More Plants: A Vegan Podcast by Brownble

What happens when a beloved family recipe disappears?

In this episode of More Plants, I talk about what I call the melancholy of lost recipes: dishes remembered from childhood, recipes that vanished when no one wrote them down, and the extraordinary ways food traditions have survived through handwritten notebooks, community cookbooks, note cards, archives, and family stories.

From my own personal stories of beloved recipes lost and found, to ancient Babylonian recipes preserved on clay tablets, to a handwritten cookbook created by women imprisoned in Terezín, this episode looks at what recipes can carry across time. I share practical ways to preserve your own family recipes, how to honour them when you become vegan, and how Brownble’s online vegan cooking school keeps the recipes we are learning together in one reliable place.

Family recipes can be preserved by recording relatives as they cook, writing down exact quantities and sensory cues, photographing original recipe cards, scanning fragile documents, storing digital copies in more than one place, and sharing the recipes with younger generations. Traditional recipes don't mean a freezing of time and tradition. They can (and do) include change. They can be made vegan by identifying the flavors, textures, techniques, and rituals that define the dish, then replacing animal ingredients according to the function they perform rather than trying to imitate them blindly, giving old familiar recipes a new life. 

Tune in for a slightly sentimental episode about food, memory and the food, recipes and cooks we love and want to hold onto.

For all the links mentioned in today's episode click here, or visit brownbleprograms.com/blog

What connects a tapa in Spain, a New Year’s salad in Russia and a beloved Venezuelan Christmas dish? In this episode of More Plants, we follow the surprising family tree of ensaladilla rusa, Olivier's Russian salad and ensalada de gallina. We explore nineteenth-century European “Russian salads,” Lucien Olivier’s luxurious Moscow creation, Spain’s own ensaladilla tradition and the Venezuelan version that became a festive classic. Then we bring all three into the plant-based kitchen, with practical ways to replace tuna, eggs, sausage and chicken without losing the textures and flavors that make each salad distinct.

We also talk about how recipes change, how traditions evolve, and why as vegans and plant-based eaters we only do what has been happening in kitchens since kitchens existed. 

It's a fun and delicious episode with a little history, a few cooking lessons and tips, and a ton of inspiration to turn your potato salads a little more worldly giving these three dishes from three separate continents a try.

For all the links mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit brownbleprograms.com/blog

What makes a truly wonderful egg-free breakfast? If you've ever said the words "I'd love to be vegan but I can't live without eggs!", you were me and I was you.

I hear you. Eggs are protein-rich, inexpensive, practical, but if you've been wanting to go vegan or make more plant-based choices, I'm here to tell you you don't have to say goodbye to the flavors, textures and breakfasts you love.

In this episode of More Plants, I share stories of my mother’s incomparable omelettes and my uncle’s luxurious scrambles. Then I make you travel with me through the history of eggs at breakfast and share how to reimagine omelettes, shakshuka, eggs Benedict, tortilla de patatas, and more using vegan ingredients like tofu, chickpea flour, a one of a kind salt, and today’s plant-based egg alternatives. The episode ends with a tender chickpea-flour vegan cheese omelette recipe that is so easy and quick to make.

In this episode you'll hear:

For all the recipes, videos and links mentioned in the episode, click here or visit https://www.brownbleprograms.com/blog

For me, there are three natural “begin again” moments every year: New Year’s, the day after my birthday, and back-to-school season. They are the moments that invite us to pause, recalibrate, and ask: What is working? What isn’t? What needs more care, attention, or a change of pace?

In this episode of the More Plants podcast, I’m sharing the lesson that carried me through a rocky start to the summer: patience.

After an Irish-dance performance led to a significant foot injury, daily physical-therapy sessions, major questions around returning to dance, and difficult nights caring for our 17-year-old dog Vega, I noticed something important: I was judging myself constantly.

I was judging my body for not healing fast enough, my energy for dipping after sleepless nights, my work for moving more slowly than I wanted, and myself for not having every decision figured out immediately.

That is where my new mantra came in: Vitamin P.

Patience is not passive. It is not sitting still, waiting for life to magically sort itself out. It is taking the first small, useful step today—without demanding that you already know every step that comes after it.

In this episode, we talk about how patience can help you:

Build more vegan and plant-based habits without becoming overwhelmed

Stop treating one difficult meal or one off-plan day as proof that you have failed

Focus on the next practical step rather than every future social event, holiday, or challenge

Create momentum with small actions, from stocking the fridge to making one new meal

Approach movement, recovery, work, study, caregiving, and change with more self-compassion

Let go of “crystal ball mode”—the urge to predict exactly how long everything will take or the steps needed to complete it

Use a simple journaling practice to identify what patience looks like in each area of your life and personalize this for you

If you are starting a new vegan journey, returning to routines after summer, learning to cook more plant-based meals, recovering from a setback, or simply trying to make a change without burning yourself out, this episode is for you.

Choose one area of life that feels difficult, uncertain, or frustrating right now.

Ask yourself:

What would this look like if I added patience—but still kept moving forward?  

Then make it specific. What is the next single step?

It might be buying fruit and vegetables for the week. It might be making a list of three familiar meals you want to make vegan. It might be putting your walking shoes by your bed. It might be resting. It might be asking for help. It might simply be beginning again tomorrow.

