May 2, 2025 • 45 mins
Forget everything you thought you knew about salads. In this energizing conversation with Danielle of Healthy Girl Kitchen (@healthygirlkitchen), we unpack how salads can be transformed from sad side dishes into vibrant, satisfying meals that fuel your body and delight your taste buds.
Danielle shares her compelling journey from college student plagued with health issues to plant-based advocate with over 12 million followers across social media. The turning point? Discovering how dramatically her diet affected her energy, digestion, skin, and overall wellbeing. What began as experimentation in her dorm room—with nothing but a microwave and determination—evolved into a mission to help others experience similar transformations through accessible, delicious plant-centered meals.
We dive deep into the secrets of creating truly satisfying salads that won't leave you hungry an hour later. From incorporating protein-packed grains and legumes to the strategic addition of healthy fats and complex carbs, Danielle breaks down the formula for salads that serve as complete meals. You'll learn why your homemade dressings aren't emulsifying properly (hint: that coffee frother in your drawer has a second purpose!) and how hummus can transform into the creamiest dairy-free dressing base you've ever tasted.
The conversation explores highlights from Danielle's new cookbook "Life-Changing Salads," including warm salads perfect for winter months, grain-based options that travel well, and creative no-lettuce alternatives that won't wilt in your fridge. With 75 recipes designed for real people with busy lives, this cookbook stands apart with its accessibility, allergy-friendly options, and focus on ingredients you can actually find at regular grocery stores.
Whether you're a self-proclaimed "big salad friend" or someone who's been disappointed by too many bland, unsatisfying greens, this episode will revolutionize your approach to healthy eating. Because as Danielle proves, you don't have to choose between food that tastes amazing and food that makes you feel amazing—you can absolutely have both.
Subscribe to our podcast for more conversations about intentional hospitality, and check out lifechangingsalads.com to pre-order Danielle's cookbook before its April release!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I'm your big salad friend, it's true.
If you go out to eat with me,I'm getting a salad as big as my
head and I'm eating every lastbite without any regret.
I've always been that way,since I was a teenager and first
started to love salads.
I wanted them loaded with notjust boring toppings, but the
good ones.
(00:20):
I want a hefty piece of protein.
I want a really good dressingand I am going to lick the plate
.
It's just who I am.
I love a hefty piece of protein.
I want a really good dressingand I am going to lick the plate
.
It's just who I am.
I love a good salad.
But as I've gotten older andlearned more about nutrition and
intentional eating goodness, Ihave learned just how quickly a
salad could be packed withingredients that are actually
(00:40):
doing more harm than good.
But with that, there's also away to approach a salad, on how
to make it so that every singlelast flavorful bite is fueling
your body and you aren't missinga thing.
Well, I was scrolling socialmedia as I do and looking for
some podcast guests and cameacross Healthy Girl Kitchen.
And my word, she just came outwith a new book, life-changing
(01:05):
Salads, and I was seeing thisposted everywhere.
I knew I had to have her on theshow.
Guys, this cookbook is not justa salad cookbook.
It is quite literally alife-changing salad cookbook.
This has recipes for everyonein your life, from those that
eat dairy-free.
If you have a friend that'sfocused more on protein, vegan,
(01:28):
vegetarian, I mean everything inone book and every single bite,
I kid you not, is stunning,which I really appreciate.
I love beauty in every part ofmy life and also so crave-worthy
.
Well, if you do not know whoHealthy Girl Kitchen is, head on
over to socials, literally anysocial.
(01:49):
She has millions of followers,diehard, loyal fans that follow
her and support her in all thatshe does.
You're going to hear more abouther story in the episode today.
But, guys, this conversation isso fun, so so fun, with our new
friend Danielle as we celebratethe launch of her newest
(02:09):
cookbook and, quite literally, acookbook that is going to
change your life as well.
Well, this episode is brought toyou by us at Gather just in
time for Mother's Day and justin time for spring and summer
hospitality, and we want to comealongside you.
Picture us like a privateteacher in your kitchen on
demand, anytime you need us, asyou are getting ready to host,
(02:33):
we would love to come alongsideyou to teach you how to style,
plate and prepare, specifically,charcuterie and cake decorating
for your gatherings.
You see them on social media.
You want to know how to makethem and we are going to take
all the skills that we learnedthrough trial and error we did
all the learning so you don'thave to and teach you the skills
(02:54):
that work.
So if you are looking to make anaked cake, a rosette cake, if
you are looking to make a fruitand nut charcuterie board or
maybe something a little bitmore sweet, like our romantique
that has chocolate and salamiall on the same board, we want
to come alongside you and makeit fun, make it easy and give
you the confidence to host.
(03:14):
Head on over to our website,gatherintentionallivingcom, and
head on over to our pre-recordedworkshops.
And head on over to ourpre-recorded workshops you
should see them pretty clearlylisted on the website and use
code HEALTHYGIRL H-E-A-L-T.
Oh my gosh, you guys know howto spell it, I'm not going to
spell it HEALTHYGIRL one wordfor 50% off the full package of
(03:39):
all the workshops or $9.99 aclass.
We will see you there.
Hi, I'm Katie, a hospitalityeducator and the host of Making
Room by Gather podcast, I am setto see our communities get back
to the table throughhospitality, but it wasn't
always this way.
My husband and I moved toThailand and through it I
(04:00):
experienced some loneliness andwith it I was given a choice to
sit back and accept it or to dosomething about it, and for me,
that meant two things that Ineeded the healing to learn how
to accept an invitation and theconfidence to know how to extend
one.
Through this process, Ideveloped some of the richest
and deepest relationships of mylife.
(04:22):
Through Making Room by Gather,you will hear conversations from
myself and experts in the areasof food, design and
relationships.
You see there are countlessthings trying to keep us from
the table, but can I tell yousomething?
Take a seat, because you areready, you are capable, you are
a good host.
Okay, I am so excited for this.
(04:44):
It's timely.
I got an advanced copy of yourbook that I was very excited to
receive.
It was happy mail.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Oh, I'm so glad you got one.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
Yeah, and you know it was funny.
They told me they were likethese, like just came out.
Did you get yours yet?
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I got mine yeah.
Okay, you literally are theonly person besides me and my
editor who has a book, youshould feel super special.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
I know I kind of wanted to be a little protective
and almost text you and say didyou open yours first?
Speaker 2 (05:10):
Because I don't want to be the very first one that's
so funny, you honestly mighthave opened it before me.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
Well, it's incredible , and we were having dinner with
a family friend last night.
We were doing a very casualpizza party and I made your
pizza party salad.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
I want all of your thoughts.
That's like my favorite salad.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
It's so fun.
So I'm an Italian background mylisteners know that and I had a
ton of like antipasto stuff onhand.
I was like this is perfect.
It was great.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
It's like the perfect like.
If you order in pizza but youstill want to like have some
veggies on the side and wantlike an amazing salad, because I
feel like sometimes casualpizza places their salads aren't
the greatest, especially ifyou're like eating more
plant-based, this is like theperfect thing to make alongside
pizza.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Absolutely so.
Question for you.
So my husband grew up pizza andchips.
We always grew up pizza andsalad.
How did you grow up?
Speaker 2 (06:02):
Pizza and chips is insane.
I've never heard of that in mylife.
What's pizza and chips?
I think that was only yourhusband's family.
I've never heard of that, Iknow.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
And you know what's funny?
He's a pretty like fit guy andI'm like if I did pizza and
chips, I would not be as fit asyou, I would not be like.
That would not work for me.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
My body type.
Why the chips?
I feel like that's not a commonpairing.
I feel like like chips withlike your Mexican taco night is
more normal.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
No, it's like it's barbecue.
Yeah, it's barbecue chips andpizza.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
So chips and pizza Okay.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Would you?
Speaker 2 (06:41):
put it on the pizza and eat it as like a crunchy
slice.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Not that's not like, that's not like the formula,
like it's not like every time,but sometimes that happens.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yep, okay Well, maybe I'll try it sometime.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
I know, yeah, if we ever get together, we'll have
both.
Colby will bring the chips,we'll have your salad, okay, so
I've been following you for alittle bit.
We were just talking about likeour kids are kind of the same
age, our sons are the same age,but people might not be familiar
with your background.
I know that I don't know thefull story.
What do you want people to knowabout your journey to 5 million
followers?
Cookbook release, like there'sdefinitely a story there.
(07:21):
So what do you want?
What do you want people to knowabout you?
Speaker 2 (07:24):
Yeah, there's a lot of people in the Healthy Girl
community.
It's crazy, like I think we'reeven up to like 12 million now
across all platforms, like 5million on Instagram, and then
we have our TikTok audience.
We have Facebook, which we havea ton of people on there as
well.
So it's just been a tremendousamount of growth in the past few
years and I truly did notpicture that I'd be here today.
(07:48):
Long story short, I always lovedeating healthy and I came from
a family that loved food.
My mom made home, cooked dinnerevery night.
If she said dinner was ready, Iwas racing down the stairs.
In five seconds I was at thetable.
I was always a member of theclean plate club.
My mom joked that she'd have tomake so much food because I was
at the table.
I was always a member of theclean plate club.
I always my mom joked that likeshe'd have to make so much food
(08:10):
because I was always eating andI just I love food, but I also
loved health.
But when I went to college, Iwent to Michigan State
University and they're known fortheir dining halls.
They're basically like mallfood courts with all you can eat
pasta, bar, pizza, bar,all-you-can-eat ice cream.
They literally haveall-you-can-eat soft serve
machines on every single cornerand while this was fun,
(08:31):
obviously I had a little toomuch fun and I just started to
feel sick after eating.
And I know I was eating a lotof dairy.
I was eating a lot of processedfoods.
I was eating meat at the timethat I had no idea where this
was coming from.
This was mystery meat from acollege dining hall.
I was eating a lot of sugar.
They literally had a stationwhere you could make an ice
(08:54):
cream sandwich and you couldpick the flavor cookie and pick
your flavor ice cream and make acustom ice cream sandwich.
So I started to feel super sickand I was very fatigued.
I was taking three hour napsevery single day when I was in
college and I also had hormonalacne.
I felt like my digestion wasjust always off.
(09:19):
I didn't feel like it wasrunning properly.
I had chronic heartburn andGERD issues with acid reflux,
and none of these things wereever addressed by a doctor I was
seeing.
So if I went and sought outhelp from a doctor like hey, I'm
having really bad chest painand heartburn, and they would
never really have an answer forme other than maybe a
(09:41):
prescription medication and Ithought I would just feel this
way for the rest of my life.
