

Enroll in The Vegetarian Reset Lab today.

Let's Go!

Not sure? Let me counter some common objections.

• It’s a cool idea, but I just don’t have the time. Do you have time to watch an episode of Emily in Paris? That’s roughly how long each module will take you (there are 4 modules). Or save it all up and binge watch the whole thing in as much time as a movie. Transcripts and audio files will be available for download as well, along with PDF resources. Now, of course, you still have to apply the concepts that you learn and cook, or meal plan. But you still have to cook anyway, right? You’ll just be doing so more efficiently, with plenty of extra tricks and recipes up your sleeve.

• It’s too expensive. Let me add up the value here. Taking just the bonuses:

  • 30+ recipes and a 30-day meal plan ($150 value),

  • A year’s worth of Weeknight Simple (another 52 recipes - $50 value),

  • And an FAQ video with a nutritionist ($150 value - think of it as a generic consult, which usually costs more).

  That’s $350 of value even without counting the core course materials, which I will undoubtedly enhance, based on what YOU ask for! At half the price of the course, $148.50, this is a sweet deal by most standards. That being said, I completely understand if it just wont work for you at this time. I will be offering a payment plan when the course opens for enrollment at full price and I hope it will be more accessible then.

• It’s the holiday season. I’m not ready to think about eating healthy. Think ahead to January, when you’ve had a whole month of festivities. When you’re looking to take action, any action, to prove to yourself that you’re going to focus on eating healthy consistently this year. Let this be your action. And let me be your guide. Come January, you can be secure in the knowledge that you’ve already invested in a life skill. Not an unrealistic resolution, or a crash-diet. You’re going to take intentional, strategic action that will empower you for life. And the best part? You can sit back and watch a cooking show, then get a plan with all the steps laid out for you.

This newsletter is my safe space. I hate being salesy here. But I truly don’t want anyone that has been on this journey with me for a while to miss out on this offer and VIP experience. Come January, I don’t plan to offer discounts on the course because I truly believe it will be worth this value, and more. That’s why I’m taking the risk of annoying a few people by reiterating the value in this email.

Reserve my spot

If you’re even on the fence, I want to congratulate you for getting there. In my experience so far, I’ve realized that nobody wants to change the way they eat. It’s just really hard to change something that we grew up or spent most of our adult life doing. It’s hard to change the meal that nourishes our soul at the end of a tough day. I felt that way too, until I realized how good it could be on the other side. That I could still feel nourished when I made a few tweaks - take for example, this colorful Thanksgiving meal that had over 20 different plants and plenty of protein as opposed to a sea of beige.

So, my friend - if you’re even thinking about doing this, know that you’ve come a lot further than most people do. You want to not just ‘manage’, but thrive, lead your most vibrant life. And you should celebrate that.

If you’re ready to take the next step with me right there to support you, join my Founder’s Circle today.

I'm Ready

P.S. See you on Friday with a very Christmassy recipe that got completely demolished at my Thanksgiving table! XOXO.

The Vegetarian Reset Lab is my 4-step system to master the art of carb-conscious vegetarian cooking in just 30 days. It teaches a fresh paradigm of vegetarian cooking - one where your plate is anchored to vegetables and protein, with a side of starch. You will learn:

• How to reset your kitchen with high-quality ingredients that love you back.

• Cooking techniques that amp up protein and lower carbs while honoring your culinary traditions.

• How to build your plate around vegetables and protein, and include a serving of starch that is right for you.

• My meal-planning strategy and tips to make this a sustainable lifestyle.

This course is for you, if:

• You know you want to try a lower-carb way of eating and you’ve done your research (i.e. that bag of almond flour is sitting in your pantry gathering dust). You just need to do it and would love someone to take you step by step without the overwhelm on your shoulders.

• You’re already living a low-carb lifestyle but need fresh ideas. Think seasonal vegetables, spices, variety in vegetarian proteins and more than anything, tested recipes so you don’t waste your time.

• You’ve experienced success with the ketogenic diet but found it unsustainable. You want to still reap the benefits of eating lower-carb but without cutting entire food groups out of your life.

  ---

I know what it takes to make a carb-conscious way of eating sustainable. I’ve helped thousands of people reset and gain a new perspective with my cookbook. But over the past year, I’ve heard from many of you who just need a little more support. This is me, moving in with you and helping you take charge. I’ll walk you through everything that I’ve learned through years of experimentation to get you from point A to point B on the fastest route.

The course will be entirely online and self-paced - think “cooking show” vibe with a total viewing time of less than 3 hours. You will also get a recipe library with 30+ recipes encompassing breakfast, lunch, dinner along with a 30-day meal plan. And the kicker bonus? A YEAR’s worth of my weeknight meal plan, Weeknight Simple, for free! ($50 value. Weeknight Simple goes paid in January 2024.)

I know that I’m over-delivering here for the price. So why am I offering a hefty discount? Because I value your feedback and want to build something that will be truly useful to you.

I am looking for a small group of committed people to enroll in my future $297 course at a 50% discount, in exchange for less than five minutes of your time once per week over the next 3 months as I develop the content. I’ll either send you a short survey (5 questions or less) and all you have to do is vote for your favorite idea or answer a simple question.

The course will go Live in February, 2024 – which is you will have access, along with others who will purchase the course at full price.

I’d love for you to be part of this exclusive behind the scenes experience with direct access to me.

I'm IN!

If you’ve been struggling to transition your cooking style or get new ideas, this is your chance to get in at the lowest rate I will ever offer this course for. The best part? You get a say in what will be included in the course! AND Lifetime Access to the materials. Which means, if I update the core program anytime in the future, you’ll get those updates hot off the press, too!

Click here to enroll today at a special discounted price: [$148.50]. This opportunity is only available until Nov 30.

More details below.

The Vegetarian Reset Lab: Course Outline

Module 1: Reset your kitchen and pantry (~30 mins)

This is not your average shopping list - we delve into the science behind choosing ingredients and help you make informed choices that align with your needs and preferences.

You will learn:

• How to use low and medium-carb swaps as well as gluten-free alternatives for staples like bread, grains, and pasta. Which whole grains pack the most benefits? Ever been overwhelmed by the confusing aisle of whole-grain, gluten-free and bean-based pasta varieties? Learn how to read those labels and pick the right ones for you. 

• High-quality vegetarian protein sources to always have on hand along with my handy protein cheat-sheet that filters the noise from ingredient labels and goes neatly on your fridge.

• How to navigate the sometimes controversial world of fats, uncovering the key distinctions between various cooking mediums to decide which ones are right for you.

