SoulVeggie

"Pac Man" Pizzas!

For fun over the weekend, I made two whole wheat/buckwheat pizza crusted pizzas.  The recipe for the dough is detailed below (it's not gluten-free as is the buckwheat recipe in my book).  The ingredients for each pizza is listed on the main photo (sorry! the "Sorrel, Mint, Chickpea Hummus" recipe is embargoed until published in the upcoming "Vegan Culinary Experience" online magazine).  The "millet cheese-like topping" sauce is a variation from my book (using sunflower seeds instead of cashews).

After sampling each, I noted how much like a popular old video archive game they looked like... hence, "Pac Man" Pizzas!

Remember, the Special Mother's Day Discount for an autographed copy my cookbook, the 1st vegan pizza cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza" ends at midnight est. tonight! 

Click on Photo to see Full-size Version

Click on Photo to see Full-Size Version

"WHOLE WHEAT & BUCKWHEAT FLOUR PIZZA CRUST"

"Buckwheat seeds (often referred to as a grain) is most popular in Europe.  A relative of rhubarb, buckwheat has a hardy nutty taste and is often sauteed then cooked with water and other vegetables to make a great stuffy or pilaf. Nutritionally, buckwheat contains all essential amino acids, is rich in iron and zinc, and is a protein-powerhouse with loads of fiber.  Buckwheat adds a nutty flavor to a pizza crust."

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of unbleached bread or all-purpose flour

• 1 cup of unbleached whole wheat flour

• 1/2 cup of buckwheat flour

• 1 T. sweetener of choice

• 1 t. salt (optional)

• 1 T. oil (optional)

• 1 to 1 1/4 cups of warm water (as necessary)

• 2 1/4 t. regular yeast (1 packet)

 

METHOD:

• Bread Machine: add sweetener, oil, and warm water.  Add flours, salt, and yeast. Use "dough/pizza" setting.  As the dough is being mixed, add water in small increments if necessary to get the texture of "an ear lobe" when done kneading.  Let cycle complete (dough will rise).

• By hand: add sweetener, oil, water, and yeast to a bowl, and mix.  Let sit until bubbly.  Slowing add flours, mixing, and adding additional water as needed while kneading (!).  Shape into big ball, put in glass bowl, cover, let rise until roughly doubled in size (60 to 90 minutes).

• Pre-heat oven to 425 to 450 degrees F.

• Split dough in half to make two very thin 12" pizzas, or use for one large 16" pizza.  Shape dough by hand to fit into non-stick pan (or pizza pan) of choice.  Some pans might need a light oiling, some non-stick pans do not.

• Add toppings of choice, bake in oven 15 to 20 minutes until crust is crispy and toppings are browned.

 

©2013 by Mark Sutton, http://www.hearthealthypizza.com

"Heart Healthy Pizza!" Special Mother's Day Discount

My nephew, Mom's grandson, being taught by 2nd generation pizza master!

In honor of Mother's Day, I'm offering a special $15 discount price (shipping included) on autographed copies of my book, "Heart Healthy Pizza," purchased through the webpage below. This offer is valid through midnight, Monday May 13th, 2013. Here's a favorite photo (posted last year) of my young nephew learning to make pizza from a 2nd generation pizza cook (my sister-in-law took this fabulous shot).http://www.hearthealthypizza.com/MDayDiscount.html

The reasons "why" are summarized at the link above (with a photo of Mom, who died on Mother's Day when I was 14 years old).

Best to all, Mark

Short Bootleg Clips of My Cable Broadcast Debut

They're small (parents took them with smart phones, I haven't seen the full broadcast and won't until the digital version is available late this month), but I strung them together to give some friends, family an idea of how it went.

Great sport, and Jorge Mera did a fine editing job.  Details about this event can be found in my previous post and with the video.

FYI, Mark

"Heart Healthy Pizza" Demo/Interview Being Broadcast this Week

Well, it's happening. The Cable TV demo/interview taping session I blogged about earlier last month, is finally being broadcast.  It'll be in the Fairfax, VA area (ComCast Cable).  Other nearby counties will probably be able to view it as well.  I'm showing start to finish, how to make a plant-based pizza "for the busy professional" in 30 minutes or less (eat your heart out Domino's and Papa John's).

Here's the broadcast information:

"Healthy Food Happy You's" broadcast of Mark's demo of making vegan pizza & interview will be on Fairfax Public Access (FPA) Cable Channel 10 on: Wednesday, May 8th at 9:30 am; Friday, May 10th at 5:30pm; and Sunday, May 12th at 6am.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to be in Fairfax during that period to throw things at the TeeVee, but the digital version of the broadcast will be available later this month, and of course, no matter what the results, will be announced here.

...and if you happen to see it, let me know how it went, will you?  Thanks!

VeggieSue's Review of "Heart Healthy Pizza!"

"While I haven't made that particular pie of his (yet), I have made others, and they beat anything you'll find in the grocer's freezer by miles and are perfectly fine to eat on any plant-based food plan, whether it's Dr. McDougall's, Dr. Fuhrman's or even the more restrictive Dr. Esselstyn's, and everything in-between."

From VeggieSue's Veggie Adventures. I'd gotten lazy and did a web search to find the name of my own video channel (that's what fatigue does to you), and found her short, but cool review of my cookbook!  Sue's also a long-time member of the Fat Free Vegan Yahoo Group, and also, I think, the Eat to Live Yahoo Group.

Thanks, Sue!

Sorrel/Mint Hummus w/Veggies on Wheat/Millet Seed Bread

So, what did I finally do with the unusual yard-harvested Sorrel & Mint Hummus I posted last entry?  Well, been kicking around a new bread (or pizza dough!) recipe in my head that involves using whole wheat flour and millet seed (millet is not a grain, and I'm not using it as flour herein). But, the quandary was "what" would balance with strong chlorophylly-flavored minty, lemony chickpea hummus?

I literally woke up in bed in the "wee hours" with a flash of solution, it's Middle Easternish!  Cumin and cinnamin... cool... and got to experiment with the tripod and lighting. Here's one of my favorite photos from the two sessions (yup, over a two day period). Recipes will be submitted to the Vegan Culinary Experience magazine for the upcoming "Sandwich" issue! Neat to show that I can do more than pizza in the kitchen. And of course, it's all "no oil."

Heart Healthy "Sorrel & Mint Hummus"

Sorrel is the rare perennial green, coming back every year in more Northern climes. It's a fav in Europe, usually served as a soup with milk/cream.  Sorrel has a spinach/lemony taste.  A few days ago I picked a bunch of sorrel from the garden as well as mint.  I've only used sorrel previously in salads or on sandwiches. But, in thinking about my next article for "The Vegan Culinary Experience," and the topic will be "sandwiches" I came up with a unique "Sorrel & Mint Hummus" recipe.  I want to show that making pizza isn't all I do...

The lemony sorrel and mint combo, with chickpeas, garlic, and finely ground toasted sesame seeds (thereby no need for the very high fat/oil tahini which is customary), kicked really well together.  If I don't use the recipe for VCE, I'll post it on this blog in mid-May.  One could substitute for the sorrel using raw spinach and probably some additional lemon juice.

Here's a two photo collage of the pre and post results: 

Click on to see larger image!

 

Video/Audio Clip: "Thinking Outside the Pizza Box"

I've posted a short video clip with audio. The audio was the 1st (and only) practice take for the big DC pizza demonstration/presentation I did back in late January with VSDC (Vegetarian Society of DC).  This is my practice Intro, and I thought even unedited, it might be interesting to people.  I call it "Thinking Outside the Pizza Box."  The team and I made 9 16" pizzas from my cookbook to serve to 30 people. Wildly successful!

A quick bit of effort to also practice using the video/audio editing application I'm using.  It's limited (I'm used to higher end stuff), but I learned a few more things and that's part of the reason I spent the afternoon playing with it.

Note: I've no real control over the poster frame chosen, quite irritating). Here's the video embedded.

Doing TeeVee

Whew.... just finished several hours at a video studio staffed with several pros who knew their way around the three HUGE cameras facing the set, and amongst them, the GENERAL, issuing orders from a remote control both through the camera operator's headsets on how/when to move his chess pieces (the host of the show, Gina Lewis, and me).

Incredible experience, and if it were not for her hubbie, mother, and kids in the studio, they might have had to cut more of my "off comment" comments... much not said, but thought in earnest.

Still, a thrilling situation.  The director/producer and host are vegan, and I got to make two pizzas "for the busy professional," the second being for closeups and staff internal enjoyment.  Yes, that's TEN veggies on that puppy.

But, I be a "video virgin" no longer, and hope to do more these kinds of events in the future, not just for my book, but to advance concepts of a heart healthy plant-based diet,

I'll post the broadcast times later.... Here's a collage of the more tolerable photos... gawd, I was SO tired (yes, that is my "happy face")  from packing/unpacking/shopping/travel.  Oh well, still cool event!

 

©2013 by Mark Sutton.

 

"Preparing & Cooking Kale" - 4 Short Video Clips

Thought it might be useful to post the clips, essentially unedited as rough cuts, as they still might be useful for people and I don't know when I'll have the discretionary time again to not only video me in the kitchen, but properly post-process the results. I first did some video clips back in Sept. 2012 on kale, but wasn't happy with the bits.  These are more focussed, and, imho, better.  Been practicing for an upsoming Cable taping.

Cooking kale takes around 15 to 20 minutes, since these clips represent a "real-time" process, there are a couple of periods where there's not much going on.  Minimally, Part 1 (prepping the kale) and Part 2 (cooking setup, initiating the process) are the most useful of the four clips. 

Here's a link to my video channel and, to make it easier to get to, the individual clips.  The kale was being made for the previously posted "plant-based pizza" how-to's.

https://www.youtube.com/user/HeartHealthyPizza

Enjoy!

Heart Healthy Pizza: "I Has A Video Channel" - plus 4 "How-to" Video Clips

Practicing for a video taping for Cable Public Access. Have posted clips of my "practice" sessions (verbal errors, corrections, whatever) without any serious editing as they might be useful for people in:

1) learning how to shape your pizza dough

2) how to put your vegetable toppings on your pizza in an optimal fashion

3) how to make one of my "cheese-like" topping sauces (from my book)

4) what the finished product looks like & discussion

These are raw experiments (no serious post-editing), but great sport nonetheless.  Don't know when I'll time to do them again, so I wanted these available now.  I will be doing several more in the near future (and not all will be pizza! many cooking techniques, making pizza components, etc.).

Here's a photo of the final product described in the above video clips:

Oh, and I has a Video Channel.  Here's the link which will give you access to all of the above and more. And, obligatory note from a self-published author, you can order an autographed copy of the 1st Vegan Pizza Cook, "Heart Healthy Pizza," here.

"Mad Cowboy Pizza" Recipe, Giveaway, & Short Interview

Somer has outdone herself w/ photos illustrating the Official Mad Cowboy Pizza from my cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza."  Back in 2008, Howard actually worked with me in the kitchen, instructing me as to what (and in what order) he wanted on his vegan pizza.  It was great sport!  BTW: by going "no oil" in addition to his already vegan, he's lost considerable weight since then.

©2013 by Vedgedout (note the cheese-like dollops!)

Anyway, at Somer's Vedgedout Blog you'll find several photos of the creation process, all associated recipes, a short interview with yours truly, and a free giveaway of an autographed copy of Heart Healthy Pizza!

" A slice of Mad Cowboy Pizza coming atcha!" - ©2013 by Vedgedout

Well worth your time... have fun! And my thanks to Somer for her excellent (and hard) work.

