Plant-Based Diet Archives - Jovanka Ciares

Vegan Keto Diet – Is it possible? Is It Healthy?

My clients keep asking me about the ketogenic diet and whether it is healthy.

More importantly, they (and I) want to know if you can do keto and still follow a plant-based, whole foods, vegan diet.

Here’s my take on the keto craze and a vegan version of a keto diet.

1^st effect

Anyone eating a plant whole foods diet with no white crap, sugars and junk will get into a mild ketogenic state

2nd effect

Intermittent fasting – can also put you in a mild ketosis state

13-16 hrs without solids

3rd effect

Exercise can help you achieve a mild ketogenic state

fat moves faster out when moving regularly

less free radicals = more longevity

Produce Market Visit

Today, my friend Raul and I went to a produce market to get fruit and veggies at dirty cheap prices….

No, not a farmer’s market. This is an outdoor produce market: the market in LA where restaurants and food markets get their produce. These types of markets exist on every major city (even mid-size cities) and it is a great place to discover amazing fruit and vegetables that you may not know about (or re-discover oldies but goodies).

Most of these markets sell in bulk and at less than wholesale prices (we got a box of 16 mangoes for $5 or about $.31 cents per mango. That’s 3-5 times cheaper than in a regular market.

Check out our tour here:

I encourage you to find them in your home town and visit your local produce market. Get a couple of friends, pool your cash together and buy enzyme-filled, super yummy foods for a fraction!

What a Health Coach Eats, Winter Edition

I often get asked what I eat in a day and the answer to that question is “it depends”. I eat differently in winter than in summer and regularly check with my alternative medicine practitioners to check for imbalances and nutrient deficiency.

Having said that, you can still follow some simple basic principles to help your body feel its best regardless of the time of the year.

Here’s what a health coach (moi) eats during winter!

Now, below the video, tell me: do you eat for the seasons? What are you eating these days and how does your body feel? Let me know in the comments below!

Gluten Free Open Avocado Toast

I love bread! There, I admit it! It’s fantastic, it’s comforting and it can be very healthy! I often choose gluten free, multi grain bread made by local bakers and using sustainably sourced ingredients.

One of my favorite snacks, light lunches or even dinners is a simple open avocado toast on gluten free bread. This ridiculously simple dish has just 3 ingredients, takes 5 mins to prepare and has over 10 grams of protein.

Click on the video below to see how!

Oh, and here are the ingredients, just for your enjoyment!

1 avocado
1 small tomato, firm
3-4 fresh basil leaves
olive oil to taste
Himalayan pink salt to taste
Juice of ½ a lemon

Enjoy!

Is Leaky Gut Caused by Grains?

Vegetarian or Vegan and with Food sensitivities? Listen on!

So much has been said about grains causing leaky gut. Is it true? Why are we suffering from leaky gut and other gut problems when people have been eating grains for thousands of years {seemingly} without issues. What’s a healthy eater to do?!

I tried to answer these and other question on today’s video. So click on over below to learn more!

What do you think? Still planning on shying away form grains? Trying something new? Let me know in the comments below!

The ONE Thing That Helped Me Heal From IBS

Have you heard about the incredible health benefits of L-glutamine?

The most common uses of glutamine pare to lose weight fast, burn fat and build muscle. But we now also know that this powerful animo acid is very helpful in treating leaky gut and improving my symptoms of IBS.

That’s why I used it and still continue to supplement on it.

How does L-Glutamine benefit your digestive health? Check out the video below!

And btw, Veggies high in L –Glutamine include Spirulina, Chinese Cabbage, Asparagus and Broccoli Raab… enjoy!

Vegan Raw Chocolate Mousse

What do you do when on the go and in need of some fun superfood cacao treat? A raw vegan chocolate mousse of course! I’m making this treat on my Nutribullet so if I can do it on a tiny blender, so can you! Check out the video for my simple (on the go) and totally yummy recipe for a vegan chocolate mousse:

What I love the most about this recipe is that it’s filled with antioxidants, healthy fats, micronutrients and none of the bad stuff in commercial chocolates!

INGREDIENTS

2 avocados
3/4 cup pitted dates
1/4 cup of cocoa powder
Chaga and Reishi mushroom tincture

INSTRUCTIONS

Blend until smooth
Blend until combined

high protein chia parfait jovanka ciares

Chia Pudding Parfait

This ridiculously easy and simple recipe is one I do 2-3x per week. So I wanted to share here with you my high protein chia pudding parfait! Check out the recipe in the video below:

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cups of chia seeds
1 cup of coconut milk
2 tsp coconut nectar
¼ tsp cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS

Mix it up and leave in the fridge for 4-12 hours
Add your favorite toppins – I’m adding just some nuts.

Perfect treat, easy to make, great breakfast, snack or high protein pick me up! Let know how you like it in the comments below the video!

Simple Hummus Recipe + Vegan

Last week I showed you an amazing vegan mushroom risotto recipe! If you missed that video, check it out here!

This week, I’m doing a collaboration with chef Jenne Claiborne and she is going to show you how to make the yummiest, quickest, prettiest, easiest beet hummus there is!

Go to the video and recipe below!

Enjoy the yumminess!

Interested in the videos? Check them out here:

Jenne cookbook http://www.21dayveganblueprint.com/5-ingredient-vegan-cookbook/

Jovanka’s Cookbook: https://jovankaciares.com/ebook-bundle

Vegan Mushroom Risotto Recipe

Do you like to eat healthy and enjoy recipes that are fun and tasty but hate the fact that many yummy recipes are covered in cheese and other not-so-healthy ingredients?’

