Hello Michele,

I am hoping some others will also discuss what they eat. But, I want to let you know that there are many ways to follow the dietary advice here and still have very unique dietary preferences.  We are not really strong on recipes on this site as we tend ourselves to eat very simply. But, there are MANY great recipe sites now available for Whole Food Plant Based No Oil living (WFPBNO). There is a ton of variety.  

I can speak for Dr. Carney and myself here. We shop once a week and do a little loop through town purchasing vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and occastional nuts and seeds. We shop primarily at ethnic markets. But, many people who live on a WFPBNO diet shop primarly at their local supermarket. Every supermarket has a Health Food section whether they realize it or not. That section is called the "Produce Section". This is the primary place to shop. :-)

The markets we shop at are as follows:

Asian Market: We purchase starch based roots there like Yuca, Taro, Sweet Potatoes, kabocha squash, plantains, hawaiian purple sweet potatoes and leafy green vegetables like bok choy and others. We also purchase the occastional fresh tofu there but that is a rare purchase. And, we purchase dried mushrooms there as well as chinese dried fungus and fresh Thai bananas, jackfruit and other tropical fruits in season such as lychees, persimmons, mangoes, etc...

Indian Market: We purchase Indian okra, cauliflower, cilantro, many varieties of dried beans, papayas, mangoes, chayote, asian eggplant, plantains, and spices like fennel, cumin, fenugreek, and more. 

Mexican Market: We purchase plantains, papayas, mangoes, cilantro, chayotes, nopalitos, onions, pineapple, mangoes, and other tropical fruits and vegetables including potatoes. 

The reason we shop at the ethnic markets is that they tend to have fresher produce and cheaper prices because they sell a larger volume of the foods we love to eat. 

Sprouts: This is our go to store for organic, and inorganic fruits and vegetables. 

Costco: We purchase four pound bags of fresh frozen organic fruits here: Mangoes, Cherries, Pineapple, Blueberries, Berry Blends, etc.. And, we also purchase Cauliflower that is ground up in the cooler section and large bags of romaine lettuce and large bags of organic carrots. We also purchase fresh berries like blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc.. here.  Costco is also a good place to purchase quinoa and black beans. There are a few other things we sometimes buy there like unsweetened dried fruit. And,for the very occastiional treat some fresh dates. 

Whole Foods: This is our favorite place to purchase organic sweet potatoes. We like the Japanese yams and the Hanna yams best. We also buy Pome tomatoe in cartons as either strained or chopped. There is only one ingredient in Pome tomatoes which is tomatoes. They are a very good product. These are also available at Sprouts. Another thing we purchase here that is also available at Sprouts is bottles of organic lemon and lime juice we we like to use in our cooking. Using lemon or lime can at a little bite to food and make us not miss that we don't really salt our food.  

Central Market: (upscale superrmarket) This is my favorite place to purchase apples. They have all kinds of apples and they often have more than one type of sale, so we experiment with the different varieties. We love apples. They are also a good place to purchase sweet potatoes and they have a lot of leafy green vegetables. 

Trader Joes: We buy rice pasta here because their price is excellent and we purchase polenta and rice cakes for when we travel. We also purchase dried fruits which we like to rehydrate before eating. Sometimes we just put the rehydrated fruits into a food processor and whiz them up creamy and eat them like a fruit pudding. This is also where we purchase green olives which we eat occasionally and generally do serve when we are trying to have some higher fat options on the table for times when patients and others might join us for lunch. 

This is not a definitive list but it shows pretty much what we buy. I have to let you know that we know many people who eat WFPBNO that do not shop and eat all the same foods as us but they do eat well. 

The trick to thriving on a WFPBNO diet is to surround yourself with food. Simple foods that you love should go with you everywhere. Do not let yourself arrive hungry where unhealthy foods will be readily available. We try encourage people to eat a LARGE breakfast of satisying foods like Beans, Greens, Squash, Yams, other Starchie Vegetables, Whole Grains, etc...   Then pack up leftovers and take them with you for your lunch.  Once you get a good breakfast and a good lunch it will be very easy not to give in to temptations and to be able to last until your next meal. 

