Day 20 Of The 21 Day Vegan Kickstart

It is day 20 of the 21 day vegan kickstart collaboration with #LunchBreakLIVE. 21 days of healthy, easy vegan recipes to kickstart your 2021 in a healthy way.  The guest chef for day 20 was Sheri Orlekoski who made three incredible recipes for us.  Sweet Potato Breakfast Pudding, Pita Pizza, and Rasberry Fudgy Brownies. All three recipes are guilt-free and full of nutrition.  Let’s see how it’s done…

Let’s Meet Our Chef

Sheri Orlekoski RN, BS, CRRN is a Registered Nurse specializing in rehabilitation care for patients with strokes, heart disease, and diabetes, a speaker and educator, and most importantly a cheerleader for people to lead their best lives through lifestyle choices.  

After years of living on the dieting roller coaster, resulting in obesity, blood sugar crashes and exhaustion, Sheri tried a 30-day whole food plant-based vegan diet as a New Year challenge in January 2012, after watching the documentary Forks Over Knives.  As her weight melted away, energy increased and overall health improved, she decided to never go back to her old ways! She has adopted whole food plant-based, not as not only as a diet but a powerful lifestyle choice that supports optimal human health, the health of our environment and all the animals.

Sheri Orlekoski:
The Power of a Plant-Based Dietary Lifestyle over 20 years

To further promote these benefits, Sheri is a passionate advocate for plant-based support groups and furthering promoting the power of plants to health care providers.  She started her own local support group in Grand Rapids, Michigan, plantpoweredforhealth.com, which serves as a meet up for the plantpurecommunities.org network, as well as PBNSG.org, a Dr. Caldwell Essestyln style group. Potlucks, food demos, speakers, and movie screenings are examples of ways people can get together and support each other to better health. During the pandemic, they take the form of zoom meetings.  To support accessible training to health care providers, Sheri is on the Board of Directors for the annual medical conference, the Plant-Based Prevention of Disease Conference (P-POD.org) and engages hospital colleagues with continuing education opportunities, such as grand round presentations and in-hospital events like Physicians Committee’s 21-day Vegan Kickstart challenge. 

Sheri has a BS in Health Care System Administration from Ferris State University in Big Rapids Michigan, and an AA in Nursing from Grand Rapids Community College. She is a graduate of the Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate Program at the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies, a member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, and a Certified Food for Life Instructor with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

To attend a Food For Life class, please visit FFLclasses.org, and to contact Sheri directly write to plantpoweredforhealth@gmail.com.

21 Day Vegan Kickstart Day 20:  Recipe 1

Let’s start with the incredible and unique Sweet Potatoe Breakfast Pudding.  That sounds so interesting and delicious.  Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of fiber, which will keep you full throughout the morning.  How awesome is it that pudding for breakfast can be healthy, yummy, and totally guilt-free.  I could eat this for breakfast every day.

The ingredients for the Sweet Potato Breakfast Pudding.

The finished sweet potato pudding.

Print Recipe

Breakfast Sweet Potato Pudding

For a quick and nutritious breakfast, this sweet potato pudding is the perfect choice. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of fiber, which will keep you full throughout the morning.

Oats do not contain gluten but can be manufactured in a facility with gluten. For severe allergies, it’s best to buy oats with a gluten free label.

About the Source: Turn Off the Fat Genes by Neal Barnard, MD; recipe by Jennifer Raymond MS, Recipe

Course: Breakfast

Keyword: gluten-free, nut-free, vegan

Servings: 2 servings

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• ½ cup soy or rice milk
• 1 cup cooked sweet potato or yam
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• ¼ tsp cinnamon

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients together in a blender.
• Blend until smooth and serve.

21 Day Vegan Kickstart:  Recipe 2

It’s time for brownies!  Yes, you can eat brownies that are actually nutritious and guilt-free, keeping you on the path toward better health.  These Rasberry Brownies are super fudgy, as you would expect in any brownie.  They are actually made with black beans.  The beans add fiber, calcium, and protein, making these brownies a nutritious indulgence.  Don’t knock em’ till you try them.  You won’t be disappointed.

Raspberry Brownie ingredients.

The finished and ready to eat Raspberry Brownies.

Print Recipe

Raspberry Fudgy Brownies

Source: The Vegan Starter Kit by Neal Barnard, MD; recipe by Christine Waltermyer

A brownie made with beans? You bet! The beans add fiber, calcium, and protein, making these brownies a nutritious indulgence.

Course: Desserts

Keyword: nut-free, vegan

Servings: 16 servings

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce cans low-sodium black beans drained and rinsed
• 1 cup pitted dates
• 1 cup all-fruit raspberry jam
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons whole-wheat pastry flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ tsp. sea salt
• ½ up mini chocolate chips or 1/2 cup raspberry all-fruit jam for topping optional

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
• Combine the black beans, dates, jam, and vanilla in a food processor.
• Blend until smooth.
• Add the flour, cocoa powder, and sea salt and blend again.
• Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top with moist hands. If desired, sprinkle evenly with chocolate chips or spread with the raspberry jam.
• Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Use the parchment paper to lift the brownies out of the pan. Cut into 16 squares. Refrigerate for up to 1 week, stored in a covered container.

Notes

CHEF’S NOTE: These brownies are best made at least a DAY IN ADVANCE and chilled well for best flavor and texture.
About the Recipe

21 Day Vegan Kickstart:  Recipe 3

Pizza!  Pizza!  Pizza!  Who doesn’t love pizza?  If you don’t like this incredible food called pizza, I just simply can’t relate.  Pizza is the best.  And now you can have a delicious and tasty pizza, in a more nutritious healthy way, without losing any of the flavors.  It is plant-based all the way and zero guilt.  Sheri added all kinds of fun ingredients: BBQ Jackfruit from a package, Chao Cheese, veggies: peppers, onions, olives, mushrooms, etc.   The possibilities are endless, just keep it vegan and with healthier options as your toppings.  Below is a basic recipe for the Pita Pizza, add what you’d like as your own toppings.  Lisa Karlan also made Pita Pizza on Day 5 of the 21 day vegan kickstart.  You can check out the variation she made for this scrumptious meal HERE.

The Pita Pizzas.

Print Recipe

Pita Pizzas

This recipe has a savory flavor from the hummus, which makes an excellent alternative to cheese.

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Keyword: vegan

Servings: 1 serving

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup red pepper hummus
• 1 whole-wheat pita
• 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
• baked toppings: thyme, green olives, roasted garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, cipollini onions (to taste)
• fresh toppings: sliced basil, Roma tomatoes, Peppadew peppers, arugula (to taste)

Instructions

• Spread the hummus over the pita (or tortilla), except for the edge. Sprinkle with cracked black pepper. Add the baked toppings (these toppings are not baked before they go on the pizza; the name just refers to toppings that get baked on top of the pizza). As a variation, add pizza sauce instead of hummus.
• Bake the pita pizza at 350 F for 7 to 8 minutes. Then spread any of the fresh toppings on the pizza after it comes out of the oven.

Sheri showing off her 21 day vegan kickstart finished Pita Pizzas and Sweet Potato Breakfast Pudding.

Thank You For Joining Us!

We have one more day left of the 21 day vegan kickstart, so be sure to come back for the last day of delicious and easy vegan recipes.  If you are interested in other plant-based recipes to try be sure to stop by the #LunchBreakLIVE page.  There are a ton to choose from.  Until next time…keep cookin’!