21-Day Vegan Kickstart / a Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) site / Alexandra Jamieson

Alexandra Jamieson has been seen on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Final Word, 30 Days, and The National Health Test with Bryant Gumbel. She was even featured in the award-winning documentary Super Size Me. Why? Because Alex has proven herself to be a wise and profound voice for holistic nutrition and healthy living.

In her two books, Living Vegan for Dummies and The Great American Detox Diet, Alex offers remarkably sensible—and tasty—advice on how to detox, live healthfully, and feel fantastic.

Alexandra Jamieson's Recipes
Fruit Kanten
Cauliflower Chickpea Curry
Creamy Broccoli (or Spinach) Soup

The Great American Detox Diet
By Alexandra Jamieson

What’s Kanten? It’s a pudding made from agar. What’s agar? It’s a sea vegetable and Mother Nature’s gift to vegans. This natural plant food is a vegan’s answer to gelatin. Try seasonal combinations of juice and fruit to use your farmers’ market or backyard bounty. Apple juice and chunks of pear, pear juice with cherries, or peach juice with melon balls are winning combinations. This type of dessert will look a little cloudy, not clear like Jell-O, but it will be delicious!

4 cups fruit juice (apple, grape, cherry, or a combination of any two)
5 tablespoons agar flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup diced fruit (apples, grapes, blueberries, cherries, or a combination)

Place all the ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil, uncovered. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the agar flakes have dissolved. Pour the mixture into individual bowls, wine glasses, or shallow serving dish and refrigerate until gelled, about 1 1/2 hours. Spoon out or slice to serve.

This curry has so much flavor, so much protein, and so many veggies—and it’s so great for leftovers. What’s not to love? Don’t let the list of ingredients scare you. You’ll use the spices over and over again, so they’re a good investment.

3 tablespoons unrefined coconut or canola oil
2 teaspoons whole mustard seeds
1 large yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon plus 1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons plus one 1 teaspoon ginger, grated or minced
3 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
3 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon asafetida (sometimes called “hing”)
2 green cardamom pods
1 24-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
8 cups rinsed, stemmed, and lightly chopped spinach
2 cups cooked and drained chickpeas or a 15-ounce can, drained
2 cups cauliflower, chopped into small florets

Preheat a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Pour in the oil, and then add the mustard seeds. Stir and heat until the seeds start popping. Add the onion and sauté for 8 minutes, or until the onion begins to brown. Add the garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the ginger. Stir well to combine and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the curry powder, garlic powder, cumin seeds, coriander, cloves, cinnamon, asafetida, and cardamom pods. Stir in the whole can of tomatoes and juice, and then bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the spinach in large handfuls and stir into the mixture until the leaves begin to wilt down. Add more as space allows, if desired. When all the spinach is wilted down, add the chickpeas and cauliflower to the pot. Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and stir well. Cover and cook for another 20 minutes over low heat. Remove the cardamom pods and serve hot with rice or warmed pitas.

People are always asking me how they can give up dairy without missing that creamy, satisfying taste and texture. Believe it or not, you can still indulge in creamy textured foods—you just have to do it the vegan way. This recipe, for example, is smooth, full of veggie goodness, and easy and delicious.

8 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 ribs celery, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 heads of broccoli or 3 bunches of spinach, cut into small pieces
3 cups plain, unsweetened soymilk
1 container soft or silken tofu
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste

Add the vegetable stock to a large saucepan and bring to boil over high heat. Meanwhile, add the oil to a skillet heated over medium-high heat. Add the celery and onion and sauté with a pinch of salt until they start to turn a bit translucent, about 5 minutes. When the vegetable stock comes to a boil, add the broccoli and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until it turns bright green. Add the celery and onion mixture to the pot of broccoli. Turn off the heat and add the soymilk. Place the tofu in a medium mixing bowl. Mush the tofu through your fingers to break it up. Add the tofu, cayenne pepper, and black pepper to the pot with the broccoli. Blend the soup using either an immersion blender or a countertop blender. If using a standing blender, blend the soup in small batches, 2 cups at a time. Cover the blender lid with a kitchen towel to prevent any hot liquid from flying out. After each batch is blended, pour it into a separate mixing bowl until the entire pot is empty. Return the soup to the saucepan. Taste the soup and add more seasoning, if desired, but be sure to blend again or stir really well to combine if you do season further.

Alexandra Jamieson's knowledge of nutrition has been artfully developed through years of both professional and self study. As the daughter of natural health advocates, Alex crafted a unique personal mission to spread the word about the power of healthy food and the astounding ways in which it can positively transform everyday life.

Alex now commands a matchless repertoire of nutritional wisdom and food savvy.
She is a professionally trained healthy gourmet chef, having studied at New York’s Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts. She refined her techniques by cooking professionally in Milan, Italy, as well as at a variety of popular New York City restaurants.

In addition, Alex is a certified health and nutrition counselor. She studied with groundbreaking pioneers in the field of nutrition at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, which is accredited by Columbia University’s Teacher’s College and by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners.

Alex also visited over 20 countries where she premiered Super Size Me, an Oscar-nominated documentary, and acted as a messenger for the power of holistic nutrition and healthy detoxing. Though she readily and ably shares her message with all, her passion is helping professional women enhance their ability to excel and achieve using healthy food as a catalyst.

Time and again, her clients experience the magic that happens when they feel great in their own bodies. Members of her programs step up to a new level of confidence and willingly expand and explore bigger dreams and authentic goals.

A healthy and energetic vegan herself, Alex lives in New York City with her family and a lively boy cat named Sue. She is currently working on her next book and proves that living a healthy life is most definitely far from boring.