The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook: Over 125 Delicious, Life-Changing, Plant-Based Recipes - Softcover

We love our food! When all twenty of us Esselstyns gather together, our days are full of fun—biking, swimming, backflips off the dock, long runs, family baseball, and badminton. But we have the most fun cooking and eating together—the beautiful lasagnas, the rice-and-beans feasts, the nori-making sessions, the salads brimming with a rainbow of colors, the kale birthday cakes with blueberry frosting, and masses of curly, dinosaur, or Russian kale from the garden. Everyone cooks, even the grandchildren, whether they’re ten or sixteen. The one person who doesn’t cook is my husband. He is the permanent, full-time dishwasher.

When Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease was published in 2007 and went on to become a New York Times bestseller, it made an impact we couldn’t even imagine. People all over the country and around the world heard the message that our family has lived by for years: Your health is truly in your own hands, and what you eat matters.

We’ve heard from people all over the United States and abroad whose lives have been changed by Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. Why did it resonate? Because the program works, and because the science is irrefutable. In 1985, while a general surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic, my husband started a heart disease study with eighteen patients. Some of those patients were so sick they had been sent home to die. Incredibly, after twelve years, those patients were thriving on plant-based, no-oil diets. Twenty years later, compliant patients continued to thrive. Some still are thriving today in their late eighties. Eighty-eight-year-old Evelyn, one of those original patients, commented, “No one expected me to live! Here I am now, healthier than most of my friends.” The wife of Anthony, another original patient, says, “Anthony thinks he will live forever, something none of us are privileged to do! He truly is steadfast in maintaining the plant-based diet and will not deviate under any circumstance.”

A LIFE-CHANGING STORY

“I started my plant-based lifestyle on March 23, 2012. At that time I was 285 pounds and heading toward my eighth stent. The prospect of seeing my daughter get married on April 26, one month away, was slim to none. Today, just over one year later, I’m 215 pounds; I’m off all meds; I played sixty minutes of full-contact rugby three weeks ago at the very young age of fifty-six. I have not cheated on the diet once even though my family encourages me to find something that I could celebrate with. I celebrate every day that I’m on this side of the dirt.”

—DAVID W.

We have worked with hundreds of patients since that original group, helping them take those first empowering steps toward reclaiming their health—all with the same miraculous results. My husband’s research continues, and his most recent published study proves that when patients truly understand the power of nutrition, they are more than willing to change their diets. We have seen this firsthand—patients are always surprised how quickly they feel more energetic and healthy and how fast their cholesterol levels drop. And they can’t believe how easy it is to put my husband’s treatment guidelines into practice. They feel empowered being in control of reversing their disease.

The guidelines for those patients with heart disease are simple:

No meat

No dairy

No oil or nuts

Minimal salt and sweetener

What can you eat? A delicious and colorful array of vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains, brimming with fiber, nutrients, and antioxidants, all great nourishment for your heart and your overall health.

In the last few years, spreading the word about the magic of plant-based nutrition has become a family affair. Our son Rip wrote the blockbuster bestsellers The Engine 2 Diet and My Beef with Meat, creating a national movement. And our daughter, Jane, created the recipe section for My Beef with Meat, which became a number-one New York Times bestseller. Rip calls his plan “plant-strong” and my husband’s plan “plant-perfect.” Both programs have no meat, dairy, or oil. Heart patients are also asked to eliminate nuts and avocado and to limit soy products.

A LIFE-CHANGING STORY

“My husband had his left circumflex artery stented in 2012. After talking to Dr. Esselstyn, my husband switched to the diet with full commitment and stopped having smoothies and flour and added a lot more greens than he had been eating, especially steamed kale.

“When he had the left circumflex artery stent, he also had a 100 percent blocked right coronary artery, which they did not stent that day. We were told that the blockage was severe and that the odds of success in opening the artery would be slim. They told us he’d have to go to a different facility for that second stent, six weeks later. Anticipating the procedure was horrible, but we were hopeful that, given the time on the diet between the two stents, some of the blockage might be reversed.

“I’d been told to expect a four- to five-hour surgery with two surgeons, but to my surprise, his surgery lasted only thirty minutes, with one surgeon! Only one catheter was needed, and no guide wires. The surgeon told us it was one of the easiest procedures he had ever done, and the head nurse said it was the quickest surgery of this type she’d ever seen.