• Simple yet effective strategies to promote gut health through dietary variety and the incorporation of fermented foods.

• How to unlock flavor with a world of spices and condiments that should always have a place in your kitchen and incorporate them effectively to get a myriad of health benefits as well as that tingle in your palate. 

Your homework is to go shopping! With a comprehensive shopping list to stock your fridge, freezer and pantry that includes brands that I use and links for convenience.

Module 2: Mastering Cooking Techniques (~40 mins)

Don’t know what to do with that bag of almond flour in your pantry? Tried cauliflower rice once and hated it? In this module, you’ll unveil the secrets of culinary techniques minus the complexity with step-by-step videos. You will learn

• How to turn soups into hearty, protein-rich meals and uncover my go-to formula for creating smoothies that stabilize blood sugar and keep you satiated.

• The art of cooking plant-based proteins like tofu without having to tediously press them out of existence, and the nuances of cooking beans and lentils, with techniques to make them more digestible.

• How to creatively incorporate vegetarian protein sources everywhere from pasta to dessert.

• How to make gluten-free bread and wraps from scratch.

• Uncover the secret to preparing cauliflower rice so you’ll love it. Not convinced? I’ll show you how to cook and incorporate appropriate portions of whole grains and smart ways to still enjoy white rice or pasta. 

Module 3: Constructing Balanced Meals (~30 mins)

A journey through the art of constructing perfectly balanced vegetarian meals that are right for you! We'll delve into my personal system, inspired by the six tastes in Ayurveda, which ensures your meals are not only delicious but also nutritionally harmonious to reduce your cravings. You will learn:

• How to honor culinary traditions while you transform traditional carb-heavy meals from different cultures into healthier but still satiating versions. 

• How to amp up protein at any meal by adding a protein anchor and seamlessly integrate a compatible serving of carbs, using my single-serving starch cheat-sheet.

• The art of balancing any meal to make it a lower glycemic load for your body by blending the right proportion of veggies, protein and carbs.

• Simple hacks for enjoying starch and sugar and how to test them for yourself using a Continuous Glucose Monitor.

Module 4: My Meal Planning and Prep Strategy (~30 mins)

Do you have the best intentions and inspirations from all over the internet but get overwhelmed and fall apart when it comes to dinner-time, going back to your old faithful recipes? This module simplifies my Fab Five framework for dinner-soul-food: soups, grains, bread, salad, and pasta - the same one I use for Weeknight Simple! You’ll learn:

• How to spend an hour strategically on the weekend to make your weeknights simple, without it turning into a dreary chore. I promise you I won’t make you chop and store limp vegetables in labelled containers.

• How to reinvent and transform meals using the same ingredients but adding a fun twist. Think salad one day, tacos the next, but with completely different flavor profiles!

• Shortcuts!! I love store-bought ingredients that save precious time while delivering similar quality and can’t wait to tell you about the ones that I use.

• How to bring the family along with you on this journey by making your meals appetizing to everyone with minimal effort.

• Rise to the 30-day meal plan challenge armed with a comprehensive shopping list to make meal planning a breeze.

Bringing it All Together (~15 mins)

Explore ways to sustain your carb-conscious lifestyle, regardless of the situation, be it work schedule, dining out, traveling, or the holidays.

But wait..there’s more! BONUSES 🎆

• A recipe library of 30+ recipes and counting that encompass breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts, and snacks, complete with nutritional facts.

• 12 months of Weeknight Simple - my weeknight dinner plan that goes paid from January for FREE ($50 value). That’s an additional 52 slam-dunk dinner recipes, with 20-30g protein per recipe!

• FAQ with a nutritionist - How to find your carb compatibility, how much protein you really need and other questions you’ve always had!

Click here to grab one of the limited spots now at 50% off. Early enrollment ends on 11/30/2023. After that, you can still purchase the course but at the full price of $297. The course will launch in February 2024. If you have questions, feel free to hit reply to this email or comment on the post.

I truly believe that you are gaining a life skill. Whether you want to steer away chronic disease, lose a few pounds or simply introduce more variety into your diet, focus on process and the outcome you seek will happen naturally. 

Make the choice to put YOU first and come join me on this culinary journey! 

Join The Vegetarian Reset Lab

I’ll be back in a couple of weeks. XOXO.

Wishing you good times, good eats and good deals 💚🎁🎇

1. The Vegetarian Reset - For those looking to shake up their meatless cooking routine (I’m not biased, really). A gorgeous coffee table book that will not just provide plenty of inspiration for healthy holiday treats (think Shepherd’s Pie, Curried Lentil Bolognese and gluten-free Hazelnut Brownies) but will also continue giving well into the new year with recipes that put vegetables and protein centerstage. I will mail you an autographed bookplate (a sticker that makes it a signed copy) if you respond to this email and request one. Please allow enough time for snail mail! If you want to go the extra mile, make it a gift basket by adding in some of my favorite ingredients that are used in the book - Chickpea flour, Almond flour, Turmeric, Cumin and Hazelnut Butter or other items from the list below.

2. Olive oil - If you’ve read my article on olive oil, you know the secrets to choosing a high-quality EVOO at the supermarket and why you should drizzle generously and often! My favorite giftable brands are Brightland and Enzo‘s Table. Brightland has the most stunning packaging and also makes fabulous vinegars and honey. I love the flavored oils from Enzo, particularly the Clementine Crush that features in this recipe and the Fresno chili oil, which is usually spicier than Brightland. They also have an excellent gift section that does the mix ‘n’ match work for you!

3. Cheese - The Cheese Guy truly knows his cheese and is my single pick in this category. The cheeses are kosher, vegetarian and grass-fed from small family farms, and can absolutely hold their own against French and Italian brands. The Honey Goat Cheese, Parmesan and Pecorino are mainstays in my fridge and feature in several recipes in my cookbook. They also make excellent fig and strawberry preserves. For those interested in artisan plant-based cheeses, you may want to check out Seeductive Foods - I found them on Instagram and have been meaning to try their products - it is hard to find plant-based cheese without weird ingredients and these look great.

4. Pasta - I feel like I’ve become something of an authority on alternative pastas in the past couple of years! I love Kaizen for a low-carb pasta made with lupini bean flour, Zenb for a medium-carb pasta made with yellow peas that even my toddler will eat, and Jovial Foods Einkorn pasta for whole wheat that is great for gluten-sensitivity and honestly just in general - I’ve replaced all my regular pasta with this brand. Community Grains also makes a true whole wheat pasta, i.e. their wheat is milled while preserving the whole grain, as opposed to most conventional whole wheat products today that refine the grain entirely and then add back some fiber. A bundle of these products together with some good olive oil would make the perfect pasta-lover gift.

