Look at what is going on at Elaine"s Healthy Choice!!!!
Heart Healthy dish selections that feels as good to your soul when you eat as it is to look at when your meal is served on your plate. Come and share some good feelings and great food, at our place. Don't forget you are never so close to home as when you are at our place. See You soon (like today okay!!!)
It's been a long time since I've done anything explicitly for my health. I don't pay attention to calorie counts and I don't always make the wisest leisure decisions. So, if you're like me and you've zipped down Whalley Avenue and spotted the sign for the new Elaine's Healthy Choice, there's a good chance you've thought, "Like hell I'm gonna make the healthy choice." Your loss. Elaine's Healthy Choice, a vegan Jamaican take-out joint that claims to use no animal products in its cooking, serves up the sort of food one might call "incidentally healthy" — hearty stuff with well-balanced flavors, food that sticks to one's ribs. If it happens to be healthy, that's just details.
While I was chatting with the friendly woman behind the counter (not Elaine — she was picking up fresh supplies, a good sign) and goofing with Elaine's adorable small son and daughter (hanging out behind the counter), a man with a Jamaican accent came in for a small order of split pea soup. Pulling the cup out of his bag, he commented almost indignantly about its $4 price. "You go up the Boulevard, you get it like this" — he motioned to a point a couple inches above the cup's rim — "for $3," he said. He took a long sip. "Mm," he said. "I'm not complaining." Another sip. "Tell her she should use a bigger cup, but I'm not complaining." I took that as a cue and asked for a cup of the same soup. And, I should note, the woman working the counter filled up his cup with more soup at no extra charge.
He was right: There's no complaining about the split pea soup (all soups are $4 small, $6 large). Big, soft chunks of potato and hunks of carrot added texture, but the slightly peppery broth was so thick it would be fine alone. I dipped a spoon in, and not only did the broth pile high on top of the spoon, it clung to the bottom, too. It came with a roll (fresh baked daily in-house), but the soup was so thick and rich I didn't see the point in dipping. On its own, the roll was hearty, fresh, soft and sweetened just enough.
The entrées (all $6.95 small, $8.95 large) sampled were equally warming and substantial. The "steak" pieces were tender, not chewy. Its seasonings were mellow but still bore a zest most evident in its aftertaste. The "chicken" pieces might almost be mistaken for chicken, with a similar texture and with each chunk wrapped in a gooey, buttery-tasting "skin." Spiced similarly mellow, it tasted remarkably rich for a vegan concoction — between that and the saltiness of the "steak" there was no way I'd expect either of these offerings to be "healthy" if I didn't know beforehand. And they were quite filling: Entrées are served with rice and beans, a simple and lightly seasoned combination that feels rustically hearty on its own but certainly benefits from being mixed in with the sauces in which the fake-meat pieces are cooked.
Even though I'd skipped lunch that day, I felt full after a small cup of soup and half of a small entrée. It's easy to keep chowing, though — while Elaine's doesn't deliver the spicy kick a lot of Jamaican food does, it also avoids the habit of some Jamaican eateries of going oppressively heavy on the salt. This stuff goes down smoothly. (Perhaps more so than the printed sheet that came in the take-out bag, explaining how medicinal drugs are a poor remedy for disease. I appreciate this concern for my well-being, but I'll get my Jamaican food from a Jamaican restaurant and my medical advice from a doctor. No offense. The vegetarian pepper steak was way yummy.)
That evening the only dessert available was the carob chip cookies. I munched slowly, after downing a meal that made me feel fortified enough to split firewood. It had a thick, bready texture and was only slightly sweet. I saved half for later. Incidentally, the next morning, it made an excellent breakfast treat, with its wholesome texture and lightly nutty undertones.
One-page menu and tiny parking lot notwithstanding, Elaine's is worth checking out if you're interested in any combination of health, vegetarianism and Jamaican food. Elaine's eats make you feel like you're doing something indulgent. Afterwards, they make you feel like you've actually done something good for yourself. Healthy? Sure. But incidentally.
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 | veggie burgers such as: Boca’s Vegan Original • Gardenburger's GardenVegan • Amy's California Burger and Texas Burger • & Yves Veggie Original |
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While the typical vegan diet is much healthier than a typical diet that includes animal products, most vegetarians and vegans could improve their health even more by following the tips below.
 | Include a source of B12 in your diet. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Vegetables are not reliable sources of B12. It is essential to include a B12 supplement in your diet or eat foods that are fortified with B12. Luckily, it's easy to incorporate B12 into your diet. Good sources of B12 include:
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 | Consume More Omega 3's, Less Omega 6's | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Vegan sources of Omega 3's fall into two main categories: ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) - found in flax seeds, walnuts, chia seeds, and a few other plants DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) - found in algae There is also an Omega 3 chain called EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) which we will not discuss since our bodies can efficiently convert ALA or DHA into EPA. ALA Flax seeds are one of the richest sources of ALA. For maximum absorbtion, flax seeds should be ground up in a blender or coffee grinder, then added to smoothies or sprinkled on top of other foods. Flax seeds are also rich in protein, potassium, magnesium, boron, and lignans, which may help prevent cancer. You can also buy just the flax oil, but it can go rancid quickly, so the seeds are usually a better choice. The seeds also have additional nutritional properties not found in the oil. DHA Our bodies convert the ALA found in flax seeds into DHA. However, some people's bodies may not efficiently convert the ALA to DHA. It can also be difficult for some people to consume enough ALA to achieve ideal DHA levels. For these reasons, we recommend consuming both ALA (in the form of flax seeds, walnuts, etc.) and also a vegan DHA supplement (derived from algae). Here are a few popular vegan DHA supplements: Omega 6's While most vegetarians don't consume enough of the Omega 3 fatty acids, they usually consume too much of the Omega 6 fatty acids. Consuming too many Omega 6's interferes with your body's ability to absorb the Omega 3's. Therefore, limit your intake of corn, sunflower, safflower, and "vegetable" oils. It is best to limit the amount of oil you add to your foods, but if you do add oil, use olive or canola instead.