When I stumbled across aplant-based diet.
I was watching a documentarycalled Forks Over Knives and I
was seeing that people werereversing diseases like heart
disease and type 2 diabetes witha plant-based diet.
And I came to learn that aplant-based diet meant that you
(10:03):
were vegan.
And I'm like okay, vegans areweird.
This was a time where it wasn'tas mainstream.
There weren't as manydairy-free yogurts as they are
now, or the Beyond Meat orImpossible products.
It was not cool and I justthought that vegans smoked weed
and ate tofu and were veryhippy-dippy and I didn't really
(10:25):
relate to them at all and Ididn't understand.
I'm like okay, so they don'teat fish and they don't eat meat
or eggs or dairy.
What does a vegan eat?
But I researched it and lookedmore into it and I decided to
try it in my college dorm roomand, before you know it, I was
microwaving sweet potatoes.
In my dorm room, I kept a bowlof non-perishable fruit.
(10:45):
I had bananas and oranges andapples.
Constantly in my room, I hadthings like peanut butter and
protein bars, and in the dininghall, instead of having soft
serve and Alfredo pasta.
I would have pasta withvegetables and marinara sauce.
And I would ask the people atthe pasta bar to make me whole
wheat pasta.
And they actually startedcarrying whole wheat pasta and
making it every day.
Because I would ask the peopleat the pasta bar to make me
whole wheat pasta.
And they actually startedcarrying whole wheat pasta and
(11:07):
making it every day because Iwould ask for it.
And I would ask them like, hey,do you mind sauteing all my
vegetables at the pasta bar, insteaming them instead of using
the canola oil that you're using.
And I just started to make thesehealthier choices.
I made the salad bar my bestfriend.
They had a pretty good saladbar with all kinds of greens and
beans, chickpeas, seeds likesunflower seeds, and I would
(11:29):
make these giant salads and Iwould have fruit.
And I just made it work formyself.
And keep in mind, I barely hadany money, I didn't have a car,
I didn't have a kitchen.
I just had my little microwave,my mini fridge in my dorm room
and I had access to my dininghalls.
(11:49):
And I just made it work formyself and within a couple
months I had lost 20 pounds.
I was not trying to lose weight, by the way, I was simply just
trying to make better choices,Lost 20 pounds.
I had so much energy.
I didn't need to take thosethree-hour naps anymore.
My acne cleared up, I just feltso healthy and the chest pain
and heartburn that I had beendealing with for literally like
three years at that point wentaway and never came back.
(12:10):
And I just thought to myselfdiet is so powerful and people
don't know about this.
People don't realize the powerof plants being at the center of
your plate, and I don't knowexactly what I'm going to do,
but I was on a mission, fromthat point forward, to help
other people the same way Ihelped myself.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
I love all of it and as you were talking about your
story, like growing up, thatyour mom said she always had to
make food or the clean plate cup, I was totally with you on that
, like I've always been known assomeone that I say, like I like
salads, but I like big salads,you know, like big salads, big
portions, but I love health.
So I'm right there with you forsure.
So this conversation came at agreat time because we're
(12:56):
recording the start of the newyear.
People are wanting to makethese changes right, like maybe
the new year sparked that.
Maybe, kind of like your story,health problems are wanting to
push them in that direction, andI think a lot of people believe
that health and good food can'tcoexist.
Like when I say I'm a foodie,but I'm a healthy foodie, I'm an
(13:19):
intentional foodie, people arelike, well, what does that look
like?
And so I want to talk aboutfood, I want to talk about how
those two things can coexist.
But I want to start with aquestion as people move towards
health, what people commonly askdo I need to buy organic?
Does it matter?
Does it not matter?
As they're taking this step,what do you?
(13:40):
You actually, you have a greatsection of your book that talks
about this, but let's talk aboutit here.
Why?
Why does that matter?
When does that matter?
What do you say about it?
Speaker 2 (13:51):
So the organic debate's a big one, right?
I think in general, like, let'sstart overall, eating fruits
and vegetables is better thaneating none at all.
So if you can't afford to buyorganic, if you don't have
access to organic fruits andvegetables, it's just important
that you're eating fruits andvegetables.
But if you do have access, ifyou have access to a farmer's
market, if you have access tolocally grown produce, if you
(14:13):
are able to find it in yourlocal grocery store and that is
an option for you, I'd highlyrecommend buying organic.
I like to stick to the rule ofdo your best.
So if I really need peppers fora recipe but they're sold out
or they don't have organic thatday, I get the peppers.
But then what you can do isactually in my book there's a
little recipe for a fruit andvegetable wash.
(14:33):
You can do kind.
Actually in my book there'slike a little recipe for like a
fruit and vegetable wash.
You can do kind of like ahomemade fruit and veggie wash
and just make sure that you givethem a really good rinse and a
really good wash.
If you don't want to make it,they even sell like.
Trader Joe's has a really goodone, whole Foods has one.
They have a fruit and vegetablewash that you can spray on your
produce.
That really helps to get anywaxes, pesticides or anything
(14:56):
off your produce.
But overall it is amazing to beable to buy organic produce so
that you're not consuming anyextra synthetic pesticides that
would be used on conventionalproduce.
Also, you have to think aboutfruits and vegetables that are
in a peel or not in a peel andwhether they would be directly
(15:18):
sprayed or not.
So let's say, take berries, forexample.
They're exposed, so it'simportant to buy things like
berries, organic lettuce that'sdirectly exposed that's really
important to buy organic.
Or something like a banana thathas a peel it's protected.
Or something like maybe a, apotato that you you are going to
peel you know you're going topeel.
(15:38):
That's another one.
That's great.
But in general, if you can buyorganic, I love to and I think
it's most affordable when you doit from like a local farmer
farmer's market or like get toknow a local farmer by you.
I found so many differentrandom little like nooks and
crannies, even by me, and likein Florida of like really cute
(16:03):
places that aren't even thataren't organic certified because
they're too small to be organiccertified.
But like I've had conversationswith them and they're like, oh
yeah, like we don't.
We don't spray with anythingtoxic or we don't.
You know, we don't use anyharsh chemicals, so it's just.
I think it's important to toget to know your local, local
produce places.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Yeah, those are great tips.
It's a great conversation.
I remember, you know, I'm likeyoung thirties right now when I
was in like high school and theorganic conversation was really
like becoming more mainstream.
People just didn't understandit and it kind of felt like it
was something like a decisionthat only people like elite
people made.
You know, like buying organicmeant like I don't know, higher
(16:43):
society, higher income, and it'slike that's not.
I'm thankful that it's taken adifferent turn, right Like
Trader Joe's.
Places like Trader Joe's havemade it really affordable really
for everyone.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Yeah, walmart has a huge organic section too.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Walmart did.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
You said yeah, Walmart has a really big organic
section.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
That's incredible.
Yeah, it's these smalldecisions that really, I don't
know, make a lasting impact.
Well, with this, I think, aspeople move towards health, they
think small salads, reallybasic salads, and even as we
talk about your cookbook, I'vegotten salad cookbooks in the
past that it's just likerepetition the same flavors over
(17:24):
and over.
They're not filling things likethat, and so I'm glad we're
having a different conversationhere.
But when I talk about a salad,we were talking about this
before we hit record.
I want a big salad, I want afilling salad, and I know that
that's possible.
So what do you find is the keyto making a salad?
Let's start with filling.
(17:45):
I think that people think dietand they get lettuce, tomato,
cucumber and they're like why amI still hungry?
So right.
So what's the key here tomaking it bulky and hearty?
Speaker 2 (17:57):
That's a great question.
So there are some secrets tobulking up your salads and to
making them filling because,like you said, a lot of people
they go on a diet or they'retrying to eat healthier and they
think they just need to eat aboring salad.
But what that's going to do iscreate too much of a calorie
restriction in a meal.
So if you're just having greensand fruits and vegetables as
(18:18):
your meal, if it's on a sidewith protein and other types of
things, of course that's greatto have a green salad, and
there's plenty of those in mybook.
But if you want your salad asyour meal, you have to make it
hearty.
I have a category for grainsalads, which are so filling and
hearty so they have grains inthem, like quinoa, maybe they
(18:40):
have couscous.
I have an entire pasta saladsection that will show you how
to use like protein pastas andwhole wheat pasta to make a
little bit more of a fillingsalad.
So adding some kind of grain orwhole grain filled with fiber,
complex carbs.
I recommend always like over awhite flour pasta, like always
like a whole wheat pasta,because it's going to have more
(19:01):
protein, going to have morefiber.
It's not going to spike yourblood sugar or something like a
chickpea pasta, a lentil pasta.
I love.
It's not organic and I wish itwas, but I love it so much and I
buy it.
The Barilla Protein Pasta it'sin a yellow box and it's
delicious.
It's a blend of, I think, wheat, chickpea, lentil, fortified
(19:24):
with all different vitamins andit tastes just like white pasta.
I think there are some lentiland chickpea pastas out there
that are not good and I'm notgoing to say any brands, but I
am like kind of a pasta snob.
But the Barilla Protein Pastais really good.
And then I also buy this brandGoodles.
It's in a hot pink box and it'sprotein pasta.
(19:45):
I feed it to my toddler too andit's filled with protein, filled
with like lentils and alldifferent vegetables.
It has, like broccoli, sweetpotato, all different kinds of
vitamins, and so there are somany healthier, nutrient-dense
pastas now on the market thatyou can use to beef up a salad
Also healthy fats.
(20:06):
So making sure you're adding,like an avocado, some kind of
nut or seed, like a scoop ofhemp seeds amazing to add to a
salad because they have thatfiber, healthy fats.
Hemp seeds also have protein Ifyou want to do, like some chia
seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkinseeds, some kind of healthy fat
in your salad Also.
The fiber will fill you up aswell, and then some kind of
(20:32):
starch too, right, so if you add, like a sweet potato, to a
salad, that can make it verysatiating as well.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know, it always breaks my heart when I see
people like making the switch tohealthy diets or like healthy
eating Is there.
They avoid things like anavocado or a sweet potato
because they think that they'reavoiding fats or carbs, and so
they have their salad and thenyou're like stuck snacking all
afternoon.
You end up having like you'restarving.
You reach towards things thatmaybe, like you shouldn't or
(20:55):
aren't great, you know, for yourhealth goals.
It's like no, just bulk up yoursalad right.