At More Plants and at Brownble, this is the approach we bring to plant-based cooking too: practical, gradual, joyful change. Building systems that can last, but where you do all the layering and deisgn so that the change works for you. Click play above and tune in!

For all the links mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit https://www.brownbleprograms.com/blog

In this episode, I share a personal story about my food obsessed Brazilian grandfather, his time in Germany, and the strong imprint German food and culture left on our family.

You’ll hear about:

The only German I ever heard him speak (ahem...sing!)

The traditional dish he loved that my mom and I could never quite get behind

The German platter my mom created to make us all happy

How I now recreate that platter with vegan ingredients

Making vegan sausages braised in beer and the two must-have sides to go with them

Two vegan potato salad recipes perfect for picnic and barbecue season

For all the recipes and links mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit brownbleprograms.com/blog

In this episode of More Plants, we’re diving into chilled soups for summer — inspired by the classic cold soups of Spain.

You’ll hear about the history and origins of gazpacho, salmorejo, and ajo blanco, including how Spanish chilled soups evolved from older peasant recipes and regional influences. We also explore other chilled soups from around the world, from cold borscht to tarator and vichyssoise.

You’ll learn:

Whether you want something light for lunch, a no-cook dinner, or a new way to enjoy summer produce, this episode will give you plenty of plant-based meal inspiration.

For all the links mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit brownble.com/blog

What can a lemon tree teach us about food, memory, and cooking?

In today's episode of More Plants, we explore some of my childhood memories of harvesting citrus from our backyard trees in Venezuela and we'll discover why citrus fruits remain some of the most powerful ingredients in plant-based cooking.

You'll learn:

🍋 This Week's Kitchen Challenge

Use one citrus fruit in two different ways:

✔ One savory recipe

✔ One sweet recipe

Notice how citrus changes flavor, aroma, and balance. BONUS challenge: Make the lemon curd I teach you how to make in the episode and get a ton of plant-based meal ideas where citrus makes everything better.

For all the links and recipes mentioned in todays episode, click here or visit brownble.com/blog

(To find a list of the organizations you can donate to and find out ways to help Venezuela after the earthquakes, click here)

This week’s episode is a personal and emotional departure from our usual format.

After taking a break from the podcast for the last few weeks because of this tragedy, I’m sharing what has happened in my home country, Venezuela, after the devastating earthquakes of June 24th, 2026—and why I felt it was important to pause and speak about it.

I'm sharing stories that are tough and full of heartbreak, but also full of resilience, community, hope, and especially, I'm sharing in the hopes that those of you who are willing and able can help support the people of my country, whose spirit you'll learn all about through the stories I bring you today.

In this episode, I talk about:

What happened during the 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes and their impact across Venezuela

The devastation in La Guaira and the historical context of the 1999 Vargas tragedy

Personal memories of growing up in Venezuela and how deeply this place is tied to my life and cooking

The incredible rescue efforts, including international teams and heroic rescue dogs (yes! they get a huge mention in today's podcast!)

Powerful stories of survival—from children and families to animals protecting each other

The overwhelming solidarity of Venezuelan communities, both locally and across the global diaspora

Grassroots efforts: from makeshift hospitals and community kitchens to engineers, students, and volunteers stepping in

The ongoing humanitarian crisis and why continued support is urgently needed, and how you can help

To find a list of the organizations you can donate to and find out ways to help, click here, or visit brownble.com/blog

In today's episode we'll be talking all about cheese. From its origins over 8,000 years ago in Mesopotamia to how cheese evolved across cultures and climates. I share a scene from my childhood that has never left me and tell you why Venezuelan cheeses are mostly fresh, unique and what they taught me about switching to alternatives that don't harm animals but give you a delicious experience that is also full of tradition.

I get into why cheese has kept drawing us in for more and how we can start approaching going vegan when we are cheese lovers. I give you a bit of guidance as to what to look for in store-bought vegan cheeses, but especially some of the techniques available to you when you want to go on the adventure that is making your own.

I'm also recommending some books and resources, not to mention giving you a bit of cheesy challenge this week.

For all the links and recipes mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit brownble.com/blog

As you probably learned if you listened to part 1 of our celebration of rice, It's one of the most important ingredients in plant-based cooking and food culture worldwide.

It feeds billions, it travels continents, it carries centuries of culinary tradition and most of us at home cook it very blandly or in just one way, when there are countless ways.

In this episode of More Plants, we explore how different cultures cook, celebrate, and build flavor with rice.

From Jollof rice in West Africa, to risotto in Italy, biryani in South Asia, congee in East Asia, and pilaf in the Middle East, I'll share a bit more about how rice can be transformed with just a few simple changes in the way we cook it.

You’ll also learn:

• Why rice is a foundation ingredient in so many plant-based meals

• How techniques like toasting, simmering in broth, or layering ingredients create depth

• How simple shifts in rice cooking can elevate everyday dishes

• Tips to explore rice varieties and flavors from around the world If you want to explore new rice dishes and deepen flavors in your cooking, this episode is for you.

For all the links mentioned in today's episode, click here or visit brownble.com/blog