#307: Brandi Doming - Wholesome, Simple, and Seriously Delicious Plant-Based Cooking
Rip is joined by Brandi Doming, the creative force behind The Vegan 8 and the brand-new cookbook, Vegan Wholesome.
Brandi’s plant-based journey began as a deeply personal mission—to support her husband’s health. What followed was a total transformation in their kitchen and a powerful ripple effect that’s now helping thousands of people embrace simple, nourishing, and oil-free plant-based meals.
Brandi shares how her fitness and dance background shaped her approach to health, why she’s obsessed with keeping recipes as simple as possible, and how plant-based eating became a path to healing—not just for her husband, but for her whole family.
She and Rip also dig into some standout recipes from the new book that you won’t believe are oil-free and dairy-free.
Whether you’re new to plant-based eating or just looking for a little kitchen inspiration, this conversation will remind you that food can be both simple and spectacular.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
How Brandi turned a health crisis into a thriving plant-based lifestyle
Why she turned back to her love of dancing! (and her favorite dances!)
Why she believes in keeping recipes ultra-simple and balanced
The power of food as an act of self-love and healing
Tips for building confidence in the plant-based kitchen
Sneak peeks into her most beloved recipes
Vegan Wholesome is available now!
Episode Resources
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Full Episode Transcription via AI Transcription Service
I'm Rip Esselstyn, and you're listening to the PLANTSTRONG Podcast.
Introduction to Brandi Doming
[0:05] If you're someone who thinks a whole food, plant-based diet is too complicated, too time-consuming, or just plain bland, get ready to have those excuses roasted and toasted with my guest today, Brandi Doming, known for her fast and flavorful recipes, many with less than eight ingredients. Brandi is back with her latest book, Vegan Wholesome, and we'll have her story right after these words from PLANTSTRONG.
[0:43] Today, I am sitting down with the incredibly talented Brandi Doming, the creative force behind the Vegan 8 brand and the author of the brand new book, Vegan Wholesome. Her recipes are fast, they're flavorful, and oil-free. Her journey into the PLANTSTRONG lifestyle is one that really hits home. She made the shift to support her husband's health journey, and what started as a healing mission quickly became her life's work. We talk about that journey of reclaiming her life, rediscovering her love of dance, and why she believes that wholesome food should be easy, accessible, and crazy delicious. This is a conversation that will feed your soul, nourish your body,
Brandi's Journey to Plant-Based Living
[1:36] and just might have you dancing in your own kitchen as you rediscover the simplicity of healthy eating. Please welcome Brandi Doming.
[1:50] Hey, Brandi, good to see you this morning. It's great to see you. We have never met before. No, we have not. Yeah, yeah, and it's high time, and I'm really glad that we have. For those of you that don't know Brandi, Brandi's last name is Doming, and she has been an influencer, author in the vegan plant-based space for a number of years. She has a new book that she has penned that has come out that I really want to dive into with you because I was just lapping up many of the recipes that are in this book. But before we do that, I want to kind of go back a little bit and talk about you and your journey. Sound good? Yeah, sounds great. Right. So just so I know, where am I talking to you from this morning? Houston, Texas. You're in good old Houston, Texas. Wonderful.
[2:50] And, you know, for those that are watching via YouTube or something where they can see, you really love to work out.
The Vegan 8 and Recipe Development
[2:59] I mean, right behind you, everybody, just so I can paint the picture. Is that a pull-up bar in a dip machine? Yes, it is. So are you still doing dips? Yes i i use it for everything i even hang upside down off of my legs on the top bar oh my god you like you know ab crunches like so is it fair to say that you're pretty hardcore, yeah i'd say so i'm pretty strong well this is what i'm gonna ask i'm not gonna ask you 10 or 15 pull-ups but before we go, And so everybody, I want you to hang out for the entirety of this interview. Before you leave, you're going to do three pull-ups for us. Three. Oh, I don't know about that. All right. All right. All right. Well, then we'll do two. Then we'll do two. Or you're just going to hang from the bar, but we need to see something. All right. Yes. See, one of my things is I love making people very uncomfortable. Yeah, I can tell.
[4:01] Good. Good. So your brand, your brand is basically, until you wrote your latest book, and I'm not going to say what that is yet, was Vegan8, correct? Correct. Yeah, the Vegan8. Yeah. And that all started through a blog that you had started writing. Is that correct? Yes. In 2013. Yes. Wow. So 12 years ago. Yeah, exactly. I've been doing this for a long time. Yeah.
[4:29] Yeah. Well, you know, nothing like consistency and grinding away. Yes. Yeah. It's still my blog. It's just my first book was called The Vegan 8. And yeah, that was my first book that came out multiple years ago. Yeah. Yeah. And what was the whole premise of your first book, The Vegan 8, or Vegan 8, rather? Yeah. Well, when I first started writing my blog in 2000, well, I started in 2012. And then I changed the name to The Vegan 8 in 2013. And the reason I changed it to the vegan eight was that I noticed the recipes that people were making the most were eight ingredients or less. Like those were the ones that I was getting, you know, feedback from and people making a lot and loving. And I wanted my blog to stand out from all the other vegan blogs. So I was looking for ways that it would stand out in looking at the recipes that were most made. And that's when I realized, wait, none of them are more than eight ingredients. So I thought that's that's my hook. That's my focus. So that's when I started writing all recipes that were no more than eight ingredients. And that's how that started. And then my blog really took off after that. That's how I got the book deal with my first book. And I did that for...
[5:38] Um about nine years and then i guess three to four years ago i stopped doing only eight ingredient recipes because i wanted to be more you know creative with my recipes and i was limited, so i stopped that about four years i still do recipes with eight ingredients or less but, the you know the the new book is not limited eight ingredients like my first book yeah what is your background do you have a background as a as a chef or a or a cook or how did you get into to doing recipes with eight ingredients or less to begin with? Well, I've cooked since I was a kid. My mom was a fabulous cook, and so I learned how to cook from her cookbooks. I'm not like a culinary chef. I didn't go to school or anything. I just learned from my mom and her cookbooks. And I started writing recipes on my own in my 20s. And so that was just a natural thing for me to be really creative in the kitchen. And then when I went vegan, I had to, of course, learn a whole new way of writing recipes. And that's I started I had really a lot of fun making everything from plants and that still making them taste amazing. So that's when I thought, well, maybe I'll, you know, start a blog because I already was posting my recipes that were not vegan online, like, you know, chicken and all that kind of thing. And people were making them. But then when I went vegan, I was like, OK, well, guess what?