Like don't be scared.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
Yeah, don't be scared .
And of course, a protein too,right.
So like, aside from like aprotein pasta you can do at
least all of my salads areplant-based but you do you some
kind of protein.
So for me I like to do agrilled tofu.
I'll do like an air friedcrispy tofu L as like a main
source of protein in a saladwhere lentils are going to have
(21:39):
like double or more protein thana lentil or a black bean.
So I would say doing a chickpeaas your protein, I would also
compliment it with somethingelse, unless you're having like
a lot of chickpeas, butsometimes people get digestive
upset from too many beans.
So if that's the case, you cancompliment a smaller amount of
chickpeas.
But sometimes people getdigestive upset from too many
beans.
So if that's the case, you cancompliment a smaller amount of
(21:59):
chickpeas with the tofu, forexample.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
So good, such a good conversation.
Well, over the years, I feellike right now, if you spend
five minutes on social media,you're hearing about seed oils,
poor quality oils, things likethat, and it's good that the
conversation's happening.
I've been learning about it forthe past few years and I feel
like, well, I know that a lot ofthe shelf stable dressings are
filled with ingredients, likeyou were saying, that don't make
(22:23):
our bodies happy, for lack of abetter term like there are a
lot of consequences from fromeating them that we don't even
realize.
You don't know until you knowkind of thing.
So in your book you talk a lotabout dressings that we could be
making at home and I think whenpeople first hear this, if they
didn't grow up in families thatmade dressings or they haven't
done it before, it feelsintimidating.
(22:43):
But it's so simple, so sosimple.
I did the dressing last nightfor the pizza night salad.
It was phenomenal.
It's so simple.
It's so simple and it's likelyingredients you already have on
hand.
So talk to us about dressings.
What are some of your I guess,like go-tos that you think
everyone should know about?
Speaker 2 (23:04):
Dressing is a hard one, and it's become extra tough
because the healthier dressingsthat they are selling bottled
in a store are very pricey.
I would say they are starting at$7 a bottle, which you could
make your own for exponentiallycheaper.
And also, of course, whenyou're making your own, it's
(23:25):
fresher, you're controlling theingredients and you are saving a
lot of money and time.
So when I make my own dressing,no dressing is going to take
more than five minutes.
So I have an entire dressingsection in the book of 25
different dressings that pairwith the 75 salads that are in
my new life-changing salads book.
And I would say that and ofcourse, like you're going to
(23:51):
have fun dressings that you makebut I would have like five that
you are like constantly keepingin your arsenal and that you're
using all the time fordifferent recipes and that you
kind of just learn how to throwtogether.
Like maybe the first time ortwo you're looking at the
measurements but they're so easy.
You're just going to learn howto like pour things together in
a bowl.
A little secret about me I don'tmeasure anything when I cook, I
just don't have time for that.
(24:12):
I anything when I cook, I justdon't have time for that.
I like throw in a little bit ofthis, a little bit of that.
So I would say for dressings,like a really good balsamic
vinaigrette is important to knowhow to make, but I really like
one of my favorite dressings inthe book is a balsamic tahini
dressing where you actually youmix balsamic tahini olive oil,
(24:33):
some Dijon mustard and make likea creamy balsamic vinaigrette
and the tahini adds healthy fatswhich are good for your hair,
your skin, your hormones, yournails, makes the dressing a
little bit more hearty andcreamy and filling and that's
one of my favorite ones in thebook.
And again, if you have tahinibalsamic olive oil, these are
(24:54):
pantry staples that you'll justhave on hand and you can quickly
whip together a dressing andI'm telling you like that in a
store would be like $9 by me, atleast in Boca.
The healthy dressings are soexpensive.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
It is wild.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
It's wild.
Another great dressing optionthat you can make is actually
using hummus as a base.
I love to do this, but you cantake hummus and you can use
homemade or store-bought and mixit together with olive oil,
lemon juice, a little vinegarand that also makes a really
creamy, dairy-free dressing.
And I also love using non-dairyyogurt as the base of a lot of
(25:33):
dressings, because all the yummydressings that we know and love
like I don't know people loveblue cheese dressings and like
Chipotle, ranch and buffalo andall of these things, but a lot
of the ones in restaurants orstore-bought ones are they use
mayonnaise or, you know, likehydrogenated oils which clog our
arteries.
You can use non-dairy yogurt asa base of a creamy dressing and
(25:58):
then it's dairy-free.
You can buy it unsweetened, soyou know that there's no sugar,
and then you're getting thisindulgent, creamy dressing that
tastes amazing but is also goodfor you.
Speaker 1 (26:07):
Oh my gosh, this is like my language.
I love talking this, but I have, so I make a lot of my own
dressings.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
I've never done a hummus one yet, and I love
hummus, hummus dressing is sogood and it's also hummus
dressing is amazing on pastasalads too, so you can make like
a like a Mediterranean pastasalad and make like a creamy
hummus dressing.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I think you have one of like the best jobs ever.
You just get to like play withsalads all day.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
So all day?
I know that's part eating atthe end of the day, right,
that's such a dream, oh my gosh.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Well, if listeners haven't made dressings, let this
be your invitation to just tryit.
Try maybe like a vinaigretteand a creamy one.
I have two options that I storemy dressings in.
I do like the OXO or OXO brand.
They have like a very simple,like dressing kind of canister
that I store my dressing in inthe fridge, and a mason jar
(26:59):
right Like what do you store?
What do you store yours in?
Speaker 2 (27:02):
I like to use a mason jar.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Okay, cause it's glass, right, yeah, it's glass
and it's just easy.
Speaker 2 (27:08):
And if you need to like cause a lot of dressings
that you make at home too,you're going to need to like
shake it or stir it up beforeyou use it, just because there's
no preservatives or anythingextra in there that's going to
stabilize it or keep it blended.
So you're going to need to getin there and give it a good mix
once it's sat in the fridge.
But I would also say a littlefrother, one that you would use
(27:30):
for coffee, is going to be yourbest friend too when it comes to
dressings, because, let's say,you mix together balsamic and
oil.
If you just use like a fork,it's not going to completely
emulsify and whisk together.
If you take one of those littlecoffee frothers, it'll make
like a really creamy, deliciousdressing and will really help to
blend it as well, you just blewmy mind.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
I always whip out my like massive stick blender.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
And I feel so like legit, but it's also huge, and
so that frother is so genius.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
The frother is genius .
Now, if you're making like amore intense dressing with like
herbs and avocado like, forexample, I have a green goodness
dressing that packs in likeherbs and like an avocado and
it's delicious, but you're goingto a frother isn't going to
blend up all those ingredients.
So, also with dressings, like amini tiny blender or an
(28:22):
immersion blender, like a handblender is also going to be your
best friend when it comes todressings.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
It's so fun.
This is like a foodies dreamconversation.
I love all this.
I know I'm getting hungry, Iknow.
Well, I want to go through justa few of the categories of your
book.
I think this is my favoritepart about it.
I honestly was expecting alllettuce salads, and the way that
you approached different likenon-lettuce type salads was so
(28:50):
genius, and I think it's goingto be so refreshing for people
that want variety and healthyfood and just like clean eating.
So let's go through some of thechapters.
I think I'm going to pick justa few and then leave the rest
for listeners to explore as theyget their hands on the book,
just to show people like what'spossible and like some variety
(29:12):
that you offer.
So give us an example of agrain salad, actually, because I
think that's one of my favoritetypes of salads right now.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
A grain or a green.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
Oh sorry, grain A-I-N .
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Grain.
Okay, I have my book here,which I'll show you guys.
It turned out so pretty.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
It's so pretty.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
I love it.
Yeah, the pink, the green.
It has also like a green linenspine which is like really nice
if you want to keep on yourcoffee table or like on your
kitchen counter.
Like it looks really gooddesign wise too, which is very
important to me.
But yeah, I have the book righthere.
Let's talk about a great grainsalad that you can make so well.
(29:50):
I'll talk about two.
One is my Moroccan couscoussalad.
It is literally one of the bestsalads I've ever had.
That's one of my go-tos if I'mbringing something to someone's
house.
I'm Jewish, so if I'm invitedto a Shabbat dinner, I'm always
bringing my Moroccan couscoussalad.
It's like olives, whole wheat,couscous, feta raisins.
(30:12):
It's kind of like a sweetsavory.
The vegan feta makes it amazingand it's just one of the most
different salads I've ever had.
But so good.
And the seasonings too, becauseI use a Moroccan seasoning
blend.
It's flavorful, it's filling,guests are always impressed by
it and you get the chance to usecouscous, which I feel like
(30:33):
people don't use enough, andit's like a great addition to a
salad.
Speaker 1 (30:38):
That's so fun.
I was thinking my husband.
He ate couscous for the firsttime when we started dating and
whenever I talk about it or he'strying to refer it, he taps his
finger on the table.
He's like is it that grain Torepresent little dots?
Speaker 2 (30:55):
That's so funny, they are like little dots table.
He's like is it that grain Torepresent little dots?
That's so funny, they are likelittle dots yeah.
Speaker 1 (30:59):
He's like what's that thing called?
And he does this little tapthing.
It's, I don't know bad story.
You have to see him do it.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
That's so funny.
No, it's such a good salad andit has apples and all different
herbs.
I think herbs are the secret toan amazing salad too.
It just brings so muchfreshness and flavor.
So this is just like adifferent salad, like kind of
just if you want to impress yourfriends, impress yourself, make
something like if you're stuckin a little bit of a rut is what
I'm saying.
This is like one of my go-tos.
Speaker 1 (31:28):
Moroccan flavors are incredible.
Yeah, how about let's do a warmsalad, because I feel like
people might not like, theirbrain might not go there, but
you captured that so well.
Speaker 2 (31:42):
Thank you, yes.
So right now it's obviouslycold, it's winter for a lot of
people in a lot of places and acrunchy fresh, raw veggie salad
isn't necessarily going toappeal to you when your body's
freezing cold from the outdoorsand you just want to be
nourished and warm.
So I have a whole section ofwarm salads, so it's a great way
(32:03):
to get your veggies in withouthaving raw vegetables.
One of my favorites in there oh, it's the first one on there
it's the Zen Bowl, which hascurry, cauliflower, black rice,
sauteed kale.
So it's more of like a warm,hearty, like lots of flavors,
delicious, but like super easy.
All of these recipes are recipes.
(32:26):
You don't need to be a chef tomake them.
I'm not a chef.
I like to always say that I didnot go to culinary school.