5. Spices - The conventional spice industry tends to aggregate spices in bulk via ‘middle-men’ and then repackage them for big companies to sell to consumers, usually diluting the quality and freshness of these products along the way. A better alternative for any lover of spices is to buy ‘single-origin’ brands. This indicates that the product is purchased directly from the farmer who makes a fair wage, and comes to you far sooner than it would conventionally, preserving its freshness and making your dishes more delicious. My favorite single origin spice companies are Burlap and Barrel, Diaspora Co and Vahdam India. I highly recommend the Floyd Cardoz collection from Burlap and Barrel, the Turmeric and Tadka Spoon from Diaspora Co, and the Spice Box from Vahdam India.

6. Tea and Coffee - The ‘single-origin’ philosophy applies to tea and coffee as well. I love Vahdam India’s Vanilla Spiced Masala Chai and also recommend their tea infuser. Anjali’s Cup makes my favorite chai masala with extra ginger (just add 1/4 tsp to your regular tea) and an excellent Turmeric Elixir. My coffee table is always stocked with Counter Culture Coffee and I love their nutty Big Trouble blend for my black coffee every morning. If you are in the market for a coffee machine, look at MoccaMaster. I also have this Baratza Virtuoso coffee grinder that changed my view on what good coffee should taste like!

7. Condiments - As a hopeless harissa addict thanks to Ottolenghi’s recipes, my favorites so far are Belazu Rose Harissa (less spicy) and regular Harissa from Pur and New York Shuk. Brooklyn Delhi’s tomato and garlic achaars are also extremely versatile condiments. Throw them on anything - eggs, dosa, sandwiches or wraps, salads, even pasta and they make it all better! PODI Life is another great brand that takes authentic South Indian pantry staples (podis) and reimagines their use - sprinkling them on everything from salads to avocado toast to grains. Every podi comes with an adorable postcard that explains how to use it!

8. Dessert - Now, now, did you just scroll down to this and ignore everything else? :) Hu Chocolate, Beyond Good and Laumiere Gourmet are my picks in this section. Hu Chocolate makes paleo-friendly fine chocolate with no weird ingredients. I have tried so many of their dark chocolate bars and they are all brilliant. They now have a grass-fed milk chocolate that’s so good. I love Beyond Good dark chocolate, especially this one with orange zest. Laumiere Gourmet is my Diwali recommendation - they make stunning giftable treats that are naturally sweetened with dried fruit - check out their holiday collection and use code V8WELL10 for 10% off.

9. Kitchenware - I love Material’s colorful cutting boards (including the mini), Misen knives and cooking tools and Caraway pans. Oh and while we are on the subject of knives, this Victorinox set is an excellent cheap paring knife that works on basically anything (and you better be careful because it is S-H-A-R-P).

10. Appliances - I always recommend my trusty Instant Pot for cooking legumes, grains and soups (and also for home-made yogurt). No more babysitting! I also have the Instant Pot air-fryer, which has a large base and is helpful to cook larger portions - I rarely use my oven now, which is a huge space-saving benefit in a Manhattan apartment ;) If you’re looking for a blender, this Ninja is an excellent all-purpose set. If you have the space, I also recommend the Vitamix, a smaller countertop Ninja for smoothies and the Shardor spice blender for spices and chutneys.

If you have questions about any of this, feel free to respond to this email and I will answer to the best of my ability! Wishing you some happy shopping, happy gifting, good times and good eats! XOXO

The first half of October went by in a whirlwind of kindergarten applications, a family trip and and some fall colors. I may have to revert to my 2-week schedule this fall, as things are heating up for year end and special projects are being planned for 2024 (more soon). But I promise you that every issue will pack double the punch! If you missed my weeknight meal plan that I sent out earlier in the month, go get it here. I hope you enjoyed what you tried and found the shopping list and tips useful. I am tinkering with the format and developing your November recipes right now - so tell me below in the poll if you’d like to see more.

Thanks for your feedback! Here are some good things to tide you over the next couple of weeks.

For your shopping list

Recipes for the Indian festive season

• Sundal - One of my favorite ways to consume beans is Sundal, which is a legume stir-fry made with chickpeas, moong beans, peanuts or other legumes. It is served daily during the Hindu festival of Navaratri, is celebrated for 9 nights around India (starting this weekend) and is a celebration of feminine divine power. The legume preparations are collectively known as 'Sundal' and a different legume is prepared each night as an offering to the gods and also served to family and friends. You can find the recipe using chickpeas from my cookbook here and another variation using moong beans here.

• Diwali - Coming up in mid-November. I encourage you to host a v8well chaat party! Get the recipe for the Cucumber Papdi Chaat from my cookbook (page 84), and seasonal variations using Brussels Sprouts, pomegranate and masala pecans here, and a Sweet Potato and Edamame Papdi Chaat here. The high-protein Bhel Puri is also bound to be a hit

• A collection of Madhur Jaffrey Recipes from Food & Wine

Pasta

• Food 52’s best vegetarian pasta recipes

Salad

• Sauteed Eggplant and Chickpea Salad from The Yummy Bowl

• Ottolenghi’s Lentils, Radicchio, and Walnuts With Manuka Honey on Simply Recipes

Some ideas

• People ignore these hidden design features every day from Lifehacker. The pasta spoon one is my favorite!

• High protein grains to add to your pantry from Eating Well

• The trick to using tofu as a cream cheese substitute from The Daily Meal

Social Media Roundup

• Kale Salad

parulworks

A post shared by @parulworks

• Cauliflower Cake

simpleplainandplenty

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• Roasted Cauliflower Salad

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• Tofu Roti!

herhealthypalate

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• Cheese Boats - Change up the fruit to apples and figs, maybe add some pesto (an apple slice + pesto is delicious!). I also love the Raincoast Crisps.

berryandtheboards

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Birthday cake

It’s my birthday today and cake is on my mind!

• Prantl Bakery’s Burnt Almond Torte - ok this one is not exactly v8well-ified (hmm it has almonds!) but it’s my absolute favorite cake in the world. We usually order it on Goldbelly.

• Sweet Laurel Bakery - If you’re looking for grain free, refined sugar free and dairy free cakes, Sweet Laurel Bakery is really good. I love their Clementine Olive Oil Cake (they sell it every year around September).

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Cookbook News

• I’m excited to partner with the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh to teach an exclusive cooking series from The Vegetarian Reset! These are virtual cooking classes so anyone can sign up. The first class is next week on October 17, 6-8pm and we’ll be making a couple of Indian recipes to kick off the festive season. See the full schedule and sign up below!