[7:02] No more meat recipes or dairy. I'm going to start posting vegan recipes. And that's just how it all started. Yeah. And what prompted you to start leaving out the meat and going full, full hardcore veg? Well, at the time I was married and my husband had gout really bad, like a very severe form of it. He was on crutches a lot, on a lot of medications, bedridden a lot and we tried multiple diets and nothing improved. For years he suffered so that's when I started researching about plant-based and how it helped with inflammation in the body and so I basically just told him, okay, we're going vegan, let's see if this helps you and within about three weeks his symptoms all started to go away.
[7:50] And that's that's why I'm vegan now. Like I did it for him, but, you know, because I didn't want to make him do it by himself. So I did it for him. And that's when I started cooking differently. But then I started feeling amazing because I had a lot of sinus problems and digestion problems back then. And then I noticed how much better I felt.
The Shift to Veganism for Health
[8:09] And so I'm like, well, I'm going to stay vegan now. So that was how it all started. It was to heal him, but it ended up changing my life and, of course, my career and everything. And here we are, like almost 13 years later. Yeah. Isn't gout an interesting ailment? And it afflicts typically like one of your big toes, if I'm not mistaken. Yes.
[8:32] His heels, his elbows, his knees, but mainly the toes. And it affects men mostly 35 and older. And he had, like doctors told him, he had like one of the worst cases they'd ever seen. Like he was messed up a lot. And it was really hard taking care of him and a kid.
[8:53] I can't even imagine. And when I think back to some cartoons that I've seen about gout, it's usually like somebody of high royalty that's eating like a thing of mutton right off the bone. They got a big glass of red wine next to them. It's like wine and meat that are like the culprits, it seems, when it comes to gout. Yes, but however, he didn't drink. Everything affected him. Chickens, like seafood's really bad too for gout. But the doctors would always tell him to eat more chicken and eat more dairy and yogurt. So I would, and it would just get worse. I'm like, that's, that's not working. So I, the doctors just did not know. They would just keep giving them medications. I'm like, Hey, I'm gonna have to figure this out myself. And so I did. It's interesting. You know, when I was younger, probably in my early teens, this is before our family decided to go whole food plant-based. My mother would get afflicted with, with gout in one of her big toes. And she's a tough, tough woman. And she was in a lot of pain with it. It's considered worse than labor.
[10:11] It's like he would literally scream in pain. It was very horrible to watch. Right up there with kidney stones. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
The Impact of Gout on Family
[10:22] I've never had a kidney stone, but I know people that have had it. That's, yeah, painful. Well, so you mentioned your mom and, you know, in the dedication to your new book, which I think it's time, which is called Vegan Wholesome. How wonderful. It's not vegan, highly processed. Right. It's not vegan crap. It's vegan wholesome. Exactly. Exactly what it should be, right? Yes. How veganism should look and feel and taste. Yes. But your mother, what I love in your dedication, you talk about how your mother kind of taught you. If you're going to dream, you might as well dream big. Yes. Right? Yeah. She really did. She believed in me and everything. She was the person that believed in me the most. Well, her and my dad. But I would doubt myself a lot in my abilities, and she would always just snap
A Tribute to Mom and Dad
[11:19] me right back out of that. And so she gave she helped me tremendously with the book and getting the book deal and all of that so it was i had to dedicate it to her and my fabulous and is your mother still alive no okay yeah sorry about that that's okay it's it's hard to talk about she passed away in august.
[11:41] Oh just yeah yeah it's like like the book like i wanted to show her the dedication surprise her um but that didn't happen so yeah yeah well and it sounds like uh one of the rocks in your life was your father yes very much yeah he he has all timers now so he didn't get to see the book either because he's really advanced um so it's it's it's hard because like this book was a dream of mine and they're the two most profound people in my life and the book came out a little too late for them to, But that's life. But yeah, he's the smartest man I've ever known. He's always been there for me. He's always called me his biggest fan and gives me so much encouragement and wisdom. And he's an incredible, incredible person, too. So he's still alive. He's really advanced in Alzheimer's now. So he barely speaks. Well, it sounds like you were very, very lucky to have such wonderful parents. Yes, very.
Writing the Book Vegan Wholesome
[12:46] Congrats on that. Okay, so when did you decide to start writing Vegan Wholesome?
[12:53] Okay, so probably about four years ago, like when I finished my first book, that was in 2018. And, you know, my agent was talking to me about putting out another book that I wasn't ready at the time. But probably about four years ago, I knew I wanted, you know, I started getting more active into fitness. And I knew I wanted to do my next book more, more health focused than my first book and more, I guess, protein focused because I started sharing workouts online. And when I started doing that, people started asking me for protein recipes like higher protein and, you know, more for people who work out. So that was when I started writing recipes back then. And then it just morphed into more protein focused. It's not just protein, like not every recipe is full of protein. I mean, there's plenty of options, but I also, you know, there's also regular ones that are, you know, aren't protein heavy. But there's a ton of, you know, dinners and lunches and entrees that are full of high protein. And if you want to, and I also give tips on how you can increase the protein if you're trying to build muscle mass. Because not all my followers do. I would say probably maybe half or more do,
The Importance of Protein in Diet
[14:08] but a lot of them don't. They just like my recipes, so it's geared for anybody. Yeah, but I think we should be clear.
[14:16] Eating more protein is not going to allow you to grow more muscle. You need to be in the gym. You need to be basically stressing your body and those muscles to allow the adaptation. Absolutely. Yeah. They're not going to grow just to be more protein. You can't just sit around and just eat protein and grow muscle. Well, I know, but the crazy thing is that's what a lot of people seem to think that way. And if that was the case, we'd have a lot of Arnold Schwarzenegger's out there. A lot of America is, I love to say protein toxic. I mean, getting our protein from the wrong kind of protein. I am so enamored with the recipes in this book, but I don't want to dive in yet because I still want to unearth a lot of.
