By: Jane Birch
There are literally thousands of low-fat WFPB recipes online. You only need a half dozen to a dozen that you really like. Don’t get overwhelmed. Try a few here and there until you discover what you like!
WFPB Recipe Sites
Fat-Free Vegan Kitchen. Hundreds of well-organized recipes.
Forks Over Knives Recipes. Great recipes. Be sure to also sign up for the newsletter to get new recipes delivered via email.
Straight Up Food. Cathy is a great chef and a culinary instructor.
McDougall Free Program. This free program includes recipes to get you started: (see link to the “10-Day Meal Plan”)
McDougall Newsletter Recipes. This is a massive database of recipes, look for this link, along with other useful recipe collections.
Physicians Committee’s low-fat plant-based recipes. Use the filtering tools.
Naked Food Magazine. This is a WFPB magazine.
Protective Diet. Oil, Sugar, and Nut Free Recipes (requires free registration).
Eat Plant-Based. Browse 500+ healthy plant-based recipes, handy kitchen tips, and resources.
More WFPB Recipe Blogs
- Happy Herbivore
- Healthy Girl’s Kitchen
- Potato Strong
- The Culinary Gym
- New Paradigm Health Cookery
- Helen’s Healthy Kitchen
- The Nutrition Professor
- Faithful Plateful
- PlantifulKiKi on YouTube
There are many more!
WFPB Cookbooks
A few cookbooks:
- The China Study Quick & Easy Cookbook
- The China Study All-Star Collection
- The PlantPure Nation Cookbook
- Plant-Powered Families
- More Happy Herbivore cookbooks.
WFPB Apps
Structured WFPB Food & Cooking Programs and Support Groups
More WFPB Food Resources
- Getting Started
- Figuring Out What to Eat
- WFPB Guidelines
- WFPB Meal Planning
- WFPB Made Easy
- WFPB Resources
Last updated: July 27, 2024
I am a “new” member, having been baptized and confirmed, October, 2014. That said, I am very overwhelmed with all the information from the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I understand the Words of wisdom, they make perfect sense. So I would ask that you send me e=mails that will help me to get to a better diet. My husband has not joined as a member and is quite the rib barbeque master after all we are from Texas. So my work is cut out for me.
Bless you Angel! I’m happy to help in any way I can. I will email you. A good place to start is here: Getting Started.
Hi Jane I just finished your book “Discovering the Word of Wisdom”. It truly inspired me. As a life long member it seems I have always heard the dont’s of the Word of Wisdom. In the last few years I have been working hard to eat healthier due to some “tummy” troubles. Going completely plant based makes sense. I know when I limit sugar, meat and dairy I feel better. I am so glad I read your book, I have ordered the China Study as well as the cookbook, so excited. It will take some work to get my family on board, but I will lead by example. Again thank you for inspiring _ Sherri Albrecht
Hi Sherri: Thanks so very much for your kind words. I’m excited you are giving this a try! I’m happy to help in any way I can. Please feel free to contact me! I wish you the best in your journey!! Jane
So I have just come across your online materials, and I haven’t read your book.
Although it all sounds good and makes sense to me (we actually already have the items you mention around the house and use them on a regular basis), the only thing that made me stop and think is your urge against fat. I thought it has been cleared out that sugar is the enemy and not fat, like the right type of it, i.e. olive oil and the one from nuts and others.
Our bodies need fat, researchers have recently commented on this, and our brain especially.
Maybe you clarify some.
Thanks,
A.
Hi Alice: Thanks for the interest and the great question! Yes, our bodies need fat, but we just need very little, so any extra is just calories most of us don’t need. Empty fat calories are like empty sugar calories: they are extra calories (which most of us don’t need) with no extra nutrients (which most of us do need). I’ve written more on this topic here, if you are interested: Healthy Fats & Vegetable Oils. I’m happy to answer any question you have and also learn from you!
I was able to read a lot of these books for free via my public library 🙂
Yay! I love libraries, and I love that all the information we need to be successful on a whole food, plant-based diet is free either at libraries or on the Internet. We don’t have to buy any special product or program. The Lord’s whole plant foods are inexpensive, and the wisdom we need is free for the taking!
Thanks Jane for great collection of nice recipes! It’s helpful!
A friend told me about a “sauce” recipe she found on your website. I have been looking for days with no luck. I think she called it “Better than butter” recipe, made with Cashews. Can you help me. My husband and I are enjoying this new lifestyle change. We especially enjoyed reading your book, which lead us to Colin Campell’s book “Whole” and other resources. (I like to listen to Audio books and get them from my local library. I always have some educational book going in my car and bathroom.)
Following the word of Wisdom makes sense.
Thank you
Dear Lee:
I only have two recipes on my site. I do have many links to other sites with lots of recipes, but I am afraid I have not heard of this one. Here is a collection of WFPB sauces that I do post on a Google Doc. You can check there: https://goo.gl/YpWKoE
I wish you well! JANE
Hi Lee,
Maybe this is the recipe you are referring to?
http://www.vegkitchen.com/recipes/cashew-butter-sauce/
Thank you Wendy. I did get the recipe I was asking about, but this looks great as well. I will give it a try.
Wendy, you must be so good with recipes, I wondered if you could help me. I wanted to make a Red curry powder sauce with vegetables to put over my black rice. Every recipe I have found either uses oil or paste, which also uses oil to make the paste. Isn’t there ANY curry recipe without oil used?