  The Vegetarian Reset: Plant Forward Recipes from Around the World | Vasudha Viswanath 

  • Navratri & Diwali Special: Cucumber Papdi Chaat & Sundal | Vasudha Viswanath | Oct. 17 | 6 - 8 p.m.

  • Thanksgiving Special: Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie | Vasudha Viswanath | Nov. 14 | 6 - 8 p.m.

  • Gluten Free Baking: Hazelnut Brownies & Almond Flour Cookies | Vasudha Viswanath | Dec. 12 | 6 - 8 p.m.

• Join my cookbook group here on Facebook and share your pictures as you cook along from the book! You can also ask questions about recipes and I will help in any way I can.

• Starting now and for the rest of the holiday season, I will mail you an autographed bookplate (it’s a sticker that will make your gift a signed copy) if you would like to gift a signed copy of The Vegetarian Reset to a loved one. I am also happy to mail it internationally but please allow enough time to get it by snail mail. I don’t brag often (or do I?), but this book makes a gorgeous gift and looks equally at home on your coffee table or dog-eared in your kitchen. It was the #1 new release in Vegetarian Cooking and Low Carb Diets on Amazon earlier this year, in addition to being on Glamour Magazine’s list AND Tasting Table’s list of best vegetarian cookbooks!

  🍏Respond to this email to request a bookplate, along with the name of the giftee and your address! Please note, you will have to buy the book yourself - you can use one of the links in the footer of this email or stop by your favorite bookstore.

PS:

I’m looking for some insight: Do you struggle with cooking low carb vegetarian food and meal planning? If yes, I would LOVE to chat with you. I'm working on launching an online course with tutorials on low carb vegetarian cooking techniques (think cauliflower rice, gluten-free baking, smoothies), meal prep and planning, customizing for macros, etc. If this is something that you have grappled with - I'd love to have a 20 minute conversation with you to understand your pain points. In return I'm happy to send you a free copy of my cookbook (or a different one if you already have mine)! I’m looking for 3-5 people. Please respond to this email and I’ll send you a calendar link to schedule a mutually convenient time.

See you in 2 weeks with my November Weeknight Simple meal plan! XOXO

What should I do with all this information? I figured I would turn these questionable habits into productive results and send you some recommendations every month along with amateur photography to serve as inspiration. My Instagram audience seemed to enjoy it, so naturally I must inflict this on you as well.

Recipes I’ve tried

• ’s secret ingredient pasta salad, for which I used Community Grains Pipe Rigate

• ‘s Spicy Carrot and Peanut Burgers from Veggie Burgers Every Which Way, served with Resistant Starch Fries

• Zucchini Carpaccio and Green Salad with Invisible Vinaigrette from Company by Amy Thielen via the fabulous from - fantastic additions to the summer arsenal. I usually don’t eat zucchini raw and this was a great reminder to do so.

• Whole Grain Berry Cornbread from ‘s cookbook of the(page 68) going into my air-fryer - this loaf can handle an absurd amount of berries!

• Whole wheat spaghetti with rose harissa, olives and capers - one of my absolute favorites on repeat from Ottolenghi Simple, served with lots of sauteed greens and asparagus

• High-Protein Bhel Puri

• Spicy Coriander Tofu with caramelized onions

  ---

Non-recipe recipes

• Impossibly Creamy Scrambled Eggs with a side of sauteed greens and fresh berries - slow and low is the way to go!

• Lots of berry smoothie bowls

• A really delicious cucumber, chayote, avocado, radish and cumin-roasted broccoli salad with cilantro-lime-olive oil dressing

• Grated Egg Avocado toast on sourdough with harissa, pumpkin seeds and turmeric sauerkraut - Yes this implies that you grate a hardboiled egg over avocado toast - it is brilliant and went viral for good reason!

• Roasted paneer, eggplant, pepper and corn salad with mint-yogurt dressing

• Grilled eggplants with chili crisp and caramelized onions

• Heirloom tomato avocado toast

  ---

Products I tried

• Carbone Arabbiata Sauce available at many supermarkets as well

• Jovial Einkorn pasta - Einkorn is an ancient variety of wheat that was never hybridized. The structure of gluten in this wheat is supposed to be tolerated better and also it is the best whole wheat pasta I’ve ever had. Definitely worth a try for gluten-sensitive folks and honestly probably everyone.

• Yondu seasoning - hands down the best way to flavor stubborn tofu

  ---

Things I bookmarked but didn’t get to

• The viral feta-fried egg

• Two minute whipped tofu from Bon Appetit

• 11 easy summer Vegetarian Dinners from NYT

• Smashed Zucchini with Lime, Cotija and Cilantro from Eating Well

  ---

Let me know if this is helpful and something you want to continue to see - like, comment, share or reply! XOXO

If you already have the book - you will love this post that helps you meal plan, and also this one for a great date night menu.

v8well Spring 2023 Recap

Recipes

• A vegetarian Tlayuda for Cinco de Mayo

• Cilantro-Coconut-Lime ‘Rice’ with Edamame

• Roasted Strawberries with Almost Instant Cashew Cream from

• Spicy Coriander Tofu with Caramelized Onions - my showstopper

Guides/Cooking tips/Ideas

• How to build a great smoothie

• Toddler feeding strategies

• The case for grass-fed dairy

• A roundup of my favorite spring food trends

• 3 Tips to make you a cauli-rice believer

Get your copy of The Vegetarian Reset now!

Amazon (20% off) | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | UK | AUS | CAN | Europe | India

And if you already have it -

• Join my cookbook group here on Facebook and share your pictures as you cook along from the book! You can also ask questions about recipes and I will help in any way I can.

• Write an honest review for The Vegetarian Reset on Amazon or Goodreads and I’ll send you a copy of The Glucose Goddess Method! (US/UK/AUS/CAN only - subject to availability). Reply to this email to send a screenshot of your submission and claim your book.

PS: I’m moving to a bi-weekly publishing schedule this summer to get some time with family and friends. Wishing you good times and good eats, XOXO

It’s funny how in your late thirties, your idea of a great weekend changes to lots of great food, some good wine, and most importantly, lots of sleep so you can wake up early and work out or tend to energetic toddlers. And that’s ok with me.

It is going to be a busy week ahead prepping for my author event this Friday with Maggie Zhu of Omnivore’s Cookbook at the Yondu Culinary Studio!