[15:09] Really cool information about you. And I think that it can benefit a lot of people that are out there. So I'd love, I mean, if you're comfortable, I'd love for you to talk about the difficult period that you went through around your divorce and some of the depression that went along with that. Because to me, what is on the other side of that is so absolutely glorious. And you went through all this pain on the other side was something equally as, as amazing on the other, you know, it wasn't painful. Right. It was joyful. Yes. Uh, yeah. I'm in a very healthy, happy place now. Um, I was very, um, unhappy in my marriage. Um, you know, my ex-husband is a, a wonderful father, but it was, it wasn't a healthy marriage. Um, and it was, I don't want to say too much. Cause I mean, I don't want to say anything about him. He, you know, we get along fabulous. We co-parent well, but it was, we were married, uh, we were together 19 years, married 17.
[16:24] And, uh, it was a very dark time leading up to my divorce.
Dance as a Form of Healing
[16:30] And the way that I dealt with it was that's when I started to work out. And, um, well, I guess I could say back up to this. My dream since I was a little girl was to be a ballroom dancer. Like I, I love dancing. I dance every day in my apartment. Um, it's just something that I feel free and I don't work like Like all my stresses go away. And it just is the one thing that I've done my entire life. Like as a teenager dancing in my bedroom, I would dance to Michael Jackson. I mean, I was just, I would just do my own thing. And it just, it's just something that I was like just born with. My dad was a big dancer too. And so was my mom. So.
[17:09] That's something I always wanted to do. And I never really had the chance or the opportunity. And so when I got divorced, that, well, I started working out to deal with that. And I started dancing more while I was still married. I'm sorry if I'm kind of rambling. I'm just trying to put it up, piece it all together. Yeah. And so I started dancing a lot in my bedroom while I was still married and working out. And that helped me to deal with the depression. It helped me to not focus on it and help me mentally. And then when I got divorced, my heart started burning for, okay, it's time. This is your chance. It's time to start following your dream of dancing. And there was nothing that could stop me at that point. So that's when I finally went to Fred Astaire. It's here in Cyprus and met my teacher. His name's Richie. And I told him my dreams and you know that I was in a depression at the time and that I wanted to pursue what I'd always dreamed of because I couldn't ignore it like that you feel something it's just like burning you can't stop thinking about it and everything's full of it in your mind and so that was three years ago a little no maybe maybe like three and a half years ago now and I just started taking dance lessons uh with him and I started doing competitions and my first competition, I got first place. And so it literally...
[18:38] It was like fulfilling a lifelong dream that I had accepted I would never be able to have. So then I realized you can make it happen.
[18:49] But you have to. First of all, you can't let fear stop you like that. I was afraid to start because I was afraid. Well, what if I embarrass myself? What if I I'm not capable? All those things. But I forced myself to do it. And through that, I started sharing my dance journey with my followers because I wanted to be as real and authentic as possible. So I was honest about my divorce and everything because people started noticing some things. So I just started being completely honest with everybody, what I was going through and pursuing my dance. And then a lot of my followers joined dance studios and they still message me. Oh, I'm so happy you'd share your dance journey. I love to see your food and your dancing. I've started dancing now or my husband and I started dancing. So I just believe that you can come from a very dark place to a really positive place, but you have to make those changes yourself. Like, it's not going to come to you. You have to do it yourself.
Support from Family During Tough Times
[19:48] Yeah. Yeah. Well, and did you reach out to your parents at all during this period? Were they also saying, you know, go for the dancing and get out? Yeah. They helped me tremendously through all of that. That was a very tough time.
[20:07] I would call them daily. And they knew that I always wanted to be a dancer. And they absolutely encouraged. They've always been like that. Anything that I want to do, they encourage. And they... Love to see my like dancing videos and my dad would just cry when I would show them to him you know he's real sentimental and so it was they didn't come to the competitions um they're really involved they're like three days all day long dancing so it's not something that you want to sit at all um but yeah they were they're huge supporters and encouragers so they were really proud of me. Well, and in your, in your forward of your book, you talk about how important your dance instructors were to you, right? You mentioned Richie, there's also Tim and Barnabas. Yes. Right. And what's really nice about all of them and, and two of them are Hungarian is that you honor all three with recipes kind of in their names, if I'm not mistaken. Correct. Yeah. There's Richie. There's a Hungarian polenta casserole.
[21:28] And all three of them gave me a recipe that was not vegan, that I totally transformed and made vegan. But yeah, there's Richie and Tim. Tim is the Greek one. And then Barnabas is Hungarian.
Influential Dance Instructors
[21:40] And both Richie and Tim are the two that I do competitions with. They're at two different studios, but they're the ones who have taught me like 10 plus dances. I mean, everything from the.
[21:57] Rumba, like salsa. I've learned all of these dances because of them. So they, the reason they're so important to me is because they helped me to achieve my dream. And they're, they're like, they're mentors to me. You know, they've listened to my struggles and my fears and they're always encouraging me. And their wives also work at the studio. So we're all like, it's like, it's like a big family, honestly. I mean, all my other, I have a huge community of dance friends now that dance with the same teachers. So it's, It's complete. The whole thing has completely changed my life because I have all these new friends now that share the same passion.
[22:34] And then we all get to compete at the competitions together. And but, yeah, all three of them have encouraged me, believed in me. And I would say the biggest thing that they don't let me doubt myself. Like they're such positive people that whenever I'm like, oh, my God, I always have a thing where the week before a competition, I freak out and I usually hurt something, a knee, a foot or something. And they know me. They know me. They're like, we know what you're doing. We know you're freaking out. You're sucking yourself. But they just have a way of turning everything into comedy and encouragement and positivity. And I couldn't do it without them. I wouldn't be where I'm at without them. So it was just like I have to dedicate a recipe to them. So between the Foxtrot and the Rumba and some of the other dances that you just rattled off, is there one that's your absolute favorite yeah the rumba yeah yeah that's my absolute what is the rumba i don't even know what the rumba is um it's like a it's hard to explain it without showing it i'm not going to show it but um it's like a it's like the like a four-step box, like movement and but it's a lot of hip.