I'm just a girl who likes toeat, so I'm always cooking,
because if I want to eat, I haveto cook.
So everything is beyond easyimpossible to mess up recipes.
Before I wrote my book, I lookedat every other salad cookbook
(32:46):
on the market because I wantedto be different.
I'm like, how am I going to setmy book apart?
And what I found with all ofthese other books is that, of
course, mine's different becauseit's plant-based, but these
salad recipes in other bookswere complicated.
They used ingredients thatweren't accessible to people.
I saw this salad.
(33:07):
I'll never forget this.
I was looking through saladcookbooks and there was one
salad that called for freshhoneycomb and purslane.
I'm like I don't know howanyone's going to get either of
those and I don't even know whatpurslane is.
So my point is like all theserecipes are super, super easy.
(33:27):
But yeah, the Zen bowl isdelicious, and then also the
pizza salad.
So I have pizza night saladwhich, like you make, that's a
fresh green, like Italian saladthat you're making with pizza.
But then I have pizza salad,which is like what you would use
as pizza toppings, sauteed intoa salad, and it's delicious,
(33:50):
like truly amazing, and it has atomato Parmesan vinaigrette
that goes on it.
But like any pizza toppings youlike like tomatoes, mushrooms,
you do like oregano it makeslike the best warm salad.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
Oh, my goodness.
Well, you showed the cover ofthe book.
I'm so glad that you could.
I was planning on it, but mycamera's not working today.
It is beautiful.
I hope that everyone picks itup, and I mean it truly is a
unique cookbook.
Even if people are cookbookcollectors, they don't have one
like this.
This is the perfect addition toany collection, whether you're
(34:27):
a healthy eater that wants justfresh flavors.
You're kicking off your yearwith new goals.
This really is, I think, ahousehold staple.
It's going to become ahousehold staple.
What else that we maybe didn'ttalk about?
Do you hope or do you wantpeople to know about it?
Speaker 2 (34:43):
So the Life Changing Salads cookbook really stemmed
from my Life Changing Saladsseries, which I started on
Instagram two or three years agoit's probably about three at
this point on Instagram two orthree years ago it's probably
about three at this point and Ibasically just started posting
salads that I created out ofdesperation for filling,
delicious salads that were notonly healthy but tasted good,
(35:06):
because I feel like whenever Iwould go to a restaurant, I was
just noticing that salads havejust become so unhealthy and
they've really gone in thisdirection of being more for
taste and pleasure than beingfor health.
When you think of a salad, youthink of something healthy, and
now it's like bacon and bluecheese and whatever, and, of
(35:27):
course, that might taste goodbut that's not good for you.
So I'm like I really need tostart creating these restaurant
crave-worthy salads that arefunctional, that actually serve
a purpose, that nourish yourbody especially a woman's body
Because 95% of the people whofollow me are women that taste
good but then are also healthyfor you.
And so I started my LifeChanging Salad series and
(35:50):
basically overnight, it became ahuge success.
I had no idea the impact thatthis series would have, but I
was posting my favorite versionsof salad, healthier versions of
my favorite salad.
So, for example, californiaPizza Kitchen has this barbecue
chicken salad.
So in my book I did a tofu, orin the series I made like a
(36:13):
chickpea barbecue salad or atofu barbecue salad.
I'm doing like pasta Caesarsalads, but with like a cashew
Caesar dressing instead ofregular Caesar dressing, and the
series really just blew up.
It was getting hundreds ofmillions of views.
I was gaining millions offollowers.
I'd sometimes wake up with like200,000 more followers than I
(36:35):
went to sleep with.
It was really insane, but itjust reminded me that people not
to be literal, but people wereseriously hungry for healthy
salad recipes.
And after this series wentviral, I'm like I have to do a
book about this.
This is going to be my nextbook, so it's 75 salads in the
(36:57):
book.
Some of them are classics fromInstagram that I included, but
the majority of them are brandnew salads never seen before.
I know a lot of people arehesitant to buy a book when
they're like oh, I can just getthe recipes for free online.
But this, I promise, there's somuch value as most of the
recipes are new.
All of the recipes indicate inthe book any kind of allergy
(37:21):
issues, so you'll see a littleicon if the salad is nut-free.
You'll know.
If the salad is soy-free, Ihave little icons with an H on
them.
If the salad's good for hosting, you'll see an LF on the recipe
if it's leftover friendly,because that's a huge issue that
people come across when makingsalads is they're like okay, I
(37:43):
made a big salad, I put it inthe fridge and then it's super
soggy the next day.
So I will tell you what saladswill stay good in the fridge,
what salads won't, how topreserve your salads, how to
keep them fresh.
I also have an entire sectionin the book of no lettuce salads
, so those won't get soggy inthe fridge.
Every single recipe has apicture.
(38:03):
I'm very visual.
I don't know about you, but ifI get a cookbook and the recipe
doesn't have an image you don'tmake it.
Speaker 1 (38:10):
I'm not making it.
Speaker 2 (38:11):
So every single recipe has a picture, the entire
book.
I want to say this is importantit's gluten-free optional, so
it doesn't say gluten-free onthe pages, but in the beginning
there's a little disclaimer thatit's all gluten-free optional.
So, for example, if it's apasta salad, just use
gluten-free pasta.
If I used, like a farro grainwhich is not gluten-free, I make
(38:36):
a note like you can use quinoaor rice or something else.
Everything's interchangeable,everything can be made
gluten-free.
I have a couple recipes like Ihave a vegan avocado tuna salad
but I pair it on toast so youcan just use gluten-free toast.
So kind of, just use yourcommon sense there and like,
make whatever gluten-free swapsyou need to make, because now
they have so many gluten-freebreads and pastas and everything
(38:56):
that you shouldn't have aproblem.
So if you're gluten-free, everysingle recipe can be made
gluten-free in this book andthey're all plant-based.
And also, if you have a nutallergy, I also have certain
swaps for nut allergies in hereas well.
Speaker 1 (39:12):
Oh my gosh, it is so perfect.
I'm getting ready to host ababy shower in a few weeks and I
wanted all really unique sidesalads, and so I love this.
It's like a one-stop just pickkind of something from each
chapter and it's going to besuch a diverse, unique selection
Wow, well, everyone could goget their copy.
(39:33):
Well, actually, what would bethe most helpful for you leading
into launch?
What website should peoplepre-order the book from?
Because I know sometimes thereare certain places that are
better than others.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Yeah, so you can go to lifechangingsaladscom and
that will lead you to anywherewhere the book is sold.
So it's available for pre-orderright now.
It'll be available in April.
A lot of people are like whywould I order a book now when I
won't get it till April One?
(40:05):
It'll ensure that you'll be thefirst to get the book.
So if copies are running low orif it's selling out or if
there's a huge influx of orders,if you pre-order, you'll be one
of the first ones to get it.
Also, it's super helpful toauthors because for the New York
Times bestselling list,pre-orders count towards making
that list, which is veryprestigious for an author and it
really shows your publisher andretailers if the book is
(40:27):
popular, if people arepre-ordering.
Also, enough about how itbenefits me.
For you, I'm going to beoffering a lot of like bonuses
and perks.
So if you pre-order the book,I'll be sending out like extra
eBooks, extra tips and all kindsof extra bonuses that you'll be
able to claim if you havepre-ordered.
But yeah, lifechangingsaladscomit's on Amazon.
(40:49):
If you literally type it onAmazon life changing salads,
it'll be right there.
Barnes and Noble, where allbooks Salads, it'll be right
there.
Barnes Noble, where all booksare sold.
You'll be able to find it.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Amazing.
This was such a funconversation for me.
Loved getting to chat with youmore.
But we end each of ourconversations with the same
three questions, flash answers,and I'd love to hear your
answers as well.
The first is something you haveeaten recently and loved.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Oh my God, Last night my dinner was like one of the
best things I've made in a while.
I made like a quinoa, tofu kindof red curry dish and I sauteed
.
Basically I had a ton ofvegetables in my fridge that
just needed to be cooked,Otherwise they were going to go
bad.
So I threw in, like tomatoesthat were about to be wrinkly,
pepper, zucchini, garlic onion Ihad some parsley that was
(41:34):
getting wilty threw it in there,did a bunch of garam masala,
coriander, all different kindsof flavorful spices, quinoa, a
whole block of tofu crumbled inthere, coconut milk and what
else did?
I put in there Water and aglass jar of red Thai curry and
(41:56):
this was one pot.
So literally threw everythingin, mixed it together, put a lid
on it and basically just cookedit on low, stirring it every
few minutes for like 30 minutesand it was done and it was like
the best thing ever.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Those are my favorite flavors.
That sounds so good, reallygood.
How about a gathering youattended that made you feel a
strong sense of belonging and,if you could pinpoint it, what
it was that made you feel thatway?
Speaker 2 (42:20):
Give me one second Aiden's crying.
I just want to make sure ohbaby.
Okay, can you hear it at all?
Speaker 1 (42:26):
No, not at all.
Okay, I get that though.
Speaker 2 (42:30):
Usually it's me.
Yeah, no, sorry about that,you're fine, I think we're good.
If you can't hear it, then no,not at all no.
Yeah, I think we're good.
Speaker 1 (42:45):
You want just ask me one more time, oh perfect, yeah,
a gathering you attended thatmade you feel a strong sense of
belonging and if you couldpinpoint it, what it was that
made you feel that way.
Speaker 2 (42:56):
Ooh, that's a really good question.
I feel like anything with likegood friends.
Recently had a dinner with abunch of friends and we did a
chili night and like everyonebrought something different and
we had all different toppings.
We did like a help, Like it wasone of my best friends.
(43:16):
She made the healthy grilledchili recipe and we just had
good conversation.
Everyone there was eating ahealthy meal.
We all loved the food and itwas a completely vegan meal too,
and I'm like this is so amazingthat we're all here together.
We're all eating healthy meals,sharing.
Everyone contributed somethingand we laughed, had a good time.
(43:37):
Like that was within the pastcouple of weeks and it was just
like I filled up my cup.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
That's yeah.
That's sweet that it doesn'thave to be complicated.
I could be nourishing and stillbe a fun girl's night.
And the last thing, my favoritequestion lately, something
you've discovered that you thinkeveryone should know, about
something random like a Netflixshow and Amazon purchase.
Oh my God.
Speaker 2 (43:59):
That's a really good question.
I have this, um, I have thesethings they're called onion
goggles and I always I I'm verysensitive to onion.
