The $1,700 Food Waste Crisis (The Hidden Cost EVERY Family Faces)

We have one vessel on this earth.

That's true.

You are not going to excel unless your vessel is in good shape. Grief is weird. It's different than what I expected. And I might get emotional, but I reflect on the journey with my mom with so much gratitude because we had such great relationship. Now I'm crying on the Lewis Howes podcast. So this is, this is either a good or a bad thing, but. Carly Bowdra, New York Times best selling cookbook author who has more than 11 million followers.

Welcome back.

The beautiful Carly Bowdra, who has the money to be wasting food. The average family wastes over $1,700 worth of food per year. Food waste emits more emissions than the entire airline industry.

You're one of the biggest food creators in the world. What do you think was the key to your success from going from zero to a million followers?

Yes. So I think the key was.

Welcome back everyone to the school of Greatness. Very excited about our guests. We have the inspiring, the number one New York time best selling author, Carly Bodreg in the house. So good to see you. Welcome to the school of Greatness. And this, this book that you have right now is number one New York time bestseller in the first week called Plant, you scrappy cooking. It's all about plant based zero waste recipes that are good for you, your wallet and the planet. And I love this angle about you because you started online really five years ago, I believe five years ago, with a desire to create content that could be good for you, good for the planet and low budget essentially and start educating and teaching people. And why did you want to start, I guess applying the plant based living to your own life and why did you want to start teaching it to other people? What was the main cause of that?

So my journey with plant based eating really started in 2015 and it was when the World Health Organization came out with this breaking news that red and processed meat were now classed as Group 2 and Group 1 carcinogens, which I normally wouldn't think much of. But my dad was a colon cancer survivor and he was diagnosed with cancer when I was 11 years old. And he'd gone through chemo surgery, the whole bit. No one ever had mentioned diet. And at the time in Canada we had this big pie chart and that Health Canada recommended and one section was meat, one section was dairy. So then to hear the World Health Organization come out with this news that was so contradictory, we, my family and I just kind of looked at each other like, what the heck? And so at the time, I Was actually working as a radio host up in Northern ontario at a 500 square foot bachelor apartment. And I thought, okay, I'm going to try and eat plant based.

How old are you?

At that time I was probably around 20. Okay, 20, 21, 22. And I started just cooking some plants.

Cooking some plants.

Cooking some plants. And the first, the first couple months were rough. Like, it was really hard to make that transition, especially because I had probably never had a vegan meal in my life. And because I was in broadcasting, I thought, you know, this is interesting. I'm feeling good. I think that everybody could be eating more plants. Nobody's really talking about it. I'm gonna start kind of documenting my journey. So I got Instagram handle plantu, went on GoDaddy.com looked at every rendition to combo the word plant. I remember at one time I. I'm someone who like buys up domains for every business idea I have.

It's kind of never do anything with.

Them, but you don't want to get rid of them because you don't want someone else to have them.

What if I do this in a few years?

I remember I had bought a domain called plant basedpirate.com and I was gonna make a blog in like a pirate speech. Like r, here's a recipe. Like I had all these ideas, it was crazy. But anyways, I landed on Plant U. Then I just started sharing my meals. And they were photos at the time.

Yes.

Yeah.

So with like, you know, how many ingredients are in it, the kind of recipes and description.

Exactly. So exactly how my books laid out. I had like the ingredients on the top and then the dish on the bottom in these infograph I was creating. And they kind of, some of them would go viral, but nobody knew who was running the account. Like I had my little profile pic, but some people would message and be like, oh, who is this? Or whichever else. It wasn't until the Instagram algorithm kind of switched overnight to prioritizing short video content that I actually put a face and went out there and started cooking on camera. Yeah.

Wow. So this was five years ago you started this, right?

Yes. So maybe more than that. So it's 2016 when I started the account.

Okay, gotcha.

Yeah.

Really? Five years ago is when you kind of started like going all in or doing video and it started to take off, right?

Yeah. So 2019, I left my full time job, which was horrifying and exciting and scary. And then a couple months later I had a literary agent, DM me and I was very lucky because she has turned out to be like this angel in my life. But at the time it was like blind faith because I'm like a literary agent. Somebody wants me to write a cookbook. Do they know I don't know how to really cook or write a book. And so then that book got sold and the same day I went out and bought a camera because I was taking all photos of my iPhone. The publisher didn't know this. They're like, they've contracted me to shoot 140 recipes for a book. And I went out, bought a camera and started writing my first cookbook. Wow.

This was five years ago.

Yeah. No, so this was 20? Yeah, 20. 19. 2020. Because books are two year projects which a lot of people don't know, you would know, but they're like, yeah, like you see the fruits of your labor, like two years later, you're like a different person. Yeah. You're like, what is this? Yeah.

Isn't that interesting?

Yeah.

So your first, first book comes out. It's a New York Times bestseller. And this book which came out two years later, is that correct?

Yeah.

It's number one New York time bestseller in the first week, this last week. Congratulations.

Than.

And now you are one of the biggest plant based. And overall, just like, would you call.

You a cooking food creator? Probably Food creator.

You're one of the biggest food creators in the world on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, all these different places. And there are so many food creators. What do you think makes you different than the millions of food creators out there online?

So one thing I really ran with was this idea of series. So once I had put out my first book, it came out, it was like so overwhelming, the success of it, which was not anticipated. And I learned this statistic about food waste which like stopped me in my tracks. And that's 30 to 40% of all food in the US ends up in landfills, which is a really bad thing for our planet because it emits methane gas.

And what is methane gas?

Methane gas, a really powerful greenhouse gas. So it's the same greenhouse gas that's emitted by cows. Like, you've heard how bad beef can be for the planet. So that kind of. And you know what the statistic that really shocked me is that food waste emits more emissions than the entire airline industry.

Really?

But all we hear about is like Taylor Swift's flights and planes and you're taking too long of showers. Meanwhile, I was like, why is nobody talking about food waste? Especially with the price of groceries. I was like, there Is something here that I want to start talking about. So I threw up an orange peel candy recipe one day. I called it scrappy cooking. And I said it, like, in a voice, it was like, stop throwing out your orange peels. And I put my phone down, walked away from it, came back an hour later, and it had been viewed a million times, which was astonishing to me at that time, because that was, like, ultra viral in my eyes at the time.