Maggie’s cookbook, Chinese Homestyle, came out last October and is a completely vegan take on Chinese food. It is filled with delicious ideas for produce and some fantastic sauces and staples. We’re doing a cookbook tasting from both our books this Friday and will be cooking up a storm all week.

What's on the menu? I will be making bite-sized Avocado Toast on my Vegan Zucchini Bread, Cucumber Papdi Chaat, and Hazelnut Brownies! Maggie will be making her Sichuan Spicy Peanuts, Sesame Noodles and Vegetable Spring Rolls. As for drinks - floral teas from The Qi, beer from Tsingtao and wine will be served. Free samples of Yondu will be available to take home! We only have a few spots left so reserve your tickets at the link below! This is my first public event in NYC - I hope I get to meet some of you in the area.

RSVP here

More next week, xoxo

But first: Are you in the NYC metro area? Looking for a foodie Friday evening with your partner or perhaps a girls’ night? Please come say hi at my first book tour event in the city - I’ll be cooking for you!

Maggie Zhu of the wildly popular blog Omnivore’s Cookbook and I are hosting a cooking+tasting event on June 2nd, 6-8pm at in downtown Manhattan at the Yondu Culinary Studio. Maggie’s new cookbook, Chinese Homestyle, is a scrumptious plant-based take on Chinese home cooking.

We will dish about our culinary journeys, Asian heritage, and what plant-based means to us. Most importantly, we will be cooking and serving bites from both cookbooks, along with drinks!

Signed copies of Chinese Homestyle and The Vegetarian Reset will be available for purchase at the venue, or can be reserved with your ticket (free admission when you purchase both books).

RSVP now

Feeding Pesky Toddlers

My little girl, Mira, started to eat solids at 6 months like most. With solid grandparent backing, she subsisted purely on a diet of khichdi (rice + lentils + mild spices + lots of ghee + mashed veggies) and yogurt rice (South Indian roots!) for about 1.5 years. That’s right - she ate that for lunch and often for dinner too! Breakfast was a ragi (millet) porridge with fruit. Occasionally there would be a dosa, idli, roti or pasta thrown in the mix. She ate well. It was easy, predictable and I was coasting - this was easy!

Alas, it was too good to last. In hindsight, the pandemic bubble played a big role as she was mostly home and not exposed to other eating behaviors or temptations. The situation unraveled all of a sudden when she turned 2 and started preschool.

• She went off vegetables (CoComelon, I blame you!)

• She went off lentils

• She tasted her first juice at a birthday party

• My husband gave her, ahem, chocolate

• She only wanted the whitest of white carbs (I was writing my low carb cookbook at this point and was aghast at the irony of it all)

Desperation struck. Mealtimes had become torturous sessions of prepping one entrée after another, with a string of rejected dishes on the counter (and yours truly too often collapsing on the couch with a glass of wine).

I had recently started following the toddler experts account Big Little Feelings on social media. They offered a course, which also had a section on feeding strategies. And this is how I came upon what I now affectionately call the ‘Thali’ method. Now, what follows is a pretty brief and lacking summary, so if you have toddlers, I could not recommend their course enough (I went back to it for pacifier weaning and tantrum handling strategies, too). No affiliation here, just a satisfied customer.

Basically, you put a bunch of different stuff on the plate. Some stuff that you know will be a slam-dunk, and some experimental. If you’re providing dessert, add that to the plate as well. The idea is to not make any food highly covetable by withholding it. Don’t talk up any food (“ooh this looks so yummy”) - kids have a great radar for this and will suspect something immediately. And act cool. If they eat it, fine, if they don’t, no big deal, next time. Tell a story, watch TV, make meals a normal fun time like anything else. Repeat after me - offer variety and act cool.

And it worked like a charm! The first time, and most times after that. It probably helped that Mira is at her root a foodie and enjoys variety, like, ahem, her mama. She is still always excited to see what’s on her plate. I don’t mean to make it sound easy, but this is what happened for us. Every child is different. To be clear, there are still meals that are challenging, but it’s the 20% now, not the 80%, which makes all the difference.

These days, mealtimes feature a rotation of mains - roti, pasta, dosa, rice, omelet, pancake; a couple of sides - avocado, apples, strawberries, cheese, yogurt, and usually a little junk (chips, popcorn). And sometimes, dessert.

Here are a couple of examples of meal composition:

For those that love the plate, we got it from the London Zoo and it’s the current favorite.

We are still working on the vegetables. (If you have my book, you know this.) Broccoli has definitely been eaten a few times, and is apparently the favorite. Recently, a love for mushrooms has also been professed (interesting because I’m a mushroom tolerator, not a fan). I say all this with a healthy dose of skepticism because the one constant with toddlers is…change! I once tried oatmeal-banana muffins which were adored, but never eaten again. The Egg White Bites from Starbucks will be loved, my copycat version won’t be touched. It is what it is. Except tomatoes. No tomatoes, ever. I made a pasta salad with her class once and I swear, the 3-year-olds unionized against tomatoes. But as the months pass, I see the range of what is attempted often increasing - for example, blueberries -after being scorned for years, are now back in fashion.

For now, my main nutrition strategy is to be sneaky. Here are some tactics:

• Adding almond flour to pancakes for more fiber and protein

• Air-fryer marinara - this is a non-recipe take on a soup from my cookbook and essentially consists of dumping a whole shopping bag of vegetables in my air-fryer - tomatoes, carrots, zucchini, peppers, onions, garlic. Drizzle generously with olive oil and air-fry for 15 minutes at 400F/200C (you can also do this in the oven, turn up the heat to 450F/230C). Then blend. When I have no time to make mine, I use this sauce. They also used to have an awesome cauliflower-mushroom sauce which I use and advertise as a “no-sauce” pasta :), but I can’t seem to find the link so I will have to make my own next time. Oh and there’s a really delicious green-pea pesto in my cookbook (Pesto Paneer Gnocchi, page 73)

• Subbing lentil pasta - Zenb is my favorite alternative pasta. It’s made from yellow peas and has a pretty neutral taste compared to chickpeas or other lentils. It also has 3x the fiber compared to regular pasta. I usually rotate between regular pasta and this one.

• Adding kefir, Greek yogurt or nut butter in smoothies - [Side note- I was petrified she would have a nut allergy and gave her this supplement in her first year. Not sure if it did anything but we are currently allergy-free]

• Adding Greek yogurt to pesto sauce - this worked great and I got an extra hug after a yummy meal! Need to try it a second time to be sure :)

• Making my own mango lassi- each bottle (store-bought) comes with ~30g added sugar in a serving. Is that really necessary? You can make a fabulous mango lassi with a fraction of that added sugar - mangoes have enough sugar! And it goes down just as easily.