I'm always like crying when I'mcutting up an onion and their
goggles that you wear while youcut up an onion and you just
keep them in your kitchen and itprevents you from crying.
Speaker 1 (44:18):
They're the best.
They might seem silly, butlisten, everyone like.
Everyone like hates crying whenthey cut onions.
So that is genius.
Go on.
Speaker 2 (44:26):
Amazon.
I think they're under $10.
Just type in onion goggles andthey have like they're plastic,
but then they have like a foamkind of like layering on there
so they seal to your face sothat you literally like can't
get the onion juices in youreyes, and they are a lifesaver.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
So many genius tips, my goodness.
Well, we will link the onion,glasses, the book, everything in
the show notes.
Thank you guys so much forbeing here and Danielle, thanks
so much for taking time.
We're so excited for thislaunch.
Speaker 2 (44:57):
Thank you so much.
We'll talk soon.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
Well, guys, we will see you next week.
I'm your big salad friend, it's true.
If you go out to eat with me,I'm getting a salad as big as my
head and I'm eating every lastbite without any regret.
I've always been that way,since I was a teenager and first
started to love salads.
I wanted them loaded with notjust boring toppings, but the
good ones.
(00:20):
I want a hefty piece of protein.
I want a really good dressingand I am going to lick the plate
.
It's just who I am.
I love a hefty piece of protein.
I want a really good dressingand I am going to lick the plate
.
It's just who I am.
I love a good salad.
But as I've gotten older andlearned more about nutrition and
intentional eating goodness, Ihave learned just how quickly a
salad could be packed withingredients that are actually
(00:40):
doing more harm than good.
But with that, there's also away to approach a salad, on how
to make it so that every singlelast flavorful bite is fueling
your body and you aren't missinga thing.
Well, I was scrolling socialmedia as I do and looking for
some podcast guests and cameacross Healthy Girl Kitchen.
And my word, she just came outwith a new book, life-changing
(01:05):
Salads, and I was seeing thisposted everywhere.
I knew I had to have her on theshow.
Guys, this cookbook is not justa salad cookbook.
It is quite literally alife-changing salad cookbook.
This has recipes for everyonein your life, from those that
eat dairy-free.
If you have a friend that'sfocused more on protein, vegan,
(01:28):
vegetarian, I mean everything inone book and every single bite,
I kid you not, is stunning,which I really appreciate.
I love beauty in every part ofmy life and also so crave-worthy
.
Well, if you do not know whoHealthy Girl Kitchen is, head on
over to socials, literally anysocial.
(01:49):
She has millions of followers,diehard, loyal fans that follow
her and support her in all thatshe does.
You're going to hear more abouther story in the episode today.
But, guys, this conversation isso fun, so so fun, with our new
friend Danielle as we celebratethe launch of her newest
(02:09):
cookbook and, quite literally, acookbook that is going to
change your life as well.
Well, this episode is brought toyou by us at Gather just in
time for Mother's Day and justin time for spring and summer
hospitality, and we want to comealongside you.
Picture us like a privateteacher in your kitchen on
demand, anytime you need us, asyou are getting ready to host,
(02:33):
we would love to come alongsideyou to teach you how to style,
plate and prepare, specifically,charcuterie and cake decorating
for your gatherings.
You see them on social media.
You want to know how to makethem and we are going to take
all the skills that we learnedthrough trial and error we did
all the learning so you don'thave to and teach you the skills
(02:54):
that work.
So if you are looking to make anaked cake, a rosette cake, if
you are looking to make a fruitand nut charcuterie board or
maybe something a little bitmore sweet, like our romantique
that has chocolate and salamiall on the same board, we want
to come alongside you and makeit fun, make it easy and give
you the confidence to host.
(03:14):
Head on over to our website,gatherintentionallivingcom, and
head on over to our pre-recordedworkshops.
And head on over to ourpre-recorded workshops you
should see them pretty clearlylisted on the website and use
code HEALTHYGIRL H-E-A-L-T.
Oh my gosh, you guys know howto spell it, I'm not going to
spell it HEALTHYGIRL one wordfor 50% off the full package of
(03:39):
all the workshops or $9.99 aclass.
We will see you there.
Hi, I'm Katie, a hospitalityeducator and the host of Making
Room by Gather podcast, I am setto see our communities get back
to the table throughhospitality, but it wasn't
always this way.
My husband and I moved toThailand and through it I
(04:00):
experienced some loneliness andwith it I was given a choice to
sit back and accept it or to dosomething about it, and for me,
that meant two things that Ineeded the healing to learn how
to accept an invitation and theconfidence to know how to extend
one.
Through this process, Ideveloped some of the richest
and deepest relationships of mylife.
(04:22):
Through Making Room by Gather,you will hear conversations from
myself and experts in the areasof food, design and
relationships.
You see there are countlessthings trying to keep us from
the table, but can I tell yousomething?
Take a seat, because you areready, you are capable, you are
a good host.
Okay, I am so excited for this.
(04:44):
It's timely.
I got an advanced copy of yourbook that I was very excited to
receive.
It was happy mail.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Oh, I'm so glad you got one.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
Yeah, and you know it was funny.
They told me they were likethese, like just came out.
Did you get yours yet?
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I got mine yeah.
Okay, you literally are theonly person besides me and my
editor who has a book, youshould feel super special.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
I know I kind of wanted to be a little protective
and almost text you and say didyou open yours first?
Speaker 2 (05:10):
Because I don't want to be the very first one that's
so funny, you honestly mighthave opened it before me.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
Well, it's incredible , and we were having dinner with
a family friend last night.
We were doing a very casualpizza party and I made your
pizza party salad.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
I want all of your thoughts.
That's like my favorite salad.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
It's so fun.
So I'm an Italian background mylisteners know that and I had a
ton of like antipasto stuff onhand.
I was like this is perfect.
It was great.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
It's like the perfect like.
If you order in pizza but youstill want to like have some
veggies on the side and wantlike an amazing salad, because I
feel like sometimes casualpizza places their salads aren't
the greatest, especially ifyou're like eating more
plant-based, this is like theperfect thing to make alongside
pizza.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Absolutely so.
Question for you.
So my husband grew up pizza andchips.
We always grew up pizza andsalad.
How did you grow up?
Speaker 2 (06:02):
Pizza and chips is insane.
I've never heard of that in mylife.
What's pizza and chips?
I think that was only yourhusband's family.
I've never heard of that, Iknow.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
And you know what's funny?
He's a pretty like fit guy andI'm like if I did pizza and
chips, I would not be as fit asyou, I would not be like.
That would not work for me.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
My body type.
Why the chips?
I feel like that's not a commonpairing.
I feel like like chips withlike your Mexican taco night is
more normal.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
No, it's like it's barbecue.
Yeah, it's barbecue chips andpizza.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
So chips and pizza Okay.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Would you?
Speaker 2 (06:41):
put it on the pizza and eat it as like a crunchy
slice.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Not that's not like, that's not like the formula,
like it's not like every time,but sometimes that happens.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yep, okay Well, maybe I'll try it sometime.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
I know, yeah, if we ever get together, we'll have
both.
Colby will bring the chips,we'll have your salad, okay, so
I've been following you for alittle bit.
We were just talking about likeour kids are kind of the same
age, our sons are the same age,but people might not be familiar
with your background.
I know that I don't know thefull story.
What do you want people to knowabout your journey to 5 million
followers?
Cookbook release, like there'sdefinitely a story there.
(07:21):
So what do you want?
What do you want people to knowabout you?
Speaker 2 (07:24):
Yeah, there's a lot of people in the Healthy Girl
community.
It's crazy, like I think we'reeven up to like 12 million now
across all platforms, like 5million on Instagram, and then
we have our TikTok audience.
We have Facebook, which we havea ton of people on there as
well.
So it's just been a tremendousamount of growth in the past few
years and I truly did notpicture that I'd be here today.
(07:48):
Long story short, I always lovedeating healthy and I came from
a family that loved food.
My mom made home, cooked dinnerevery night.
If she said dinner was ready, Iwas racing down the stairs.
In five seconds I was at thetable.
I was always a member of theclean plate club.
My mom joked that she'd have tomake so much food because I was
at the table.
I was always a member of theclean plate club.
I always my mom joked that likeshe'd have to make so much food
(08:10):
because I was always eating andI just I love food, but I also
loved health.
But when I went to college, Iwent to Michigan State
University and they're known fortheir dining halls.
They're basically like mallfood courts with all you can eat
pasta, bar, pizza, bar,all-you-can-eat ice cream.
They literally haveall-you-can-eat soft serve
machines on every single cornerand while this was fun,
(08:31):
obviously I had a little toomuch fun and I just started to
feel sick after eating.
And I know I was eating a lotof dairy.
I was eating a lot of processedfoods.
I was eating meat at the timethat I had no idea where this
was coming from.
This was mystery meat from acollege dining hall.
I was eating a lot of sugar.
They literally had a stationwhere you could make an ice
(08:54):
cream sandwich and you couldpick the flavor cookie and pick
your flavor ice cream and make acustom ice cream sandwich.
So I started to feel super sickand I was very fatigued.
I was taking three hour napsevery single day when I was in
college and I also had hormonalacne.
I felt like my digestion wasjust always off.
(09:19):
I didn't feel like it wasrunning properly.
I had chronic heartburn andGERD issues with acid reflux,
and none of these things wereever addressed by a doctor I was
seeing.
So if I went and sought outhelp from a doctor like hey, I'm
having really bad chest painand heartburn, and they would
never really have an answer forme other than maybe a
(09:41):
prescription medication and Ithought I would just feel this
way for the rest of my life.
When I stumbled across aplant-based diet.
I was watching a documentarycalled Forks Over Knives and I
was seeing that people werereversing diseases like heart
disease and type 2 diabetes witha plant-based diet.
And I came to learn that aplant-based diet meant that you
(10:03):
were vegan.
And I'm like okay, vegans areweird.
This was a time where it wasn'tas mainstream.
There weren't as manydairy-free yogurts as they are
now, or the Beyond Meat orImpossible products.
It was not cool and I justthought that vegans smoked weed
and ate tofu and were veryhippy-dippy and I didn't really
(10:25):
relate to them at all and Ididn't understand.
I'm like okay, so they don'teat fish and they don't eat meat
or eggs or dairy.
What does a vegan eat?
But I researched it and lookedmore into it and I decided to
try it in my college dorm roomand, before you know it, I was
microwaving sweet potatoes.