And this is kind of what.

Yeah, there it is. That's the recipe. Yes. So I had to make it in. That was the first scrappy cooking video, episode one. And I don't even know at the time if I called it episode one, you know, because I didn't know.

You didn't know you were making a series.

I didn't really know what was gonna about to happen.

The video took you. You made a video based off of, like, a pain. You're like, okay, stop throwing this away. Here's what you can do instead.

Yeah.

And look at the result. And it tastes amazing. And all these different things. And then it does a million views, and she go, oh, there's something here.

The light bulb went off, and maybe.

I should do more of this content.

Yeah, maybe I should do more of this content. So I feel like at that time, I went very into scrappy. Like, I was churning out a video every couple days, just looking at the stuff that I would buy every week in my grocery list. Broccoli stems are a big one. Like, guys, if you're paying for broccoli by weight, do not throw at the stems. You can peel them, chop them into broccoli stem fries, or stir fries.

It kind of sounds good, actually.

Yeah. Yeah, they're delicious. They're almost reminiscent of asparagus. So really, really good. And then because you don't want to.

Eat the stem by itself, it's too big.

No, you gotta peel them. Unless you're grating them. You can grate them into, like, a slaw. You've probably seen broccoli slaw at your grocery store, and they're really healthy for you. So. Yeah, so that I think people were. I think there was a shock factor to it. But what I really love about it is not so much that everybody needs to become this crazy, scrappy chef mad scientist in their kitchen. I was really excited that it was creating a broader conversation about food waste, because, I mean, who has the money to be wasting food these days? But the largest percentage of food waste is in consumer homes, because grocery stores and restaurants, it shocks people every Time, but they have a bottom line. Like they are looking at the food that they're wasting. We're bringing food into our homes and it's just inevitable. Like we're all so busy.

Yes.

You get home at 6 o' clock at night, you call Uber Eats because it's, it's too busy. Right. So.

And you don't eat the last 20, 30%. You order too much or there's extra rice or there's extra whatever and you're just like, I'm full. Yeah, they throw us away, a lot of people. I mean, I'm guilty of this. You're like, okay, I'm gonna save this because I might eat this tomorrow, but then I don't eat it tomorrow.

Exactly.

And it's like, oh, it's old now. It's cold. It's like not as fresh. So how do you make stuff fresh that is old food? Or maybe not like absolutely off the pan, you know, whatever it might be.

So the biggest thing I tell people when it comes to reducing food waste, which like the average family wastes over $1,700 worth of food per year, which is like a phone bill, you know, so that, that's significant. And I would think that number is a lot higher now with grocery prices the way they last few years.

Canada is different.

Canada is brutal too, actually. But so the number one thing I say to prevent food waste, the low hanging fruit is to never bring it into your home in the first place. And to avoid doing that, it's really about meal planning. Sit down on a Sunday for a few hours. You don't need a fancy cookbook, you don't need an app for this. Write down a grid. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Okay, I'm going to have overnight oats, curry on Monday. I'll have the leftovers for lunch. Do some semblance of a meal plan. If you're a very spontaneous person. You can leave it loosey goosey. Then shop your fridge and pantry. So look at what you already have on hand. Bring it to the front of your fridge so it's more accessible. This prevents over buying. I don't. Before I put this in place, I would go to the grocery store and buy like a bag of Bob's Red Mill oats every week. And like I would come home and there was like seven bags.

Really?

Because it's just like you get to the grocery store and you're like, oh, I want to make oats this week. Do I have oats? Oh, I don't know. I'm going to grab a bag. Right. So having a system in place, then head to the grocery store. Now you have a plan for the food that you're bringing into your home. And this really ties into healthy eating. I always say going low waste or at least reducing your food waste. If you're going to actually eat the food you buy from the grocery store, your body's going to be way better off because home cooked food is almost always more healthy than things you get at a restaurant. And then what happens? Your pocketbook benefits as well because you're eating out less, you're eating the food that you're buying, you're reducing waste. It's like a win, win, win, man.

It sounds good in theory.

Yeah, I know. In practice, are you actually putting it into place?

But when someone watching or listening is like, okay, that's great, Carly. I mean, but you don't have kids yet and you've got two or three kids. And I'm also a full time mom or a full time dad or whatever it might be. And it's just really hard to plan on a Sunday when I'm exhausted.

I've got solutions for the family.

Yes.

So my big thing is when I was writing this cookbook, I didn't want it to be like a scrap encyclopedia. Like, the scrappy stuff is fun. We've got uses for used coffee grounds, banana peels, all sorts of stuff in the book. But the recipes are really based about being flexible. And this is how I cook in my home. So for example, I think anybody who is on like a healthy eating journey, you want to find three to four staple meals. So I'll give some examples like a red curry, a pasta sauce and a vegan meatloaf. Okay. And what you can do with these base recipes is interchange. You can interchange the beans, you can interchange the vegetables, you can interchange the little like scraps that are going in them. And what this does is it's like, okay, Wednesday night, you know, I'm going to make that delicious, like red curry sauce that takes like 15 minutes. I'm going to look in my fridge. Okay, I've got half a bell pepper, I've got some wilting spinach, and I'm just going to throw that in because really when you're cooking plant based, the stakes are very low. Like, you do not have to be too worried about interchanging, making changes in recipes. And honestly, that's how I cook. Like soups, stews, all the veggies can go in. We make a clean out the fridge Meal every week.

Yes.

So that's a good tip for parents. It's like just looking at finding like really like makeable recipes that you can interchange things.

I'm assuming 80% of the people watching or listening are not plant based.

Yes. You can apply this to my meat eating friends. You have like, okay, a chicken curry. Still use whatever vegetables or meat base into your curry. You have a pasta sauce. Like, I make a great vegan Bolognese every week. I'll apply this to my meat eating friends. So I'll put mushrooms, onion, carrot, celery, whatever veg in a food processor, grind it up, makes a beautiful ground. And I've heard people tell me that.

They like a meatball type of thing or like that.

Yeah. So you'll add it to a pan with some tomato paste, but you can now at this point add meat if you like, like a ground meat. But if you don't, you don't need to. And then you just add like a jar of pasta sauce. And think of how great that is for kids. Like, you've packed so much veggies that would probably go to waste into a beautiful pasta sauce. Serve it over pasta. Make lasagna super versatile.

