As a lifelong vegetarian, Vasudha Viswanath slipped into a common habit: making up for the absence of meat all too often with piles of noodles, bread, and rice.
When a routine physical revealed that her blood sugar levels were in the pre-diabetes range, she took action. She began to follow a low-carb Mediterranean-style diet and started developing wholesome versions of the high-carb foods she’d previously enjoyed. With her new eating habits came better health and energy levels, and she’s figured out how to make it an enjoyable, sustainable way of life. She shares her strategies on her website, www.v8well.com, and in “The Vegetarian Reset: 75 Low-Carb, Plant-Forward Recipes from Around the World” (The Collective Book Studio, $35).
Viswanath’s upbringing in a family of adventurous cooks and eaters in Bangalore, India, informs her perspective. After moving to New York to pursue a finance career on Wall Street, she and her husband became avid restaurant-goers both around the city and on frequent travels abroad. She took notes at each outing and experimented in her tiny Manhattan kitchen to recreate her favorite plant-based discoveries.
She follows a similar process in devising lower-carb, higher-protein versions of those dishes, leaning heavily into the bold flavors of global cuisines she’s come to love. Cauliflower rice takes the place of grains in Vegetable Paella, Lemon Risotto, and a spicy Punjabi dish that resembles chili called Rajma Chawal. Spiralized vegetables are the basis for Dan Dan Noodles, Cacio e Pepe, and Pad Thai with Seared Tofu. Breads and desserts replace wheat with chickpea, almond, and other alternative flours; smoothies are sweetened and flavored naturally with fresh fruit and spices. Each recipe includes nutritional breakdowns and substitutions to “veganize” where applicable.
I tried her Loaded Cauliflower Soup — a riff on traditional dal in which a small amount of lentils was pureed with cauliflower, bright seasonings, and raw cashews for an extra protein punch. The result was a delicious and filling reminder to this carnivore that reducing carbs while eliminating meat aren’t mutually exclusive goals after all.
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
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