In my dorm room, I kept a bowlof non-perishable fruit.
(10:45):
I had bananas and oranges andapples.
Constantly in my room, I hadthings like peanut butter and
protein bars, and in the dininghall, instead of having soft
serve and Alfredo pasta.
I would have pasta withvegetables and marinara sauce.
And I would ask the people atthe pasta bar to make me whole
wheat pasta.
And they actually startedcarrying whole wheat pasta and
making it every day.
Because I would ask the peopleat the pasta bar to make me
whole wheat pasta.
And they actually startedcarrying whole wheat pasta and
(11:07):
making it every day because Iwould ask for it.
And I would ask them like, hey,do you mind sauteing all my
vegetables at the pasta bar, insteaming them instead of using
the canola oil that you're using.
And I just started to make thesehealthier choices.
I made the salad bar my bestfriend.
They had a pretty good saladbar with all kinds of greens and
beans, chickpeas, seeds likesunflower seeds, and I would
(11:29):
make these giant salads and Iwould have fruit.
And I just made it work formyself.
And keep in mind, I barely hadany money, I didn't have a car,
I didn't have a kitchen.
I just had my little microwave,my mini fridge in my dorm room
and I had access to my dininghalls.
(11:49):
And I just made it work formyself and within a couple
months I had lost 20 pounds.
I was not trying to lose weight, by the way, I was simply just
trying to make better choices,Lost 20 pounds.
I had so much energy.
I didn't need to take thosethree-hour naps anymore.
My acne cleared up, I just feltso healthy and the chest pain
and heartburn that I had beendealing with for literally like
three years at that point wentaway and never came back.
(12:10):
And I just thought to myselfdiet is so powerful and people
don't know about this.
People don't realize the powerof plants being at the center of
your plate, and I don't knowexactly what I'm going to do,
but I was on a mission, fromthat point forward, to help
other people the same way Ihelped myself.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
I love all of it and as you were talking about your
story, like growing up, thatyour mom said she always had to
make food or the clean plate cup, I was totally with you on that
, like I've always been known assomeone that I say, like I like
salads, but I like big salads,you know, like big salads, big
portions, but I love health.
So I'm right there with you forsure.
So this conversation came at agreat time because we're
(12:56):
recording the start of the newyear.
People are wanting to makethese changes right, like maybe
the new year sparked that.
Maybe, kind of like your story,health problems are wanting to
push them in that direction, andI think a lot of people believe
that health and good food can'tcoexist.
Like when I say I'm a foodie,but I'm a healthy foodie, I'm an
(13:19):
intentional foodie, people arelike, well, what does that look
like?
And so I want to talk aboutfood, I want to talk about how
those two things can coexist.
But I want to start with aquestion as people move towards
health, what people commonly askdo I need to buy organic?
Does it matter?
Does it not matter?
As they're taking this step,what do you?
(13:40):
You actually, you have a greatsection of your book that talks
about this, but let's talk aboutit here.
Why?
Why does that matter?
When does that matter?
What do you say about it?
Speaker 2 (13:51):
So the organic debate's a big one, right?
I think in general, like, let'sstart overall, eating fruits
and vegetables is better thaneating none at all.
So if you can't afford to buyorganic, if you don't have
access to organic fruits andvegetables, it's just important
that you're eating fruits andvegetables.
But if you do have access, ifyou have access to a farmer's
market, if you have access tolocally grown produce, if you
(14:13):
are able to find it in yourlocal grocery store and that is
an option for you, I'd highlyrecommend buying organic.
I like to stick to the rule ofdo your best.
So if I really need peppers fora recipe but they're sold out
or they don't have organic thatday, I get the peppers.
But then what you can do isactually in my book there's a
little recipe for a fruit andvegetable wash.
(14:33):
You can do kind.
Actually in my book there'slike a little recipe for like a
fruit and vegetable wash.
You can do kind of like ahomemade fruit and veggie wash
and just make sure that you givethem a really good rinse and a
really good wash.
If you don't want to make it,they even sell like.
Trader Joe's has a really goodone, whole Foods has one.
They have a fruit and vegetablewash that you can spray on your
produce.
That really helps to get anywaxes, pesticides or anything
(14:56):
off your produce.
But overall it is amazing to beable to buy organic produce so
that you're not consuming anyextra synthetic pesticides that
would be used on conventionalproduce.
Also, you have to think aboutfruits and vegetables that are
in a peel or not in a peel andwhether they would be directly
(15:18):
sprayed or not.
So let's say, take berries, forexample.
They're exposed, so it'simportant to buy things like
berries, organic lettuce that'sdirectly exposed that's really
important to buy organic.
Or something like a banana thathas a peel it's protected.
Or something like maybe a, apotato that you you are going to
peel you know you're going topeel.
(15:38):
That's another one.
That's great.
But in general, if you can buyorganic, I love to and I think
it's most affordable when you doit from like a local farmer
farmer's market or like get toknow a local farmer by you.
I found so many differentrandom little like nooks and
crannies, even by me, and likein Florida of like really cute
(16:03):
places that aren't even thataren't organic certified because
they're too small to be organiccertified.
But like I've had conversationswith them and they're like, oh
yeah, like we don't.
We don't spray with anythingtoxic or we don't.
You know, we don't use anyharsh chemicals, so it's just.
I think it's important to toget to know your local, local
produce places.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Yeah, those are great tips.
It's a great conversation.
I remember, you know, I'm likeyoung thirties right now when I
was in like high school and theorganic conversation was really
like becoming more mainstream.
People just didn't understandit and it kind of felt like it
was something like a decisionthat only people like elite
people made.
You know, like buying organicmeant like I don't know, higher
(16:43):
society, higher income, and it'slike that's not.
I'm thankful that it's taken adifferent turn, right Like
Trader Joe's.
Places like Trader Joe's havemade it really affordable really
for everyone.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Yeah, walmart has a huge organic section too.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Walmart did.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
You said yeah, Walmart has a really big organic
section.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
That's incredible.
Yeah, it's these smalldecisions that really, I don't
know, make a lasting impact.
Well, with this, I think, aspeople move towards health, they
think small salads, reallybasic salads, and even as we
talk about your cookbook, I'vegotten salad cookbooks in the
past that it's just likerepetition the same flavors over
(17:24):
and over.
They're not filling things likethat, and so I'm glad we're
having a different conversationhere.
But when I talk about a salad,we were talking about this
before we hit record.
I want a big salad, I want afilling salad, and I know that
that's possible.
So what do you find is the keyto making a salad?
Let's start with filling.
(17:45):
I think that people think dietand they get lettuce, tomato,
cucumber and they're like why amI still hungry?
So right.
So what's the key here tomaking it bulky and hearty?
Speaker 2 (17:57):
That's a great question.
So there are some secrets tobulking up your salads and to
making them filling because,like you said, a lot of people
they go on a diet or they'retrying to eat healthier and they
think they just need to eat aboring salad.
But what that's going to do iscreate too much of a calorie
restriction in a meal.
So if you're just having greensand fruits and vegetables as
(18:18):
your meal, if it's on a sidewith protein and other types of
things, of course that's greatto have a green salad, and
there's plenty of those in mybook.
But if you want your salad asyour meal, you have to make it
hearty.
I have a category for grainsalads, which are so filling and
hearty so they have grains inthem, like quinoa, maybe they
(18:40):
have couscous.
I have an entire pasta saladsection that will show you how
to use like protein pastas andwhole wheat pasta to make a
little bit more of a fillingsalad.
So adding some kind of grain orwhole grain filled with fiber,
complex carbs.
I recommend always like over awhite flour pasta, like always
like a whole wheat pasta,because it's going to have more
(19:01):
protein, going to have morefiber.
It's not going to spike yourblood sugar or something like a
chickpea pasta, a lentil pasta.
I love.
It's not organic and I wish itwas, but I love it so much and I
buy it.
The Barilla Protein Pasta it'sin a yellow box and it's
delicious.
It's a blend of, I think, wheat, chickpea, lentil, fortified
(19:24):
with all different vitamins andit tastes just like white pasta.
I think there are some lentiland chickpea pastas out there
that are not good and I'm notgoing to say any brands, but I
am like kind of a pasta snob.
But the Barilla Protein Pastais really good.
And then I also buy this brandGoodles.
It's in a hot pink box and it'sprotein pasta.
(19:45):
I feed it to my toddler too andit's filled with protein, filled
with like lentils and alldifferent vegetables.
It has, like broccoli, sweetpotato, all different kinds of
vitamins, and so there are somany healthier, nutrient-dense
pastas now on the market thatyou can use to beef up a salad
Also healthy fats.
(20:06):
So making sure you're adding,like an avocado, some kind of
nut or seed, like a scoop ofhemp seeds amazing to add to a
salad because they have thatfiber, healthy fats.
Hemp seeds also have protein Ifyou want to do, like some chia
seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkinseeds, some kind of healthy fat
in your salad Also.
The fiber will fill you up aswell, and then some kind of
(20:32):
starch too, right, so if you add, like a sweet potato, to a
salad, that can make it verysatiating as well.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
You know, it always breaks my heart when I see
people like making the switch tohealthy diets or like healthy
eating Is there.
They avoid things like anavocado or a sweet potato
because they think that they'reavoiding fats or carbs, and so
they have their salad and thenyou're like stuck snacking all
afternoon.
You end up having like you'restarving.
You reach towards things thatmaybe, like you shouldn't or
(20:55):
aren't great, you know, for yourhealth goals.
It's like no, just bulk up yoursalad right.
Like don't be scared.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
Yeah, don't be scared .
And of course, a protein too,right.
So like, aside from like aprotein pasta you can do at
least all of my salads areplant-based but you do you some
kind of protein.
So for me I like to do agrilled tofu.
I'll do like an air friedcrispy tofu L as like a main
source of protein in a saladwhere lentils are going to have
(21:39):
like double or more protein thana lentil or a black bean.
So I would say doing a chickpeaas your protein, I would also
compliment it with somethingelse, unless you're having like
a lot of chickpeas, butsometimes people get digestive
upset from too many beans.
So if that's the case, you cancompliment a smaller amount of
chickpeas.
But sometimes people getdigestive upset from too many
beans.
So if that's the case, you cancompliment a smaller amount of
(21:59):
chickpeas with the tofu, forexample.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
So good, such a good conversation.
Well, over the years, I feellike right now, if you spend
five minutes on social media,you're hearing about seed oils,
poor quality oils, things likethat, and it's good that the
conversation's happening.