So that's interesting. What do you think has made you, you know, based on this series that you did? You did one idea that's kind of took off and you kept doing this series. Right. And trying this different series. How many, how many parts to that series have you done, do you think.

Since then, scrappy cooking? I mean, I count them, but I'm always, I'm always like messing that up. But I think I'm at 95. But like I've done three episode 70 threes. Like I'm such a disorganized kind of creative mind that I'll just like screw that up. So I've done probably close to 100 scrappy. And that's been my longest money.

That's in two years.

That's in two years. So you got to think, yeah, almost one per week. Close to. Yeah.

Now some people will start something and they get success with it. Like they started a series or something else and they'll do it for like a month or two and then they stop. Why do you think you've continued every week for two years on something that keeps working when most people would stop?

So I think the thing for me is because I'm like this kind of creative mind, I can find it hard to create content unless I have some boundaries around it in which to create. And what a series concept does. And this can apply to any content creator. Like, I once did a presentation at a library where it was talking about how you could make a successful online business by being a fan of Furbies. Like, I really think that, like, you can create short video content around anything. And so when you give yourself, like, some barriers to work around, the ideas just come easier. And because I feel so passionate about this, like, I really, really want people to reduce waste. I really, really want people to eat more plants. Even if an episode flops, I'm like, the next one. Like, let's roll it on out. Yeah. I just think you need to persevere and keep going and it makes it more fun. I think when you have a series, like, I do one that's called Sneaky Veggies, that is kind of like what we just talked about, like, sneaking veggies into pasta sauces or making soups that are blended with a ton of veggies in them. I do a longevity Blue Zone series to help you live to 100, and I've done a bean series. So I'm always. I am always testing and I sometimes abandon. I'm trying to think of a couple that I've abandoned, but Scrappy. Is Scrappy stuck?

It just keeps working.

It just keeps working and not. Not even working. But it's so fun.

It's fun for you.

It's so different. Like, I get. I get a plant home that I've bought, like, and I'm like, what do you do? I've got my beets and I'm making a beet recipe. Well, what are. Why are people throwing out the tops? Like, are these edible? Quick Google search. Yes. Why are we throwing them out? Okay, what can I do with them? Do they taste good in a salad? Like, so it's fun for me.

That's interesting.

Yeah.

I mean, it sounds like, though, what do you think was the key to your success from going from zero to a million followers? And did you do something different for your success from a million to 5 million plus?

Yes. So I think the key was definitely consistency. So I don't think since I've started my Instagram account, I've gone a week without posting. And in my early years under that million, I was posting every day. Like, I would wake up. As soon as reels hit, I would wake up and I'd be like, I'm putting out a recipe video every day. Which was not a good frame of mind. I would. I would not recommend that. But it.

When you're starting out, you might need to.

Yeah. When you're starting out, you might need to. The consistency I think has set me apart because it's very easy to give up. And I mean, I have had so many flops, I've had so many like downturns in the algorithm. And I'm sure it's my content actually where it's just not performing well and you just gotta wake up and kinda like keep on going. So that's been the thing, but the series. What is unique about starting a series? And you could apply this, I think about like hockey, like how a series on the best skating tips, you know, and like you give one tip for each episode. Like you could apply this to anything.

Tell your Canadian when you give a. Hockey.

Yeah, hockey, hockey. So the way that works is you're making people come back for more. So in every episode I'll say This is episode 27 of Scrappy Cooking. And then at the end I'll say follow for more. So it gives people a reason because they're inundated with content all day long. You're scrolling your feed and you might come across a beautiful recipe video, but you're like, what's my reason to follow this person?

Interesting.

There's millions of recipe creators on here. So having a series and really built in, call to action to follow, key to success for sure. From that jump from 1 to 5.

I've seen a lot of creators go through burnout over the years, or anxiety or overwhelm or stress, or just chasing followers, chasing views, chasing money, and actually not being healthy themselves. Have you ever felt like the health industry or the food industry that you're in, where people are trying to share healthy content? Have you ever felt unhealthy in your journey of sharing healthy content?

That's a great question. And yes. So my mom was sick with terminal cancer for two years when I wrote this book. And it was so. It was a really weird existence because I would come on social media, I didn't share anything about this and I, I was living it like at chemo appointments, living 20 minutes from my parents there 24, 7. Knew it was terminal from when she was diagnosed.

And it like, no hope, no, no turn around.

It was. She was on chemotherapy. So you, you always have hope.

Like maybe there's a chance.

You always like or like maybe it'll be because something coming. Like, hold on. I heard about this one person who lived for like five years. You know, like there's always, you're always grasping. And she was too. Which, which made it, I mean, I, I feel so Fortunate that she lived for two years because it. When she was diagnosed they said one. So like we created so many memories. But this was going on behind the scenes. I didn't want to talk about it on social media because quite frankly, it was like an escape. Like I would come on and be like, stop throwing out your broccoli stems. People would message me and be like, your page is so joyful, your life, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, oh, you're so bubbly. You have no idea.

Wow.

So that was all going on and I also didn't wan share about it because it was my mom's health. Right. Like, it's not my story to share and I didn't want to be inundated but like health advice. So that was really difficult. And I would say during that time of writing the book, being there for my mom in like a huge way, I was, I am coming out of it now. Not healthy really. No, I just like always obviously ate plant based, whole food, plant based the whole time, which I'm sure like has benefited me. But I stopped working out, stopped like and I every spare moment because I was spending so much time with my mom. And especially when you know that your time is limited with your. It's like that all like, oh my gosh, I need to spend as much time as I can. It's like every spur moment when I wasn't with my mom, I was working because it was like, I need to make up. I've got like this brand deal. I have the manuscript due. I've got a liaison with the photographer. So. Yes. Have I experienced burnout? Yes. But my con. My content is such a source of joy for me and I feel, I don't feel like I could have done this for this long and churned out this much if I wasn't like super passionate about it, which I am. Like I still feel to this day, if not more passionate about kind of the message of everyone can benefit by like filling their plates with as much plants as possible. It doesn't mean you have to go vegan, but like just. Just filling your plates, adding more veggies. Adding more veggies.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Wow. So how did you emotionally navigate the last few years with, you know, the news of this? I know your father was.