Well, I have a treat for you on today’s video! A Vegan Mushroom Risotto that’s amazing and oh-so-healthy!

When I started changing my diet, I experienced the same thing. I loved creamy dips at parties and dishes like risotto but I knew how bad they were and I wasn’t interested in putting crappy ingredients in my body any longer.

That was the inspiration for my first cookbook e-book, “COOK!”. One of my favorite recipes on this e-book is this vegan risotto recipe that I created with my friend Jenne Claiborne of Sweet Potato Soul.

Check Out the Books Here:

Jenne cookbook http://www.21dayveganblueprint.com/5-ingredient-vegan-cookbook/

Jovanka’s Cookbook: https://jovankaciares.com/ebook-bundle

Best Way To Flavor Water

So we need water to survive and we are also always told to have supplement this and drink herb that for better health. So I’ve found a really awesome way to combine the 2!

My herbal professor used to say never drink water alone, add herbs to get all the benefits and healing properties of the herbs. Perfect way to kill 2 birds with 1 stone. Here are the favorite things I add to my water every day.

Cinnamon

It’s warming to the body and delicious in flavor and also awesome for you too. It is loaded with minerals, including manganese and calcium, and contains essential oils with potent anti-inflammatory properties.

Apple cider vinegar

Great at regulating the body’s acidity (pH) levels, easing digestive discomfort, relieving heartburn, helping to prevent seasonal illness, and reducing inflammation.

Fennel

Fennel is sweet and aromatic and can help those who need to have something sweet or are used to sweet drinks with meals. Fennel is known to have antioxidant, digestive, carminative, and anti-flatulent properties. So great to take after a heavy meal and when you feel gassy.

Black Salt

Not the crappy table salt but a pinch of the unprocessed, amazing salt that have lots of trace minerals that a lot of us are deficient in.

Mint Leaves

Everybody loves mint. And we are perfectly familiar with it. But did you know that as a palate cleanser, mint can help you better digest your food? It also soothes stomachs and help reduce inflammation

Sage

This is really high in antioxidants so it can help protect your cells from damage caused by free radicals, which often results in impaired immunity, and chronic disease. People in the Caribbean use it to shorten the length of a cold and heal laryngitis.

Smoothie Recipes For Weight Loss

This is one of the easiest smoothie recipes for weight loss. But it can be done as a juice or a smoothie (retaining the fiber). It’s a truly awesome recipe to help you burn fat from around the belly, increase your metabolism and lose weight.

As a smoothie, I normally use it as my breakfast, and if you make it as a juice (with a high power juicer that eliminates the fiber), you can have it in the morning, on an empty stomach and then have a healthy, high-protein mid-morning snack, like hummus.

Check out the short, fun video and recipe below:

Get The Boku Protein Powder Here

Get The Lakanto Sweetener Here

Recipe Below:

1 cup frozen unsweetened raspberries
3/4 cup chilled unsweetened coconut milk
½ cup of blueberries

2 TSP of Boku Protein Powder (vegan)
1 inch fresh ginger
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1 TSP Lakanto sweetener (optional)

2-3 ice cubes, optional

Best Natural Sugar Substitute

What is the best natural sugar substitute in the market? I’m always looking for healthy alternatives, researching and trying new ingredients to share with you here. Sugar, who we now know it to be pretty dangerous and bad for our health is also one of the most consumed substances on earth. Sugar is everywhere and we are all a little addicted to sugar. And unfortunately, it is making us really sick and unhappy in the process.

So, while I strongly recommend you to limit your sugar intake to whole, fresh fruit in the morning, what about those instances when you absolutely, positively MUST has a little sugar? Or perhaps you need an alternative for a recipe?

Check out the video below to learn what it is and why it’s so awesome!

Get It On Amazon Here

This new sugar option who is a great natural sugar substitute is also one of the best sugars for diabetic people. Diabetic patients can use this sugar for many reasons. But first, let me show you what it is!

Lakanto is a zero calorie and zero GI alternative sweetener that can be used as an equal replacement to sugar in recipes. Lakanto is made from fermented erythritol, which is the sugar alcohol found in grapes, pears & mushrooms, to name a few. It is also extracted from his Asian fruit called the luo han guo fruit.

Lakanto as I mentioned is excellent for diabetics, people with candida or anyone looking for a healthier option to sugar because of it’s zero GI, so it doesn’t raise your sugar levels.

I bought this one on Amazon but you can get it in most health food stores in many parts of the world.

How To Become Vegetarian or Vegan

Interested in a transition to vegetarian or vegan? Overwhelmed about the prospect? Here are my tips on how to become vegan without feeling deprived!

Go to the video below!

And feel free to share my new fun Infographic below!

Share / Comment / Enjoy!

The Blue Zones Project Review

Have you heard of the Blue Zones? A guy named Dan Buettner started following people in certain pockets of the world to live well into their 80’s and 90’s with lots of vitality, happiness and strength. I checked out their research and I’m sharing my findings here on this video. This will definitely surprise you!

**Make sure to scroll all the way down, to get access to the newest infographic! Print it, save it, share it!

Now tell me, did you know about this book and the research? If not, which of their “longevity clues” are you willing to implement into your lifestyle today? Let me know in the comments below!

And check out the new infographic here!

Hover over the image to share it on social media!