I’ve also found that books are great tools to introduce new ideas in a low pressure setting at bedtime. Some of my recommendations:

• Kalamata’s kitchen

• Sylvia’s Spinach

• Bilal Cooks Daal

Social Media Inspiration:

• Kids Eat In Color

• Yummy Toddler Food

• Healthy Family Food Ideas

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While I certainly have a whole foods focus in my own diet, I no longer burst an artery when Mira eats 2 fruit leathers and then asks for dessert. It is true that at a younger age, the body can usually (but not always!) handle these things more easily. She does love to help me cook (standing in her kitchen helper step stool), and is an excellent chopper of things. Cucumber, paneer, peppers, no problem!

One thing is for sure - it’s a moving target. But by god, I’ll keep trying.

As I finish this very long post, I do want to say - DO NOT beat yourself up if you haven’t done any of this, or don’t have the time to. This is just my journey - I have a flexible schedule, an excellent nanny and a generally easy kid and I know I speak from a position of privilege. Also food is basically my life right now. But yes, there will be days when 2 fruit leathers and ice-cream is dinner. Maybe today, it’s close to 90 degrees in NYC. And that’s OK, mama. Happy Mother’s Day. xoxo

Gift a copy of The Vegetarian Reset for Mother’s day!

And cook one of these recipes for Mom to make it extra special.

Amazon (20% off - guessing this wont last after Mother’s Day)

Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | UK | AUS | CAN | Europe | India

If you already have my cookbook

• Join my cookbook group here on Facebook and share your pictures as you cook along from the book! You can also ask questions about recipes and I will help in any way I can.

• Write an honest review for The Vegetarian Reset on Amazon or Goodreads and I’ll send you a copy of The Glucose Revolution! (US/UK/AUS/CAN only - subject to availability). Reply to this email to send a screenshot of your submission and claim your book.
  

Many of these are on Instagram or Tiktok - so my apologies in advance if you’re not on those platforms. Wherever possible, I have tried to find other links for which you don’t need an account.

But first, Amazon has an ongoing 20% off deal on my cookbook! If you’ve been sitting on this one, now would be an excellent time to pull the trigger. It would also make a lovely Mother’s day gift. And I will send you a signed bookplate sticker for it if you wish to make it even more special!

By the way, my publisher nor I have nothing to do with this deal and no influence over Amazon - the mighty algorithm decides everything! I have no idea how long it will last but figured I would pass along.

My favorite spring and summer food trends

Cottage Cheese - is having its moment in the spotlight and I couldn’t be happier for it. With 20 grams of protein in a cup, it packs a punch and we all need these ideas to get more of it in our lives.

• Cottage Cheese ice cream - I first saw this on lanie_cooks feed but it went viral pretty fast and now every food blogger worth their cottage cheese has their own version. You can flavor it as you like. Lanie used strawberries and this version from Eating Bird Food is peanut butter chocolate chip. I might go even further and say sweeten it with a scoop of protein powder.

• Cottage Cheese Bowl - Think grain bowl, but the base is cottage cheese instead of grains! Justine_snacks has an awesome version with za’atar vegetables, which is helpfully also on her blog. I’m thinking about an Indian spin.

• Cottage Cheese Pasta - Did you know cottage cheese wanted to be an alfredo sauce when it grew up? Brilliant Idea. I have no idea who came up with it but here is one version from the 40Aprons blog that I’ve bookmarked to try.

• Cottage Cheese Scrambled Eggs - Two eggs is.not.enough.protein. Add cottage cheese to zhuzh it up and make a filling meal. Here is a version from the Skinnytaste blog but I would recommend blending the eggs and cottage cheese together first for a fluffier version like I did in my Masala Egg Bites.

Greek Yogurt - can the friendly rival of cottage cheese be far behind? Greek yogurt can do almost everything cottage cheese can, but is usually tarter so not ideal in ice cream.

• Pasta sauce - Add Greek yogurt to your pesto recipe for a fabulously creamy and sumptuous cold pasta this summer. I tried this one from thatcheeseplate and it was excellent. Just make the dressing by blending pesto and Greek yogurt together before adding it to your pasta and veggies. I’m dreaming up a sundried tomato version for later and you could also add it to the Avocado Pasta from my cookbook.

• Mayo - Make the Greek Yogurt Mayo from The Vegetarian Reset: blend 1/4 cup yogurt, 1 tsp white or apple cider vinegar, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, salt and pepper and drizzle it over everything. It’s brilliant. You can also add it to other salad dressings.

• Dips - Make the Lemon Aioli (1/4 cup greek yogurt, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp lemon zest, 1 small clove garlic, salt and pepper) or the Smoked Paprika Dip (1/4 cup Greek yogurt, 1 Tbsp water, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, salt) from The Vegetarian Reset.

• Soup Smoothies - Add a cup of Greek yogurt to your Gazpacho this summer to make it more sumptuous (also in The Vegetarian Reset).

Avocado Toast

• Grated Egg Avo Toast - Ever grated a hard boiled egg? It’s fluffy and dreamy. I believe this version on the HealthyishFoods blog was the original.

• High protein Avo Toast with Tofu - I haven’t tried this one yet but it’s such a great idea. ThatVeganBabe mixes shredded tofu with her Avocado sauce and swears you can’t taste it at all!

Vegetables - did you think you were getting away without vegetables? Nice try!

• Asparagus - Asparagus and lemon were meant to be together forever. I made this 5-ingredient asparagus pasta from kristenfaith_eats yesterday and it was really good! Another version on by Sheela Prakash on The Kitchn here.

• Cabbage - This Green Goddess Salad recipe by Baked by Melissa is hands down the best way to eat raw cabbage. I think I posted about this in an earlier issue but it is worth repeating.

• Peppers, Cucumbers - HerDressCode, the creator of this Hot Girl Summer Salad swears she lost 20 pounds eating this salad which went viral last summer (or maybe the previous summer). 20 pounds or not, this light and crunchy salad is on my list this summer. I actually prefer this version by HerWholesomeKitchen that maps out the zesty Italian dressing.

• Herbs - This Jennifer Anniston salad (Eating Bird Food version) that she allegedly ate on the set of Friends everyday is a great template for an herby salad! You can make it with quinoa, bulgur or farro. I look forward to mixing and matching this salad all summer.

v8well Good Things

• To eat - see above! Also we are terribly excited about May produce and have some great recipes!