Yeah, my father's a cancer survivor. So that was the catalyst to going vegan. So. Yeah.

Did you. Have you been able to take care of your emotions while you're creating content and trying to serve others? Be there, your dad, your family and also millions of people that are just looking for this positive, like, okay, Carly, like, inspire us and bring us joy.

Grief is weird, and it's different than what I expected. I think that I try to. And for some reason, this has come naturally to me, which I'm so grateful for. But I. And I might get emotional, but I reflect on the journey with my mom with so much gratitude because we had such a great relationship and that's gotten me through. And I feel like grief is weird because when I think about my mom, it's obviously there's this yearning in whichever else, but there's an immense, immense gratitude for how close we were in the life she lived. So. And the other thing that I haven't really talked about when it comes to this is, like, how fortunate was I to have this job where I could go to my mom's chemo appointment, edit a video while I'm sitting there with her or whichever else, you know, like, if I worked a 9 to 5, which I have in my life, like, you're not. You're not spending weeks and months with your mother taking care of her while she's sick. So, yeah, weird. Now I'm crying on the Lewis Howes podcast.

So this is.

This is either a good or a.

Bad thing, but not my intention. But I think it's. I'm glad you're opening up and being, you know, honest about how you're feeling. I'm curious, what's the. What's the greatest lesson that she taught you growing up, and then also the greatest lesson she taught you in the last couple of years?

She really, like, lived every day to its fullest. Like, she. She would get up in the morning and, like, we will laugh now. Like, she was like a huge walker. Like, it was like, out the door, what are we doing today? And I think that. And also at her funeral, so many people sharing, like, such great memories, and it made me reflect now on my life and think, oh, my gosh, I want to build those amazing memories. And I think it was. It was a time before phones, right? Like, we spend so much time on our. On our phones. And where she was, like, in. When she was my age, just, like, doing things, living life without a living life, living life presently. So that. That's the biggest. As I reflect on her life. And, like, that's why I don't think I'm overcome with heartbreak, because I do feel like her story was an amazing one. Like, her life was an amazing one. So I don't look at it in this kind of, like, negative Negative light. What did she teach me the last two years? I mean, it was rough perseverance for sure. She just kept swinging, like, I mean, clearly that carried. Carried on. But I might need a Kleenex. I might need a Kleenex now.

If we got one. Bring it in, please.

Sorry, guys. Thank you.

It's all good.

Do you ever have people cry on your podcast? Please don't tell me I'm the first.

Of course. Eleven years of doing this, every week, people cry.

My makeup.

You look great. Don't worry about it.

Thank you.

Yeah, it's all good. It's a safe. It's a safe space, you know. Not my intention to make you cry more, but I'm curious. What do you feel like with everything you've learned within your, you know, last five years of kind of building your social media and your business and your content machine and the lessons from the life lessons from your mother and the skills you have about recipes? What do you feel like? Is there anything you feel like you could do to serve people that maybe are experiencing challenges with cancer in a greater way or preventing cancer in a greater way with all the skills you have and the lessons you have from that as well?

Yeah, I think it's a big part of what I do because seeing somebody go through cancer, it's just. It's a thankless, crappy, really horrific, horrific disease. And I think the science shows that a whole food plant based diet is really a great way of at least helping you prevent cancer. I'm not gonna say it's like a silver bullet, but it is certainly the most cancer proofing, at least a plant predominant diet. So if I can reach that message or elevate that message as much as possible, that's a whole fold in to what's important to me.

Right.

Because I don't want anyone to go through cancer. And my mom's cancer would not have been diet related, but my dad certainly with colon cancer. And there's new data showing that younger and younger, particularly females, are getting colon cancer.

Really?

And that's. That's scary. That is scary.

Is that all food based? Is it like plastic environment based, you know, stress related? Is it?

I bet you it's all of it, right? Yeah, it's all of it. And that's why I say, like, I think you can do all the right things in the world and you can still get cancer. Like, I don't want to say that.

And you can do all the wrong.

Things and still live a hundred years old. Live till 100 years old. I don't want to sit here and say that like, you're going to eat plant. I'm going to give you plant based meals and you're going to be good. You don't know, but I think, why not? One thing I learned through my mom is that we have one vessel on this earth. Like, we're inside, we're walking around with this vessel. And at the end of the day, the work that you do and everything else, health is number one. Like, you are not going to excel writing books, doing podcast interviews, whatever else, unless your vessel is in good shape.

That's true.

So as I've said, plants, more on the plate, more fiber. I mean, 95% of the US population doesn't meet the daily recommended intake of fiber.

95%.

95%. We're all so protein focused, but there's this huge fiber deficiency, which means a lot of us are walking around constipated. And where does fiber come from? It's not in meat, it's not in cheese, it's in plants. So if you can start getting your digestive moving with plants, you can. Your skin, your weight, everything kind of follows. And I think it's the best thing people can do.

What would be the series that you think you could do to honor your parents?

Oh, probably. Probably veganizing recipes that I grew up eating, which is really was the inspiration of my first book. I thought, what is the book that I wish I had when I went plant based, which I had only been plant based for a few years at that time, what's the book that I wish I had? So it was like, okay, I grew up eating my mom's pasta sauce. I love taco night, whichever else. Can we eat these things? Can we enjoy these things healthy, whole food, plant based? And the answer is absolutely we can. And again, I think there's always room for people who eat animal products to have animal products in these recipes. I just think that, like, it's great to crowd them with vegetables.

Sure, sure. Yeah. More veggies.

More veggies.

You would create a book or a series that's like, okay, here's a traditional meat based recipe here. I'm gonna make it plant based.

Yeah, yeah.

That's interesting.

It would be a great series.

I was thinking also a series of like, cancer kicking foods. I don't even know if that's even real, but it's like, what are the foods that prevent cancer?

I've seen it before. I was once following this girl who was feeding her mom, like on whole, Whole food Plant based diet who had cancer. And it was like a lot of anti inflammatory foods, lots of like smoothies, broccoli sprouts. Do you sprout?

I don't sprout, but I like broccoli sprouts.

Yeah, sprouts are. Sprouts are like a very powerful food. They say that like there's no one superfood because really it's your whole diet. But like I think sprouts are like pretty close to it.