I was so happy to come across your website!!! I am a fellow LDS plant-based woman who is very passionate about getting the word out and changing lives through healthy lifestyle choices. I live in the Kansas City area and take every chance I can to tell my story about how I healed my body from MS and high blood pressure with a whole food plant based diet.
How wonderful Tricia! I hope you will consider sharing your story here on this site: http://discoveringthewordofwisdom.com/share-story/. I look forward to getting to know you better. I went to junior high and high school in Kansas City!
Hello. I’ve tried many times to eat vegetarian or vegan, since the Word of Wisdom seems to suggest this, but have not been able to continue. Every time I start I eat all the vegetables, fruits, grain and beans i’m hungry for, but still feel lethargic until I eat a piece of meat or drink milk. The longest I’ve been able to go is a week. I always eat until i’m full, but I don’t get the energy I need. I would like to be vegan, but don’t know how? I am thin and can’t get enough calories/energy. I would appreciate any help? Anyone else experience this? Thanks.
Dear Lloyd. You ask a great question! You are not alone. In my experience, here are some ideas that can help. You can decide which to investigate.
1. Part of this is typically psychological. We are used to eating animal foods to “fill full,” and we don’t believe we can get full on plant foods. We need to rethink this. The largest mammals on the earth (elephants, giraffes, rhinos, hippopotamuses, and water buffalo) are all herbivores; they eat only plant foods. They are able to get enough energy from plants. So can we. Energy comes not the flesh of animals but from calories, and plant food can provide just as much calories as animal foods. We sometimes often have unexamined beliefs that we need certain animal foods for complete nutrition. Do more research to learn how false this way of thinking is. Plants are the source of all the nutrients we need. The nutrients are only in the animals because the animals eat the plants. (You do need to supplement with Vitamin B12, however.)
2. On a whole food, plant-based diet you need to eat a much larger volume of food than you do eating animal foods because plant foods are not as calorie dense. Also, you will almost never get the really “weighted down” feeling you feel eating animal foods. Even when you are very full, your stomach will typically feel lighter. You can used to feeling this way and realize this is more natural and feels better. It doesn’t mean you are hungry. Of course, if you do get hungry, eat more food. You may need to eat more meals if you are getting hungry quicker.
3. To get more calories, concentrate on starch foods. Here are a list of starch foods. If you are consistently not feeling full enough or getting hungry too quickly, make sure that your meals are at least 75% starch foods.
4. Consider eating more of the calorie dense plant foods. These can actually help you gain weight (if you need or want to). Here are more details: How to Gain Weight on a WFPB Diet.
I hope one or more of these ideas is helpful! Please let me now how you do!
WFPB is great for losing weight as well as improving health. When you need to avoid losing weight though, you need to make the bulk of your meals high calorie plant foods. In addition to eating more whole starch foods, you should add more high-fat plant foods to your diet. Avocado, olives, tofu and other soy products, nuts and nut butters, seeds and seed butters, and even vegetable oils are necessary to maintain and gain weight for some individuals. High fat plant foods are satiating as well. You’ll definitely feel full if you add them to your meals.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Debbie! In case you (or anyone else reading this) is interested, from a whole food, plant-based perspective it is not necessary to eat high fat plant foods and vegetable oils are harmful to the body. I realize not everyone adopts a full WFPB perspective, but for those interested, I invite them to learn more on these points as they are very important. We can get all the calories and fats we need from low-fat starch and other plant foods. There are no extra ingredients that we need from high fat plant foods (which makes sense since the world does not produce enough of these for them to be a major source calories for a large number of people, so a diet like that would not be sustainable for the world’s population). Oils are mainly empty fat calories. More on why oils are harmful to our bodies here: https://goo.gl/9sAonN
What about ,Jesus eat fish and olive oil
Hi Alice: You raise a good point. I’m happy to share my perspective.
God ordained the use of animals in times of need. Jesus lived in just such a community where they needed to use all the resources at hand to get the calories they needed. We live in a place of abundance where we can easily get all our calories from plant foods. Plus, today our waterways are polluted unlike in His time. Maybe this is why the Word of Wisdom was given in our day and not in Christ’s day.
They used olive oil, but it was freshly pressed and expensive. They could not afford to pour plenty of it out of bottles they bought at the store. Plus, since they did not overindulge in all the processed food we have, the extra calories were not a problem. They needed extra calories.
Let’s not forget Jesus drank also wine. He did not tell us to consume the foods and drinks He did. Instead, He gave us the Word of Wisdom and asked use to be wise.
More on fish: https://goo.gl/aOAGZv
More on olive oil: https://goo.gl/recibF
What are your thoughts on the following scripture?
Whoso forbiddeth that man should not eat meats is not ordained of God, D&C 49:18–21.
Thank you!
Hi Lannie! Great question. I’ve loved pondering this (and many other scriptures). I’ve written a short summary of my thinking here, What does it mean to “command to abstain from meats”? I hope you find it helpful! Jane
I’m confused. The word of wisdom says to eat meat sparingly. Doesn’t that mean we should still eat meat just sparingly (like for dinner or something)?
Hi Tris! Thanks for your question.
The Word of Wisdom does not specify what “sparingly” means, so that leaves it up to us to prayerfully study these words and any resources we find useful and decide how to respond to the Lord’s counsel. I think it is also helpful to pay attention to the next verse in D&C 89: “And it is pleasing unto me that they [flesh of beasts] should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.”
I’ve written an article that explores different meanings of the word sparingly. If you are interested, you can find it here: Discovering the Word of Wisdom: The Flesh of Beasts.
Best wishes on your journey!