I've been learning about it forthe past few years and I feel
like, well, I know that a lot ofthe shelf stable dressings are
filled with ingredients, likeyou were saying, that don't make
(22:23):
our bodies happy, for lack of abetter term like there are a
lot of consequences from fromeating them that we don't even
realize.
You don't know until you knowkind of thing.
So in your book you talk a lotabout dressings that we could be
making at home and I think whenpeople first hear this, if they
didn't grow up in families thatmade dressings or they haven't
done it before, it feelsintimidating.
(22:43):
But it's so simple, so sosimple.
I did the dressing last nightfor the pizza night salad.
It was phenomenal.
It's so simple.
It's so simple and it's likelyingredients you already have on
hand.
So talk to us about dressings.
What are some of your I guess,like go-tos that you think
everyone should know about?
Speaker 2 (23:04):
Dressing is a hard one, and it's become extra tough
because the healthier dressingsthat they are selling bottled
in a store are very pricey.
I would say they are starting at$7 a bottle, which you could
make your own for exponentiallycheaper.
And also, of course, whenyou're making your own, it's
(23:25):
fresher, you're controlling theingredients and you are saving a
lot of money and time.
So when I make my own dressing,no dressing is going to take
more than five minutes.
So I have an entire dressingsection in the book of 25
different dressings that pairwith the 75 salads that are in
my new life-changing salads book.
And I would say that and ofcourse, like you're going to
(23:51):
have fun dressings that you makebut I would have like five that
you are like constantly keepingin your arsenal and that you're
using all the time fordifferent recipes and that you
kind of just learn how to throwtogether.
Like maybe the first time ortwo you're looking at the
measurements but they're so easy.
You're just going to learn howto like pour things together in
a bowl.
A little secret about me I don'tmeasure anything when I cook, I
just don't have time for that.
(24:12):
I anything when I cook, I justdon't have time for that.
I like throw in a little bit ofthis, a little bit of that.
So I would say for dressings,like a really good balsamic
vinaigrette is important to knowhow to make, but I really like
one of my favorite dressings inthe book is a balsamic tahini
dressing where you actually youmix balsamic tahini olive oil,
(24:33):
some Dijon mustard and make likea creamy balsamic vinaigrette
and the tahini adds healthy fatswhich are good for your hair,
your skin, your hormones, yournails, makes the dressing a
little bit more hearty andcreamy and filling and that's
one of my favorite ones in thebook.
And again, if you have tahinibalsamic olive oil, these are
(24:54):
pantry staples that you'll justhave on hand and you can quickly
whip together a dressing andI'm telling you like that in a
store would be like $9 by me, atleast in Boca.
The healthy dressings are soexpensive.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
It is wild.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
It's wild.
Another great dressing optionthat you can make is actually
using hummus as a base.
I love to do this, but you cantake hummus and you can use
homemade or store-bought and mixit together with olive oil,
lemon juice, a little vinegarand that also makes a really
creamy, dairy-free dressing.
And I also love using non-dairyyogurt as the base of a lot of
(25:33):
dressings, because all the yummydressings that we know and love
like I don't know people loveblue cheese dressings and like
Chipotle, ranch and buffalo andall of these things, but a lot
of the ones in restaurants orstore-bought ones are they use
mayonnaise or, you know, likehydrogenated oils which clog our
arteries.
You can use non-dairy yogurt asa base of a creamy dressing and
(25:58):
then it's dairy-free.
You can buy it unsweetened, soyou know that there's no sugar,
and then you're getting thisindulgent, creamy dressing that
tastes amazing but is also goodfor you.
Speaker 1 (26:07):
Oh my gosh, this is like my language.
I love talking this, but I have, so I make a lot of my own
dressings.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
I've never done a hummus one yet, and I love
hummus, hummus dressing is sogood and it's also hummus
dressing is amazing on pastasalads too, so you can make like
a like a Mediterranean pastasalad and make like a creamy
hummus dressing.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I think you have one of like the best jobs ever.
You just get to like play withsalads all day.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
So all day?
I know that's part eating atthe end of the day, right,
that's such a dream, oh my gosh.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Well, if listeners haven't made dressings, let this
be your invitation to just tryit.
Try maybe like a vinaigretteand a creamy one.
I have two options that I storemy dressings in.
I do like the OXO or OXO brand.
They have like a very simple,like dressing kind of canister
that I store my dressing in inthe fridge, and a mason jar
(26:59):
right Like what do you store?
What do you store yours in?
Speaker 2 (27:02):
I like to use a mason jar.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Okay, cause it's glass, right, yeah, it's glass
and it's just easy.
Speaker 2 (27:08):
And if you need to like cause a lot of dressings
that you make at home too,you're going to need to like
shake it or stir it up beforeyou use it, just because there's
no preservatives or anythingextra in there that's going to
stabilize it or keep it blended.
So you're going to need to getin there and give it a good mix
once it's sat in the fridge.
But I would also say a littlefrother, one that you would use
(27:30):
for coffee, is going to be yourbest friend too when it comes to
dressings, because, let's say,you mix together balsamic and
oil.
If you just use like a fork,it's not going to completely
emulsify and whisk together.
If you take one of those littlecoffee frothers, it'll make
like a really creamy, deliciousdressing and will really help to
blend it as well, you just blewmy mind.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
I always whip out my like massive stick blender.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
And I feel so like legit, but it's also huge, and
so that frother is so genius.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
The frother is genius .
Now, if you're making like amore intense dressing with like
herbs and avocado like, forexample, I have a green goodness
dressing that packs in likeherbs and like an avocado and
it's delicious, but you're goingto a frother isn't going to
blend up all those ingredients.
So, also with dressings, like amini tiny blender or an
(28:22):
immersion blender, like a handblender is also going to be your
best friend when it comes todressings.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
It's so fun.
This is like a foodies dreamconversation.
I love all this.
I know I'm getting hungry, Iknow.
Well, I want to go through justa few of the categories of your
book.
I think this is my favoritepart about it.
I honestly was expecting alllettuce salads, and the way that
you approached different likenon-lettuce type salads was so
(28:50):
genius, and I think it's goingto be so refreshing for people
that want variety and healthyfood and just like clean eating.
So let's go through some of thechapters.
I think I'm going to pick justa few and then leave the rest
for listeners to explore as theyget their hands on the book,
just to show people like what'spossible and like some variety
(29:12):
that you offer.
So give us an example of agrain salad, actually, because I
think that's one of my favoritetypes of salads right now.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
A grain or a green.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
Oh sorry, grain A-I-N .
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Grain.
Okay, I have my book here,which I'll show you guys.
It turned out so pretty.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
It's so pretty.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
I love it.
Yeah, the pink, the green.
It has also like a green linenspine which is like really nice
if you want to keep on yourcoffee table or like on your
kitchen counter.
Like it looks really gooddesign wise too, which is very
important to me.
But yeah, I have the book righthere.
Let's talk about a great grainsalad that you can make so well.
(29:50):
I'll talk about two.
One is my Moroccan couscoussalad.
It is literally one of the bestsalads I've ever had.
That's one of my go-tos if I'mbringing something to someone's
house.
I'm Jewish, so if I'm invitedto a Shabbat dinner, I'm always
bringing my Moroccan couscoussalad.
It's like olives, whole wheat,couscous, feta raisins.
(30:12):
It's kind of like a sweetsavory.
The vegan feta makes it amazingand it's just one of the most
different salads I've ever had.
But so good.
And the seasonings too, becauseI use a Moroccan seasoning
blend.
It's flavorful, it's filling,guests are always impressed by
it and you get the chance to usecouscous, which I feel like
(30:33):
people don't use enough, andit's like a great addition to a
salad.
Speaker 1 (30:38):
That's so fun.
I was thinking my husband.
He ate couscous for the firsttime when we started dating and
whenever I talk about it or he'strying to refer it, he taps his
finger on the table.
He's like is it that grain Torepresent little dots?
Speaker 2 (30:55):
That's so funny, they are like little dots table.
He's like is it that grain Torepresent little dots?
That's so funny, they are likelittle dots yeah.
Speaker 1 (30:59):
He's like what's that thing called?
And he does this little tapthing.
It's, I don't know bad story.
You have to see him do it.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
That's so funny.
No, it's such a good salad andit has apples and all different
herbs.
I think herbs are the secret toan amazing salad too.
It just brings so muchfreshness and flavor.
So this is just like adifferent salad, like kind of
just if you want to impress yourfriends, impress yourself, make
something like if you're stuckin a little bit of a rut is what
I'm saying.
This is like one of my go-tos.
Speaker 1 (31:28):
Moroccan flavors are incredible.
Yeah, how about let's do a warmsalad, because I feel like
people might not like, theirbrain might not go there, but
you captured that so well.
Speaker 2 (31:42):
Thank you, yes.
So right now it's obviouslycold, it's winter for a lot of
people in a lot of places and acrunchy fresh, raw veggie salad
isn't necessarily going toappeal to you when your body's
freezing cold from the outdoorsand you just want to be
nourished and warm.
So I have a whole section ofwarm salads, so it's a great way
(32:03):
to get your veggies in withouthaving raw vegetables.
One of my favorites in there oh, it's the first one on there
it's the Zen Bowl, which hascurry, cauliflower, black rice,
sauteed kale.
So it's more of like a warm,hearty, like lots of flavors,
delicious, but like super easy.
All of these recipes are recipes.
(32:26):
You don't need to be a chef tomake them.
I'm not a chef.
I like to always say that I didnot go to culinary school.
I'm just a girl who likes toeat, so I'm always cooking,
because if I want to eat, I haveto cook.
So everything is beyond easyimpossible to mess up recipes.
Before I wrote my book, I lookedat every other salad cookbook
(32:46):
on the market because I wantedto be different.
I'm like, how am I going to setmy book apart?
And what I found with all ofthese other books is that, of
course, mine's different becauseit's plant-based, but these
salad recipes in other bookswere complicated.
They used ingredients thatweren't accessible to people.
I saw this salad.
(33:07):
I'll never forget this.
I was looking through saladcookbooks and there was one
salad that called for freshhoneycomb and purslane.
I'm like I don't know howanyone's going to get either of
those and I don't even know whatpurslane is.
So my point is like all theserecipes are super, super easy.
(33:27):
But yeah, the Zen bowl isdelicious, and then also the
pizza salad.
So I have pizza night saladwhich, like you make, that's a
fresh green, like Italian saladthat you're making with pizza.
