1. Eat dessert after every meal.

2. Eat your favorite food.

3. Have any fruit you like.

4. Eat at your own speed.

5. Drink when you’re thirsty.

6. Fat is not the enemy.

I offer the above as a counterpoint to last night’s Kathy Freston interview on Charlie Rose. She was there to promote her new diet book; The Lean. As a person spreading the gospel on veganism, I commend her. But damn, she made being vegan sound like no fun! I won’t go play-by-play through her whole interview, but to expand my counterpoints:

1. Not only is touting dessert good for my business, it is also central to my life as a vegan living lushly. I loved dessert before I was vegan. Why give it up? Humans and dessert have co-evolved for hundreds of years. I doubt we’ll stop any time soon. Yes, high fructose corn syrup is devil juice. But many people, like me, go out of their way to source all-natural, organic, sustainably harvested sweeteners that are easier on your body and the planet. And then we make yummy things.

Some people may have no problem passing on sweets. I am not one of them.

2. Freston described giving up a food she loved: chips. I can identify. Before I was vegan, I loved donuts. Unfortunately, they were fried, dairy-laden and made with processed ingredients like bleached flour and refined sugar. They made me feel gross after I ate them. After going vegan, I developed a donut that was baked, vegan, spelt and not-too-sweet, with the best quality ingredients I could find. Now, I can eat a whole bunch of donuts and still feel great. Other vegan chefs have mastered this art form, too…I’ve even seen raw vegan mallomars! I cannot stress enough that being vegan, at least for me, is not about restriction. It is about discovery, playfulness, and feeling good.

People who have taboo foods–especially ones they love–give me sad face. Just change things up a bit and make them better. It’s what I’ve built my life around.

3. I can’t jive with fruit rules. Bad fruit. Good fruit. Don’t combine fruit x with fruit y. Don’t mix fruit with meals. Only eat half the banana, etc, etc. How could anyone memorize all this? Also, considering tomatoes are a fruit, and carrots have more sugar than apricots, it all seems pretty arbitrary. In my world, fruit is good. Period. Can eating too much fruit make you fat? Who knows! But I’d rather get fat off fruit than processed, imitation sausage links.

4. I don’t like being told how to eat. “Chew slower. Chew thoroughly. Think about each bite as you pulverize it into sawdust.” No thanks! Without trying, I’m always the first person at the table with a clean plate. I enjoy my food more this way. I’ve tried eating slow. It is monotonous. Nothing tastes as good. (Seriously.) We’re all different, so you can’t assume that what works for you works for everyone.

5. A popular vegan blogger I like recently said “don’t chug water with meals.” Freston advised downing two full glasses of water before meals, and a total of 8 a day (She actually said 8 glasses 8 times per day, but I assume this was an error). Crikey! Who are we to trust? I literally go with my gut. Thirsty? I drink water. Before, after, during meals…or maybe not at all. On an empty stomach. In the middle of the night. But I don’t recall ever stopping myself and declaring “Oh no! My quota!” And then going on a water bender.

6. I have recently latched onto the term “body positive.” I would like to think of myself as body positive: I acknowledge that one particular body type is no more beautiful or healthy than another just because the swimsuit issue tells me so. We live in a culture where thin bodies are considered the healthiest and most beautiful. But if you measure well-being based on how you feel, on how happy you are, you can be healthy and beautiful at any size.

Although I have personally enjoyed aesthetic perks since going vegan, I don’t go around saying vegans are more beautiful than others. Mostly, this turns people off and makes them think you’re an asshole. Such was the case, years before I was vegan, when a friend of mine claimed she could tell which customers in her health food store were vegan because “their eyes were brighter.” That rubric might work for the Westminster dog show, but it’s a crummy way to judge people.

There were points where I agreed with Freston. Ex: She’s not afraid of carbs. But it is important to me that people know you can be vegan and still live lushly. Yes, I eat a pretty low fat diet in comparison to most people. I eat mostly un-processed vegetable, fruit, seed, nut, grain and legume based foods, and have the privilege of making most of it at home. I am lucky enough to have a juicer and use it regularly. But I did not find my way here by counting glasses of water, analyzing nutritional content, and ignoring my cravings.

Instead I went the opposite way and listened to my body. My body said “STOP” when I over-indulged on dairy. It said “STOP” again when I overdid it on soy. It said “More of this” when I discovered kale. It said “Yes, please!” when I discovered different types of seaweed. To make a long story short, I cut out things that made me feel bad, and ate more of what made me feel good.

And I do. Better than I have ever felt in my life. And all this without being lean, in body or in spirit.

Today Electric Blue is featured in Brooklyn Based! Click here to read the article. I will update this post later today with more questions from my interview. Thank you for your interest in Electric Blue! Tomorrow, Luv Tea in Clinton Hill will have my banana glazed donuts with chocolate drizzle and toasted almonds!

Coconut oil is not just a great butter substitute in vegan baking. You can also use it in savory recipes. This simple yet satisfying dish is the perfect example. I was almost shocked how flavorful of a dinner this turned out to be, especially because it calls for only five ingredients, including salt!

serves: 2

1 medium spaghetti squash (big enough to wrap both your hands around)
1/4 cup virgin coconut oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red chili pepper, seeded and finely chopped
sea salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Half the squash and place, cut side down, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Roast for 20-30 minutes, until easily pierced with a knife. Allow to cool slightly and use a fork to scrape threads of squash into a bowl.

Melt the coconut oil in a pan set over medium heat. Add the garlic, chili pepper and a dash of salt. Saute until garlic begins to turn golden brown around the edges. Turn off the heat and add the squash. Toss to coat with oil and transfer to serving bowls. Serve hot.

You will love it! Please leave comments if you do try.