“After six weeks on the diet, my husband’s total cholesterol was 88, and his triglycerides were 110. I’ve been married to him for twenty-five years and never have his triglycerides been under 300. He and I truly believe that it was our focus on the diet that produced this happy outcome. My husband feels so much better today than he has in years. He’s sworn to never again enter the hospital as a heart patient.”

—DEBBIE H.

Jane is an excellent chef with a sophisticated palate. If I were left on my own, balsamic vinegar, mint, and cilantro would be in everything, and if something didn’t taste right, I would go for the nutritional yeast. Jane adds the kick and boldness to our recipes and to our life. We are lucky to live next door to her; her husband, Brian; and their three children. We find it endlessly exciting to test new recipes, and it’s so easy to run back and forth with something new to try.

Jane presents at conferences, retreats, and immersions both on her own and with my husband and me. We travel across the country and overseas to participate in conferences, retreats, and immersions. We share with our audiences the tips and tricks we’ve learned from years of cooking delicious plant-based, oil-free meals. We teach people how to get away from processed food, even if it’s labeled “vegan,” since it’s often full of oil. We introduce them to the wonders of kale and other hearty and delicious greens, as well as sweet potatoes, artichokes, beets, broccoli, cucumbers, asparagus, whole grains, cannellini beans, lentils, and so much more.

There is no question that those patients who are the most compliant have the best results. Fortunately, it is not hard to be compliant because eating whole food, plant-based nutrition is not complicated! There is no counting anything. There are few hard-to-find products. Stick to the outside aisles of the grocery store and the produce section. Shop at farmers’ markets or start your own garden. We have not included the calories or fat, protein, or carbohydrate content of the recipes on purpose. We want you to enjoy the food and not calculate anything except your blessings for having discovered the beauty of eating plant-based!

A LIFE-CHANGING STORY

“I’m a forty-five-year-old man and I’ve always worked out and remained active. About a year ago, however, I was experiencing chest pains. I went to see my doctor, and the results were not good: My cholesterol was at 236; my blood pressure was creeping up; and my lipids were in the high range. A carotid artery MRI revealed that, at forty-five, I had the arterial thickness of the average sixty-year-old man, and that I had substantial blockages, in the 85th percentile for my age.

“When I reviewed the test results with my doctor, he mentioned that most of this was genetic and he tried to put me on a statin drug. I refused because I was concerned about side effects (known and unknown). I mentioned that I had seen Dr. Esselstyn in the documentary Forks over Knives and that I felt this problem could be overcome if I followed his advice. My doctor actually told me there is no way to reverse heart disease or coronary artery disease and the best I could do was slow down the process with medications! I bought Prevent and Reverse Heart Diseaseand ate a completely plant-based diet: whole grains, veggies, and lots of beans! I stopped eating oils and processed foods as well. I also continued to work out.

“I went back to my doctor after ninety days and took another blood panel. My cholesterol had dropped to 156, my blood pressure was down to98/60, my lipids were low, and I wasn’t having chest pains! My doctor seemed satisfied with the results—but to my dismay, he still wanted to put me on a statin drug! I told him no way and that I’d be back in a year to retake the carotid artery MRI.

“I continued with the diet for the next year, and all cravings for meat and fat went away, just as Dr. Esselstyn indicated (meat actually repulses me now). Almost one year to the day after taking the initial carotid exam, I took another and the results floored my doctor! My arterial thickness had dropped substantially. I now have the arterial thickness of the average thirty-five-year-old man, and I am in the 32nd percentile of blockages for my age group! I have aged chronologically by one year since my last test but have physiologically become many years younger. At my most recent appointment, my doctor stopped suggesting the statin drugs and advised me to keep doing whatever I’m doing.”

—BILL C.

We’ve been bursting with new recipes since Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease was published, and we’ve been waiting anxiously to write this book. There are endless plant-based cookbooks and recipes available online these days; the problem is that they are not all safe for heart patients. So many recipes use oil, nuts (that 2/3 cup of cashews!), avocado, coconut, salt, or lots of added sugar. This cookbook is full of recipes that are scientifically proven to heal heart disease. If you take meat, dairy, and oil out of your diet, your body cannot lay down the foundation of vascular disease by injuring the innermost lining of your arteries.

