Forks Over Knives Summer 2021

Darshana and I love to travel, especially to beach locations. While we enjoy finding healthy local restaurant fare, it can get expensive and tiresome. We both quickly start missing our uber-healthy home-cooked meals, and Darshana often cooks in the hotel room microwave. On a trip to Hawaii early last year, we committed to making most of our meals in the hotel room so that Darshana could share the recipes in the magazine. This time we booked a room with a stove top, a microwave, and a refrigerator, knowing the extra cost would be more than recouped by eating at “home.” Our active trip didn’t disappoint, and it was great to have homemade dinners to fuel our adventure. We savored Black Bean Tacos, Sweet Potato and Kale Chili, and Quinoa Slaw Bowls, all…

LOAD UP ON THESE Fruits (bananas, blueberries, oranges, strawberries) Vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, kale, lettuce) Tubers and starchy vegetables (corn, green peas, potatoes, winter squash) Whole grains (barley, brown rice, millet, oats, quinoa, wheat berries) Legumes (black beans, chickpeas, lentils, pinto beans) ENJOY IN MODERATION Plant-based milks (almond, cashew, hemp, oat, rice, soy) Tofu and tempeh Whole grain flours and breads Whole nuts and seeds, nut/seed butters (almond butter, pumpkin seeds, tahini, walnuts) AVOID OR MINIMIZE Bleached flours, white bread, and white pasta Dairy products Eggs Meat, poultry, and seafood Oils Refined sweeteners White rice For a more detailed primer on the FOK diet, visit forksoverknives.com/what-to-eat…

1 PUT STARCHES AND FRUITS AT THE CENTER OF YOUR PLATE. Enjoy nonstarchy and leafy veggies in generous amounts, but look to carbohydrate-rich whole grains, beans, fruits, and starchy vegetables to provide enough calories to power you through your day. 2 YOU’LL LIKELY EAT MORE FOOD, NOT LESS. Whole or minimally processed plant foods are dense in nutrients, not calories. As you adjust to this way of eating, you may find you feel a little hungry shortly after a meal, but over time you’ll get a sense of how much to eat to stay satiated. 3 FOCUS ON PLEASURE. The best whole plant foods are the ones you enjoy enough to stay on a healthy path. So have veggie chili, whole grain pasta, tacos, mashed potatoes, or whatever else hits the spot. 4…

DARSHANA THACKER Thacker is chef and culinary projects manager for Forks Over Knives. A graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute, she is the author of the Forks Over Knives: Flavor! cookbook, recipe author for the book Forks Over Knives Family, and recipe contributor to The New York Times best-selling book The Forks Over Knives Plan. QADIRA ALI HUFF, MD, MPH, FAAP, DI PABLM Huff is a board-certified pediatrician, certified lifestyle medicine physician, plantbased advocate, and parent. She practices as a primary care pediatrician in Washington, D.C., and is the founder of Sprouting Wellness PLLC, a virtual lifestyle medicine platform for families. ALONA PULDE, MD, AND MATTHEW LEDERMAN, MD Pulde and Lederman created the medical program used in the Forks Over Knives documentary, at all Whole Foods Market Medical & Wellness Centers, and most recently at…

FREEZE YOUR SUMMER FAVES Perfect peaches, berries, and other summer goodies are cheap and plentiful this time of year—making it easy to buy more than you can handle. Fortunately, many of these foods freeze well so you can enjoy them for months to come. Here are four seasonal favorites to go ahead and grab in bulk when you spot a deal. STONE FRUIT Height-of-summer peaches, nectarines, and apricots are beloved by home preservers because prices plummet just as flavors peak. To take advantage of these short-season bargains, blanch the whole fruits 30 seconds, then drop them in a bowl of ice water to loosen the skins. Peel if desired, pit, and slice the fruit. Freeze slices in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Transfer to resealable plastic bags or tight-sealing…

MEAT SUBSTITUTE Steaks, cutlets, chunks, or cubes—any way you slice it, eggplant’s shape and texture make it an ideal plant-based alternative to meat. The dense, spongy flesh soaks up the flavors of rubs, marinades, and sauces. It also has a chameleonlike ability to turn firm and chewy or meltingly tender, depending on how you cook it. SUMMER STAR Just like tomatoes and peppers (its nightshade cousins), eggplant hits its peak in summer and early fall, when soil and air temperatures remain above 70°F. Summer is also when you can find heirloom varieties and farmers market bargains. Greenhouse-grown eggplants are available year-round. SHOP SMART Look for plump, firm eggplants with glossy skin and no wrinkles or blemishes. Bright green stems are a good sign of freshness. Store eggplant at room temperature—not in the…