HHPizza Cookbook Giveaway, Recipes, & Review by Vedgedout

©2013 by Vedgedout

A wonderful post of recipes for my "Spanakopizza" creation, a giveaway of my cookbook, and Part 1 of her review of said book.  Somer has posted some fine photos, too, showing her pizza in different stages. Here's a favorite part of her review:

"I have to admit, when I first dug into Mark’s Book, I was a little overwhelmed. There are nearly a dozen crust recipes (including some for my GF peeps!) Close to 20 sauce recipes (for the pizza base), then more than 50 No-Nonsense  Non-Cheese Sauces. I mean, the combinations are nearly endless. It all felt a bit daunting! Thankfully, Mark knows how to help a home cook out, he devotes a whole chapter to some amazing pizza combinations (nearly 40 combos) to help you get started. All of the recipes in his book are vegan, heart healthy and very low in fat. Several of the combinations immediately caught my eye. However, this Spanakopizza recipe that Mark is sharing with you today is going to be hard to beat."

©2013 by Vedgedout

Her next post (this coming Friday) will have the full recipes for the Official Mad Cowboy Pizza (that Howard Lyman designed with me) and an interview with yours truly!  Stay tuned...

03/14/13: Mark's Interview w/ Dr. Don Wagner (stream/audio download)

"This is our second interview with Mark Sutton, author of Heart Healthy Pizza “Over 100 Plant-based Recipes for the Most Nutritious Pizza in the World”.  Dr. Don and Mark discuss many of the healthy alternatives to eliminating animal fats from your pizza and still making great tasting pizza.  The combination are almost endless. Treat yourself to a copy of this book direct from the author here."

How cool!  Dr. Don Wagner (who's interviewed close to 500 people over the past two years, on radio, such as Dr. Esselstyn, Dr. Goldhammer, Chef AJ, Dr. Fuhrman, Chloe, Dr. Pam Popper, Dr. Neal Barnard, Victoria Moran, Kathy Fisher, and the list is just too long to be complete here), asked me back for a another interview!  Am honored.  We had a great time, much more relaxed this time (we chatted for a long bit the night before).  As usual, Dr. Don asked some insightful questions and forced me to be serious for a few minutes...

They've built a new website (looks marvelous) and here's the page where you can listen to the audio stream or download the audio MP3:

http://www.drdonshow.info/2013/03/14/heart-healthy-pizza-cookbook-with-guest-mark-sutton/

Enjoy!  And, ahem, remember you can order autographed copies of the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook here.

 

Plant-Based "St. Patty's Day Pizza Pie" Recipes

"St. Patty's Pizza Pie" Before Adding Sauce

My "St. Patty's Pizza Pie" recipes from the world's first vegan pizza cookbook.  All 100+ recipes are no-fat and plant-based.  The St. Patty's Pizza Pie recipe calls for a wonderful "Barley, Navy Beans, and Horseradish" cheese-like topping sauce! 

Here's a photo of a slice of the finished pizza:

Completed and savory "St. Patty's Pizza Pie (all photos @2013 by Mark Sutton)

"St. Patty's Pie" Out of the Oven

St. Patty's Pizza Pie 

CRUST:

• Whole Wheat Dough (add 1 T. dried dill before mixing)

LAYERING INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup carrots (sliced small julienne)

• 1/2 cup turnips (sliced small julienne)

• 1/2 cup parsnips (sliced small julienne)

• 1 cup diced cabbage

• 2 t. horseradish

• 1 t. wet mustard

• 1 t. dried parsley

• 1/4 cup white wine (or water)

• 1 t. soy sauce

• TVP Corned Beef Cubes (recipes follows)

• Barley, White Beans, and Horseradish Sauce (recipe follows)

• 1 onion (sliced thin)

• paprika (optional)

METHOD:

1. Pre-heat oven to 425 or 450 degrees F. (depending upon your oven).

2. Put ingredients up to soy sauce into a non-stick (preferably) saute pan or wok. Bring to a slow boil, stirring to mix, and simmer on very low until most of the liquid is gone and the vegetables are still tender crisp. Drain, let cool to room temperature.

3. Arrange vegetable mixture on prepared and shaped dough.

4. Sprinkle on TVP Corned Beef Cubes.

5. Arrange onion slices on top of pizza.

6. Pour topping sauce on pizza.

7. Sprinkle on paprika (to taste).

8. Bake pizza for 15 to 20 minutes.

VARIATION:

• Use 3/4 cup carrots and 3/4 cup cubed potatoes instead of 1/2 cup carrots, turnips, and parsnips. Be careful not to overcook the potatoes or they will be mushy.

TVP Corned Beef Cubes Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup unflavored TVP cubes

• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

• 1/4 t. ground pepper (or to taste)

• 1 T. Ketchup

• 3/4 cup water

• 1 T. red Tabasco sauce

METHOD:

1. Put all ingredients into a small pot, mix, and slowly bring to a boil.

2. Simmer on very low for 10 to 15 minutes, turn off the heat, and let cool. Drain if necessary.

VARIATION:

• Substitute TVP cubes with tempeh cubes, reducing simmering time to 5 minutes.

Barley, White Beans, and Horseradish Sauce

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/3 cup pearl barley

• 1 1/4 cup water

• 1 cup cooked white beans

• 2 T. corn starch

• 1/2 T. prepared horseradish

• 1/2 T. wet mustard

• 3/4 cup water

METHOD:

1. Rinse and drain the beans (to remove any salt).

2. Bring 1 1/4 cup water and barley to a boil, cover, turn down to very low, simmer, covered, for 30 to 40 minutes or less (until the water is absorbed). Let cool to room temperature.

3. Add all ingredients except the water to a blender or food processor, pulse a few times, and add half the water, pulse, and then the remaining water to blend until it's a smooth pancake-like batter.

NOTE:

• Makes enough sauce for two 12 to 14" inch pizzas (around 3 cups).

Recipes @2013 by Mark Sutton.  Please include this copyright, post and my website address if you post them elsewhere.  You can purchase autographed copies of "Heart Healthy Pizza" online here.

Heart Healthy Pizza: Review by Lani Muelrath ("Fit Quickies") & Sauces Versatility

Early in February, Lani Muelruth posted a short review of my book on Amazon (here).  I was convalescing in a hospital at the time and didn't find out about this until a few days ago.  I'm honored!  Lani, aka, "The Plant-Based Fitness Expert," has been making quite a well-deserved name for herself recently, in no small part due to the success of her book, "Fit Quickies: 5 Minute Targeted Body-Shaping Workouts."  Here's what she had to say about "Heart Healthy Pizza:"

"Mark Sutton's Healthy Pizza is beyond innovative. When seeking to create a pizza that is outside the usual pizza box of high fat, full of dairy or meat, one is usually left to their own devices.

No more. Mark has created a book with guaranteed healthful sauces and toppings that can stake their claim in the 'whole foods, plant based healthy' world. And with endorsements by Caldwell Esselstyn, you know you can trust the contents to be heart healthy.

His sauce recipes also inspire versatile application. I made one of the sauces last night to put over a salad and it was perfect! Rice, nutritional yeast, and a few other elements made a robust and tasty sauce. Next is to tackle the crust recipes, which are not wanting. Nice work Mark!"

Clever cook!  Only in recent months, when I've had chance to test the idea of using some of the 60 "cheese-like" topping sauces on pasta, in casseroles, on veggies, on potatoes, in quesadillas, etc., did I affirm that, generically, pretty much all of them can be used this way and NOT just on top of pizza (or underneath the vegetable fillings, depending upon whether you are a "top" or "bottom" person).

I mention the possibility briefly in my book, but the process is simply to use leftover sauce (maybe thinned a bit) to, say, integrate with stir-fried vegetables until it gets creamy.  Or, pre-heat the sauce in a sauce pan until it thickens, and then use in any number of ways.

However, Lani figured it out and I appreciate not only her succinct and great review, but noting how "versatile" the recipes are.  Thanks Lani!

You can learn more about Lani and her work at:  http://www.lanimuelrath.com/

...and, you can order an autographed copy of "Heart Health Pizza" here!

DC Area: "Heart & Planet Healthy Diet Choices: Pizza Sampling & Lecture"

You can see more photos of previous event HERE

The web page announcement/where one can order tickets:
http://hearthealthypizza.eventbrite.com

 

“Heart and Planet Healthy Diet Choices: Pizza Sampling & Lecture”

March 2, 2013, 4pm to 7pm, Eastern Village Co-Housing, Silver Spring, Maryland

Plant-Based Pizza Sampling:

“Really Reubenesque Revisited”

• Pumpernickel Crust
• Russian Dressing with Pickles
• Green & Red Cabbage, Mushrooms, Red Onions
• Oats, Cannellini, Horserashish, Paprika Topping Sauce

“The Brassy Brassica”

• Whole Wheat & Black Bean Crust
• Kale, Tomatoes, Cauliflower, Herbs, Peppers, Onions
• Millet, Sunflower Seed, Chili Garlic Topping Sauce

“The Artfully Moderna”

• Garlic & Mixed Herbs Wheat Crust
• Pizza Sauce
• Seasoned Vegetarian Sausage, Artichokes, onions, & Black Olives
• Quinoa, Sweet Potato, Corn, & Dijon Mustard Topping Sauce

“The Experimental Veg-8 Prototype Mach II”

• Corn Polenta Crust (gluten-free)
• Red & Green Cabbage, Carrots, Broccoli, Jicama, Bell Peppers, Radishes, & Celery
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Tofu, Ginger, & Flax Seed Topping Sauce

(A complete list of all ingredients is available for review by attendees with food allergy concerns)

Cost: $20 per person

Recipes from “Heart Healthy Pizza” by Mark Sutton.  Learn more about the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook at:  www.hearthealthypizza.com  Autographed copies of “Heart Healthy Pizza: Over 100 Plant-based Recipes for the Healthiest Pizza in the World,” will be available at a special discount price of $15.

FAQs

What are my transport/parking options getting to the event? This session will take place from 4-7 pm in downtown Silver Spring MD – just about 1/2 mile from the Silver Spring Metro station (Red line). There is street parking within 1 block (should be Free on Sun but be sure to read signs carefully and follow parking instructions).  Address will be supplied on tickets.

What is the refund policy? We have room for 16 attendees and expect this class to fill up quickly. Please RSVP ASAP. It’s first-come, first-serve, payment will be required in advance, and no refunds will be possible.

"Thai" Issue of Vegan Culinary Experience is Available!

 

VCE Cover (click for larger image)

I'm proud to have an article in the latest issue of the Vegan Culinary Experience.  The theme of this issue is "Thai Cuisine" and it was a challenge for me, taking several attempts to get the crusts right, as Thai food is not one of my strongest suits.  I wrote an article detailing how to make a "Pad Thai Pizza Pie" and a "Heavenly Pineapple Pie." Here's the structural overview of each pizza:

PAD THAI PIZZA PIE

• Brown Rice, Chickpea, and Cilantro Crust
• Sweet 'n' Spicy Chili Corn Sauce
• Filling Ingredients:
- sliced cucumbers
- shredded carrots
- sweet red pepper strips or slices
- bean sprouts (rinsed and drained)
- sliced scallions
- raisins (optional)
• MIllet, Ginger, Peanut, and Lime Sauce

HEAVENLY PINEAPPLE PIZZA

• Whole Wheat, Millet, and Banana Crust
• Tofu, Coconut, Mint, and Lime Sauce
• Rum‐soaked Pineapple
• Unsweetened, Shredded Coconut
• Red Chili Pepper Flakes (optional)

Click on Image for Larger Version

Chef Jason Wyrick does a marvelous job doing the layouts for each issue, let alone adding additional content beyond that of invited Chefs:

http://veganculinaryexperience.com/VCEFeb13.pdf

At over 200 pages, this magazine will give you a greater understanding of Thai Cuisine as well as a ton of recipes to try and enjoy! Contributers for this edition are:

Jason Wyrick, http://www.devilspice.com and http://www.veganculinaryexperience.com
Madelyn Pryor, http://www.badkittybakery.blogspot.com/
Bryanna Clark Grogan, http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/
Robin Robertson, http://www.robinrobertson.com
Mindy Kursban, mkursban@gmail.com
Jill Nussinow, http://www.theveggiequeen.com
Liz Lonetti, http://www.phoenixpermaculture.org/profile/LizDan
Sharon Valencik, http://www.sweetutopia.com
Andrew Breslin, http://andyrantsandraves.blogspot.com/
Milan Valencik, http://www.sweetutopia.com
Mark Sutton, http://www.hearthealthypizza.com
Eleanor Sampson, Eleanor@veganculinaryexperience.com

The Vegetarian Resource Group Reviews "Heart Healthy Pizza!"