And doesn't. Doctor will say it's like you need like 30 different ingredients in your food, like weekly or daily. I can't remember what it is.

Yeah. So the American Gut Health Project determined that people who eat a diversity of plants over 30 per week have a healthier, more diverse gut microbiome than those who don't. Which sounds super intimidating, but how do.

You eat 30 different plants?

Yeah, so it sounds super intimidating, but it's not as bad as you think. So that includes like your grains, rice, whole grain pasta, nuts, seeds. So really like you can create a salad. I probably have some salads in this book or recipes. Clean out the fridge recipes. Great opportunity to get some plant diversity. And where you put a soup, you probably have 10 to 12 plants with spices in there. So it's. That's one meal.

A spice is a plant too.

Yes. He. I've talked to Will about this and he's like, yes, but like it, it catches like an actual plant in there. It's. It's more. It counts more.

Yeah, it's like one and a half times. That's interesting. Okay, so that's the next version for you. You see, doing a series like that.

Yeah, I could. I mean, I think I'm always, I'm always right now I really love quickies. So I think everybody. It's kind of to your point earlier where you said, what about the mom who has three kids?

Yes.

And I don't even think it's the mom who just has three kids. I think all of us are short on time. So I'm like really into. I have this quickie series and I've only done eight to 10 episodes, maybe 10. And they're like 15 minute recipes, which I really think that you can create killer plant based meals with like 15 minutes. So that's my main motivation now because I think everyone's short on time and I'm gonna keep going with scrappy cooking. I love it.

It's crushing.

I just love it.

What's. If you can only make one scrappy recipe from the book yeah, one treat and one, like, actual meal that's like, hearty.

Okay, so my hearty meal is lemon peel pesto. And so this is replacing basil in a vegan pesto recipe with lemon peels. So good. So you peel the lemon peels off of like a potato peeler to avoid the pith. And then like you juice a whole lemon, you add it to a blender with cashews, nutritional yeast, garlic, little bit of vegetable broth, blend it up, it makes like the creamy lemon Alfredo sauce. I don't know why I called it pesto. It was because it was based off of a vegan pesto recipe that I made. And you toss it with whatever pasta that you want. It's like, next level delicious. This is great. Also, clean out the fridge, amp up the veggies. It's great with cherry tomatoes, whole handful of spinach. Absolutely delicious chicken. If you eat meat, it would be good with. And then dessert. I have a great recipe for a aquafaba chocolate mousse. Do you know what aquafaba is?

No idea.

Okay. Aquafaba is liquid from a can of chickpeas. And I eat a lot of can of chickpeas.

So the liquid from it.

The liquid from it is like a, an elixir. Like, it acts just like egg whites. So if you, if you have like a hand mixer and you beat it, it will actually foam up into a meringue. Yeah, so it will foam up into a meringue and then you add melted chocolate to it and a little maple syrup if you want a little sea salt. It's like so good and so easy. It probably comes together in 15 minutes.

Did you go to, like culinary school or someone teach you how to cook or how did you become a, you know, a chef or a food content creator?

Yeah.

You didn't have this experience or credentials or schooling that taught you how to do this?

I have that gene, that. And I think it was Marie Farleo or you'll know it. Where everything is figure out everything is figureoutable. I have that. So I saw people who were like, creating content about vegan food and I was like, that is the coolest job in the world because it's so mission based. And my friends from college are so shocked because I was a girl who came to college, loved to drink, had a full freezer full of tater tots, mini pizzas, loved meat. I have gone like fully opposite now and like, I didn't cook at all. So I just saw it and I'm like, I think I can do this.

Come on. So you never really cooked?

No. No.

Your mom or your dad never taught you?

My dad was always like, I went over to my dad's place the other day and he was marinating potato peels in pickle brine. So, like, there's something there that definitely like.

But it's not like you did this as a kid and you were like, had an interest when you were a teenager and you were cooking in college, you were like Hot Pockets and tater tots.

100%. So I think it just came from this, like seeing it and thinking and then.

So you thought, you saw. You thought it was cool.

I thought it was so cool.

Wow. What if I could do that?

Yeah, what if you, like, I thought, oh, my goodness, people are making a living sharing vegan food. Like, I was now vegan. I'm like, this is the dream. Like, I can't even believe people do this. So I thought, maybe I can do it.

Come on.

Yeah.

How old were you?

Probably about 24. So I, I had already. I had a normal career pension. I worked now I worked in radio. And then I had moved to like a regular job as marketing for a hospital foundation. So it was like kind of like, wow, yes.

Radio, then a hospital foundation.

Foundation. And it was like writing letters for donations to get donations, Fundraising, the hospital fundraising. Fundraising and stuff. And that's when I started and I was like, kind of doing it nights and weekends where I would like create these little infographics and all of that. So.

So you were originally just cooking for yourself?

Yeah.

When did you start cooking for yourself?

Honestly, when I went vegan. So when I went plant based is when I started cooking myself. I was around 22, 23.

Okay. So a year later you're like, well, maybe I'll start doing this online.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Like learning how to cook for myself.

Delusional. Yes. And it's funny because when I put out my first cookbook the week before, I nearly had a nervous breakdown because I was like. And I had. I remember I went online and spoke to a therapist because I'm like, I am putting out a cookbook and everybody is going to know that I don't know how to cook.

Really?

Yeah. Like, I'm like, this was a terrible idea. Like, what did I do? And then people loved it. And I think the reason being is that the recipes were so simple because they thought, like, it was practical. It wasn't a chef. It wasn't this complex, like, meal. It was quick, easy, plant based, healthy meals that I was actually Making sure.

But I mean, you come from a small town in the middle of nowhere in Canada. You weren't a chef, you weren't trained, you know, in nutrition necessarily or cooking. You weren't trained in plant based cooking, none of these things. How did you build confidence in yourself and overcome imposter syndrome to be able to put content out there and say, I'm going to get a book deal, I'm going to put it out there and it's going to hit the New York Times list. The first time you put it out.