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 | Eat your greens! | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Check out these videos for preparation ideas: With greens, don't skimp on portion size. Think BIG. The more you eat, the better!
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 | Calcium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Walter Willett [M.D., Ph.D., of Harvard Medical School] states the problem elegantly: "If no one really knows the best daily calcium target, then why not play it safe and boost your calcium by drinking three glasses of milk a day? Here are five good reasons: lactose intolerance, saturated fat, extra calories, a possible increased risk of prostate cancer, and a possible increased risk of ovarian cancer." So if dairy is not the best choice for both health and ethical reasons, then what should we turn to? If you follow the previous tip, "Eat Your Greens!", you should be doing a pretty good job on calcium intake. Let's take a look at some high calcium vegan foods:
If you have difficulty incorporating calcium-rich foods into your diet, you can also opt for a calcium supplement.
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 | Vitamin D | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Americans get most of their vitamin D through sunshine and fortified foods. But many Americans spend so much time indoors that they don't get enough sunlight for their bodies to produce enough Vitamin D. This is particularly problematic for dark skinned individuals, whose bodies do not convert sunlight to vitamin D as efficiently as those with lighter skin. It is also more problematic during the Winter and in high latitude regions.
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 | Pay Attention to Iodine (particularly if you live in the UK) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Iodine is sometimes found in plant foods, but it is an inconsistent source. The amount of iodine in the plant foods varies greatly depending on the soil it was grown in. The most reliable vegan sources of iodine are: Vegans in the United States can get the iodine they need by consuming one-fourth teaspoon of iodized salt per day. Nursing mothers may want to consume three-fourths of a teaspoon, due to greater iodine needs. Note that the salt found in processed foods is frequently not iodized, so we're talking about adding iodized table salt (read the label to make sure it has the word "iodized"). If you want to limit your salt intake (which is not a bad idea), consider taking an iodine supplement instead. In the United Kingdom, most of the salt is not iodized. Not only that, but much of the soil in the UK has low levels of iodine. As a result, iodine deficiency is much more common among vegans in the UK. Vegans in the UK, or in any other country where iodized salt is not regularly consumed, should be extra careful to include an iodine supplement, or consume seaweed at least several times per week. Check out the UK Vegan's Society's page on iodine for more information.
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 | Include beans or lentils in your diet. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This food group is particularly important for women, who are at a higher risk of anemia. Check out these videos for some preparation ideas:
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 | Choose whole foods over processed foods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Foods in their most natural form are usually more nutritious than processed foods. This is particularly true with the case of grains. Refined grains go through a milling process that strips the food of much of its fiber and nutrients. Some of these nutrients are added back, but even after the enrichment process, the end products has just a fraction of it's original nutritional value. Whole grains, on the other hand, are grains that haven't gone through this process, and still contain their nutritous bran and germ.
Foods that are rich in these phytonutrients are sometimes called "superfoods" because of their strong potential for disease prevention. Often times, the phytonutrient can actually be seen in the pigment of these fruits and vegetables. Therefore, it is a good idea to choose brightly colored foods, as these foods tend to be higher in phytonutrients. In other words, eat the rainbow. Examples of phytonutrient-rich foods:
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 | Exercise! | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Get inspired by vegan athletes such as:
And for resources on vegan sports training, check out:
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 | Be a Happy Vegan! | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Don't underestimate the power your attitude has on both your mental and physical health. Sometimes, it can be frustrating to be a vegan in a non-vegan world, but maintaining a positive attitude is essential for both ourselves and the lives of animals.
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Photos courtesy of: digiyesica, gogakuhei, rogersmith, chenjack
B12 protects the nervous system. Without it, permanent damage can result. B12 can also lower 
Most people consume too much fat, but few people get enough of the healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. 
Dark leafy greens are one of the healthiest foods on the planet. They are loaded with vitamins, fiber, and 
Most people think of dairy as the best source of calcium. Dairy products are high in calcium, but they also carry their own set of health problems (not to mention 
Another factor for bone health is Vitamin D, which regulates calcium absorption. Vitamin D may also play a role in cancer prevention. 
Iodine is needed for healthy thyroid function which regulates metabolism. Both too much or too little iodine can result in abnormal thyroid metabolism. 
Some vegetarians tend to ignore the Beans/Lentils/Legumes food group. While it is possible to construct a healthy vegetarian diet without beans or lentils, most vegetarians could benefit from the protein, iron, 
Scientists are now learning that many plants have naturally 
Be sure to exercise at least 3 times a week. 