Authors: Rip Esselstyn
B00AG0VMTC EBOK (36 page)
By Fran Costigan
Fran Costigan, one of the premier plant-based dessert chefs in the world, made the chocolate wedding cake for Jill and me in 2006. When I was in New York City to host a screening of the movie
Forks Over Knives
, Fran served these E2-friendly, melt-in-your mouth, intensely chocolate truffles and I immediately knew I wanted them in my next book. Fran simply replaced the heavy cream and butter used in traditional truffles with unsweetened soy or almond milk, and used a high cocoa percentage, low-sugar chocolate. And guess what? These taste better! Thanks, Fran.
Prep time: 10 minutes • Cooling time: 3 hours • Makes 30 to 40 round truffles
8 ounces 70 to 78 percent dark chocolate (bar, not chips!)
¾ cup unsweetened soy milk or almond milk
1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup unsweetened sifted cocoa powder, for dusting
To make the ganache: On a dry cutting board with a sharp knife, or in a food processor, chop the chocolate finely: the chocolate must be finely chopped so it melts evenly. Transfer the finely chopped chocolate to a glass or metal 3- or 4-cup mixing bowl.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the non-dairy milk to a gentle boil. When you see bubbles around the sides, remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Wait 30 seconds and test a few drops of the hot milk on your wrist—it should feel very hot but not scalding. While at this temperature, pour the almond milk and vanilla,
all at once,
over the chocolate in the bowl. Mix gently with a whisk, from the center out, only until the mixture, now called ganache, is perfectly smooth. If you mix too much, the ganache might become grainy.
Pour the ganache into a shallow dish such as a pie plate and press a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap directly on the surface. Refrigerate until it is no longer liquid, typically 2 to 3 hours. The ganache can be refrigerated at this point for up to 3 days.
When the ganache is very firm, make the truffles: Sift the cocoa powder through a metal strainer into a shallow bowl. Use one spoon to scoop out ¾-inch pieces of the ganache, and another to push the ganache off the spoon into the cocoa powder.
When a dozen or so pieces are made, roll them in the palms of your hands to shape into irregular rounds, then roll in the cocoa powder until coated. Repeat until all of the truffles are made.
To store and serve the truffles: Place the truffles in a single layer into a covered container, separating them with parchment or wax paper. Refrigerate for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 1 month. The extra cocoa powder coating will keep the truffles separate.
Allow 15 to 20 minutes for the truffles to come to room temperature before serving.
Variation:
Gingery Truffles
Add 1½ tablespoons of ground ginger to the cocoa powder. Dust the truffles following the directions for making the truffles (above). Taste a small one, and add more ground ginger if you like yours hot and spicy.
Sprinkle the truffles with a pinch of ground ginger just before serving.
By Jane Esselstyn
Raw dough, baby! Who isn’t in the mood for it sometimes? Jane served this at a Plant-Strong Women, Power, Sex, and Food presentation and everyone loved it, right down to the very last spoonful! You will, too. Like revenge, we find this is a dish best served cold.
Prep time: 5 minutes • Makes 20 teaspoon-size cookies
½ cup raw almonds (or raw cashews)
½ cup raw walnuts
6 large dates, pitted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon water (if needed for texture)
Pinch of sea salt (optional)
3 tablespoons no-dairy-added, dark chocolate chips
3 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
1 tablespoon water (if needed for texture)
In a food processor or high-speed blender, blend the nuts until crumbled uniformly. Transfer the nut mixture to a bowl, and set aside.
Add the dates, vanilla, and water to the food processor or high-speed blender, and blend until the mixture is paste-like. Scrape down the sides of the processor bowl or blender jar a few times, if needed, and blend again.
Add the reserved nut mixture to the date mixture and blend together. Add the chocolate chips and oats and pulse the mixture until blended to your liking, or mix in the chips and oats by hand, if you prefer.
Press balls of the mixture firmly into a teaspoon. Free the dough from the spoon’s shape and place on a serving plate.
Serve immediately—if you can’t help yourself—otherwise chill first.