VRG Cover (click to see full-size)

VRG Review of HHPizza (click for full version)

One of the 1st vegan cookbooks I ever purchased was "Simply Vegan," by Debra Wasserman. Debra's co-director of one of the oldest vegetarian/vegan informational organizations in the country (The Vegetarian Resource Group), as well as co-founder of the long-running, "Vegetarian Resource Journal."

She's a prolific cookbook author, and it's hard to underestimate my delight that she's published a review of my book in the latest issue of the VRG Journal.  Some excerpts:

“If you’re looking for a book devoted to creative vegan pizza recipes including crusts, sauces, and toppings, look no further.  Heart Healthy Pizza offers a variety of crust recipes... Mark also shows you how to prepare delicious vegan non-cheeses... The ingredients are all blended to make creamy cheese alternatives... The next time you plan on throwing a party, be sure to use this book and wow your family and friends!”

This issue of the VRG isn't available currently online, so above is an image link to the full review (next to one of Nava's great "Wild About Greens!" cookbook).  Remember, you can order an autographed copy of "Heart Healthy PIzza" here.

Both images from the VRG Journal in this post are @2013 by VRG.

Photos: 1st Ever Heart-Healthy Pizza Public Demonstration/Sampling!!!

Well did it!!! 9 16" no-oil heart healthy plant-based pizzas served to 30 hungry guests in 3 hours (I had decided to serve one to volunteeers before we got started; they often don't get to eat, and can see how I approached making a pizza).  The day was incredible, and we learned a helluva lot pulling this "first time ever" demonstration.  The Vegetarian Society of DC (Saurabh (the Pres., managing, food prepping, serving, speaking), Paige (food prepper extraordinaire, serving, speaking). Diane (food prepping, serving, managing, photography), Colette (photography), and Rodney (all-around problem solver, member of the Eastern Village Co-Housing Community where this presentation was accomplished) were absolutely amazing.

Fortunately, all I had to do was bring 8 16" pizza crusts premade, topping ingredients pre-measured segregated, and sit and watch the fun... yeah, right...  It was exhausting.  Aggravated my leg injury, hadda use a cane for the first time in five weeks.  Oh well, adversity makes it all the sweeter when the team is victorious.

There's going to be more of these events, not just in the DC area (I hope). Here's a link to where the menu is posted.  I loved speaking to the group and used, in public for the first time, my goal phrase of "helping people think outside the pizza box."  More on this some other day...

In any case, my deepest appreciation to the VSDC and volunteers for all their hard work.  It was truly an exciting and thrilling time. Clearly, though, the most popular pizza was the "Really Reubenesque" (you can see it in the photos before being smothered in oat/cannelinni beans/horseradish 'cheese-like sauce"), which is straight from my book.

Here's a link to some 170 photos of the party, with copyrights going to Diane Payne, Colette Price, and Mark Sutton.  I've also added two of my favorite photos below.  Enjoy!  The event was on January 13th, 2013.

Mark Slinging Pizza!

Diane, Mark, Rodney, Paige, and Saurabh: We Make Heart Healthy Pizza!!

 

Dung Perspectives and Life's Uphill Struggle

It's not often that something I read just floors me philosophically and metaphysically.  I'm old enough to be quite jaded and skeptical of the vacuous crap that passes for knowledge or information these days on TeeVee and the Internet.  Four Point Five billion years of evolution, and we are fixated on some stupid college football player's inability to figure out that his online girlfriend doesn't exist, and still fire bullets or drones (a step up, kinda, from throwing rocks or feces instead), when disagreeing with another human's religion, philosophy, politics, or resource needs.  What a waste of neural energy.

But then, there's this article, denoting how the so-called "lowly" dung beetle navigates via the Milky Way Galaxy.  Just can't get it out of my mind. The "lowly" dung beetle, navigating his/her waste ball, like Sisyphus uphill, via being cognizant of a frickin' GALAXY. That's so cosmic as to make me want to try and smoke my flat screen. I mean, BILLIONS of stars, guiding this little critter's attempts to "roll it." The implications, while straight, are still amazing. 

Think of the number of talking heads we see every day who's major focus in life are shiny lights, handheld devices, American Idol, and pretty colors. And this INSECT is navigating by way of viewing a GALAXY. 

Eat your heart out, SIRI... sure, the dung beetle's got a tough job (probably non-union), but how unbelievably elegant in execution, dedication, and precision. I mean, I can't navigate my way through Baltimore unless my GPS is working... makes me feel kinda, well, small.... and insignifisect (yeah, just made that word up... insignificant intersecting insect... homage to Dungy).

And despite our so-called and so-vaunted collective intellect, we only now figured this dung beetle's efforts out (or so we think... what else is going on in this cunning critter? just what are they planning? why so many balls?).

I'm very concerned, as well as totally awed.

ADDENDUM:  the Egyptian View of this "Insect God"

 

Video Clip: "McGnaw: The Gluten-Free Beaver"

Hilarious... don't know how long this funny "Food for Thought" clip from "The Colbert Report" will be available...

"...Freaky Awesome Sauces & Pizza Amoebas..."

Love this FB post from Lori. Helps keep me working hard to get the word out about what my 5+ years of research into writing the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook (self-published) has accomplished in helping people to make the penultimate comfort food in a heart healthy way.

Here's the part of the quote/comment (among others), the link to it on Facebook (so damn cool to see a my book in the photo!) that's the source of photo and comments.

"...they turned out awesome, im not afraid to try the more complex ones now. This was the confidence I needed for some of those freaky awesome sauces I saw in the book (Heart Healthy Pizza)."

The photo she posted (click on for larger version):

Love that she called them "pizza amoebas" as I used that term, if memory serves, in describing the many shapes pizza can be.  You can see sample recipes, articles I've written ("in The Media"), the Foreward, Introduction, and Recipes index here. Among the recipes in the book, of course, there's some 60 "freaky awesome" cheese-like ones...

Video Clip: My Latest Pizza Test

I haven't had much time the past several months, due to recovering from an injury and self-marketing my book.  Great fun to get to spent a little discretionary time doing one of the things that made my career (particularly at NASA):  video animation.  Although I'm very new to the software I used, and it's got me puzzled, can't do all I want to (yet), here's my first test showing the results of another test, a humongous vegan pizza in prep for my presentation/demonstration later this month in the DC area.  Enjoy! (there's also a "mobile" version at my YouTube Channel as well).

"Hooked on it:" The "Healthy Librarian" Makes More Pizza

It's alway gratifying to get positive feedback from people trying my recipes. Many have been skeptical that you can actually create "Heart Healthy" cheese-like sauces without expensive, nutritionally vapid, and fatty faux dairy cheeses.  Imagine my delight when the Healthy Librarian posted this on Facebook today:

 

@2012 by the Healthy Librarian (click for larger image)

 

"Friday night "Dinner & a Movie" & a home-brewed beer. Last night we streamed, "Bernie" http://tinyurl.com/c8whr6t Jack Black & Shirley MacLaine in a hilarious black comedy based on a true small Texan town's murder. Thoroughly enjoyed it, along with homemade pizza schmeared with "Heart Healthy Pizza's" millet, cashew, mustard sauce, & our fave toppings. I'm hooked on it. Great cheese substitute."

So so cool... she interviewed me last month, and it'll be neat to see it published soon.  A long time champion of a no-added oil plant-based diet, she's one of the most knowledgeable people regarding diet and nutrition I've ever interacted with. A real blessing. You can learn more about the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza," here. Around 60 different "cheese-like" sauces amongst the 112 recipes. Namaste!

ADDENDUM:  1500 est:  Ms. Librarian added another comment of note:

"We were 100% happy & used to cheese-free pizza. But, after Mark Sutton asked me to try one of the toppings in his "Heart Healthy Pizza", I decided to give it a try. Oh baby, it really added a delicious creamy dimension to the pizza. No cheese WAS fine--but, this is BETTER! Worth a try & very cheap & easy to make. I'm going to try it on tacos or a taco salad."

My Heart Healthy Holidaze Menu - 4 Humongous Pizzas

01/16/13 UPDATE:  we made NINE 16" pizzas for 30 people.  It was a fantastic success!  Here's a link to 170 photos of the event...

-------

Although I'm not able to be with my family this next week, here's my Hearth Healthy Holidaze Menu and associated text blurbs.  It's official.  I get to to my first major public demonstration/tasting of my recipes in the DC area early next month (date/time/logistics to be announced on MeetUp within the next few days). 

3 Pizzas for VSDC Potluck in July 2012 (click on for larger image)

I'm so excited that I'm going to be showing 25 people how to make plant-based heart healthy pizza!

This will be for the "Eat Smart" program for the Vegetarian Society of DC (the oldest such group in the country, I'm a Life Member).  All proceeds go to said program.

So, instead of celebrating with family, I'll be running tests (4 16" pizzas...), digitally taping my practice runs of speaking in front of an audience while creating pizzas, and getting ready for an event I've wanted to do for a very very long time.

It's going to be a challenge, but I think I've got the logistics worked out. Practice makes perfect, right?

Here's the tentative demonstration description:

CLASS SUMMARY:

Mark demonstrates how to create delicious plant-based pizzas:  shaping dough, arranging fillings, and making “cheese-like” topping sauces.  Recipes are from the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook: “Heart Healthy Pizza.”  Copies will be available. 

PIZZA 1:

CRUST: Whole Wheat and Black Beans

FILLINGS:  Kale, tomatoes, cauliflower, mixed sweet peppers, and sliced onions

CHEESE-LIKE TOPPING:  Millet, Sunflower Seed, and Chili Garlic Sauce

PIZZA 2:

CRUST:  Russian Pumpernickel (with caraway seeds)

FILLINGS:  Thousand Island Dressing, mixed green and red cabbage, red onions, and mushrooms

CHEESE-LIKE TOPPING:  Oats, Cannellini Beans, and Horseradish Sauce

PIZZA 3:

CRUST: Oat Flour (gluten-free)

FILLINGS:  Trader Joe's Healthy 8 Vegetable Mix (red and green cabbages, carrots, broccoli, jicama, bell peppers, radishes and celery), Balsamic Vinegar

CHEESE-LIKE TOPPING: Tofu Ginger Sauce

PIZZA 4:

CRUST:  Trader Joe's Basil Flecked White Dough

FILINGS:  Tomato sauce, sausage, artichokes, onions, and black olives

CHEESE-LIKE TOPPING:  Quinoa, Sweet Potatoes, and Corn Sauce

 

MARK SUTTON’S BIO: A VSDC Life Member, Mark Sutton has worked as the Visualizations Coordinator for two NASA Earth Satellite Missions, an interactive multimedia consultant, and organic farmer: http://www.hearthealthypizza.com

This is going to be so much fun!  I LOVE interacting with people in real-space and not online, and I truly want to help them understand how easy it is to, ahem, make the "most nutritious pizza in the world."

BTW:  due to popular demand (and in respect for remaining Mayans) I'm extending, for the last time, really, my Special Holidaze Discount on autographed copies of my book until midnight tonite (pst). The response has been tremendous, so please take advantage of the near six years I took researching and experimenting to write this "first of it's kind vegan pizza cookbook" and the discount.  You won't regret it (and I will be autographing all orders).

Namaste!  Mark

My nephew being taught dough basics by a 2nd gen. pizza master! (no, that's not me...)