You know, it was a lot of imposter syndrome really. But the phrase that comes to mind is, have you heard that TikTok trend where it says but boys do it? Like, it's like, yeah, I can, like if I see somebody doing this, why can they do it? And I can't. And I think anybody can apply that to their life. Like, obviously I'm not out here and I'm like gonna go perform brain surgery. We're cooking like it's home cooking. And I saw people in a career trajectory where they didn't have cooking experience who had made, who had been successful. So I thought, if they can do it, why can't I do it? But there was still, definitely and still is that like little voice where it's like everybody's going to find out that you're like an imposter. But like it's not like I'm on here and being like I'm, you know, Martha Stewart. I, it's like I don't know what culinary background Martha has, but I'm sure something I don't claim, I think my food is very much for. I don't think any chef would go on and think she's a chef. It's, it's for regular people, everyday people.

Everyday people eat better and use what they got in their fridge. Not create the most extravagant meals.

Exactly. And I think anybody could, I think anybody who sets their mind and is super passionate about something and has the skill set can apply kind of a system of short video content and make it successful.

But you didn't have like the skills necessary. I mean you're only one or two years into developing skills.

Yeah.

Because you didn't cook before at all.

I think it was more the broadcasting skills. So I went to school for broadcasting and I think more than the recipes in and of themselves, you understand content. I understood content.

And marketing.

And marketing, yeah. I, I like. And that's still, I love, I love content and marketing, but I also love cooking like and I loved cooking at the time, and I think it was. It's therapeutic for me. I always say this to people that we've gotten so far away from kind of that primal act of actually cooking dinner, like sitting down with your cutting board, chopping up vegetables, slicing your tofu, whatever you're making. And it's very mindful activity. And there's not a lot today you've.

Got to be present.

You have to be present, or you're going to cut your finger off like you gotta be, or you're following a recipe. And there's not a lot of things in today's world where you're fully present for.

So how do you stay present for it when you're also shooting content and you're trying to.

That I can't do, and you're performing.

And you're moving the camera and you're editing and, you know, how are you stay. So you're not present really to.

No. That's where recipe testing comes in. So the recipe is tested before it's ever filmed.

Then you film it.

Then it's like a passive action because I'm following my own recipe that has been created.

Wow.

Yes.

That's interesting.

Yes.

So a week before you launch your first book, you call therapists and say, yeah, I'm afraid that everyone's gonna find out that I have no clue what I'm doing.

Yeah. And I got the book in the mail. And I mean, it's all infographics. It's just like this one. And I'm like, this is. Either people are gonna love this or they're gonna think it looks like a kid's school project. Like, I just didn't know. And I had shot all the photos. Thank goodness I had a photographer for this one. So I'm like. I'm, like, looking at the photos and. Which also, no photography experience. Like a complete disillusion to the world. And I was just horrified. But people loved it. People loved my first book.

So you were horrified putting it out. Did you just not think it looked good, or were you not proud of it, or you just think I was. I'm proud of it, but other people aren't going to like it. You're afraid of.

I think it's just those, like, backstage jitters where you're questioning everything that you did, you know, and really, like, being like, did I hoodwink everybody into, like, giving me a book deal? Like, you know, like, those huge doubts and only really worked through it once the book was out and I was validated that People liked it, like, therapy session. Wasn't. I still was, like, up on that Tuesday when it came out with thinking.

People are going to find out. What are they saying?

Yeah, yeah. What are they saying? What are the reviews?

And when you get a negative review or I guess a critical review, how do you take it?

My first book, I was absolutely devastated when a negative review come in. Yeah. It devastated me. And I would be like, I would try and get them taken down. Like, I'd be like, to. To my publisher, like, can you contact Amazon? This review, like, feels a little too personal. Like, or, you know, having put out a book, people will leave reviews if their book comes damaged. Meanwhile, it's not like it was you shipping out the book, like, something. So I would get very upse that.

What was the critical. What were the words or the critiques that affected you the most about your work when you launched the book?

People would call it, like, juvenile, which I think was fearful. One of the fears. And. But, I mean, the. The book said ridiculously easy recipes.

So I'm like, it should be.

It should be. It should be basic. Yeah. But I think that was, like, hurtful, where I'm like. Or like, she's just an influencer cook or whatever, which I am. I feel like people think the word influencer is so dirty. Like, it has this dirty connotation. And I'm like, why, though?

Right? Since you weren't, like, culinary school trained and nutritionist and certified and all these different things. So people. I think people get frustrated when they are those things and they haven't had the success they want or the audience or the results they're looking for. They're like, I spent eight years of my life going to medical school or going to nutrition school, whatever it is. And I still don't feel like I'm getting the attention, the validation, the opportunities that I would, like, this person is. And all she did was just whip up some of these simple little recipes online and she got 5 million followers. Screw her, right? Yeah.

And I don't blame them. I would feel the same way. I know. I get it. I get it. And I don't know that I have an explanation for it, but now I will say now, like, this book, very different. When I got in my hands, I was, like, so happy with it.

Yes.

Especially the recipes. I was just so happy with how everything turned out and doing it. While my mom was sick, my sister actually left her job and worked with me full time to develop the recipes on this book. And trust me, I thought about Hiram Ghostwriter when my mom, my mom was diagnosed a week after I signed this deal. So I was like, can I even do this? Like, you know, in that moment, you're just freaking out. And I don't care what anybody says now. I just feel like I'm so aligned in what I'm doing and I don't care. Like, I just want people to eat more plants. I just don't care. Like, what are you gonna say? They're gonna comment bacon on my Instagram post. Like, whatever they call them.

Bacon.

No, always bacon. All caps bacon. Or they'll be like, I'm eating five times as much bacon to cancel out your plant based recipe. And I'm like, you go, you eat that bacon. It just doesn't, it doesn't hit the same way. And I'm sure that's like just.

It's a minority too of people like commenting and saying these videos. But it stands out sometimes.

It stands out sometimes. But I think you get thousands of.

Comments on your videos and assuming 98% are like really inspiring, positive. And thank. I just tried this. It's been so helpful.

Yeah. Yeah. I think it's like I heard advice from someone and who knows who it was, but it was read 5 positive comments on your post before you ever respond to a negative one. And it's so true. Like, why are we so drawn to like get your back up and say, like, why are you saying this to me? You gotta think somebody who is commenting something negative on Instagram on a post that has nothing to do with them is probably battling their own demons. Right?

Yeah. As one of the biggest food content creators in the world, what's your fear right now? Or insecurity?