  

• To listen - A debate about Ozempic, the miracle drug on Honestly with Bari Weiss: Will it solve obesity in America? This debate gets pretty heated at times but it’s a good listen. I can tell you that I am terrified at the thought of a lifelong medication (it works by suppressing appetite) that is being prescribed to kids and adults - a shortcut that may never teach them to implement basic lifestyle changes and eat right.

• To read - my mind is on Ozempic so here is another fascinating article on The Cut.

Cookbook news

• SEEMA magazine did a lovely feature on my journey to write this book in their April issue. Read it here! And no that’s not me on the cover but my name is there :)

  

• Someone I met at an event recently told me that my cookbook is getting them through their divorce because cooking from the book has become the thing that mom and son do together. And her son thinks my Pesto Paneer Gnocchi is the best he ever had. This is not exactly news but the kind of testimonial that moves me to tears, so I wanted to share.

v8well Cooking Club

Join me for a Cinco de Mayo special edition of the v8well Cooking Club on May 5th at 11am ET. We will make the Burrito Jars and Avocado Lime Smoothie from my cookbook! Recipes will be sent to those who RSVP, even if you don’t have the book. No need to cook or turn on your camera, lurkers welcome. We had a huge turnout last time and it was really fun!

RSVP here

If you already have my cookbook

• Join my cookbook group here on Facebook and share your pictures as you cook along from the book! You can also ask questions about recipes and I will help in any way I can.

• Write an honest review for The Vegetarian Reset on Amazon or Goodreads and pick an Ottolenghi cookbook to be sent to you! (US/UK/AUS/CAN only - subject to availability) . Reviews can be short and sweet, I don’t intend for this to cause brain damage. Reply to this email to send a screenshot of your submission.

Get your copy of The Vegetarian Reset now!

Amazon (20% off) | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | UK | AUS | CAN | Europe | India

Great time to stock up and gift - for Valentine’s maybe or a very late Christmas? :)

Get It Now

Also, just a shout out to that glorious California produce! We got lucky with the weather last week, but just the sight of those lemon and orange trees is enough to bring sunshine to my day!

Press Roundup

• I was on Pix 11 NYC today, making my Cucumber Papdi Chaat and talking about my journey to write the book.

• I was on KATU-ABC Portland, showing off my Curried Lentil Mushroom Bolognese.

• MindBodyGreen featured my Masala Egg Bites Recipe!

• India Currents published a lovely feature along with some of my favorite Indian ‘fusion’ recipes - Saag Lasagna, Chutney Ramen and Berry Cashew Burfi.

Write a Review

The best way to support me during this time? Write a review. Seriously.

Cliched as it sounds, reviews are hugely important for a debut author. Today 70% or so of books are sold online - and when was the last time you bought anything online without obsessing about the reviews? If you liked the book and think that others might benefit, please write a review (it can be just 2 lines!) and it will help the mighty algorithm show it to other shoppers. The review could be on Amazon or any other platform that you purchased the book. I would be so grateful!

Leave a review on Amazon using the links below.

US | UK | AUS | CAN | Europe

The direct link to review the book on Goodreads is here. You can use the same review on both websites.

Until next week…xoxo

PS: My publisher is working on the Amazon Australia issue - I fervently pray it gets resolved soon!

Get your copy of The Vegetarian Reset now!

US | UK | AUS | CAN | Europe

US | UK | AUS | CAN | Get your pre-order bonus!

Not sure? Download a free sample.

I realized that many of my subscribers might not be aware of Substack’s new chat feature that is available on the app. I hope to use it more often in the new year so here’s a quick primer!

P.S. If you would rather do nothing and continue to receive my emails in your inbox, then by all means, do nothing! I hear you - we don’t really need more “social” media! But if you are interested in more personal interaction, or are more of a text-message-person (vs email), then you might want to try this.

Happy Holidays! We Ate Well will return after a week’s hiatus.

About Substack Chat

This is a conversation space in the Substack app that I set up exclusively for my subscribers — kind of like a group chat or live hangout. I’ll post short prompts, thoughts, and updates that come my way, and you can jump into the discussion.

To join our chat, you’ll need to download the Substack app, now available for both iOS and Android. Chats are sent via the app, not email, so turn on push notifications so you don’t miss conversation as it happens.

How to get started

1. Download the app by clicking this link or the button below. Substack Chat is now available on both iOS and Android.

Get app

2. Open the app and tap the Chat icon. It looks like two bubbles in the bottom bar, and you’ll see a row for my chat inside.

3. That’s it! Jump into my thread to say hi, and if you have any issues, check out Substack’s FAQ.

Join chat

US Pre-Order

UK pre-order

Australia Pre-order

Canada Pre-Order

Pre-ordered? Get your bonus recipes!

So here are some tips to enjoy the season and still hit the ground running in the new year.

• Greens first - Start every meal with a green salad dressed with olive oil and vinegar to blunt your blood sugar spike. If you're going out, it's OK to pre-game at home!

• Prioritize protein - Try to get at least 20g protein at every meal. If the meal doesn't include it, add a side of Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, tofu or edamame

• Focus on the sides - Whether or not turkey is the center of your table, you can have a plant-forward Thanksgiving by jazzing up the sides and here I mean not just potatoes! See my Brussels Sprouts Chaat recipe for inspiration. Or look up practically any Ottolenghi recipe.

• Move - Take a walk with your loved ones after a heavy meal. New research shows that even 2 minutes of walking after a meal can improve blood sugar levels. Overachievers, try doing 20 squats or push-ups!

• De-stress - Remember it's OK to relax, celebrate and even indulge a few times during the holiday season without guilt. Spending time with loved ones over food and cheer can reduce stress hormones (cortisol), which can also bring down your blood sugar. The key is to make this the 20%, not the 80%.

  ---

I was sick last week, having picked up a bug from my daughter, and didn’t get to send out this newsletter. So I’ve added a couple of ideas for Thanksgiving sides below:

P.S: Heads up to those with little ones - the RSV is particularly aggressive this season, spiking high fevers and low oxygen levels. Luckily we didn’t have to go to the hospital and she is almost back to normal but it was a tough few days.

Cauliflower Mash (click here to view video on Instagram)

A great low carb alternative to mashed potatoes.

• 1 ½ lb/680g cauliflower or cauliflower rice

• 2 oz./56g butter

• 1 ½ tsp. cracked black pepper, plus more to taste

• ½ tsp. salt, plus more to taste

• 1 cup/112g grated parmesan
  

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook cauliflower until tender, 6–8 minutes, then drain. Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When butter melts, add garlic, salt, and pepper and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Combine cauliflower, butter-garlic mixture, and parmesan in a food processor and puree until smooth. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.