 

Drs. Esselstyn, Barnard, The Mad Cowboy, & R.S. re: Heart Healthy Pizza

The rush of getting endorsements from Dr. Esselstyn and Dr. Barnard this past year for my book, the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook, let alone the efforts and opinion of one "Mad Cowboy" (aka, Howard Lyman), were probably some of the biggest thrills of my life (well, hard to top being in the West Wing of the White House with the heads of major Federal Agencies and Nobel Prize Winners as Al Gore explains El Nino and Global Fires with my work, or that cover for TIME, or in Scientific American, Science, yadda).

©2012 by Mark Sutton (click on for larger image)

It was Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr., in interviewing him for his landmark book, "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease," that convinced me I had to totally rethink my years of work in developing "cheese-like" topping sauces to be "no added oil."  Here's the Esselstyn's endorsement (on the back cover of my book)... imho, the gold standard:

"Mark Sutton takes pizza to a new level of nutritional possibilities.  After reading Heart Healthy Pizza,  NO one will be able to eat ANY OTHER pizza without a conscience." - Caldwell B. Esselstyn, J., M.D. and Ann Crile Esselstyn

©2012 by Mark Sutton (click on for larger image)

Dr. Neal Barnard wrote an incredible endorsement and it stunned me, as Robin Robertson, independently later used the same word about my book, "breakthrough." Here's his endorsement (on the back of my book), for which I'm so thankful.

"Heart Healthy Pizza is a breakthrough guide on making nutritious plant-based pizzas.  Mark Sutton will show you how to make your own delicious dough, mouth-watering sauces, and vegan cheeses. This cookbook will be a favorite for anyone looking for a healthier way to eat pizza. - Neal Barnard, M.D., President, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

©2012 by Mark Sutton (click on image for full version)

And then there's Howard Lyman. That amazing Force of Nature.  I've worked for and with him for several years on many projects.  He insisted I needed to write this book, was relentless in encouraging me past the many unforeseen obstacles, and was kind enough to write the Foreward.  Here's an excerpt from that Foreward:

"Heart Healthy Pizza" is more than a pizza without cheese. It is about creating one that is added-fat free and nutritious from the pan up, and best of all, tastes great. This book will enable you to obtain all of the health benefits, plus allow you to please the most discerning taste buds to the joy of pizza. - Howard Lyman (aka, The Mad Cowboy, author of "Mad Cowboy" and "No More Bull!")

Finally, this is a review from "R.S." on Amazon.  He bought my book and wrote this.  At first I thought it was a joke, "I dropped dead...", but it wasn't. This review probably emotionally touched me more than anything the past several months.  It helped me at a time of extreme stress, recovering from my injury, wondering what the hell was I doing, to continue to push onward, to do the best I can to help people understand that it's no joke, I've figured out how to make incredibly delicious plant-based pizzas without all the fatty, expensive faux dairy cheeses or using high-fat expensive, nutritionally useless and hard to find, ingredients in making "vegan artisan cheeses."

"I dropped dead on a tennis court (and was lucky enough to be playing against a team with a cardiologist who did world class cpr for 12 minutes until a rescue squad arrived to shock me back to life). It took me about 30 seconds post-op from my bypass to adopt Caldwell Esselstyn's vegan cardiac disease reversal program. Though I ate a "good" diet most of the time, I was addicted to cheese pizzas for my whole (almost foreshortened) life. This book is a treasure. The visuals of the pizza are appetizing and valid relative to the finished product. The taste of the recipes I have undertaken is great. The nutrition is miraculous for a so-called comfort food. Thank you, Mark Sutton, for your tour de force collection of no oil vegan gourmet pizza. Incidentally, I run 10 k's, complete duathlons, and play USTA team tennis at the age of 64 on the Esselstyn diet." - R.S. (Amazon Review)  

Click on image for larger version. 

Let me make it quite clear: I don't like marketing. Self-publishing a book is tough, there's no big company or agency behind you to help market it. I often feel like a shill. It's tough on a creative. I not only wrote this puppy, I did the cover, mastered new software for the layouts, and indices (those alone took several weeks to get right).  Howard convinced me that it's a service, that people would want to make healthy pizzas, and I needed to do whatever I could to provide same service.  The most popular "comfort food" made heart healthy.

My recent flurry of marketing posts and tweats ends tomorrow sometime.  My surprisingly popular Special Holidaze Discount ends tomorrow as well (midnight pst), to accomodate the Mayans.  I wanted people to have the opportunity to buy this book at some 30 or more % of list (I'll do the math some other day, you can get an autographed copy for $15, I do the shipping... nice deal).

But with these kinds of endorsements and reviews from cookbook authors and noted bloggers (other posts), I'm encouraged.  Wish I could write about all about what's to happen in the 1st quarter.  I'm going to continue giving this all the best shot I can, providing means and information for making the "healthiest pizza in the world." Soon, you'll see me do videos on making pizza, and other surprises.

My thanks to all those who've e-mailed me their support and encouragement.  The first Vegan Pizza Cookbook HAS been published, and no one can take that away from me (VegNews has had over 8 months to pay attention to this, they've had the book since March 2012, wazzup people?), and whatever happens, others will build on this work.

I'll sleep well tonight knowing the word is getting out.  You CAN make healthy plant-based pizza.  It's easy, inexpensive, and fun.  Most of all, tastes damn good (beer or wine optional).

Best to all for a Happy Holidaze!  Mark

http://www.hearthealthypizza.com

"Oh baby, what a delicious surprise!" Healthy Librarian Makes My Pizza

So so stoked.  The Healthy Librarian took her first try at one of my recipes from cookbook "Heart Healthy Pizza" and posted about it on Facebook. Here are her two photos with associated text, main post text & link. Her full review (and interview with me!) will be out soon (probably after the Holidaze).  It's wonderful to see what she and her hubby (aka "The Lab Rat") thought!  Her opinion, as a long time supporter of Esselstyn's no-added fat, plant-based approach means so much to me.

Here's the first photo:

Click on Photo for the Full-sized Version

"Our pizza topped with swirls of cheesy creamy millet, cashew, mustard sauce. The Lab Rat said, "It's the best plant-based pizza I've tasted."" [Facebook Link]

Here's the second photo:

Click on Photo for the Full-sized Version

"Our delicious homemade pizza with a creamy millet, cashew mustard topping. Indescribably delicious. Daiya doesn't come close. Trust me, the topping kicked our pizzas up to a new level." [Facebook Link]

Here's the full post with more text:

"I thought my "no-cheese" pizza was fine--that is until Mark Sutton convinced me to try the "Cheeze-Toppings" in his cookbook. Oh baby, what a delicious surprise! The Lab Rat made Mark's Millet, Cashew, & Mustard "Cheeze-Like" topping & it "knocked our socks off". What a fantastic addition to our pizza. We're hooked & plan to try Mark's other crazy-good recipes. Recipes for crusts, including gluten-free, all kinds of sauces & toppings."  [Full Facebook Post Link] 

****SPECIAL NOTE:  I'm making autographed copies of the 1st Vegan Cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza," available with a Special Holidaze Discount until midnight (pst) Thursday, 12/20/12 (HERE).

...and my special thanks to The Healthy Librarian for taking a break from her busy schedule to make these posts!

Reviews: Robin Robertson, Bryanna Clark Grogan, Dr. Greger, & the NotMilkMan

I think one of the most exciting things over the past several months has been the reviews my book has received.  The three that meant the most to me (not to bely my appreciation for all the others nor the incredible endoresements from such as Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn and Dr. Neal Barnard), is the reviews by Robin Robertson (incredibly prolific vegan cookbook author), Bryanna Clark Grogan (amazing long-term vegan chef, author, and master cook), Dr. Michael Greger (noted lecturer and nutrition expert), and Robert Cohen (the NotMilkMan, who helped me make that last step towards being vegan 11 years ago).  Having admired, been inspired, and learned from their work for so many years, it was an incredible honor to have them review my book, and so flattering that they liked it.  Here are links to their reviews, and a short excerpt from each.

So cool.

Robin's Review: "...The recipes are super-nutritious, cost-effective, easy to make, and delicious. If you like the idea of making delicious, inexpensive, no-added oil, plant-based pizza, then you’ll love Heart Healthy Pizza — Mark Sutton’s gift to vegan pizza-lovers..."

Bryanna's Review: "...I ask you-- does that pizza look good or what?  It WAS good, and that is high praise from me, because I am very picky about pizza.  (I like traditional Italian-style pizza-- no pineapple!-- with homemade sauce and crust.) So, let me confess that I was actually a bit surprised at how good it was..."

Dr. Greger's Review: "...Although it might seem arrogant and pretentious to call these the "most nutritious pizzas in the world," one would be hard pressed to think of any others that would be as healthy and beneficial to one's diet.  Mark takes full advantage of the abundance of phytochemicals in fresh vegetables and whole grains in these recipes to raise the bar on vegan cooking and demonstrates a unique and creative approach to making one of the most popular foods in the American diet not only a nutritious experience, but a enjoyable and tasty one as well..."

Robert's Review: "...Yes, I admit that masterpiece does not come close to describing Mark Sutton's new book (Heart Healthy Pizza), but I am unable to find a superlative that comes close to describing Mark's magnum opus..."

...and here's on of my favorite photos.  A whole wheat crust pizza with kale, 10 other vegetables, and a Quinoa, Sweet Potato, Corn, and Chili Garlic Sauce "cheese-like sauce" from my cookbook.  Enjoy! The Special Holiday Discount ends tomorrow at midnight pst, so there still time to order your copy of "Heart Healthy Pizza" for the Holidaze.

My Review of "Party Vegan" - Plant-Based Festivus for All of Us!

In a previous review of a Robin Robertson cookbook, I referred to her as the “octomom” of vegan cookbooks (they just keep on coming).  But, upon months of therapy and adjusting my meds, I’ve reconsidered that characterization.  After receiving one of her latest works of culinary art (I’m a bit behind, been busy marketing my own cookbook!), I now envision Robin as more of the “Lance Armstrong” of vegan cookbook authors (without the doping).  He won SEVEN consecutive “Tour-de-Frances,” an astounding achievement (despite how he did it).

And another astounding achievement describes, “Party Vegan,” by Robin Robertson. She’s written over 20 vegan cookbooks, and any of them are a welcome addition to any plant-based cook’s kitchen bookshelf.  This book is no exception to the “Robin Rules.” 

Too many of the current crop of vegan cookbook authors just “phone it in” as a Chef recently commented to me in private correspondence.  In my own words, you can see by reading their books a lack of personality: they’ve happily written their books by using an Internet search engine and carefully changing a few ingredients in the recipes they find to avoid copyright issues.  

But those books lack the same kind of sense of person you’d see in a Matisse or Picasso painting; where the brush strokes, the use of colors, the perspective... all combine to represent a unique viewpoint that is consistent throughout their creations, while still reflecting a grand artistic sensibility and evolving (ahem) “seasoned” creativity.  The “search engine” books are but haphazard quilts digitally sewn together to coldly make money off other people’s work, and get away with it.  The solid cookbooks are distinct in their reflection of the vision of their author.

As usual, Robin’s vision is quite clear in this new work.  Her carefully and assiduously detailed efforts consistently show a deep dedication to plant-based cooking, respect for her audience, and continues to represent an astounding level of knowledge in vegan cuisine made simple and fun for all.  Her unflagging efforts to help teach people to eat plants and save the animals are beyond reproach.  She gives a damn, and is an uncompromising vegan promoting a healthy lifestyle on all levels with a deep love for the animals.

The book’s dedication:  “...to party animals everywhere who don’t serve animals at their parties.”

Robin’s latest tour-de-force is “Party Vegan.”  Most fascinating to me is that Robin brings a whole new side of her personality and deep cooking knowledge domain to this vegan party guide by virtue of her many years of experience as a professional in food services, finely showcased in this incredible book.  The introduction is touching, and reveals a level of emotion and desire to serve others through her cooking I’ve not seen her express so personally in the past.  This is the Server guiding us through the process of how she Serves.

