I am usually hungry again in about two hours if I eat only fruit and vegetables. I combine nuts, seeds, and ancient unprocessed grains with my meals to maintain a comfortably full feeling for hours longer. This combination creates a balance of nutritional needs so that your body isn’t sending you “hungry again” messages in two hours.
After correcting some health issues for which I was facing surgery, I realized that you are what you eat. Unfortunately, I ate the typical American diet of meats, cheeses, sauces, and processed foods, which are toxic for many of us. Eating this way caused me to have several debilitating migraines per week, as many as seven sinus infections a year, inflammation of the joints so severe that I experienced pain while standing or walking, even in flats, and many digestive issues.
A vegetarian diet works well for me, and I stick to it about 95% of the time. I have wild-caught grilled fish occasionally and enjoy freshly baked bread sometimes. Mr. Mickey and I occasionally share a wonderful dessert. The point is that I don’t make this a habit at every meal or even every week. I save my splurges for the very best of these treats. I rarely eat everything on a plate that I did not load. For example, there is often enough food for two meals when I am served an entree in most American restaurants. I always stop eating before I reach that full feeling. There is no worse feeling than being bloated and feeling stuffed.
I make a pot of the porridge described below weekly and have it a few times. Then, depending on how you prepare it, you can enjoy it for breakfast or as a side dish with any meal.
Susan’s Power Porridge
1/4 cup of hulled barley (soak overnight) follow package instructions
1/4 cup of farro (how to cook farro here)
1/4 cup brown lentils (simmer for twenty minutes in water until tender, not mushy)
Add the following items near the end of cooking time and stir to avoid sticking.
2 Tablespoons flax seeds (I grind them in a coffee grinder)
1/2 cup of rolled oats (Added near the end. Needs about five minutes cooking time.)
1 Tablespoon Hemp Hearts (Add at the end of the cooking time or sprinkle on top.)
1 Tablespoon sunflower seeds and sesame seeds
1 Tablespoon natural raw walnuts
1 Tablespoon raw pecans
One Tablespoon of Nutritional Yeast (This is not brewer’s yeast.) It supplies B vitamins.
One Tablesoon of Blackstrap Molasses, local honey or real maple syrup.
Use filtered water, unsweetened almond, or coconut milk to give the consistency you like.
At breakfast, you may want to add some of these fruits.
3 Large dates (pits removed) cut in half
1/2 sliced banana or any fresh berries
You might want to add cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, or ground cloves.
If you have this porridge as a side dish at lunch or dinner, use vegetable stock (no salt added) or water to warm it. It is ideal as a small side dish with a late lunch, including a salad, rinsed and drained organic (no salt added), canned beans (my beans post is here), sauteed mushrooms, garlic, and onions.
If the porridge is too watery, continue to cook while stirring for a few more minutes, or add more oats.
As in all the things I share with you, these results are from my personal experience. Before starting any new exercise program or way of eating, please talk to your doctor to ensure it is the right choice for you and your health.
That recipe sounds very filling. Would you be able to provide an example of how to add protein to a salad so that it is more filling? Sometimes I add tuna but I’m nervous about eating too much tuna/mercury.
You need not worry about adding protein. We actually get much more than we need.
Below is a list of 10 high-protein vegetables that you should eat often.
Peas
Spinach
Kale
Broccoli
Sprouts
Mushrooms
Brussel Sprouts. This cruciferous vegetable is not only high in protein, but also fiber.
Artichokes
I just discovered your blog in October and have been ‘catching up’ on your posts. I just turned 63 on Friday. Since March, I too have been eating much healthier and I feel SO much better and have lost 56 lbs. I have appreciated all your tips and insights and fashion. Thank you so much for sharing!
How long do you cook the porridge?
Thank you
I cook it for about twenty minutes starting out on high and then turning down the heat to medium and stirring often. The lentils need to be tender but not mushy.
Thank you for that recipe! I’m always looking for new healthy was so I can “mix things up”. If you have a favorite easy salmon recipe, it would be great if you could share it with us.
If we eat salmon, it is wild caught not the horrid farmed stuff. I don’t cook at home, so I only order it grilled when we are in a better restaurant that offers the wild salmon.
You are so right Susan about the salmon. I started researching it about 10 years ago and never eat farmed salmon. It is gross! Wild is the only way to go. I do cook and order mine from a fisherman in Alaska. Thank you the the healthy insight and great recipe.