[23:51] You know, and there's like, I know I'm doing these moves. It's like slow and then stop and slow. It's like, it's like a sensual dance, but it's, it's romantic kind of, but it's not, you're not like on each other. You know what I mean? It's not like that. But it's, it's a very beautiful dance. And I used to watch it on Dancing with the Stars. I watched Dancing with the Stars for years. And every time I'd see them do that, I'm like, I want to know how to do that
The Rumba and Dance Passion
[24:17] dance because it's such a beautiful dance. So when I, my very first time I walked in the studio, I told Richie, I'm here to learn the rumba. So that was like my first lesson. And, um, so. And it sounds like Barnabas is the, your teacher when you need just pure fun, right? He's the fun teacher. Yeah. He, um, I take strictly bachata lessons with him. I haven't taken lessons with him in many, many months though. Um, but he, he's not the one who prepares me for competitions. He was the one I would do shows with. Um, but the other two were to prepare me for competition. I would just learn bachata dances with him. And those were because every competition, there's like a night where there's just performances for all the students. And so we would just do bachata performances. So but yeah, it's been a while since I've danced with him. So what is the bachata?
[25:07] There's different forms of bachata. There's just basic like it's a one, two, three. It's like a hip movement. You go to the side and then I don't know how to describe it. Um, but it's, it's, um, it's a more passionate dance. Um, but there's also, there's, you know, regular bachata and then there's sensual bachata, but it's, it's, you know, a lot of hip movement. Okay. A lot of gyrations. Yeah. Well, not necessarily. It depends. Like you can, you can control what you do. Yeah. Okay. So are you still competing? After you got the first place medal? Oh, yeah. I've done many competitions. I've done many of them. I have not done one since...
Competing and Finding Peace in Dance
[25:56] I think it was September. The last one I did was, I think it was in September. It was shortly after my mother passed away. Um, and I dedicated like, like the whole competition was, I had her in my mind. Um, because you get really nervous when you're going to compete. Of course, you know, there's a panel of judges and you want to do well and it's real nerve wracking, but I had, I had an amazing amount of peace and calm that day because I literally was just like, I felt her. I kept looking at her photo the whole time. Each time before I'd go up to do a dance, I would look at her and I would imagine her watching me. And I placed really well. It was my best smooth dance. It was a smooth dancing where I did the waltz, Viennese waltz and foxtrot and tango. And so those are like the smooth dances in the comp. Like if you can do either the smooth or the rhythm, which would be the salsa, you know, rumba or swing. But I did it was the smooth competition I did. And I did it was like my best dancing. I, I did today. And I know it's because of my mom. Yeah. Yeah.
The Essence of Self-Love
[26:58] Nice. What you're all about self-love and what, what would you say are the key components that comprise self-love?
[27:14] Big thing for me is, um, gratitude, finding gratitude, um, in your life. Um, because I feel like if you don't, if you're not able to look around at what you have in your life and be grateful for what you have in your life, it's hard to love your life and love yourself because you're focused on the opposites. You know what I mean? Like that was big for me. Um, because Because in the past, I would tend to focus on all the things that I was missing or didn't have or struggling with. But then I started to shift that. And...
[27:55] And also, I believe that to be healthy, you know, not just physically, it has to be mental. And that is, again, focusing on what you have in your life and being grateful for what you have in your life and doing something you're passionate about. Because I feel like if you do something you're passionate about, you are loving yourself because you're you're doing something that's important to you. And I used to be the kind of person that was a people pleaser and I wanted to do everything for everybody else. I wanted to make them happy because that's something that actually gives me great joys doing things for other people That's how my mother was and i'm a lot like my mother But there also can be where you do too much of that and you neglect anything that's important to yourself and you cannot be healthy I don't think if you're not doing something for yourself Whether that's you like to go run or you know, you play an instrument or you dance or you paint, I feel like that's so important to do something that you love because it fulfills you and then you're better for the other people in your life, especially if you have children you know what i mean like if you give everything to everybody else but nothing for yourself you're going to be depleted and your your daughter olivia must be very very proud of what you've accomplished yeah she won't say it she's almost 14 so it's not something she'll like say i mean she she's like the kind of person that will write it down.
[29:17] Um like she when she gives me cards she'll write things you know like i'm so happy you're my mommy i'm so you know proud of you thank you so much for being there but she's not real like she doesn't verbalize it i mean i'll say oh look like when i got the book i was like look i was like look look you're in the book and it hit number one and she's like oh great i'm like isn't that exciting And she's like, yeah, that's about as much as I get from her, but she's a teenager. So it's okay. Yeah. All right. I'm going to, I'm going to turn our attention back to this vegan wholesome. You say high protein meals and snacks to energize and nourish. And you also, I'd love to, before I show everybody some of your delectable recipes, I'd love for you to talk to us a little bit about your eating philosophy that you reference in this book.
[30:10] And, you know, you start with, well, I'll let you do it unless you want me to prompt you with what that is.
Balanced Eating Philosophy
[30:18] Well, I believe that you need to have a balanced meal. I need, you know, there's some people that focus maybe just on carbs or fats. You know, some diets out there that focus on one specific nutrient, and I believe it should be balanced. I believe you need protein, carbs, and healthy fats. And I like to get my carbs from, you know, not just, you know, the lower calorie carbs like the, you know, vegetables and things like that, but also a more hearty carb like potatoes or rice or whole grains. And then, of course, a protein like tofu or lentils. Of course, lentils have more carbs in them, but they're still high in protein. And then I like a little bit of fat, whether it's a, you know, a drizzle of tahini or, you know, a healthy homemade sauce made from cashews or something or avocado, olives, anything like that, because I feel like that's satiating and that that helps me to feel satisfied and I'm not starving in 30 minutes.