As with any Robin Robertson Production, the book’s organization is based upon a solid foundation and designed to provide a firmament that facilitates all aspects of the “topic de jour.”  Party time!  Chockfull with tons of tips and tricks for all kinds of party planning, astute organization “Anytime Gatherings and Holiday Gatherings form the broad structure), short-cuts, when and how to party, this is much much more than a collection of vegan recipes, it is a comprehensive guide for a host or hostess to help have one helluva good time making superb “party food” for guests of all kinds and in all situations.  I can’t think of any other book that approaches the level of detail and helpful suggestions provided to help successfully create the most basic of cultural rituals in human society:  getting together and celebrating life through the bounty that nature has provided.

And provides she does.  Here’s but a few of my favorite recipes that demonstrate Robin’s unique ability to re-configure simple and nutritionally superior ingredients into delectable reasons to party on:

“Teriyaki Shiitake Sticks” (for “crowd control”): shittake mushrooms wrapped with snow peas, threaded onto skewers, marinated in homemade teriyaki sauce.

“Fingerling Potato Salad with Pan-Fried Arugula Pesto” (for “a picnic lunch”):  the argula pesto is an inspired concept!

“Seitan Buffalo Wingz” (for “a teen party”): I’ve seen many attempts at this concept, this is by far the best. 

“Spinach-Flecked Chapati” (for “curry for company”): lacing the dough with spinach is such a cool idea and, well, clever.

“Chai-Spiced Muffins” (for “mother’s day brunch”): I don’t plan to wait for Mother’s Day to try these.  Woof.

“Orange-Carrot Cake with Dark Chocolate Icing” (for “halloween”):  I plan to steal parts of this recipe to make a Halloween pizza next year (of course, giving Robin full credit!).

I could ramble on much longer about how unique this cookbook is, the obvious love and care that went into it’s creation, let alone the well-crafted recipes.  Having recently been through the “trial by fire” of writing my own cookbook, I can recognize true dedication when I read it, and be impressed by the subtleties of how well it’s been constructed to be more than just a list of recipes, but instead, a true “how to” cookbook. The indexing shows a consistent desire to serve her readers with the best she has to offer (there’s also aa great chart showing all recipes and identifying which to make ahead of time, and so on).  Even the most experienced socialite will learn more about entertaining at home with this book.

Robin’s recipes are easily modified for those with distinct dietary requirements or limitations, and it is without hesitation that I recommend this marvelous book to everyone.  It is, indeed, another brilliant effort by arguably the top (certainly most prolific) vegan cookbook author of the past few decades (please, I could never choose between Bryanna Clark Grogan and Robin...), and is breathtaking in scope, offerings, and emotion:  feelings of love for others through one’s cooking.

I would be remiss if I didn’t end my review with a short excerpt from Robin’s introduction that shows just what a class act she is, that is indicative of why she deserves attention for every book she writes, and every blog posts she makes.  She is one of the true originals, tempered from the fires of an incredible career and continually blazing new ways forward in vegan cooking.  If you don’t own one of Robin’s cookbooks, you are missing truly original work that will forever change how you approach plant-based cooking. 

...and the vegan party that can be yours and for those you love.

“To me, every time I cook is a celebration of life.  As long as people gather in the spirit of friendship and goodwill, then even the simplest fare can be wonderful and memorable.  And no matter how spectacular the food, the most important thing is to have a good time.  Now, let’s party!”

Do yourself a holiday favor, order a copy of “Party Vegan” and join in the celebration.  And save a chair for me, too... I’ll bring the wine.

To life!

Robin’s website/blog: http://www.robinrobertson.com

More about "Party Vegan" with sample recipes, here.

Special Holiday Discount Period for "Heart Healthy Pizza" Extended

Due to popular demand, I'm delighted to announce that the deadline for ordering autographed copies of the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook at a Special Holiday Discount Price has been extended to 12/17/12.  You can learn more about this great offer and order copy(s) here.  Check it out!

4 Vegan Pizzas 4 Frederick

(click on image to see much larger version)

Here’s a photo collage of making four pizzas (before and after) a marvelous potluck with the “meat-free” veg Meet-Up group of Frederick, MD.

They had an amazing spread of vegan foods and most interesting people. Add that to two bonfires, and you’ve a most memorable evening social event! Kudos to Matt and Lara for being outstanding hosts.

My contribution was four vegan pizzas... Admittedly, it was outrageous to walk in with four pizza boxes (purchased from a local pizzeria) containing pizza made with recipes from my book, but I couldn’t resist seeing how that would go down.

The two pizzas were:

1) “Really Reubenesque”: with a pumpernickel crust, thousand island dressing (homemade pickles), red and green shredded cabbage, sliced mushrooms, slice red onions, paprika, and a mashed potato/horseradish/flax seed topping. Woofers....

2) “Mixed Veg”: with a whole wheat and black bean crust (really!), chopped tender kale, sliced tomatoes, cauliflower, mixed sweet peppers, oregano, black pepper, sliced onion, and millet/sunflower seed/mustard “cheese-like” topping (one of the two pies had sliced black olives on top).

Really fun to see the reaction from other guests. The pizzas were devoured rather quickly, and the host had the smarts to reserve some for later (as he put it, I'm paraphrasing here, “these won’t make it through the night”). Indeed. My own pizzas never make it past the next day’s breakfast.

Great fun, great people, great time. I need more socializing like this. Hard enough to chew through the straps and get out of bed in the morning as it is. Time to stop being such a hermit! There’s some really interesting people out there (y’know, outside Facebook and Twitter? Then there’s this big yellow glowey thing in the sky during the day that turns white at night... WOW! Wonder what the CGI costed...).

1st Int'l Study of Heart Disease & Diet, a Heart Healthy Pizza Fix/Justification

I get a lot of questions about calling my book, “Heart Healthy Pizza:  Over 100 Plant-Based Recipes for the Most Nutritious Pizza in the World.”  Primary among them are “why are they “heart healthy” and something about the arrogance of calling them the “most nutritious pizza in the world.”  To that end, it’s gratifying to read of this new international study of some 30,000 people in 14 countries, that states, in summary:
“A new study shows older people with established heart disease who ate the most heart-healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and nuts had a much lower risk of dying or having another heart attack or stroke than those who ate the unhealthiest diet.”  
From: “Healthy Diet Helps Damaged Hearts:”
...wouldn’t it be wonderful it they went a step further, following the 20+years of peer-reviewed research by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr., that demonstrated that following a no-added oil/fat plant-based diet could not only reverse heart disease, but in theory, prevent it? Unfortunately, the study only recorded what people ate and not tested what would happen if they eliminated any animal proteins, dairy, or oil in their diet (for people without heart disease issues,eliminating nuts for those who don't).  As such, the study was, “gee whiz, this is what transpired” rather than any advance in nutritional science by attempting to determine what would happen with deliberate changes in diet, specifically, eliminating all animal products, dairy, and oil.
Still, it’s comforting to see the phrase “heart healthy” in the context of the dietary descriptions they used.
Back to my cookbook, the 1st vegan pizza cookbook.  Why did I call it “Heart Healthy Pizza?”  Simple.  It was inspired by and follows Dr. Esselstyn’s dietary recommendations.  He PROVED they work.  He reversed and, in theory, prevented heart disease.  In the study above, the researchers but noted that people approaching a no-fat plant-based diet, who’ve had heart issues in the past, had less future occurrences.  Wonderful, but by no means any solution.  They ate fish and consumed free oils.  The survival percentages would have been higher without the fish and added oil.
Now, the “most nutritious pizza in the world” phrase has gotten me some flack, but, without going into great detail, let me excerpt Dr. Michael Greger’s opinion in his review of my book as defense:
“Although it might seem arrogant and pretentious to call these the "most nutritious pizzas in the world," one would be hard pressed to think of any others that would be as healthy and beneficial to one's diet.  Mark takes full advantage of the abundance of phytochemicals in fresh vegetables and whole grains in these recipes to raise the bar on vegan cooking and demonstrates a unique and creative approach to making one of the most popular foods in the American diet not only a nutritious experience, but a enjoyable and tasty one as well.”
--- Dr. Greger’s review is here:
I’m comfortable knowing that the recipes in my book are heart healthy, mostly gluten-free, and enable one to make the most nutritious pizza in the world.  Studies like the one mentioned above are encouraging, despite their narrow and conservative approach. Here’s an excerpt from a review of my book by someone who died, and is now following Esselstyn’s recommendations:
"I dropped dead on a tennis court (and was lucky enough to be playing against a team with a cardiologist who did world class cpr for 12 minutes until a rescue squad arrived to shock me back to life). It took me about 30 seconds post-op from my bypass to adopt Caldwell Esselstyn's vegan cardiac disease reversal program. Though I ate a "good" diet most of the time, I was addicted to cheese pizzas for my whole (almost foreshortened) life. This book is a treasure. The visuals of the pizza are appetizing and valid relative to the finished product. The taste of the recipes I have undertaken is great. The nutrition is miraculous for a so-called comfort food. Thank you, Mark Sutton, for your tour de force collection of no oil vegan gourmet pizza. Incidentally, I run 10 k's, complete duathlons, and play USTA team tennis at the age of 64 on the Esselstyn diet.
- R.S. (Amazon book review)
I wrote this book, with over five years of research and experimentation (would have been years less if I hadn't interviewed Dr. Essy and decided to go "no oil"), to help people be heart healthy and vegetarians or "normal" people get over the "I'd miss pizza" whine."  So cool that it has.  Over half of men in the US will experience heart disease issues, over one-third of women.  It’s about diet, and the sooner the government and mass media recognizes and promotes that realization, the less the number of future deaths.  As Dr. Esselstyn notes, “heart disease is a food-borne disease.”  This number one killer of people in the world is not just expensively treatable by modern science, but CURABLE and preventable by a dietary no-oil plant-based science approach. 
And, you can still have your pizza fix.
Namaste, Mark  
(yeah, going to have to make the spine text title text on my book larger.... oh well...)
[Note: The photo above is a shot taken today of the first time I’ve seen my book in a health food bookstore.  Wow.  In good company!

Mad Cowboy Newsletter, Discounts for Holiday Vegan Pizza Cookbook

The latest issue of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter is now available online with a Holiday Discounts for purchased copies (autographed) of the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza." Check out the discounts for 1 to 4 copies of the book at this link.

Here's the Introduction and Table of Contents to this edition:

"In this edition we are proud to announce the winners of last issue's Vegan Mind-Bender Contest and the Heart Healthy Pizza Cookbook Giveaway. There's also a gift-link for readers who want to purchase autographed copies of "Heart Healthy Pizza" at a Special Holiday discount. You'll also find a scathing and detailed rebuke of the "Paleo Diet" by Dr. John McDougall, disturbing historical statistics on soda and food serving sizes, and learn about internal concerns about outside food corporation's influence on Registered Dieticians.

Francis Moore Lappe weighs in with a fine rebuttal on the recent Stanford study that disses organics, Paul Shapiro on why meat consumption in the US is falling, what several vegan nutritional experts think about specific food products, and how a vegan first ran a 100 mile brutal ultramarathon. Further down you'll marvel at a recent Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness that essentially equates humans and animals, how SHARK is using drones to video illegal pigeon shoots, Hurricane Sandy's impact on companion animals, and about the "microflora" inside you. And don't miss our Vegan Digital Media Theater where there's a plethora of interesting media links.

 ... as always, a tip of the hat to our new subscribers: y'all can browse/search through past issues at the Mad Cowboy Newsletter Archives at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Mad_Cowboy/

Best regards, Mark MC editor/webmaster

 

Table of Contents:

00: Quote(s) from Howard

01: The Vegan Mind-Bender Contest Winner/Challenge!

02: Heart Healthy Pizza Cookbook Winner & a Special Holiday Discount!

