Tag Archives: Lindsay Nixon

INTERVIEW & GIVEAWAY – Lindsay Nixon, The Happy Herbivore

It has been a loooooooooooooong time since I hosted a giveaway…I was waiting for something really worthy of a giveaway and I know you will find this “giveaway worthy!”  For those of you unfamiliar, Lindsay Nixon is a low-fat vegan recipe developing goddess.  Her recipes are simple, healthy, and full of flavor.

With two cookbooks already under her belt (The Happy Herbivore Cookbook & Everyday Happy Herbivore), Lindsay just released her third, Happy Herbivore Abroad 

“In the last 10 years, Happy Herbivore chef Lindsay S. Nixon has lived in eight states, visited 46, spent a year as an expat on a Caribbean island, and traveled to more than 35 places abroad. As a celebration of Nixon’s jet-setter lifestyle, Happy Herbivore Abroad combines traditional comfort foods from home with international inspiration and stories of her adventures.

A little of everything—basics, comfort food, international cuisine, and travelogue—Happy Herbivore Abroad provides your palate with more than 135 of Nixon’s crowd-pleasing vegan recipes low in fat, high on health, and made with everyday ingredients. True to the Happy Herbivore creed, these vegan dishes are easy to make, easy on your wallet, and completely plant-based.”

I jumped at the chance to interview Lindsay and eagerly accepted her offer to host a giveaway of her latest cookbook, Happy Herbivore Abroad (Giveaway details follow the interview).

GRETCHEN – In my experience, people always like to know what led someone to a plant-based lifestyle.  When did you become plant-based and why?

LINDSAY NIXON – I was a vegetarian for most of my life, but lapsed back to meat-eating in my late teens due to family pressure and peer pressure. A serious health scare in my early 20’s brought me back to a vegetarian diet and about a year later I adopted a totally plant-based (vegan) diet. I was motivated mainly for health reasons, but I also care about the environment and am moved by the plight of farm animals.

G – I really enjoyed reading your post, “I’m (Still) Not a Vegan Anymore!”  People react so strongly to the word “vegan” and like you, I feel funny using that word to label myself.  Did you expect the original post to get as much attention as it did?

LN –  I had no idea it would garner so much attention or that I’d still be talking about it a year later. I remember sitting at my desk, staring at the computer screen in total shock. My inbox was pinging every 3 minutes.

 I am sure each of your books has a very special place in your heart…Do you have a favorite?

LN – They’re all special and unique in their own way. All of them had their challenges, and miracles. I love them equally. I imagine asking an author to pick their favorite book would be like asking a parent to pick their favorite child.

What do you typically eat in the span of a day and are you a snacker?

LN – I used to be a snacker, until I read Mindless Eating. That book really changed my eating habits. My daily food intake is varied — since my schedule is always changing.

What is your favorite plant-based indulgence?

LN – Vegan marshmallows.

When are you happiest?

LN – When I’ve turned in my latest manuscript — joking! (kind of). I try to find moments of pure happiness each day… whether it’s snowboarding in the winter and taking it in, or riding in my convertible down one of LA’s palm-tree lined streets, to petting my pugs on the couch, to traveling around the world and marveling at the gifts before me, to snuggling with my husband…

In your wildest dreams, what would your life look like in 5 years?

LN – I hope to be retired in 5 years, living in Thailand or Indonesia. I’ll make it happen.

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*** GIVEAWAY * GIVEAWAY ***

To enter the giveaway complete any or all of the following –

You will gain one entry for each task completed:

  1. Subscribe to Veggie Grettie’s E-mail Subscription (upper right corner of this page and/or the homepage below the Header photo)
  2. “Like” Veggie Grettie on Facebook
  3. Send an e-mail out to your friends telling them about the giveaway and cc me on it gretchen (at) veggiegrettie (dot) com
  4. Sign-up for Linday’s Newsletter (I am a subscriber!) by clicking HERE and entering your e-mail address in the bottom right corner of the page.
  5. LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS POST FOR EACH TASK COMPLETED (That’s up to 4 comments…4 entries)!!!

The giveaway will run through midnight 12/30

*** OPEN TO RESIDENTS OF THE US & CANADA ONLY ***

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HEALTHY TASTE OF LA 2 – Recap

I attended the 2nd annual Healthy Taste of LA for the first time last month and was very impressed!  The keynote speaker at this year’s event was T. Colin Campbell.  Being the nutrition geek that I am, I will forever be indebted to T. Colin Campbell for the work he has done in the field of nutrition and the discoveries he has made throughout his career pertaining to nutrition and its role in cancer and other diseases of affluence.  It was great to have a few minutes to chat with him about nutrition in general and the plans he has with regards to evolving the Plant-Based Nutrition Certification courses at Cornell.

It was a packed day of amazing healthy cooking demonstrations (NO OIL, SUGAR, OR SALT) by Chef Ramses Bravo of True North, Chef Eric Tucker of Millenium, a live taping of The Chef and The Dietitian, a motivation speech by fitness guru John Pierre (Ellen’s Personal Trainer), more cooking demonstrations by Ann Gentry (pictured with me above) who is the founder of Real Food Daily, Chef Eric LeChasseur of Seed Bistro, and Lindsay Nixon the author of the Happy Herbivore.

Fortunately for us we also had three breaks throughout the day where we were given the opportunity to sample all of the wonderful food that the Chefs demonstrated making.  Another exciting aspect of the day was the fact that the event organizers were short one staff photographer and asked me to fill in which basically gave me an all-access pass to move around and take pictures to my heart’s content!

The first recipe that was demonstrated at the event was Chef Ramses Bravo’s Coconut Vanilla Granola, which is the Granola that they serve at the True North Health Center.   After the event I went home and made the granola and was really impressed with the result.  I had never made granola without oil before and love that I now know how.  Click HERE for the recipe.

At the end of the event Chef AJ announced that the keynote speaker at next year’s Healthy Taste of LA 3 will be Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, the man who has figured out the formula to be heart attack proof (Did you all see Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s CNN special by the same name highlighting Dr. Esselstyn?)!!!

I definitely plan on being there at the event next year (November 4, 2012).  I HIGHLY recommend purchasing your tickets in advance.  This year they had to turn people away from the event because the interest was so high.  Do yourself a favor and purchase your tickets ahead of time.

For more information about 2012’s Healthy Taste of LA3 and to purchase tickets click here.

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Filed under Cancer, Cooking Demonstration, Education, Events, General Vegan, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

HEALTHY TASTE OF LA – Sunday Nov. 6th

Chef AJ has organized and amazing event that will take place next Sunday, November 6th from 9 – 5 at the South Bay Redondo Seventh Day Adventist Church.  I highly recommend this event…Just look at the list of celebrity chefs and experts that will be there…AMAZING!!!

Interested in sampling delicious plant-based recipes from some of the best chefs in the world of Plant-based nutrition like Chefs Ramses BravoEric TuckerAnn GentryEric LechasseurLindsay Nixon and Chef AJ?  How about listening to lectures from experts in the field like T. Colin Campbell and Julieanna Hever?  Healthy Taste of LA II is Sunday, November 6th from 9 – 5 at the South Bay Redondo Seventh Day Adventist Church.

South Bay Redondo Seventh Day Adventist Church 
401 S. Prospect Avenue
Redondo Beach, CA 90277

For more information and to register for this one of a kind event visit: http://healthytasteofla.com/

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Filed under Cooking Demonstration, Education, Events, General Vegan, Vegan, Vegetarian