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Preparing Delicious Plant-Based Meals Is Easy

A plant-based diet can be fun, colorful, and easy, with no cooking skill required. For a quick and healthy meal, throw a bunch of healthy plant foods into a bowl, enjoy, and store the remainder in the refrigerator for up to five days. 1. Start with a leafy green (e.g., kale, arugula, spinach, or cabbage). 2. Add two or more vegetables (e.g., tomatoes, carrots, celery, broccoli, cucumbers, or radishes). 3. Dice or mince in an allium (e.g., green onions, white onions, or garlic). 4. Add a legume (e.g., cooked lentils, chickpeas, soybeans, black beans, or kidney beans). 5. Sprinkle nuts or seeds (e.g., crushed walnuts, almonds, flax seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, or chia seeds). 6. Add a healthy fat (e.g., avocado, olives, extra virgin olive

oil, hummus, or a plant-based dressing). 7. Add sliced fresh or canned mushrooms.

Environmental Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet

Reducing the amount of animal products one eats, even without giving them up entirely, can have a big impact on the environment, human welfare, and animal welfare. Raising animals for meat, dairy, and eggs is more resource-intensive and polluting than raising plants for food—even when one considers that producing plant food at scale usually involves pesticides, fertilizers, and machinery.

Chapter 1: The Many Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet

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