03: Mad Cow Info Round-Up

04: Paleo Diet Cruel, Soda & Food Serving Sizes, Dietician Dilemma

05: 15,000 Weather Records, Reckless Organics Study, Seasonal Food Map

06: Vegan Digital Media Theater

07: Giving Up Meat, Meat Sales Fall, Veg. Nutrition Experts, Run 100 Miles

08: Human=Animals, Animal Rights Drones, Sandy & Pets, Bugs Inside U

09: Quick Bytes

10: Closing Thoughts

 

Photos: "Vegucated," VSDC, and Compassion for Animals Event

Gary Loewenthal, of "Compassion for the Animals" Introduces the Veducated Documentary

One of the "perks" of having self-published my own cookbook, is that I make the decisions on whom to give complimentary copies to. I enjoy donating autographed copies for worthy causes (any other groups listening?). It's even more enjoyable when I can attend the event itself, meet with the raffle winners, and also get to know a bunch of people interested in a plant-based diet.

The Vegetarian Society of DC (via MeetUp) and Compassion for Animals sponsored a free showing of the marvelous documentary "Vegucated" this recent Sunday in Arlington, VA. I was fortunate enough to be in the DC area and have the time to stop packing for my trip back home for the Winter, to thoroughly enjoy this film with around 120 or more other people. Particularly cool, since I'm a life member of VSDC and haven't been around much the past several years (da Farm and creating/writing the book!).

Moreover, "Vegucated" is an impressive piece of work (and everyone involved should be highly commended for a 1st class effort). Writer/Director/Editor Marisa Miller Wolfson selects three people who've responded to her Craig's List Ad in New York, to be filmed as they go "vegan" for a month.  Impressively staged and photographed, the personal growth and understanding of the participants was wonderful to watch evolve over time.  Moments of humor over what to eat were laced with the horror of these people beginning to understand more about the terrible way animals are being treated as they are raised and then slaughtered for food (the later was not a major emphasis and shouldn't defer bringing impressionable children to view the documentary, imho).  This film covers statistics, medical information, helpful hints, and gives real insight to what veganism is (and isn't).  One of the best films I've seen in awhile that takes on the issue of being vegan, activism, and watching the growth of these three individuals was at times, riveting.

Kudos also go to VSDC and C4A for their dedication, hard work, and the incredible array of food and munchies available. The Arlington Library location had a superb parking facility and a fine room in which to meet, mingle, and watch. As Howard Lyman's webmaster and special projects guy (Howard wrote the Foreward to my book), it was also an unexpected delight to see him featured towards the end of this clever and very effective documentary. Highly recommended!  Much more enjoyable to watch with like (and soon to be like?) minds and such great company.  For me, a special end to several months of healing from an injury (staying in the DC area), and being able to return to marketing my cookbook a few months ago.  The experience gave me a lot to think about and I thoroughly loved the people interactions. A special event, a special film, and a special group of people.  Couldn't ask for much more (well, a few more of those evil vegan cupcakes...).

Here's some of the photographs I shot that night as a thumbnail matrix with imbedded links.  Enjoy!

Rare Photo of Species "Maximus Strongus Plantivus"

SUBJECT;  Mark Sutton

AGE: photo taken 10/27/2012 at first outdoor tabling for "Heart Healthy Pizza"

SPECIES: Maximus Strongus Plantivus

DIET/HABITS: 20 years low-fat vegetarian, 11 years vegan (6 years of that no-oil plant-strong). Prefers 30 to 40% or more raw foods (breakfast, lunch), minimizing usage of frozen, packaged, canned, and bagged food-like products and produce, with significant preference for fresh produce and freshly cooked whole grains.  Diversity in produce, grain, and legume consumption. Herbal teas, roots, and miso used medicinally.  B-12 supplement periodically as part of multi-vitamin supplement.  Weakness: occasional no-fat low-sodium meat analog intake and sipping green tea.  Results: 2 colds in 31 years.

ACHIEVEMENTS (of note): wrote first plant-strong plant-based vegan pizza cookbook.  Advanced product concepts and information system theory research at Texas Instruments.  Worked with 2 Nobel Prize Winners, on two NASA Earth Satellite Missions, the White House, and 12 Federal Agencies on global climate change visualizations and public outreach (cover of TIME magazine, published in Newsweek, Scientific American, Science, etc., and videos broadcast internationally, multimedia consultant), Recipes editor/manager for "No More Bull!", by Howard Lyman. Editor of the Mad Cowboy e-Newsletter, and producer/editor/developer for several DVD & web-based productions. Has been a professional organic farmer, conference head photographer, web developer, pizza cook, experimental curriculum writer/designer, and vegan blogging for 7 years.

GOALS: actively promote, consult for, help with, provide information on, and encourage a no-added oil plant-based planet-sound dietary lifestyle for all human age groups through personal example, writings, speaking engagements, book promotion, and interpersonal interactions with anyone remotely interested.

FAVORITE QUOTE(s): "No Oil!" Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn and "As is Above, is Below" (various spiritual sources).

College Exam #2: Heart Healthy Pizza Gets Another "A"

As noted in a previous post, I've always felt that one of the Ultimate Tests of a good pizza (plant-based, plant-strong, or not) is what College Students think of it. Having accomplished their 1st test, the infamous (and plant-strong) College Greens graciously sacrificed their intensive late-night weekly Saturday Night Study Period and Angry Bird Marathon (kidding... a fowl joke), to try another recipe from my book, "Heart Healthy Pizza."

A couple of days ago, via e-mail at the Engine2Extra Online Community, the results came in, with photos as well!  Here's what Tara had to say (unedited, and with her permission):

--------------

"WE MADE ANOTHER PIZZA THIS WEEKEND!!!! And once again... SUCCESS!!!!

This time, we made the whole wheat black bean crust with the quick italian tomato sauce. We loaded the pizza with spring mix greens, red cabbage, orange bell pepper, portobello mushrooms, and green peas. Then we topped it off with tofu and lemon sauce.

Yum yum yum YUM!!!! A deliciously delightful Saturday night treat :)  

We took pictures this time!! [Note: click on photo for larger version]

College Greens Photo of Pizza Before Topping Sauce

   

Just showing the veggie-licious toppings before we added the un-cheese sauce :)

College Greens Pizza w/ Tofu Lemon Topping

Fully prepared and cooked!!! READY TO EAT! yaaaaaaaaay :D

College Greens Pizza After Being Visciously Assaulted

Forty minutes later....

I don't know whether you saw or not, but Craig took a slice with him as his lunch the next day when he went hiking at Rickett's Glen. His friend took a picture of the half-eaten slice of pizza over the waterfall and I tagged you in the picture on facebook :)

Anyways, it was another weekend of plant-strong pizza yumfest!!! Thanks SO MUCH for letting us play around with this book, it's been so much fun and so deliciously scrumptious :) We plan to make at least one more pizza before doing the full review. But I don't think you have anything to worry about. We're already sold :)

Hugs, happies, healthies,

  Tara :)" 

-----------

So cool!  I did tell them that plant-strong people are advised by the Engine2 Diet Team, and rightly so, to use tofu sparingly and as a treat as it's high in fat (and being processed, lacks fiber).  Regardless, I was intrigued by the toppings the students chose. Am very proud of their ingenuity and continued dedicated efforts to eat a healthy no-added oil plant-based diet. They are setting a high bar, but still taking the time to share the results (and their advice) with others.  Here's some of their articles.

After feeling a tad cantankerous with a recent birthday, it's refreshing to see such well-placed optimism, creativity, and joie de vivre!

Namaste... Mark

 

Presentation: "A Heart- and Planet-Healthy Dietary Lifestyle."

Saturday 10/20 6pm est to 9pm est: "Mark will speak about a heart- and planet-healthy dietary lifestyle, and the impact our individual choices have our own health and that of our Planet, at Baltimore EarthSave Veg potluck, in Owings Mills, MD.  Featuring a live talk, book signing, and giveaway on “Heart Healthy Pizza” by Mark Sutton, author of the first-ever vegan pizza cookbook. Mark is a longtime interactive multimedia consultant, vegan, and organic farming enthusiast. He has served as the Visualizations Coordinator for two NASA Earth Science Satellite missions focused on environmental and global climate change issues."

"Monthly dinner meetings are held at the yoga studio of "Your Prescription for Health, 10210 S. Dolfied Rd. Learn more about Mark Sutton and Heart Healthy Pizza at http://www.hearthealthypizza.com/. Please RSVP and join us! DETAILS:" http://earthsavebaltimore.org/node/43  Note: Dr. Greger spoke at this event last month.

Heart Healthy Pizza Passes 1st College Exam!

What is the ultimate test of a good vegan pizza?

"The South American" Sweet potato, quinoa, corn "cheese-like" topping, collards, tomato slices, + Trader Joe's Mix: chopped broccoli, carrots, green cabbage, red cabbage, jicama, green bell pepper, radish, celery.

I've often wondered about this serious and sociologically earth-shattering issue while spending close to six years researching alternatives to the fatty, saturated dairy and non-dairy cheeses used with abandon on what could be a very nutritious meal, but in the United States has degenerated into a savage nutritional orgy of calories, animal flesh, fat, salt, and general dietary undesirables promoting a biological descent into the ravages of cardiovascular disease, obesity, and Type II diabetes... and that's just the watered down summary of what I think (trust me, it's not a pretty picture inside)... moving on...

Still, the Big Questions kept arising during my research: would a meat or dairy-eater enjoy one of my vegan pizzas?  Would someone of native Italian descent relish one of my recipes?  What would Oprah think?

But the test that had me worried the most, The Ultimate Eval (pun intended) that had me wake up in a cold sweat at night, trembling with anxiety in the wee hours of the morning as I drifted, ghost-like through my internal house of fears was:  college students.  That unique and feral species of energetic quasi-humans destined to eventually guide us into assisted living and run the planet.  What would THEY think?

Even now, I can remember the anxiety of wondering whether or not one of my heart-healthy plant-based pizzas could pass an examination by carnivorous and/or plant-strong college students, well known for their highly discriminate palettes (unless the food is free or cheap or is food).  Would it pass muster?  Would they show up at my door, pelting me with left-over globs of "cheese-like" sauce, chanting "Daiya! Daiya!?"  Would a big red "F" replete with a dripping font, be plastered across my book's website, and an animated giff show up of Guy Fawke's smiling face, taunting me? Laughing?

Well, I'm proud to say that the first test results are in.  Below I've posted, with permission, a letter I received from the newly and growingly infamous "College Greens." 

The College Greens (Ann Esselstyn in red) from "Engine2Extra.com"

This idealistic group of plant-strong college students have vowed to "get healthy while their warranty is still valid" through following the recommendations of Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Rip Esselstyn, and the whole Engine2 Diet team:  a no-added oil, plant-based diet.

 

A few weeks ago, intrigued by what I read about them (as part of the fantastic Engine2 Extra online community) and their dedicated efforts to encourage other college students everywhere to eat a healthy plant-based diet.  I tempted fate, rolled the Dice of the Gods, threw RDA's of salt over my left shoulder, and sent them a copy of my cookbook.  Part of me giggled, part of me was wondering "WHAT HAVE I DONE?"  

Patiently I waited, day pages from printed calendars flying in front of me like in an old black'n'white cartoon (just got to get that window fixed)... then, the word came back, October 4th, 2012 A.D.  The first test results were in.  Shaking and stirred, I opened the e-mail.  And... 

"Hi Mark!!

Craig and I (Tara) did end up making a pizza last weekend for the party. And it was a HUGE hit!!!! We made the oat crust, with raw tomato sauce, then onions, mushrooms, spinach, and artichokes, and topped with the cannellini bean, oregano, and walnut sauce! :) Herbies and Omnivores alike were impressed :) We had a number of different people ask about the recipe, and we told them about your awesome book!!! 