Thank you, Susan. We love this delicious, nutritious porridge in our home! To make it quickly in the morning, I’ve made up packets of the pre-measured ingredients, except milk and fruit, and stored them in the freezer. It’s easy to heat the milk, add the packet and fruit and simmer.
This porridge sounds delicious ! Im going to try it tomorrow. I love your blog and all of your fashion advice, as well as recipes. And allowing all of us that follow you, to tag along on your wonderful adventures ! I just turned 51 in September and was feeling a bit low, and then I found your blog. I look forward to reading each and every post. You’ve made me feel so much better about my 50’s. Thank you for that !!
HI Susan,
Thank you for sharing this. I bought all of these ingredients a while back and didn’t use all of it. I store them in my refrigerator. Is there a shelf life on any of these items? Thanks.
I always keep nuts and grains in my fridge. The oats, lentils, and the dried beans stay in the pantry. After about six months, the remaining items might need to be tossed. I eat this every day in some form, so I use the ingredients fairly quickly. After that first investment, it isn’t so expensive because you are just replacing what you run out of each week.
Do you cook the steel cut oats, lentils and all together in the almond milk?
Yes. I start with the items that need to be cooked the longest. Groats (when I use them), lentils and steel cut oats, amaranth and millet also go in early. There is no science to this. I just stir and add more almond milk if it gets dry and if it’s too watery I cook and stir it a little longer.
I am delighted to have found your blog and appreciate each post. On an earlier post you mentioned the book Eat to Live. I have borrowed the book from the library and am integrating some of Dr. Fuhrman’s wisdom into my way of eating. I cannot tell you how grateful I am to learn about this healthy lifestyle. I doubt if the old way of eating will seem enticing after a few months on his programme.
Thank you again, Susan, for your wonderful and helpful posts. You are an inspiration. I learn so much from you.
Merry Christmas and a Healthy and Happy New Year
Honey Bee
Hi Susan-I have been thinking of switching to (mostly) Vegan due to digestive problems and the fact of needing to drop 40-50 lbs. I would like to stat the New Year on a healthier note. I love your ideas but was also wondering if you possibly have a favorite Vegan cookbook with relatively easy recipes. Thank you. Love reading your blogs.
I never follow a recipe or even cook that much. I do try to eat fresh fruits and vegetables when they are in season and in their most natural state. That means I steam veggies or wash them, cut them up and make a big salad often. Dani Spies is one of my favorite coaches. She has a great YouTube channel where she shows you how to make lots of dishes. She isn’t Vegan but she shows you how to cook a lot of unusual vegetables for example. This is another site that might be helpful to you.
You certainly are slim and trim,so whatever you are doing works for you.I just read the ingredients in the porridge and Feel overwhelmed.You should write a book.You have so many good ideas and you always look so put together and polished.I would love to know how you started on this vegan journey and what type of exercise you find the most beneficial for women our age.Thanks and Happy New Year.Linda
I started this journey when I was overweight and very unwell at age 55. I read the book “Eat to Live” by Dr. Joel Fuhrman which taught me what to eat and why. I embraced the new way of eating and quickly lost 45+ pounds and have kept it off. Best of all, my good health returned! I am not vegan, but most of my food choices include vegetables, ancient grains, nuts, seeds, fresh fruits, and lots of purified water each day. I feel best when I eat this way and go for a long brisk walk each day. I love to swim, ride a bike, go for a hike in the mountains, or just go for a walk in my neighborhood. Being outside and in motion is good for my spirit.
About how many servings is this recipe? I understand the need to eat until satisfied and not “full”. However, I am just starting out on this health journey and I don’t have those internal regulators in place yet. : )
I have about three servings from the recipe. Good luck and best of health to you!
Susan, I’m curious how often you shop, or how you store fresh vegetables and fruit. Like you, I live alone, and I have a hard time cooking without wasting a lot of food. At the end of the week I usually throw away lettuce, broccoli, berries, mushrooms and other items because I couldn’t eat it all. I have a demanding job and don’t want to buy groceries every few days. Thanks for your tips!
Would love to know your skin care routine! You have a gorgeous complexion
Click on Beauty above. I did a post about everything some time ago. Thank you!