Simple Salad with Tadka Dressing

A tadka dressing elevates this simple salad to extraordinary and is hands down the easiest dish for your Thanksgiving table! This is one that my parents often make at home - the dressing is crunchy black mustard seeds bloomed in avocado oil with a hint of hing + sea salt and lemon juice. Use any veggies of your choice: the version below has shredded carrots, finely diced cucumbers, bell peppers (capsicum), tomatoes and cilantro (coriander).

I had a few weeks of downtime between wrapping up my cookbook pre-order and its launch in January, so I put together a mini digital course: Low Carb Essentials for Vegetarians. It consists of ~40 slides, a bunch of bonus resources and will take ~30 minutes to complete (about as long as an episode of Emily in Paris :))

Why did I create it? Because I’ve started to field a lot of questions from my readers, and sometimes on social media. For example, what I eat in a day, how I think about getting enough protein, do I always eat cauliflower rice? :)

And I started to realize that there is really no resource out there that helps vegetarians eat moderately low carb in a sustainable way. My cookbook has recipes - darn good ones if I may say so myself! - and fills a void for those who seek inspiration. But it was not intended to be a textbook and does not pretend to be one.

This course is intended to be a companion or pre-cursor to my cookbook and helps you incorporate a whole foods approach into your life, so that it doesn’t feel like a punishing diet. The focus is on adding protein (how much and where to get it), healthy fat (what’s actually healthy and where to get it), fiber and carbs from whole foods, rather than removing anything - this approach is far easier to sustain and has helped me lead a normal social life while still eating healthy.

I also discuss adding elements like moderate intermittent fasting to turbo-charge your results, and introduce you to some helpful lifestyle hacks. Basically this is everything I wish I knew 3 years ago before I started this way of eating! I believe you will be hard pressed to find all of this information in one place, distilled into a crisp package like this one.

Bonus resources: nutritional cheat-sheets that will look great on your fridge, 3 simple but powerful and endlessly extensible recipes and some reading material for extra-credit!

This course is for you if you’re not sure where to start with eating low carb, or if you’ve previously tried some version and found it unsustainable. It could also be for you if you don’t really have the headspace to start a new diet, but just want some helpful ideas that present a low-barrier to action. The presale price of $12.99 has been extended in the spirit of Thanksgiving sales until Nov 28, so go give it a try. Also, I will undoubtedly enrich the materials over the next year as I get feedback and you will have continued access at this price point!

No newsletter next week. See you guys on the other side and have a wonderful week/end with family and friends!

xoxo

First, if you missed my big announcement, my cookbook is ready for pre-order! It’s available everywhere books are sold and you can find all the links on my website. Pre-ordering (prior to the launch date) is really the best way to support the author and also ensure that demand for the book is adequately represented to help the publisher avoid supply chain issues at launch. There’s also a pre-order incentive of 15 bonus recipes that you get right now, so you don’t have to wait till launch!

I love these special words that a nutritionist acquaintance said about the book:

Vasudha's cookbook is a genuine work of art! The photos are breathtaking, and the recipes are unique, nourishing, and easy to follow. I specialize in helping my population reverse insulin resistance and blood sugar imbalance, and it is no easy task for my vegetarian clients to meet the protein goals I recommend, while still focusing on whole and natural foods. This is the resource I have been waiting for to recommend to that specific population! I love how the cookbook is laid out, the ingredients are easy to find, and the macronutrient breakdown is provided. There is also emphasis on blood sugar control and reducing inflammation, which is helpful to all those who are metabolically ill. Thank you for this valuable resource!   

Shana Hussin, RDN: Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Author of Fast To Heal

P.S. If you’re having trouble ordering on Amazon UK, please reply to this email and let me know so I can sort it out with my publisher. Some people have had issues checking out their carts, while others seemed to be OK. Actually if you WERE able to buy it from Amazon UK also, respond to this and let me know :)

Here’s a lovely Turmeric and Black Pepper Tofu recipe I developed for Burlap and Barrel, a single-origin spice company.

Did you know that adding a little black pepper to turmeric increases its bioavailability? Adding black pepper enhances the absorption of curcumin (the active ingredient in turmeric) giving you greater anti-inflammatory benefits. Perfectly spiced crispy tofu with none of the fuss, and crunchy collards with caramelized onions make the perfect fall meal that feel like a hug in a bowl. This was the first time I tried to pan-fry tofu without pressing it, and I can honestly say it was better than any I’ve had before!

Get the recipe here.

I’ve developed a mini-course, Low Carb Essentials for Vegetarians that is currently on pre-sale. If you’re still wondering about low carb eating, if it’s for you and how to do it sustainably, this is perfect for you! I’ve distilled everything I wish I had learned 3 years ago (when I started this journey) into a crisp course that gives you the highlights in under an hour. It’s full of simple and actionable hacks that I use every single day. Get it at the massive pre-sale discount before it launches on Nov 15.

That’s it from me this week. Wish you a bright and joyful Diwali and an auspicious start to the new year along with family and friends!

Filled with 75 joyous recipes and beautiful photographs by Alexandra Shytsman - this is a book that is equally at home in your kitchen and on your coffee table. Take a little trip around the world with me, reimagine vegetarian food, and make eating healthy fun, as it should be.

The Vegetarian Reset celebrates a lifestyle where a foodie sensibility intersects with healthy eating. It solves the never-ending dilemma that all plant-based eaters face: Is life fun when you eat salad every day, or is it worth it to let your health take a backseat to enjoy a big bowl of rice or pasta without enough protein?  

I draw inspiration from an array of traditional and global cuisines that are rich in whole foods like vegetables, legumes, and healthy fats. My recipes are moderately low-carb and put vegetables front and center, while also being gluten-free! Learn to bake healthy bread from scratch, make paella out of cauliflower rice, transform paneer into gnocchi, and sweeten brownies with dates! 

Whether you already follow a low-carb lifestyle or simply want to add more healthy dishes into your rotation, I hope this book will delight and inspire vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores alike to eat well, fully nourish, and reset your body.

The pre-order website has more details, including links to retailers. You can also see all the lovely praise that the book has received so far. Click here to view a flip video of the book.

Order NOW so you have a copy reserved when it comes out in January.

Why preorder?

Pre-orders help the publisher estimate the demand for the book and print more as needed in advance, to avoid supply chain issues that have plagued the industry recently. And if you submit your order information via the form on the website (click the ‘Already Pre-Ordered?’ button), you'll also get 15 BONUS recipes straight to your inbox so you don't have to wait until January!

Questions? Just respond to this email and ask me!

See you next weekend, xoxo

Vasudha