One critique that we got, as cooks, was to make the pizza crust thinner. It wasn't overly thick, but a couple of people mentioned that they would have preferred a crispier crust. I don't know whether these crust recipes have the potential to be crispy or not, but we will experiment with crust thickness in our next attempt :)

I'm not sure when the next pizza-making extravaganza will occur, but we will keep you posted!!! :)

And as for your black halloween pizza... how about olives and carrots? :)

Wishing we had more pizza leftovers,

Tara, -The College Greens"

That's just so [expletive deleted] cool! Survived mid-terms. Hot [short series of very disturbing juvenile expletives deleted].  Of serious note, too, is that the C.G.'s  are planning to run some more tests and do their own review of the book to be published online (I did tell them that reducing the water in the gluten-free oat crust might enable it to be "rolled" thinner (between wax paper sheets, but in general, getting a thin crust with some GF recipes isn't easy). Experimentation is always advised.

But, so far, so good.  Now onto the Finals!  Maybe I can finally sleep again... for awhile...  (huh? what's this "pizza leftover" concept they speak of?"... I keep wondering and mumbling incessantly in the wee hours of the morning...).

Who ARE these people, you ask??  Find out more below:

ABOUT THE COLLEGE GREENS • ARTICLES BY THE COLLEGE GREENS

My 1st Radio Interview Audio is Now Available Online!

My interview on the Dr. Don Wagner Show (09/27/12) is now availble as a streaming and downloadable mp3 audio file (http://bullheadurgentcare.com/archives/playfiles/09262012p.html).

It's about 50 min. in length.  Dr. Don was great. The audio quality deteriorates a bit due to Skype issues, so I had to live with audio artifacts (echo/reverb) in my ears most of the time and my vocal level gets a bit uneven as a result in 2nd half).

Definitely check out his mp3 Archives of previous interviews (http://bullheadurgentcare.com/archives/). Some very interesting people! Honored to have been asked, and my appreciation to Dr. Don for the opportunity and experience.

My 1st Radio Interview is Tonight

Author of the 1st Vegan Pizza Cookbook, "Heart Healthy Pizza," Mark Sutton, speaks w/ Dr. Don Wagner, on Wed., Sept. 26th: 3pm pst/6pm est to 4pm pst/7pm est.

The Dr. Don Show is a health/wellness and plant based nutrition show hosted by Dr. Don Wagner D.O. weekdays 3-4 pm pst/6-7 pm est on KAAA 1230 and KZZZ 1490 AM.  Past Interview Archives:

http://bullheadurgentcare.com/archives/index.html

The interview will be available as a streaming and downloadable MP3 a few days after the event.  Call-in Numbers: (928) 753-1230, (928) 763-1490

Mark's book contains over 100 no-added oil, plant-based recipes for making pizza, For more information about "Heart Healthy Pizza," visit:

http://www.hearthealthypizza.com

A REAL Plant-Based & Plant-Strong Pizza!

I have an adversion to what I call "foo-foo" pizza.  Oh sure, I'll tolerate it (usually requires good company and a glass of fine wine), but sprinkling a few greens, cherry tomato and olive slices, on a hummus base, slapped a wheat flour crust might look pretty, but it doesn't do it for me.  Might as well sub out the crust and use a wrap or nori instead. IMHO, it's not much of a pizza and admittedly, I'm very biased!  In my cookbook, I show that a pizza can be much more --- a greater nutritional sum of it's parts than what I've just described. It can incorporate a wide swath of antioxidant and phytochemical full vegetables, legumes, and rich textures.

Anyway, I've been working on refining some new recipes at request for some exciting new projects I can't write about yet.  Here's the latest experiment:  it's an extension and modification of a recipe from said cookbook.  This puppy (at its 3rd test here) has an oat flour, cannelini beans, and flaxseed crust.  This makes the crust gluten-free (flour made from rolled oats as part of the recipe), low glycemic, and only 2 TBS of flaxseeds are used.

The vegetable filling has a green curry sauce base and a nice mix of cauliflowerettes, tomatoes, diced mushrooms, broccoli, two types of hot and semi-hot peppers, and sliced onions.  The "cheese-like" topping sauce is made of millet, sunflower seeds, spices, dijon mustard+, then sprinkled with italian seasonings.  Woof! Here's a before and after 2-photo collage:

 

Click to see larger image!

Now THAT'S what I call a real plant-based pizza!  Guess I'm a devout, ahem, "Foo Fighter..."  I'll be publishing the recipes online in the near future and will make note of where (if not here) on this blog when I do.

Note:  here's my article published on the Engine2Diet Blog on "Plant-Strong Pizza."  There are three cheese-like topping recipes and my gluten-free oat crust recipe (a favorite of many, judging from my e-mails!).  Enjoy.

Go "Plant-Strong" at the "Engine2Diet Extra" Community

"The Engine2 Diet" is former firefighter Rip Esselstyn's best-selling book about a plant-strong lifestyle.  As the son of Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Rip incorporated not only his Dad's research on heart disease and diet into the book's program, but recipes and a complete exercise plan as well.  The comprehensive Engine2 Diet website builds and expands upon this seminal work and is an excellent source of information on Engine2 Diet activites, articles, research, recipes, and several other useful resources (in fact, I've written two articles for them:  "Plant-Strong Pizza" and "Plant-Strong by the Numbers").

Snapshot of Engine2 Extra "My Page" (Site ©2012 Engine2Extra, photos by Mark Sutton)

The Engine2 Team has recently developed, announced and released access to the "Engine 2 Extra" private online social community.  This unique website is a real go-to place for advice, support, research, interaction with nutritional experts, and just plain great socializaing, regarding achieving and maintaining a heart-healthy and plant-strong lifestyle. Here's but a short list of some of the many things you'll find on the site:

• Individual and Community Support
• Specialized Groups
• Recipes
• Live Support and Chat
• Recipes
• Member Blogs
• Forums
• Special "members-only" Activities
• Webcasts and Telecasts with some of the best in plant-strong education, such as:  the Esselstyns, Dr. McDougall, Dr. Barnard, Dr. Esselstyn, Dr. Lisle, Jeff Novick, as well as plant-strong chefs and success stories.

"The Vegan Culinary Experience" - Magazine Now Available (free)

 

The Pizza Issue of The Vegan Culinary Experience is here!

"It's nearly 200 pages of vegan pizza goodness. Thanks to all our contributors for this issue: Madelyn Pryor, Bryanna Clark Grogan, Jill Nussinow, Robin Robertson, Sharon Gordon, Mark Sutton aka Heart HealthyPizza, Elizabeth Lonetti, Angelina Elliott, Mindy Kursban, and Amber Shea Ford."

- Chef Jason Wyrick

Download free PDF: www.veganculinaryexperience.com

 

So honored to be in the company of such great chefs and to have my article "Creating a Heart Healthy Pizza" published along with their great works!

"Plant-Strong by the Numbers" - Heart Disease, Fat, Sugar, & Salt

"Although a knowledge of numbers isn’t critical to successfully navigating the journeyto a plant-strong lifestyle, recognizing important signals on the trip can be very useful for helping in deciding what to eat and what to avoid.  They can also be additional encouragement to help us stay on the road less traveled by and not get lost in false needs."

There are various numbers and statistics that are suggested as being useful to remember to encourage optimatl personal health. A discussion and distillation of these metrics on daily intake requirements for fat, sugar, and salt, as well as their content and measurements in certain foods, can be found in my guest blog post for the "Engine2 Diet" website."

The Experimental G-BOMBS V-12 Pizza Prototype

A buzzer sounds at the heavily secured massive steel door.

"What's the pass-phrase?" asks the Head Chef in gruff tones.

"Anthony Bourdain Eats Tofu," came the quick response from the other side of the door. A moment of silence before the door slowly opens, and Dr. S. quickly takes his seat.  Surrounding the Conference Room table are several austere and serious looking men and women in lab coats with a picture of a pizza shaped like a heart sewn on the front of each jacket.

"You're late, S." growls HC from the table's power seat.

"Sorry, sir," came the response, "An emergency in in the Iron Chef kitchen."

"So I've heard... I take it matters are under control?"

"Er, yes sir.  Dr. Psymon has been dismissed, per your orders."

"Nasty business, S.  Dr. Psymon knows the rules.  No oil.  I don't care if he's also on "The Chew."  It's no excuse.  People's health is at stake.  Chef Battleitaly has obviously been a bad influence on him."

"Undoubtedly, sir."

"Alright, enough of the pleasantries, S.  Report!"

The lights dim, a very large flat screen rises up from the far end of the table, the heart-shaped logo upper center on the screen pulsing.  Dr. S. hands dart quickly dart over his iPizza pad.  The monitor comes alive with light and color.  "I'm pleased to say, sir, that we've had a major breakthrough on Project Super Heart Healthy Pizza.  This is a photo collage of the Super Secret Experimental V-12 Pizza Prototype."

©2102 by Mark Sutton, topping sauce recipe from "Heart Healthy Pizza." Click to see larger image.

There are gasps from around the room. The chefs whisper excitedly to each other in panic, and one yells out:  "it's not possible! That's... that is... you've... OH MY GOD!"

"Quiet down everyone," demands HC, standing up and leaning across the table forcefully. "S., you can't be serious.  What you're showing us can't be done.  It breaks the dish of every foundational theory we've developed in over 100 years of covert culinary research.  How many?  What on Earth did you do, man?"

"Well, ah...."

"Dammitt, S., I'm a Food Physicist and Head Chef, not a Psychic.  In the Name of T. Colin Campbell, tell us, HOW MANY?"

"12, sir."

"TWELVE!!" exclaims HC, leaning back in his chair.  Pandemonium breaks out around the table, people are yelling and screaming at each other, pounding the table.  "But 11 was considered the highest level?" "It violates the Laws of Nature." "What if the New York Times Food Critic finds out?" "Is it stable, are we in danger?" "It can't be, he's lying."

Dr. S. stands up, and waves his right arm theatrically.  "Ladies and gentlemen, it IS possible."  The Team Members quiet down.  "Yes, this is a heart healthy pizza with twelve distinct vegetables as added ingredients."

"But, but... why, S., why? Why risk the potential structural collapse in the oven? We know that 11 is as high as you can go before the entire internal stability of the pizza resolves as an unedible avalanche of disconnected veggies, no matter how much topping sauce is used as an adherent agent.  Complete culinary collapse at the Julia Child Curve with a corresponding Emeril Explosion making "bam" look like "pop"."

S. chuckled. "I used to think this too, my friends.  I used to believe in that limitation. However, I had to think out of the pizza box. There had to be a way, a safe way, to safely exceed these limits.  I surmised that the key problem was the size of the individual veggies and where they were co-located in the PPCS, the Physical Pizza Collective Structure."

"Incredible... IF it works" says HC, his voice heavy with admiration yet caution, "I take it that you figured out that you could reduce the size of the Barnardian Vegetable Components and through a careful Morimotto Scatter Algorithm, avoid overloading the Ozian weight/pressure ratios of crust and sauce."

"Exactly, sir.  I wanted to increase the McDougall Ratio of vegetables to bite, while maintaining a reasonable Alton Brownian Mass to Gravity Failure Comparitive."

"Honor us, Dr., please describe to us your prototype."

"Delighted to, sir."  S. walks around the side of the table with his laser pointer.

"We start with a basic pizza crust base.  I was going to initiate construction with a gluten-free crust, but felt I'd reduce the unknown variables for this round to that which was a bit more clear in terms of loading stress capabilities.  A whole wheat crust is topped with chopped tender kale, followed by thinly sliced tomatoes, and sprinkled with freshly diced basil."

The young intern at the back of the room smiled and whispered loudly, "You had me at kale."  There were quiet giggles around the room.  "Hush up," admonished HC.

S. continued: "at this point, I added diced mushrooms as kind of shock absorbers to the next layer with a sprinkle of garlic powder and red pepper chili flakes.  I like it spicy, " he winked at the intern, "...then, using a Trader Joe's mixture of chopped vegetables..."

"Trader Joe's?" queried HC.

"Yes sir.  Due to time and budget constraints (how often do I have so many raw vegetables in the refrigerators?) I used Trader Joe's 8 Raw Chopped Vegetables, available for under $3 at most stores.  They were scattered and placed lightly across the pizza with enough space between individual veggies to allow for eventual topping sauce penetration. I also spread the carrots and purple cabbage bits around a bit to provide a pleasing visual appearance."