[31:16] Yeah. Yeah. And it doesn't have to be a lot, you know, just need a little bit. Yeah. Yeah. So it's the protein, it's a starchy carb, it's a non-starch carb, and then it's basically some sort of a fat. Yeah, a little bit of fat, yeah. You don't need much because the carbs help, of course. And you're very much in alignment with my and my father and other people's philosophy as far as you don't cook with any added oils, correct? Right. Well, I will use like a little bit of non-stick spray. Yeah, yeah. Like a cake or something, but yeah, I don't cook in oil.
[31:52] I mean, there are, like, I have, like, a little bit, like, special occasions. Like, if I make a cake and I want to put a frosting, I will use, you know, like, vegan butter. But that's, like, once or twice a year. It's not something that I like to use very often. And my daughter actually does not like frosting, surprisingly. So when you're doing a stir fry, you don't start with a half a cup of extra virgin olive oil. No. No, I use broth.
[32:20] And it works. You just, you got to have the right kind of pan and you got to watch it and move it around. And so it works. All right. I'm going to throw out a couple things and I just want you to tell me what your opinion is about this. Snacking. Do you snack at all during the day?
[32:41] Honestly, no. Not much. I mean, I'm not like the same kind of eater every day. It depends on my schedule.
[32:50] Like sometimes um i mean i have snacks that i'll make like granola and stuff but um i'm not i don't just like sit around and like snack on chips or crackers or anything or if i do i'll have like i love hummus like hummus and broccoli and carrots or hummus and you know maybe some healthy crackers or something but i'm i don't snack a lot now i'd say i like i like my meals big so i like large hefty meals.
[33:16] So if, if I happen to be super busy and I don't eat much like in the morning or something, I'll eat like a gigantic dinner to make up for it. Cause I always know how to kind of keep my, I don't count my calories, but I just know based on my own body, how I kind of keep it, you know, consistent each day with.
The Reality of Snacking Habits
[33:34] Yeah. Well, amen, amen to large, hefty meals. Yes uh what about what about perfection and i know that's something you talk about in your book what's your what's your position on perfection verse uh the alternative um i do not like the word perfection i completely disagree with trying to be perfect um when i first went vegan i tried that and i tried to eat everything perfectly which made me paranoid about every calorie or a drop of oil if I was in a restaurant or whatever.
Letting Go of Perfection
[34:10] But I do not believe in that at all now. I'm way more relaxed about it. And a lot of that's because of my daughter, because I don't want her growing up thinking, oh, if she has a cupcake or something, then she's horrible.
[34:23] I don't want her looking at food as...
[34:28] Something to be paranoid about I want her to enjoy food and I especially as I get older I, know it sounds so cliche but life is really short especially after losing my mother I'm even more like that I just I just don't stress about that anymore like if I go out to eat I do not stress that there's oil in the food I mean I know that a lot of people are against oil and I understand that for me that's just not something I worry about anymore because I know I'm eating healthy and cooking, you know, the majority of my meals. And my I've raised my daughter, you know, vegan, she's never had dairy, she's never had meat. And she loves kale, she loves vegetables, she loves broccoli, she loves fruit, I've raised her eating those things. But I also I'm not going to tell her on Halloween, she can't have candy or something. I'm not I don't want to be that that's for me, that's, I like she has a balance. And she also has self control, because I taught her that. So like, you know, if I make ice cream or something or buy vegan ice cream at the store, she'll ask, mommy can have some ice cream. She will eat a few bites and stop. She has self-control because she's been raised with that. And I believe that's because I've taught her a balance as opposed to if you're totally restricted and never allowed anything, I feel like that can lead to, you know, problems later or overindulging if you feel like you have to be perfect all the time.
[35:54] Now, I think those are all excellent points. What about counting calories? I mean, I know you mentioned, you said that you don't count calories now,
The Downside of Calorie Counting
[36:02] but did you used to count calories? And was that something, it seems like a lot of, and I think more women than men seem to be kind of caught up with the calorie counting. Yeah, no, I do not count calories. I did just for the book because a lot of my readers want the nutritional information, but so I included it. But But when I before I had my daughter in 2011, in 2010, I did a fitness competition, like a figure competition. And you had to count your calories for that. And that was enough to teach me to never want to do it again, because this is what I'm saying. Eating, having to eat perfect to prepare for a competition and having to watch every single calorie. It literally made me want to just binge on cookies and all that. It made me crazy. And I know that some people need that maybe if they're trying to lose a lot of weight and they need a focus maybe to get used to the calories of what's in foods just so they understand. But I know what's in the foods now. So I kind of in my mind know what I'm eating, but I by no means do that. I eat satisfied. If I ate something maybe a little not so great, I'll make up for it at dinner later in the day. or I have a balance in knowledge of what's in most things and I also go by how I feel.
The Use of a Kitchen Scale
[37:20] You recommend, and correct me here if I'm not saying this right, I think that people get a scale because for a lot of, maybe a lot or most of your recipes, you want people to weigh out the ingredient. Is that correct? Yes, that's correct. And that's because I've been cooking with a scale for many, many years now. It will create accurate results. When people are measuring with flours, everybody measures differently. Some people scoop, some people dump. And even then, you're not going to get the same amount. Whereas if you follow the gram weights I have listed, you will get the exact result.
[37:56] And a lot of my readers have been using a scale for many years because of that. And they all say that I've come to love to, you know, cook with a scale because it's so easy. You literally never have to get out a measuring cup again. You just dump it in the bowl, hit zero, look for the gram weight list. It creates accurate results, and I don't want people having a bad result because they measure differently or not accurately with the cuts. Yeah. That is so interesting. I'm just looking now. Yeah, you do have the exact gram weight for every. Yeah. But you don't. I'm not seeing it, for example, on herbs and spices, right? Or you say a teaspoon. So there you go. Yeah. Yeah, because when it's too small of an amount, then the kitchen scale won't be accurate. It can be off. So it's just easier just to get like a teaspoon. But anything like tablespoons or above, especially with liquids, you just use the scale. It's so much easier.