Susan: I know it has been a while since you posted this, but I want to thank you for sharing this wonderful information. I have been eating this way for a while now, and my most recent cholesterol blood work showed a drop of 60 points. Luckily, I have a GP who follows the Mediterranean (which I know is bit different than your diet) so he is able to advise me on food choices. I am going to go back and find your video on how your organize your pantry today, my 60th birthday! You are an inspiration.
Happy Birthday!
Where did you learn of the porridge?
I created the recipe after studying the most healthy foods in the world.
Susan
I am in my third week of a plant based diet. I am missing bread a lot, can you have bread in a plant based diet? Also any suggestions for where to find amazing tips, recipes etc. One more thing do you drink wine on this plan, I have not had any in three weeks, but would love a glass.
Thanks,
Linda
I do drink wine, and I have bread on occasion. I look for the darkest, heaviest, multi-grain bread I can find. I never eat white processed bread. I also have a few bites of dessert sometimes. It isn’t about denying yourself of these things you enjoy, rather about making the most healthy choices for your body most of the time. I eat clean about 90% of the time and then have a little of the things I enjoy sometimes. Remember the third and fourth bites tastes the same as the first ones.
Susan is this recipe one serving when you make the above? Or several servings? Thanks
I can usually get more than three servings from this recipe. I warm it up with more almond milk in a saucepan. When I add a bit more of the old-fashioned oats, it makes it taste even better.
I tried your Porridge recipe today and i loved it! I admit I was skeptical that it would be tasty, but it is so good. I have about 50 pounds to lose and I am also trying grains, greens and beans. Looking forward to getting off cholesterol medication and raising my good cholesterol.
Thank you for your inspiration. 🙂
I wish you good health!
Could you please share how you keep your fruits and veggies from spoiling before they can be used. If I buy more than just a couple, they are wasted if not cooked and frozen. You seem to eat them fresh, not necessarily cooked.
I go to a market about twice a week for fresh items, otherwise, I use a lot of frozen broccoli, beans, and baby peas.
My last haircut was in mid-Feb. It was very short, so my hair is just now getting to a length I like. If you trim it yourself, keep in mind that hair only grows about one-half-inch per month.
This is a great boost for me to get back to my more normal lifestyle. 2023 did a number on me health-wise (an out of my control genetic heart issue) and financially (for various reasons)and I went into a valley of lethargy for a period of time. Those valleys are harder to climb out of when one moves into one’s 80’s! I’m now back up the hill but the holidays and two family birthdays since Thanksgiving have disrupted my usual routine. Thanks for the jump start and for all your blog advice and information through the years. Happy Holidays!
PS. I’ve had your porridge recipe for quite some time and I wondered about investing in products I’d never tasted and might have to throw away if I found them less than tasty. However, this time, I’m going to try.
Add lots of cinnamon. It gives everything a lovely fragrance and adds rich spiciness.
Having stage 4 cancer (metastatic breast cancer) most fresh fruit and veggies are not allowed. I have no immune system, so I am told cantaloupe, oranges, bananas are ok, because thick skins. It is bacteria on uncooked veggies and fruits. Very little sugar. Makes an interesting diet. Oncologist pushes meditterrean diet
I’m so sorry that you are struggling with your health. I hope that the Mediterranean diet brings you vast improvement.
I have been on a low carb, very little sugar, moderate protein diet since 2019. Lost 35 lbs and maintained until a lot of travel this summer. I picked up 5 lbs that I can’t lose! My cholesterol has been slowly going up and in April Dr sent me to endocrinologist which I couldn’t get in to see until August! He agreed to wait and do blood work after I took a cruise and trip to FL. To avoid statins I started eating organic oatmeal with hemp hearts, chia seeds, raw walnuts and wild blueberries (I buy frozen organic) at least 5 times a week. He agreed to me doing Mediterranean diet which added whole grain breads, brown rice and lentils to my diet. When the Dr checked cholesterol end of Sept. LDL’s had drop 20-30 points but my HDL dropped 10 points and Triglycerides shot up 70 points!
I have since backed off on the breads, etc. to prevent diabetes that runs in my family I rarely eat sweets, never eat white breads or starches. Mostly berries for fruit. Will have blood work again in March! I do organic when possible! I love Califia Farms Organic unsweetened Almond milk, just water, organic almonds and sea salt. I used to make my own. Going to try your porridge. I love cruciferous veggies but my husband will only eat broccoli. I cut back on red meat (grass fed) and prior to my husband having back surgery he was anemic, never been before! So I added grass fed red meat back in to our diet.