"Clever, S.  And yet you still stayed on budget."

"Yes sir... now, at this point I took a fundamental risk.  Onions or no onions?  I decided to go for it.  Slices of onions were draped on top of the lightly scattered veggies."

There was appreciative sounds of agreement and admiration from around the table.

"Of course, the decision of what type of cheese-like topping sauce to use was difficult.  I wanted not only good texture and taste, but one that would really kick the nutritional quality of the pizza into a Fuhrman Zone intersection with the Esselstyn No-Oil Barrier."

Gasps from around the room.

"Yes, my skeptical friends, a no-added oil Fuhrman G-BOMBS* without berries (which you could easily have in a dressing on a side salad).  To make this work, I went with a "Millet, White Kidney Beans, Sunflower Seeds, Sirarcha Sauce" topping, sprinkled with ground pepper. You can see the final results on the screen."

"Count, count, count!" came the collective cry from the other Chefs.  "Count, count, count!"

"Okay, here we go: (1) kale, (2) tomatoes, (3) mushrooms, (4) celery, (5) carrots, (6) jicama, (7) green cabbage, (8) purple cabbage, (9) green peppers, (10) radish, and (11) broccoli."

"Twelve, twelve, twelve..." came the demand from the screaming Chefs, some standing on the table, others writhing on the conference room floor.

"And, to complete our V-12 Prototype Pizza..." (pausing for effect), "ONIONS!!"  S. smiled proudly, while around him the Chefs were throwing their iDevices into the air, slapping themselves on their backs, hugging, and wiping the tears flowing from their eyes.  It was an historic moment, and even HC's own eye was misty with the realization of what had been shown here today.

"Praise Lyman! This is a momentous, S. You've done us proud.  Generations will remember this event and be healthier as a result.  Now, my good friends, time to celebrate.  I'll order in a vegan lunch for all of us from "The Millenium Restaurant", my treat."

"But sir," notes the young intern, "that's across the country in San Francisco."

"No problem, m'dear," chuckled HC, "I have our Trans-Orbital on standby."

As the Team Members exited the conference room, each shaking S.'s hand before leaving, they knew inside that the battle for healthy diets wasn't over, but yet that a major victory had been achieved.  New challenges awaited them, and their dedicated efforts to help people eat better food would continue unabated.

--------

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

1) *“G-BOMBS” is an acronym you can use to remember the most nutrient-dense, health-promoting foods on the planet. These are the foods you should eat every day, and they should make up a significant proportion of your diet — these foods are extremely effective at preventing chronic disease and promoting health and longevity." [Source]

2) the original topping sauce recipe, from my cookbook, HEART HEALTHY PIZZA, used cashews.  1/3 cup sunflower seeds were substituted for the cashews to give the sauce a lighter fluffiness and to lower the fat content a bit.  Easily enough sauce was made for both the V-12, and who knows? Maybe a V-13...

Neil Armstrong, Paper Tigers, & a "Giant Dietary Leap for All Mankind"

When but a young fetus, I watched Neil Armstrong walk on the moon.  I'll never forget the rippling horizontal lines of greys on a small television set showcasing a grainy techno-ghost bouncing around the lunar surface like the Pillsbury Dough Boy on acid.

Still, it was awe inspiring trying to wrap one's cerebrum around the significance of what was then happening in real-time. No screenwriter could have written the script any better.  The "Spam in a Can" team on Apollo and the team on the ground supporting them were all true heroes in every sense of the word. People throw up the term "epic" haphazardly a lot in media these days, but that first landing on the moon literally defined the word "epic."

How sad and angry I was a few days ago to find out that Neil just had a "cardiac bypass operation."  That's the sanitized syntax used to describe a quadruple bypass in which the patient is put on a heart-lung machine, chest cut open, blood vessels removed from a pig or the patient, and re-attached surgically to reconnect proper blood flow through the heart, chest sinkhole sown up, heart put back in the body's blood loop, and the comatose human hopefully revived.  The doctors called this procedure on/for/in/on Armstrong a "success."

Oh really? That just means he survived the operation alive. Overall, it's a delaying tactic folks, as not only is there the risk of many after-surgery physical or mental complications (including dropping several I.Q. points because of taking the heart off-line), the "procedure" doesn't "cure" anything. The underlying causes of having four of your arteries to your heart blocked have not been eliminated. This surgery just keeps the human alive a little longer as long as he can tolerate (and accept) the quality of life experienced afterwards. Usually leads up to early death, or a heart transplant, then a slightly later death.

"In most people who have heart bypass surgery, the grafts stay open and work well for many years...This surgery does not prevent the coronary artery blockage from coming back." [Source]

Putting this in a larger perspective: around 500,000 bypass surgeries are performed in the United States each year, each costing anywhere from $50,000 to well above $100,000 each.  That's $50 billion a year. Not an insignificant amount of health expenditures.

Ironic for me was that I had been watching "Forks Over Knives" online [here] when I happened to get word of Armstrong's surgery.  I'd just watched world-class surgeon and clinician Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn talk about bypass surgery not being any solution, the cost of the operation(s), and how many unfortunate people will go through the onerous and misguided (my words) attempts to slow the progression to the inevitable death, totally ignorant of a real and tested alternative: a no-added oil/fat plant-based diet.

You see, if Neil had followed a no-added oil plant-based diet, the odds are extremely high that he wouldn't have had to have the surgery, that even if there were severe symptoms indicating, Dr. Esselstyn's 20+ years of peer-reviewed research (and to a similar degree, Dr. Ornish's) have shown heart disease can be reversed, and in theory, prevented.  Esselstyn has successfully treated over 250 patients.  Armstrong might easily have been (or be) one of them. 

Heart Disease is the #1 killer of people in our country as well as the world.  Some 800,000 people in the United States died of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in 2008, according to the recent 2012 study by the American Heart Association. Every 39 seconds, someone in this country has a stroke. Some fifty percent of those who have heart attacks showed NO symptoms beforehand that they had a physiological problem indicating that they were potentially in serious trouble.

As a nation, we are spending incredible numbers of billions of dollars NOT trying to cure heart disease, but slow it down. Yet, it's been established that through changes in diet and lifestyle, heart disease can be reversed, something the surgeons and cardiac specialists have not been able to do.

How sad.  I remember John F. Kennedy challenging this Nation to the goal of putting a man (well, person) on the Moon by the end of the decade. There was this collective thrill and spirit amongst the populace, even through the turbulent late 1960s, that we can do this, and that we will. It wasn't a question of "would we," but "when." We'd find a way, it was important. That goal, that challenge worthy of a Nation's attention and resources was met, and it took a special vision of and trust in human tenacity, spirit, and resourcefulness, that it could and would be met.

So, why haven't we done the same thing regarding cardiovascular heart disease?  We've spent billions defending ourselves against illusionary terrorist attacks, yet so little in fighting an enemy we know fully well how to defeat.

"Neil's pioneering spirit will surely serve him well in this challenging time, and the entire NASA Family is holding the Armstrong family in our thoughts and prayers..." [NASA Administrator]

In my opinion, his pioneering spirit would serve the entire world much better in these challenging times if he were to adopt Dr. Esselstyn's lifestyle recommendations as has former President Bill Clinton, and help set an example of what must be done on a larger scale if we as a population are to survive this unnecessary epidemic.  He could encourage a "new vision" of health predicated upon a truly healthy dietary lifestyle, one that would contribute to not only reversing Heart Disease, but Type II Diabetes, Obesity, Alzheimer's Disease, and a host of other degenerative disorders that are primarily lifestyle-based.  There could be a new national goal of getting really really serious about dealing with this needless biological degradation of our health on a national level.

Why not a full-on collective and honest effort on the part of government, institutions, and our general populace, to beat down these paper tigers, these avoidable "food borne illnesses" as many believe they are, with realistic and proven approaches to true health?  A heartfelt and honest National Health Dialogue might take place as to what needs to be done.  We could marshall our best talent and resources with the goal of untangling the financial, political, and corporate gordian knots that are killing us in increasing numbers.

We are capable of collectively striving towards and achieving a true "giant dietary leap for mankind." How sad it would be to have reached so high as a society only to trip over our own dietary myopia, ignorance, and political apathy, and die like lemmings jumping off a known clift.

Let's tell the politicos running for office this year that although Medicare, the Deficit, and Taxes are serious issues, our Health is the most important.  What do they propose to do to help further our ability to life longer and healthier lives, and eliminate these Paper Tigers? How will they help us eliminate these lifestyle diseases instead of continuing to get money from Corporate Lobbyists to look the other way?  When will they take into account the incredible financial burden our nutritionally dysfunctional ways is imposing on Health Care and engage in the real debates regarding government expenditures?

Social media is much more powerful than is generally recognized, and it's time to put those resources to a greater good then following some media manufactured pop icon.  

Vote with your dollar, your voice, your Facebook Wall, your tweets, your texting, and demand realistic discussions of the situation, what must be done, and actions to see it happen.  We can all be heroes and manifest the real pioneering spirit that would usher in a true "giant leap for all mankind."

Contact your representatives, the media, those in power, and demand attention to the real problems threatening our existence. We need to take control of our "Dietary Destiny," both as individuals and as a society.  We need to do it now.

 

"I Dropped Dead..." A Surprising Book Review on Amazon

I just read this review of my book while getting info from Amazon for a website wanting to sell it.  The first few words stunned me and I thought it was a gag or slam review.  It's legit, and I'm very gratified.  One of my key goals in writing "Heart Healthy Pizza" was to help people be/eat healthier.  How cool that it's been so useful to him! 

"I dropped dead on a tennis court (and was lucky enough to be playing against a team with a cardiologist who did world class cpr for 12 minutes until a rescue squad arrived to shock me back to life). It took me about 30 seconds post-op from my bypass to adopt Caldwell Esselstyn's vegan cardiac disease reversal program. Though I ate a "good" diet most of the time, I was addicted to cheese pizzas for my whole (almost foreshortened) life. This book is a treasure. The visuals of the pizza are appetizing and valid relative to the finished product. The taste of the recipes I have undertaken is great. The nutrition is miraculous for a so-called comfort food. Thank you, Mark Sutton, for your tour de force collection of no oil vegan gourmet pizza. Incidentally, I run 10 k's, complete duathlons, and play USTA team tennis at the age of 64 on the Esselstyn diet." --- R.S.

 

Photos: 3 Heart Healthy Pizzas for Vegan Potluck Picnic

A photo collage of the 3 "Heart Healthy Pizzas" I made for the Vegan Potluck Picnic yesterday. Over 70 people scheduled to show.  I showed up 2/3 of the way through, and judging from what was left, probably more than that showed up.  Lots of incredible food, great people, and a fine time was had by all. Made these pies before the event, and that too, was an interesting learning experience in logistics! Two of the pies are pretty much from my cookbook, one (circular) was an experiment I'll post the recipe for sometime soon: 8 chopped raw veggies sprinkled with balsamic vinegar and roasted sesame seeds on top of a millet/flaxseed-based "cheese-like" sauce (in book) on a Trader Joe's basil-flecked pizza dough-sourced crust. Woof.

(click on image to see full-size version - both ©2012 by Mark Sutton)

"Heart Healthy Pizza Impresses..." Bryanna Clark Grogan's Book Review

"Heart Healthy Pizza Impresses... an amazing 100+ plant-based AND fat-free pizzas to please vegans who don't use oils and fats, and their (probably skeptical) families... I ask you-- does that pizza look good or what? It WAS good, and that is high praise from me, because I am very picky about pizza..."

Wow!  I'm so excited!  Bryanna Clark Grogan published her review of my cookbook ("Heart Healthy Pizza").  Her cookbooks have had such impact on me for over 2 decades. So proud. Her opinion means so much to me.

The Review is posted at:http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/07/heart-healthy-pizza-impresses.html 

©2012 by Bryanna Clark Grogan