November 19th, 2009
Let me just say right up front that I am not a vegetarian; not even close. But I do my best to eat as well as I can, and the meat I do consume is almost always organic and from sustainable sources. That all being said, when I was offered a chance to check out Alicia Silverstone’s new book “The Kind Diet” I jumped at the chance because I had heard such great things about it already. A friend of mine runs a site dedicated to skin care called My Skin Affair, and landed an interview with Alicia about her book and Ecotools, an earth-friendly line of make up brushes and cosmetic bags she is involved with. I will post a snippet of it a little later, along with a link so you can read the entire interview. But for now, back to the book…
I have only had it for a few weeks now, but I have already tried several of the recipes – and have been more than pleased with how they turned out. Alicia is a Vegan and doesn’t eat meat or animal products, so many of the recipes had meat and/or dairy replacements in them such as seitan, tofu, or vegan cheddar cheese…not items often found in my house! But I did my best to follow some of the recipes to the letter and I have to tell you that they were incredibly good. One of my favorites was the Eggplant Chana Masala, which has onions, cloves, curry, cumin, eggplant, chickpeas, tomatoes, vegetarian chili and cilantro. While the recipe said it was for 8 people, I only got 2 meals out of it. Guess I was really hungry and thoroughly enjoyed it!
The book also talks about “kind” foods versus processed stuff, getting fit, activism, and even has a section about pets. Overall it’s a great book that is not just for vegetarians or vegans – after all, this meat-eater got a lot out of it too. Good stuff, and I recommend you check it out.
And finally, a segment from the interview I mentioned earlier:
On Ecotools: Alicia, a passionate animal welfare and environmental activist, has joined forces with the enormously successful eco-conscious brand to show that style and respect for the earth go hand-in-hand. Getting gorgeous, going green, and giving back is what Ecotools is all about. All of the bags in the Ecotools by Alicia Silverstone cosmetic bag collection are made with a natural hemp material and have a recycled PET lining. When I asked Alicia about Ecotools she said “I’m excited about how beautiful it is”. I’ve seen the Ecotools brushes and the cosmetic bags and they are absolutely lovely.
Click over to My Skin Affair if you want to read the rest of Alicia’s interview.
Now, about that giveaway…the publisher has graciously offered a copy of the book for one lucky reader, and this is how we are going to do this. The giveaway will be open until Saturday morning at 7:30am MST (48 hours from now), and here are the rules and how to enter:
- To enter, please leave a comment (with a valid email address, so we can contact you) as to why you would like to win the book
- Only one entry per person. Period. Please don’t try to use different email addresses, etc, as the IP numbers will be checked.
- Entries must be from residents within the continental U.S.
- Book will be sent directly from the publisher to a valid address via their choice of shippers
- Winner will be chosen at random from all eligible entries received
Good luck everyone! And if you don’t win, I still suggest you check the book out – it’s great.