Both Jane and I have been working moms with families to feed, so we know cooking often happens quickly in that snippet of time before dinner. In this cookbook, we’ve included some simple recipes such as one-bowl, delicious and hearty rice-and-beans meals, which are our go-to weekday dinners. Fast Pasta and Greens and Five-Star Rice and Beans make satisfying meals during the week, too. But you’ll also find some inventive surprises like Nori Noir, Carrot Dogs, Philly-Style Soft Pretzels, our signature “Enlightened” Dr. Seuss Stacked Polenta, and Jane’s out-of-this world Kale Cake with Blueberry Frosting.

The third paragraph of the Greek Hippocratic oath reads: “I will use those dietary regimens which will benefit my patients according to my greatest ability and adjustment, and I will do no harm or injustice to them.” And yet, in spite of all the evidence-based research on patients reversing their disease through a plant-based diet—not only my husband’s research but research performed by Dr. John McDougall, Dr. Neal Barnard, Dr. Dean Ornish, and T. Colin Campbell, PhD, at Cornell—most cardiologists do not offer a plant-based diet as a preventative measure to patients because they say the patients won’t comply.

What we’ve seen, time and again, is exactly the opposite. Thanks to the success of Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease and the blockbuster documentary Forks over Knives, which featured my husband and T. Colin Campbell and their pioneering research, the message is getting to the public. A growing number of politicians, actors, producers, and television hosts are changing their diets.

Sometimes people ask how our family can sustain eating as we do. Our answer consists of four reasons: It is simple, it tastes good, we feel wonderful, and we know we are maximally protected from chronic illness. This book is not just a collection of recipes—it is a collection of wisdom around a lifestyle of cooking, family, and health. Truly, the biggest gift my husband and I have given our children and grandchildren is the joy of whole food, plant-based eating. We hope this cookbook will bring that joy to you and your loved ones and that you will discover, as one patient did, that “This program is an anchor in the midst of a raging sea of ideas that don’t really work. I feel planted as I maintain its regimen.” May you, too, be anchored in the joy of whole food, plant-based eating.

—Ann Crile Esselstyn and Jane Esselstyn

GETTING STARTED IN YOUR PREVENT AND REVERSE HEART DISEASE KITCHEN

When you are making a change in the way you eat, we know it can feel overwhelming. This chapter will walk you through the very simple, practical ways you can ready your pantry and your kitchen for easy, everyday cooking the Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease way. But first, here’s our 12-step program to help you get over any hurdles and to make the nutritional guidelines of the program simple. It’s all you need to remember.

OUR 12-STEP PROGRAM FOR PLANT-PERFECT EATING

1. Eat no meat, pork, fish, or fowl. No flesh. None. Every cell in an animal is made of cholesterol. All meat also has saturated fat and animal protein. And new research suggests that digesting meat releases a by-product, trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), an even stronger predictor of heart disease than cholesterol. Avoid highly processed fake vegan and soy “meats” because they have a lot of oil in them.

2. Consume no dairy products. Like meat, all dairy products contain cholesterol, saturated fat, animal protein, and casein. The protein in dairy is one of the most relevant carcinogens identified. Avoid all highly processed vegan and soy cheeses, which are made with a lot of oil and often have added casein!

3. Eliminate oil! All oil. Get rid of all the oil in your cupboards, even if it’s virgin olive oil, so that you can’t use it. Instead of using oil when you stir-fry and sauté vegetables, you can use vegetable broth (no sodium added), water, wine, beer, or vinegar. They all work well. Instead of relying on oil when you bake, use applesauce, apple butter without sugar, pureed prunes, or mashed ripe bananas. We’ll help you create an oil-free salad dressing you’ll love (see here) and soon you will never miss the oil-filled ones. Balsamic vinegars are delicious on salad and the flavor-infused ones are stunningly good.

4. Eat whole-grain oats. Old-fashioned rolled oats or steel-cut oats are good choices. Avoid the more processed “quick-cooking” or “instant” oats. Oats help lower cholesterol and blood sugar, reduce artery inflammation, and are dose-responsive, so find a breakfast with oats you love, then eat oats, in some fashion, every day! Enjoy whole-grain oats for breakfast any way you can—either as oatmeal or as a cold cereal with non-dairy milk and fruit, or in the batter for waffles or pancakes...