Then we encourage people to eat a very light supper in the evening and try to finish eating by 6:00 PM so you have plenty of time to digest your food before going to sleep. This will give a more resful sleep and you will wake up refreshed and hungry enough to eat a large breakfast. 

I hope this is a good conversation starting post. 

Sean

PS. Regarding Coffee: Coffee is not our friend. It is an addictive substance with harmful side effects so we do not encourage its use. But, at this point we are more concerned with getting rid of meat, dairy, eggs and oil from the diet. 

Check out this page: https://www.drcarney.com/starch-smart-system/beans-greens-squash-and-yams

I am using the Starch Smartest plan. I usually rotate my starches--using brown rice, white potatoes, oats, and sweet potatoes (all on different days). Sometimes I will make burgers with beans and intact grains (like rice, oatmeal, quinoa)--they cook up nicely on nonstick pans. I also run a whole food plant based cooking club where we cook with no oil. I have recipes at my website if you'd like to take a look. Check out http://newstarthealthbites.com

Hello! 

So happy you're on this site.

Sean's reply is an excellent resource. Like him and Linda,  I tend to eat simply and follow Linda's guidance.

That means I start each day with greens (steamed kale, or collards, or a big salad), yams  (sweet potatoes), and beans. It's very filling and I find I don't get very hungry until late afternoon.

At that point I typically eat a couple pounds of roasted vegetables (mushrooms, peppers, zuchini, onions, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, and the like), along with potatoes or rice. Then a couple kinds of fruit.

A couple times a week I have oatmeal (cold in the summer and hot in the winter), with berries and walnuts.

I dress my greens, potatoes, etc. with a good vegan cheese sauce or salsa or berry vinegrette.

Eating this way allowed me to trim down to my ideal weight and maintain it easily.  I also have thyroid disease that is well managed and I'm asymptomatic.  I was never hungry while dropping my excess weight. I love that i don't measure (unless I'm making a recipe) or count calories and can I eat until I'm satisfied.

I hope you'll find and join the ATX Alive Facebook group. There's also an excellent plant-based cooking class the second Thursday of every month at the Buda YMCA. It's taught by Chef Shana Brannon.

Please let me know how I can support you as you make this leap to excellent health.

Is almond milk allowed?

Yes. All plant milks are all fine to use. They are considered a minimally processed food.

Thanks for the question.  :-)

Sara

Hi Michelle. 

In response to your question about what foods do I normally buy:

I like to stick to the four plant-based food groups: fruits, vegetables, whole grains & legumes (beans, peas & lentils).

I rarely use a recipe anymore because I usually just chop up some vegetables into a pot with some whole grain (like brown rice), cook them in just enough water to do the amount of grain until they are soft with some herbs and/or spices that I like.  Cooking the veggies in with the whole grain makes a quick, easy meal.

If I haven't had any beans yet that day, just before serving, I add some cooked beans, peas or lentils that I have cooked in large batches separarely and keep frozen in convenient quantities.  The result is what we call a "stoop": a soup that is as thick as a stew!  LOL

I have some fruit while I'm making the meal usually, so that way I get all 4 food groups in a meal.  :-)

It's super simple and every meal is an adventure.  They always taste good because the food itself tastes good.  

I use recipes when we have company or a special occasiona but mostly, just "winging it" works.  I know you said you need recipes.  I wondering if maybe you try just cooking-by-chance a bit, you may discover that you have a hidden talent.  :-)

In case you would like to try some recipes too, here are a nice bunch. 

https://beansriceeverythingnice.weebly.com/recipe-index.html

Happy plant-based eating!  

A stoop!   That's a great word and I can see that catching on.  :-)