Diving Into the Recipes
[39:01] All right. Are you ready to dive into the book? Yes. I think we've waited long enough. Yes. I am so excited to try every recipe that we're going to talk about right now. The first one I want to talk about, because I'm such a fan of pancakes and chocolate chips, is your chocolate chip sheet pan pancakes on page 27. Yeah, those are so good. Look, everybody. Look at that. And sheet pan. I mean, how brilliant. Sheet pan pizza is. And what can you tell me about this recipe? How did you discover it?
Chocolate Chip Sheet Pan Pancakes
[39:38] Well, sheet pancakes have been done a million times. I didn't come up with the idea. They're all over Google. But, of course, they tend to be made with eggs or milk or oil. That's the thing. So many of the recipes have oil in them or butter or things like that. And, of course, my recipe is made with whole wheat, and it's healthier. It doesn't have the eggs. It doesn't have the dairy. It doesn't have the butter. but they're still really really fluffy and that is because i use potato starch um in them potato starch act acts as eggs and pancakes and you won't even see hardly any vegan i'm giving away my secret here but you won't really even see many vegan pancake recipes with that and a lot of vegan pancakes they're gross they're dense they're mushy they're raw and they're not cooked in the center and that's because they're missing eggs so the best way to mimic eggs is starch.
[40:31] And potato starch makes things extremely fluffy. You can't tell they're not missing eggs because of the starch. And that was a secret I discovered years ago when I started gluten-free baking because I got tired of eating the pancakes where they're not cooked in the middle. They're like dense and mushy. That's gross to me. So the baking powder, doesn't that also contribute to the fluffiness factor? Yes, it does. But they'll still end up dense without the potato starch. Like if you eat a pancake, you eat a regular vegan pancake and then eat my pancake with the potato starch, you're going to see how fluffy they are. And I got tons of them on my website and you'll see all the reviews that it's true. The potatoes or cornstarch too works. So do you have a preference, potato or cornstarch?
[41:20] It depends on the other ingredients. Potato starch will make them fluffier. The one thing about potato starch, though, versus corn starch, because I know how every single starch works. Potato starch, they will dry out quicker. So you got to, you know, eat them the same day. Like, cause the next day they're going to be more drier. Cornstarch will, they'll stay moist longer. So. You know what? What a, what a great valuable little tidbit right there. Yeah. I love that. Okay. Everybody, all, all the PLANTSTRONG podcast listeners know that I am. I'm a chocolate-aholic. I really am. Same. And so you've got the chocolate protein pancakes. Oh, yes. And your photo. And on page 31 is ridiculous. I know. Isn't that a good photo? Yeah. And I got to say, like, who in the world did your photography? Me. Seriously? I did the entire book. I even did the cover. I mean, wow. Are you sure you're not a perfectionist? Okay. Maybe I am.
The Art of Food Photography
[42:28] I am with my work. Yes. I want everything to look great. I'm not a perfectionist in my life by any means, but with my work, you know, I want to showcase the food because obviously you eat with your eyes first. So if it doesn't look good, nobody's going to make it. So who is who is dripping that maple syrup under the pancakes while you're doing the photography? I think I was. Wait, wait, I'm trying to think. Was it it was either me? Wait, was that me? No, it had to be. It was either me or Olivia. Because I know it sounds crazy, but I will literally hold my camera with my right hand and then take my left hand and drip stuff and then shoot it. I do that with a lot of my... How many times were you like, Olivia, get over here. I need your help. Oh, yeah. Oh, I've done that since she was a toddler. Yeah. Olivia, can you get off the screen and come over and help? All the time. And I've used her hands like in the grilled cheese in the back and end of the book. Those are her little hands from when I first wrote the recipe or cute little hands. I've used her hands for so many, so many pictures because she's got the cutest little hands, of course.
Sweet Jalapeno Cornbread Waffles
[43:41] All right. Let's move on to page 37. OK. Another one that's after my heart. And that's a sweet jalapeno cornbread waffles. Those are so good. Oh, yeah, that was I wanted to come up with a different kind of waffle idea because everybody thinks, of course, of like chocolate chip or vanilla or something. But I thought I love cornbread and I'm sure a lot of people have have jalapeno cornbread, which is super yummy. But since this is a waffle, they're sweet. So there's a little bit more maple syrup in them. So you get that sweetness that balances out with the spiciness of the jalapeno. And of course, the corn is sweet. So they're really, really good. You know, when I first came down to Austin, Texas from Cleveland, Ohio.
[44:27] I loved bagels and I got introduced to jalapeno bagels. Oh, it was like a joke. Like, yeah, I never had that in a bagel. And now it's my one of my favorite bagels in the whole wide world is a jalapeno bagel. So I saw this recipe.
Chocolate Lentil Protein Muffins
[44:45] And again, every one of the ones that I am showing you right now, I'm going to make. I really, really will. so next i want to go to is page 44 because again oh yeah after my heart the chocolate lentil protein muffins i mean yeah those are so good those have been made by a lot of my readers and they're all blown away by them because they can't they can't believe there's no lentil i mean they can't believe that you can't taste the lentils because you cannot taste the lentils in the end product now when you mix up the batter you taste the lentils like the batter before you bake it But the end product, you cannot tell. They're just super chocolatey and moist and fluffy.
[45:26] And so in this one, this recipe and the jalapeno waffles, you're not using potato starch. You're using like tapioca in these. Yes. And is there a reason why? Yes, there is. Okay. Tapioca starch helps bind and keep things more moist. So they act better as eggs in baking whereas potato starch i do use potato starch in some baking but tapioca it binds better like it's more like an egg whereas potato starch if i use potato starch in these they would fall apart it'd be too crumbly because they would dry i know it's it's hard to explain but i've been baking for so long i know exactly which starch is going to work with what type of other ingredients and what would happen if you use tapioca starch in the pancakes in the pancakes yeah they would be gummy and dense they would be too they wouldn't be soft and fluffy they would be more chewy, Because tapioca makes things more chewy. And it's based on the other ingredients. But since there's whole wheat flour in the pancakes, that already has gluten in them from the whole wheat. So if you then add tapioca to the gluten, it's going to make the pancakes too chewy.