But then I have pizza salad,which is like what you would use
as pizza toppings, sauteed intoa salad, and it's delicious,
(33:50):
like truly amazing, and it has atomato Parmesan vinaigrette
that goes on it.
But like any pizza toppings youlike like tomatoes, mushrooms,
you do like oregano it makeslike the best warm salad.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
Oh, my goodness.
Well, you showed the cover ofthe book.
I'm so glad that you could.
I was planning on it, but mycamera's not working today.
It is beautiful.
I hope that everyone picks itup, and I mean it truly is a
unique cookbook.
Even if people are cookbookcollectors, they don't have one
like this.
This is the perfect addition toany collection, whether you're
(34:27):
a healthy eater that wants justfresh flavors.
You're kicking off your yearwith new goals.
This really is, I think, ahousehold staple.
It's going to become ahousehold staple.
What else that we maybe didn'ttalk about?
Do you hope or do you wantpeople to know about it?
Speaker 2 (34:43):
So the Life Changing Salads cookbook really stemmed
from my Life Changing Saladsseries, which I started on
Instagram two or three years agoit's probably about three at
this point on Instagram two orthree years ago it's probably
about three at this point and Ibasically just started posting
salads that I created out ofdesperation for filling,
delicious salads that were notonly healthy but tasted good,
(35:06):
because I feel like whenever Iwould go to a restaurant, I was
just noticing that salads havejust become so unhealthy and
they've really gone in thisdirection of being more for
taste and pleasure than beingfor health.
When you think of a salad, youthink of something healthy, and
now it's like bacon and bluecheese and whatever, and, of
(35:27):
course, that might taste goodbut that's not good for you.
So I'm like I really need tostart creating these restaurant
crave-worthy salads that arefunctional, that actually serve
a purpose, that nourish yourbody especially a woman's body
Because 95% of the people whofollow me are women that taste
good but then are also healthyfor you.
And so I started my LifeChanging Salad series and
(35:50):
basically overnight, it became ahuge success.
I had no idea the impact thatthis series would have, but I
was posting my favorite versionsof salad, healthier versions of
my favorite salad.
So, for example, californiaPizza Kitchen has this barbecue
chicken salad.
So in my book I did a tofu, orin the series I made like a
(36:13):
chickpea barbecue salad or atofu barbecue salad.
I'm doing like pasta Caesarsalads, but with like a cashew
Caesar dressing instead ofregular Caesar dressing, and the
series really just blew up.
It was getting hundreds ofmillions of views.
I was gaining millions offollowers.
I'd sometimes wake up with like200,000 more followers than I
(36:35):
went to sleep with.
It was really insane, but itjust reminded me that people not
to be literal, but people wereseriously hungry for healthy
salad recipes.
And after this series wentviral, I'm like I have to do a
book about this.
This is going to be my nextbook, so it's 75 salads in the
(36:57):
book.
Some of them are classics fromInstagram that I included, but
the majority of them are brandnew salads never seen before.
I know a lot of people arehesitant to buy a book when
they're like oh, I can just getthe recipes for free online.
But this, I promise, there's somuch value as most of the
recipes are new.
All of the recipes indicate inthe book any kind of allergy
(37:21):
issues, so you'll see a littleicon if the salad is nut-free.
You'll know.
If the salad is soy-free, Ihave little icons with an H on
them.
If the salad's good for hosting, you'll see an LF on the recipe
if it's leftover friendly,because that's a huge issue that
people come across when makingsalads is they're like okay, I
(37:43):
made a big salad, I put it inthe fridge and then it's super
soggy the next day.
So I will tell you what saladswill stay good in the fridge,
what salads won't, how topreserve your salads, how to
keep them fresh.
I also have an entire sectionin the book of no lettuce salads
, so those won't get soggy inthe fridge.
Every single recipe has apicture.
(38:03):
I'm very visual.
I don't know about you, but ifI get a cookbook and the recipe
doesn't have an image you don'tmake it.
Speaker 1 (38:10):
I'm not making it.
Speaker 2 (38:11):
So every single recipe has a picture, the entire
book.
I want to say this is importantit's gluten-free optional, so
it doesn't say gluten-free onthe pages, but in the beginning
there's a little disclaimer thatit's all gluten-free optional.
So, for example, if it's apasta salad, just use
gluten-free pasta.
If I used, like a farro grainwhich is not gluten-free, I make
(38:36):
a note like you can use quinoaor rice or something else.
Everything's interchangeable,everything can be made
gluten-free.
I have a couple recipes like Ihave a vegan avocado tuna salad
but I pair it on toast so youcan just use gluten-free toast.
So kind of, just use yourcommon sense there and like,
make whatever gluten-free swapsyou need to make, because now
they have so many gluten-freebreads and pastas and everything
(38:56):
that you shouldn't have aproblem.
So if you're gluten-free, everysingle recipe can be made
gluten-free in this book andthey're all plant-based.
And also, if you have a nutallergy, I also have certain
swaps for nut allergies in hereas well.
Speaker 1 (39:12):
Oh my gosh, it is so perfect.
I'm getting ready to host ababy shower in a few weeks and I
wanted all really unique sidesalads, and so I love this.
It's like a one-stop just pickkind of something from each
chapter and it's going to besuch a diverse, unique selection
Wow, well, everyone could goget their copy.
(39:33):
Well, actually, what would bethe most helpful for you leading
into launch?
What website should peoplepre-order the book from?
Because I know sometimes thereare certain places that are
better than others.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Yeah, so you can go to lifechangingsaladscom and
that will lead you to anywherewhere the book is sold.
So it's available for pre-orderright now.
It'll be available in April.
A lot of people are like whywould I order a book now when I
won't get it till April One?
(40:05):
It'll ensure that you'll be thefirst to get the book.
So if copies are running low orif it's selling out or if
there's a huge influx of orders,if you pre-order, you'll be one
of the first ones to get it.
Also, it's super helpful toauthors because for the New York
Times bestselling list,pre-orders count towards making
that list, which is veryprestigious for an author and it
really shows your publisher andretailers if the book is
(40:27):
popular, if people arepre-ordering.
Also, enough about how itbenefits me.
For you, I'm going to beoffering a lot of like bonuses
and perks.
So if you pre-order the book,I'll be sending out like extra
eBooks, extra tips and all kindsof extra bonuses that you'll be
able to claim if you havepre-ordered.
But yeah, lifechangingsaladscomit's on Amazon.
(40:49):
If you literally type it onAmazon life changing salads,
it'll be right there.
Barnes and Noble, where allbooks Salads, it'll be right
there.
Barnes Noble, where all booksare sold.
You'll be able to find it.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Amazing.
This was such a funconversation for me.
Loved getting to chat with youmore.
But we end each of ourconversations with the same
three questions, flash answers,and I'd love to hear your
answers as well.
The first is something you haveeaten recently and loved.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Oh my God, Last night my dinner was like one of the
best things I've made in a while.
I made like a quinoa, tofu kindof red curry dish and I sauteed
.
Basically I had a ton ofvegetables in my fridge that
just needed to be cooked,Otherwise they were going to go
bad.
So I threw in, like tomatoesthat were about to be wrinkly,
pepper, zucchini, garlic onion Ihad some parsley that was
(41:34):
getting wilty threw it in there,did a bunch of garam masala,
coriander, all different kindsof flavorful spices, quinoa, a
whole block of tofu crumbled inthere, coconut milk and what
else did?
I put in there Water and aglass jar of red Thai curry and
(41:56):
this was one pot.
So literally threw everythingin, mixed it together, put a lid
on it and basically just cookedit on low, stirring it every
few minutes for like 30 minutesand it was done and it was like
the best thing ever.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Those are my favorite flavors.
That sounds so good, reallygood.
How about a gathering youattended that made you feel a
strong sense of belonging and,if you could pinpoint it, what
it was that made you feel thatway?
Speaker 2 (42:20):
Give me one second Aiden's crying.
I just want to make sure ohbaby.
Okay, can you hear it at all?
Speaker 1 (42:26):
No, not at all.
Okay, I get that though.
Speaker 2 (42:30):
Usually it's me.
Yeah, no, sorry about that,you're fine, I think we're good.
If you can't hear it, then no,not at all no.
Yeah, I think we're good.
Speaker 1 (42:45):
You want just ask me one more time, oh perfect, yeah,
a gathering you attended thatmade you feel a strong sense of
belonging and if you couldpinpoint it, what it was that
made you feel that way.
Speaker 2 (42:56):
Ooh, that's a really good question.
I feel like anything with likegood friends.
Recently had a dinner with abunch of friends and we did a
chili night and like everyonebrought something different and
we had all different toppings.
We did like a help, Like it wasone of my best friends.
(43:16):
She made the healthy grilledchili recipe and we just had
good conversation.
Everyone there was eating ahealthy meal.
We all loved the food and itwas a completely vegan meal too,
and I'm like this is so amazingthat we're all here together.
We're all eating healthy meals,sharing.
Everyone contributed somethingand we laughed, had a good time.
(43:37):
Like that was within the pastcouple of weeks and it was just
like I filled up my cup.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
That's yeah.
That's sweet that it doesn'thave to be complicated.
I could be nourishing and stillbe a fun girl's night.
And the last thing, my favoritequestion lately, something
you've discovered that you thinkeveryone should know, about
something random like a Netflixshow and Amazon purchase.
Oh my God.
Speaker 2 (43:59):
That's a really good question.
I have this, um, I have thesethings they're called onion
goggles and I always I I'm verysensitive to onion.
I'm always like crying when I'mcutting up an onion and their
goggles that you wear while youcut up an onion and you just
keep them in your kitchen and itprevents you from crying.
Speaker 1 (44:18):
They're the best.
They might seem silly, butlisten, everyone like.
Everyone like hates crying whenthey cut onions.
So that is genius.
Go on.
Speaker 2 (44:26):
Amazon.
I think they're under $10.
Just type in onion goggles andthey have like they're plastic,
but then they have like a foamkind of like layering on there
so they seal to your face sothat you literally like can't
get the onion juices in youreyes, and they are a lifesaver.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
So many genius tips, my goodness.
Well, we will link the onion,glasses, the book, everything in
the show notes.
Thank you guys so much forbeing here and Danielle, thanks
so much for taking time.
We're so excited for thislaunch.
Speaker 2 (44:57):
Thank you so much.
We'll talk soon.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
Well, guys, we will see you next week.
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