I want to thank and acknowledge the many people who helped make this book possible. First, Grand Central Publishing for deciding to go another round with me and helping to spread the plant-strong message. Specifically, I would like to thank Diana Baroni, Matthew Ballast, and Jamie Raab. I would like to thank my literary agent, Richard Pine with Inkwell Management, for plucking me out of relative obscurity and sending me off on a purpose-driven life. I would like to thank Whole Foods Market and the remarkable John Mackey for giving me the opportunity to partner with them as they bravely and boldly go where no supermarket has gone before. I would like to thank the individual members of the Engine 2 team who are in it to win it with me every single day and are slugging it out helping people rescue their health with something as simple as food: Dani Little, the stalwart, competent, and always consistent Engine 2 program director; Natala Constantine, the Engine 2 social media guru who does the work of five people; Jillian Gibson, the always upbeat event manager with the Health Talent Group; Mike Schall and Mike McKeon and their unwavering commitment to the Engine 2, Plant-Strong food line; and Adam Reiser, the principal of the Health Talent Group who has helped me steer and navigate Engine 2 to become all that it is today. I would like to thank the amazing evolutionary psychologist Doug Lisle for his guidance and brilliance with E2 retreats, business, and this book. I would like to thank my buddy and nutritionist extraordinaire Jeff Novick for sharing his knowledge and time with this book, Engine 2 Immersion retreats, and life. I would like to thank Christopher McDougall, Brandon Brazier, and Scott Jurek for their time and interviews for this book, and Miranda Spencer, Nick Bromley, and Ted Tetsuhiko for their help with research and editing. I would like to thank Jaidev Shergill for speaking his mind with such clarity and charm. It touched me and the book to the core. I would like to thank my parents,
Ann and Essy, for giving me a lifelong foundation of support, enthusiasm, and encouragement to unflinchingly always say “yes” to life. I would like to thank my siblings and their spouses—Ted and Anne, Zeb and Polly, and Jane and Brian—for their interest, curiosity, and counseling on all things Engine 2. I would like to thank my nieces and nephews who jumped in and helped with the Engine 2 retreats: Crile, Zeb, Bainon, Flinn, Gus, and Rose. I would like to give a huge call out and extra, extra special thank you to my sister, Jane, who tore into the recipe section with an unbridled amount of boldness and braveness and has created a masterpiece of plant-strong goodness for people all over the world. You nailed it, Jane!
I also want to thank my sensei and co-writer of
The Engine 2 Diet
and this book, Gene Stone. We did it, Gener! Plants rule and you rule! Whoever would have thought we could bring
My Beef with Meat
back from the ashes. “You never know. You just never know.”
Lastly, I would like to thank my family: my wife, Jill; my son, Kole; my daughter, Sophie; and the gentlemanly Tug. You all have made huge sacrifices on behalf of Engine 2 as we steer people towards a lighter, healthier, and happier life. Sophie, I want to thank you for always wanting to “share a grapefruit” with me. Kole, I want to thank you for always wanting to go for a bike ride or a swim, or just hang with me. Tug, I want to thank you for your smile, your joy, your loyalty, and our evening walks. And Jill, I want to thank you for always having my back and for keeping me grounded. I love you all to the moon and back.
R
IP
E
SSELSTYN
was born in upstate New York, raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and educated at the University of Texas at Austin, where he was a three-time All-American swimmer. After graduation Rip spent a decade as one of the premier triathletes in the world. He then joined the Austin Fire Department, where he introduced his passion for a whole-food, plant-based diet to Austin’s Engine 2 Firehouse in order to rescue a firefighting brother’s health. To document his success he wrote the national best-selling book
The Engine 2 Diet
, which shows the irrefutable connection between a plant-based diet and good health.
Recently Rip left his job as a firefighter to team up with Whole Foods Market as one of their Healthy Eating Partners to raise awareness for Whole Foods employees, customers, and communities about the benefits of eating a plant-strong diet. He has appeared on hundreds of radio shows as well as national television shows, including the
Today
show, the CBS
Sunday Morning
show,
Good Morning America
, and
The Dr. Oz Show
.
Rip lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife, Jill Kolasinski, and their two beautiful children, Kole and Sophie.
The Machu Picchu.
Photograph by Natala Constantine.
The Bouldin Creek Spicy Scrambler.
Photograph by Jane Esselstyn.
Zeb’s Waffles.
Photograph by Jane Esselstyn.
Split Figs with Cashew Cream and Caramelized Onions.
Photograph by Jane Esselstyn.