Insecurity or fear? Well, there's. It's twofold. I'm very scared of climate change. That's like my world fear. And I worry that we're not making enough changes to our world to combat climate change. That's my world fear. That kind of like you think food.

Is one of the biggest causes of.

It is it's food waste or food. Oh, so it's all. So food is around the industry of food. Food is around 28% of emissions, 15% of which is animal agriculture. So like the. A large chunk of it. Food waste in and of itself is 8% and transportation is around 15. So when you look at food being close to 30 and then transportation being 15, I mean, I think sometimes we have the wrong focus.

Wow, what's the big. Is food the biggest factor?

Yeah, the biggest factor. I think so don't quote me on that, but I think it's the largest piece of the pie there.

And then transportation.

But, I mean, we can't deny, like, gas, like.

Cars, trucks, airplanes, everything.

Like, all. All of it.

Shipping, all the shipping costs, all of it.

It's. It's. Animal agriculture in particular, is a huge drain because it requires 20 times more land and emits 20 times more greenhouse gas emissions to produce a beef than it does per, like, calorie of plant protein.

Right.

So it's just. It's a real drain. And so, like, I'm very passionate about this. I. I don't want to get, like, too depressive, but climate change concerns me, so that's like, a driver for what I do in terms of personal, like, work. I don't know. I. I feel like things present themselves where they should for what I want to do. Like, I know when I finished my first book, I thought, what am I gonna do? And then it was scrappy. Just, like, really, like, came right in front of me. So I think.

And then you naturally created the book based on that.

Exactly.

And now you're doing this quickie series, you're like, okay, that'll naturally unfold.

I hope so. So I think that. Yeah, I'm not worried if. I'm not worried, because I. And I mean, if it all goes away, it all goes away. I feel good about what I.

What I'm doing if, you know, I don't want to put this out there necessarily. But if, you know, the algorithms change or your account gets taken down for whatever reason and you lose all your followers on social media and all your accounts go away, how would that make you feel?

Devastated, clearly. But also, I just get back out there. I'd start from ground zero.

And you think you could build it all again?

I'm not saying I could build it all again. I think I could build, like. I think I could get my message out there. Yeah. I think I could build something in what I'm doing.

Right, Right. Maybe not all back within a month or two, but it's like, you can start building again, creating content, innovate and persevere, which is kind of your main thing.

Yeah. I think I could scrap it out.

And make it happen quickly scrap it out and, you know, make. If you were starting today and you were looking to build a massive online following and you hadn't launched a single piece of content, and you can only do one thing. If there was someone who's like, I've got an idea. I've got a Passion I gotta love. Whether it's food, whether it's relationships or it's teaching something that they're passionate about. Playing music. What would be the thing that could help you go from zero to a million followers, do you think the fastest way possible. Should people focus on multiple platforms at once? Go all in on one platform, you know, steal ideas from other people's content, do trends. Like what would be the thing that you would do? You're starting from scratch today.

If it were me, and let's maybe use hockey as an example. I would look at the top 10 hockey content creators on social media. I would go through all of their videos and I would have like a notepad beside me and I would look at what are their most viral videos, what have the most views, what have the most engagement. Then I would cross examine what it is that made that video successful, what is the length of it, did they use a trending sound? Did they use like some sort of hook at the beginning? And I would do that for like the 10 most biggest accounts in your niche. And then I would brainstorm content from there so you never want to copy. But I think to go in uneducated when it's all free resources makes no sense to me. So then I would start creating content and personally I would create under 32nd because I always create under 32nd. I think our time spans are, are short videos. Although there's some long form content that's doing really well on TikTok.

Now the question is like three to five minutes.

Yeah, by the time this episode comes out, like it could be different. But personally I would start creating 30 second videos and I would look at, I would duplicate in my own way what has been most successful for these people. And I would use definitely trending music and what I would do is film it off platform. So I'd probably use my iPhone. I still use an iPhone to film content. I switch to a camera for a bit. IPhone in my opinion, performs better.

Really?

Yeah, I think so. Or maybe it, it's, it's probably less an algorithm thing as it is like an visual thing because we all use iPhones.

The experience of it.

Yeah, the experience of it. So I'd use my iPhone and I'd, I'd film and I'd start cracking out some videos and I would film them off platform and I would distribute them on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube shorts and Facebook reels.

All shorts.

All shorts. Because if you're creating a piece of content and you're spending maybe, I don't know, Six hours creating it, whatever. You could create a killer piece of content in 20 seconds, but it could, it could take you six hours. Why do you want to like only post that on one platform? It's nonsensical. You might as well post it everywhere. Because all of these platforms that I just spoke about, including YouTube, are prioritizing short video content. So then I would start, and then I would start churning out probably a video every day. And then I'd watch, sit and watch and see what ticks. And then when you find it, you then double down and start creating more and more content. And I mean your first videos, like if you've never created a video in your life, it's probably going to be horrible. Maybe you'll be lucky and it's not. Maybe you'll be lucky and it's not. But like if you go back on my feed and look at my first reels, they are so cringe worthy, it's not even funny. They were just like blurry. I have a tremor. So like my hands shaking. Filming terrible, terrible. And the only thing that made it better was not like investing thousands of dollars in some course or anything like that. It was just doing a video every day. Like, like get in it, in it, in it.

Not, not worrying about, I need a better equipment or better lighting or better audio or a two thousand dollar camera. I was just like, let me get better at creating content first.

Exactly. And I think that natural light is important. So that's one thing I would. One of the biggest two things, one of the biggest tips, natural light. So if you can, if you're filming any type of content, if you can kind of position yourself either with a light or by a window so that the window is illuminating you, I think nine times out of ten it's gonna look way better.

Does it do better based on the.

Yeah. Oh, I, If I. Film is so brutal, like the sun comes out, so. But I will sometimes it's got clouds a lot too.

Right.

Plan my filming days around sun. Because natural light pouring onto food, there's. You can't duplicate it. I, I've tried to duplicate it with lighting. It's just, it doesn't work. Absolutely. It's like magical when you have that. So if you have natural light, it.

Makes it look better.

Yeah, it just makes it look like more desirable. Right. And poppy and beautiful. And like if anybody goes to my profile now you can see like some of the ones with natural light, they're just gorgeous. So that, and then the second thing is captions. I think Captions are a missed opportunity.