[46:46] You know your stuff. Wow. That's through lots of failed gluten-free baking at the beginning of when I started all this. Lots of fails. So we're going to fly through. we're going to move to page 109. Okay. And obviously, you know, you talk so highly of Richie and this is the Hungarian salt polenta margarita. Look at this, everyone. Look at this photo. It's so delicious looking. And if you aren't watching and you're just listening to the audio version of this podcast, I'm sorry. Yeah. Yeah. It's, it's like a, it's a traditional Hungarian dish where basically it's just to allow the readers to picture it if they're not watching. It's like a polenta casserole with like a pesto mixed in and then topped with mozzarella cheese and fresh basil. But of course, this is the original version, of course, is made with lots of dairy and mine is not. But I use my homemade mozzarella cheese, which is one of my most popular recipes it's so good and of course there's no oil in it there's no starches in it um but it it browns and it's it's it's phenomenal so lots of mozzarella cheese on top it's so good like when i made this i ate like half the pan after i tested it was so good.
Soul Satisfying Soups
[48:13] Um so let's move on to this is what you said in the book if i'm not mistaken is, your pride and joy when it comes to the chapter and that is the soul satisfying soups you love oh yes yes i could eat soup every day of my life it's my favorite thing to eat and i just want to show people look at look at the photo for this is that she's used i mean i'm so glad you said that that's my favorite picture it's amazing and then and then the but the recipe that I wanted to talk to you about was the creamy Mexican potato and white bean soup. Oh yeah. And it's the first recipe it's on page one 23. And of course with a little side of almost looks like rustic, rustic white bread that dip in there. Yum. Yeah. It's super hearty and yummy and filling and lots of healthy carbs and white beans and good for you, but also healthy, no oil. Don't need it. You got a little bit of avocado on top for some healthy fat and.
[49:25] Do you have a favorite type of bread that you like to eat with soups? I guess I like a French baguette. I like also Italian bread, but my actual favorite bread is pumpernickel bread. That's like my favorite bread to eat.
[49:39] It's got to be authentically pumpernickel though, right? Yeah, I love hearty, grainy, deep flavored breads, which I know a lot of people like basic white bread. But to me, the deeper, the more robust flavor, the better. Like so good. the more soulful. Yes. So good. Page 129. We got the veggie pot pie soup. I love, I love a pot pie, but I haven't eaten them in years just because typically the crust are just full of butter and oil. Yeah. Yeah. But so look at this. I mean, so you've devised a way to get the best of both worlds. Right. My daughter loves this one. She loved this one. This was one of the ones I tested probably close to four years ago and it was so good. Uh, and of course at the time I was married and my ex-husband loved it as well. Like it's, it tastes just like a pot pie, but of course, you know, the tortilla gives a little bit of the crust, you know, touch to it. Um, but without all the, the oil. Yeah. And I have to just, you know, this is, this is your, on page 132, You got your lentil soup with turmeric and lemon. Yes. Look at the closeup of that photo. It is just. That's a really good one, too. That one actually is originally on my website, but it was such a favorite with my readers. That's why I put in the book because it has tons of five star recipes. It's really, really yummy.
[51:08] Yeah. So your soup section is world class. Thank you. Thank you. It really is. Huge congrats. on that. All right, let's look.
Hearty Mac and Cheese
[51:21] Let's go to page 162, because this is one of my favorite things in the whole wide world, and that's a really good mac and cash. Oh, yeah.
[51:31] And so this, you call this the protein-packed mac and cheese. Yes. Talk to me about this recipe. Okay. That one is probably, I would say, the number one recipe by people who have bought the book and made it out of the entire book because a lot of vegan mac and cheese, they fail to deliver on that, you know, really cheesy, nostalgic flavor and texture. I mean, I've had a lot of vegan mac and cheeses and they've fallen short on a cheesy texture, but also flavor. And this one, I tested this one so many times to get it right. And it is so good. And even my mother, who of course was not vegan raved over and i've had a like every person i would say i would say pretty much every person who has made it said it's the best vegan mac and cheese they've ever had like and i'm not lying that i post i post reviews of it all the time on my instagram stories because it's that popular it's so good and it's worth the book purchase alone it's so good and you can tell by the photo if you had to choose between you've got an open two hours in the afternoon okay Are you going to make a recipe or two or three, or are you going to go ballroom dancing? Oh, I'd go dancing.
[52:57] I'd go dancing for sure. Because I cook all the time. So I like breaks from cooking. That's why I kind of like to go out to eat because I like a break. You know what I mean? But I would choose dancing for sure. I know what you mean. Okay.
Pizza Chickpea Balls
[53:15] You said earlier in our conversation, you like something that's food that's hefty and substantial. And that's what I love about all your recipes. And people always ask me, how did you get a bunch of Texas male firefighters to do that? And I said, we just basically made mantastic food, like their favorites, but we just plant strongified them. And to me, that's what you've done so brilliantly. Like I look at this Cajun spinach artichoke pasta, and that is so substantial looking. Yes. It's like I look at the variety of textures and colors and shapes, and I'm just – I literally am starting to drool. Good. Then my job is working. But I totally agree with you because I feel like a lot of people, just from a lack of knowledge, feel like vegan food is salads or green smoothies. And that's why they fear it. And they say, oh, I can never be vegan. I'm like, if you eat my recipes or see my recipes and you serve them, you won't feel that way. Because we're not living off of just carrots. You know what I mean? I make the same things my mom would make. I just veganize them. But I want to feel satisfied and full. I can't stand eating something and still being hungry 10 minutes later. It has to be satisfying because you're not going to get people interested in plant-based eating.
[54:42] If it doesn't remind them of their favorite foods, you know what I mean? So it's super important to me that it's hearty, like you said. Yeah. Let's move on to page 208. Okay. I am always looking for a really great meatball. Oh, yeah. Those are really good. I should say plant ball that I can put with my pasta dish or something. So you have pizza chickpea balls. Yes. And I want to know from you, how good are they? They're delicious. They taste like pizza.
[55:19] This is more of a snack then. This is like, you know, like, because there's the little dipping sauce, like the pizza sauce or slash marinara sauce. So, you know, you can pick them up. They're not going to make your hands all messy. And then you just dip them in the sauce. It's like a little, you know, little snack. I mean, you can serve them over pasta totally. But this is kind of like more like a little snack. but they have the flavors of pizza in them. So you're going to get the nutritional benefits of the chickpeas and the healthy carbs and protein, but, you know, there's sun-dried tomatoes in them and, you know, the Italian spices and all that. So it does taste like pizza, but in a chickpea ball form. Yeah.
[56:01] And you've got some coconut aminos in here. Yes. That adds depth of flavor. And obviously nutritional yeast and red pepper flakes yeah and the rice makes it hearty and of course the breadcrumbs and the fresh basil the basil is super important like some people be like oh i'll just use dry basil and my recipes that i'm calling for fresh basil especially in the in the actual recipe not just a topping i would say it's definitely important to use fresh basil because it adds a tremendous amount of overall flavor when you Thank you. When you use chickpeas, like for these pizza chickpea balls, what do you do with the aquafaba that the chickpeas use? Do you kind of throw it out or do you save it for something? Yeah, I kind of throw it out.
[56:54] I know some people save it and use it for, you know, quote unquote eggs and baking. But I'm actually, I have a couple of recipes where I use it, but I prefer the results of starches over aquafaba. And plus, aquafaba doesn't, I don't know, it depends on what you're using it for. I know some people use it to make, what, mousse or something? Yeah. But I don't know. I can't imagine how that would, I'd probably upset my stomach, honestly. It's gold, Brandi. It's gold. Okay. I haven't. Okay.
Chocolate Tahini Cookies
[57:28] Brandi, you, again, I don't know why you're trying to tease me like this, but it's 217. These chocolate tahini cookies. I mean, look at this. Look at this, people. It's a two-page photo of these things. Yeah, those are so good. Those have gotten rave reviews as well. Oh my God. And no oil. Of course, the fat in them is the tahini.
[57:53] Sure. Of course, it's made from sesame seeds and, you know. Those are healthy too. I probably wouldn't call the cookies healthy because they're, you know, it's still a dessert, but they're healthier than like one's full of butter oil, of course. Well, and listen, let's call a spade a spade. I mean, these are desserts, right? Exactly. You don't think any of us, you or me, are advocating for this every night of the week. Exactly. But on special occasions, maybe, you know, two or three times a month, I think a really wonderful dessert is a great treat. Right. And I believe that the dessert should taste like a dessert, not like it's severely lacking in something. Otherwise, what's the point? Now, whenever it's my birthday, we go to a place here in Austin, Texas called Mr. Natural. And I get their strawberry shortcake, vegan cake, right? It literally melts in your mouth. Oh, wow. I actually prefer it to the chocolate cake. It's what I get. You have an almond cream strawberry shortcakes on 215. Yes. That looks dynamite. Yeah, that's really, really yummy.
Almond Cream Strawberry Shortcakes
[59:06] And it's not butter like a traditional, you know, shortcake or milk. The almonds is my little secret there. I literally soak them and make a cream out of the almonds, and that is the fat in them, and it gives the most incredible, like, cream taste in your mouth and, of course, texture. It's amazing. Okay. I got one more for you. Okay. I could go through this with you for hours. Yeah. And that is, let's go to page 224. You have a sweet potato cake. Oh, yes. I love sweet potatoes. My favorite food. Oh, my. You know, there's a certain, like, just simplicity in this. Yes. That I'm attracted to. Yeah, very simple cake. Yeah, yeah.
[59:57] And do you have a certain type of sweet potato? I find sweet potatoes are so variable. yeah that's just a plain old orange one yeah i know i know some people like like the purple japanese ones but those are kind of hard to find uh but yeah no it's just regular like it's real simple it's a real simple cake um but you know it's a healthier cake but it still tastes you know really amazing and moist and sweet potato is my favorite food like out of all foods is my favorite food so i love using sweet potatoes i have a ton of desserts that use sweet potatoes a ton of them like there's a sweet potato uh caramel in the book as well made from sweet potatoes.
Getting Your Copy of Vegan Wholesome
[1:00:37] Brandi, if people want to get a copy of Vegan Wholesome, what's the best way for them to get a copy? They can go to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target, pretty much anywhere online and just look up Vegan Wholesome. Always message me. And I do have bonus recipes that I will still honor people that are watching this. Get 10 free bonus recipes if they order my book as well. Brandi, I just got to say that your recipe book really grabbed me and I am going to make these recipes. My family's going to go crazy over them and this will become a mainstay in our kitchen. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. That means a lot to me. Thank you. Absolutely. So Brandi, before we leave and before you give me a virtual PLANTSTRONG fist bump, Can you just give us one or two pull-ups and show us how it's done? I sure will. Are you ready? We're ready. Let me move my chair out of the way. Okay. Okay. All right. Y'all can see me, right? We can see you great.
[1:01:59] Whoa, there's one. There's two. That's incredible. There's three. Don't hurt yourself. Three is awesome. Wow. Everybody. Brandi, give me a Plant Strong fist bump. That was amazing. Wow. You are a PLANTSTRONG machine. I could say I've never done that before on a podcast. Well, there's always a first. Yes. I want to give a big thanks to Brandi for sharing her inspiring journey and proving that wholesome plant-based cooking doesn't have to be complicated to be absolutely crave-worthy.
Closing Thoughts and Thanks
[1:02:45] Vegan Wholesome, her new book, is available wherever books are sold. And I'll be sure to put a link in today's show notes to make it an absolute snap for you to order. Until next time, keep it simple, keep it wholesome and always, always keep it PLANTSTRONG.
[1:03:08] The PLANTSTRONG podcast team includes Carrie Barrett, Laurie Kortowich and Ami Mackey. If you like what you hear, do us a favor and share the show with your friends and loved ones. You can always leave a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And while you're there, make sure to hit that follow button so that you never miss an episode. As always, this and every episode is dedicated to my parents, Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr. And Anne Crile Esselstyn. Thanks so much for listening.