I see captions on video.

On video. I see so many people post videos without captions. And personally, like, if I go to bed and I'm scrolling, which you shouldn't do, but the caption catches you. Yeah, yeah, the caption catches you. I don't have my phone sound on. And I think, like, so many people probably listen without sound on, on their videos, so you have to have captions. And I mean, there's apps now that will do that for you, like Capcut, Splice. You can even add Instagram captions. Yeah, so.

So it doesn't have to look a certain way, but just have captions on there, I think.

So you use captions on all your videos?

Most of them, yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

Probably nine out of ten, I would say.

Yeah. I think it's important because it. And I also think there's something about watching a short video and having text, even if you are listening to it, it's a more immersive experience.

Helps you connect a bit more. Yeah, yeah.

I also think that there's something to be said about talking to camera. So I try to do that more now is like, I'll have some things where I'm not necessarily doing just a voiceover where I'm saying things to camera. All my scrappy videos, I'm usually holding up something like beat tops and saying, stop throwing out your beat tops. And I think that connects you with your viewer. And I see a lot of food creators that don't have themselves in it, and I think they lose opportunity. That's a missed opportunity to me because a food video, there's millions. So who are you? Who is the person behind the food? What? Why should I follow you? What are you. What story do you have to tell?

Right, yeah. What would you say have been the keys to be building personal brand for yourself? Is it being on video? Is it, you know, using a certain language? Like, what are the keys to building personal brand as a creator?

Yeah, I think definitely having yourself front and center is huge in having your face in your videos. And I can imagine you guys have experienced this too. But, like, my videos get taken all the time and reposted to other accounts, which, whatever. But like, thank goodness they have my face in them because if they were just food, then there would be no. No credit. Right. So I think having you visually there, I always like, I'm scrappy. I'm promoting scrappy. I'm not wearing a green jacket right now, but it's got some green in it. I'm like very like I go full in branding. So I've been wearing green on all of my press, all my videos and green, green, green. My colors are pink, red, green. So like, I think there's something to like dressing. I thrift almost all of my clothes, which I think, yes, adds to your scrap. Yeah, this jacket's thrifted and that's something that's important to me, the conversation about thrifting. But I think if you can tie whatever you're doing to an overall lifestyle, I think that helps support you as a personal brand where it's not just the individualistic topic that you're talking about, but like how that extends to other parts of your life. Which plant based eating and scrappiness and health all like is something I'm constantly thinking about and something I'm trying to exude in everything that I do.

So it's a mindful part of your personality and you put out in your content as well. What else would you say supports your personal brand or that can support someone's personal brand?

So the biggest advice I'd have actually to anybody who is starting from scratch, like starting this from ground zero, whatever you're doing is getting a blog, like a domain. So I plant you dot com. And we've had that from day one. And this like it is to your point earlier, what happens if your Instagram gets taken away? Well, thank goodness I have a great blog traffic from search engine optimization and I have a great email list that I've been working on for years.

That's great.

It's really, really important that you build because at the end of the day, Instagram owes you nothing. TikTok owes you nothing. Like I think sometimes we start to think like, why did my video not perform well? What did Instagram do? They don't owe you anything. Like you wake up and you do another video. So I think it's like having your own personal point of contact to these people who are following you and who are in your community is so important.

Yeah. Bidding on email lists for sure.

Yeah. Email list is huge. Huge.

Wow. When did you start to monetize your personal brand and your content? Because a lot of people are. We're talking about this off camera. A lot of people. Not a lot of people, but some people figure out how to build audience through their content, but they don't understand how to monetize it. When did you start monetizing after you started being a creator? And what advice would you give to someone when they want to start monetizing their content?

So really how I was able to leave my job in 2019? I had started a meal plan subscription and I called it Plant Ahead at the time, and it was for 799.

Plant ahead.

Plant Ahead. So it's like, it was like a meal prep. Yeah. So I would send out a PDF and oh my goodness, I would be like cooking on Sunday and then heading to my 9 to 5 on the Monday and putting these like, PDFs together of these cell phone pictures of food I had made and meal prepped for the week. And they were all meal prep recipes that were plant based. And I would send a shopping list and like four or five recipes and people would subscribe to this for 7.99 per month.

How many followers did you have at that point when you launched that?

I think 50,000. 50,000.

So was. It was a good amount of size, but it wasn't millions yet?

No, it wasn't millions. But I was so connected to my community. I would say, like, yeah, people were really. And they needed it. Like, I think I was living the life that I needed to support. So that resonates when you're actually in it. That resonates.

Do you remember when you watched that first PDF, how much actually came in on that first day? Do you remember how much in sales it brought in?

I don't remember, but I remember that I had said, I will leave my job when I reach 500 subscribers to the meal plan. And it happened quickly. And my parents, my parents were like.

Like, you sure you want to leave?

Yeah, yeah. So they thought it was gonna take.

You like a year.

Yeah, exactly. Like they were like, they had said, yeah, yeah, Carly, like, if you really like get. Have 500 people paying you 7.99 per month, like, leave your job. And then it happened like in two weeks. And they were like, no, no, you can't do this. So I did do it. I did do it. But I came from a position of privilege because I had been working. I was always a little.

Saving your money.

And then at the time, my boyfriend, now husband, was working like a government job. So he was like, I'll back you if this doesn't work out. I've got you.

Don't listen and you can go back to your job.

Easy to. Yeah, don't listen to mom and dad. You'll be fine. And look at you, little rebel Jump. Well. Scary. I mean, it's not the craziest thing anybody's ever done, but I do want to, like, I always like to mention that this came with privilege Because I think that I had enough of a, like a nest egg, which however much at the time built up. And then my boyfriend was like, sure, definitely got this support of, we've got this, like, we'll all pay the mortgage if, like, this doesn't work out, which then I love my job. And then I signed the book deal like a couple months later and that was very serendipitous.

A couple months later, 50,000 followers.

Yeah. So I signed the book deal and then had quickly, quickly grew to about 100,000. So it was like, was all like happening once I was able to dedicate full time to content.

Right.

But what I'll say to people is, personally, I would not have been comfortable making that jump without that promise of income. So I think it's really important. Yeah, I think it's really important. Like, it's okay. And I mean, everybody's in a different situation, but if you can spend your nights and weekends building up something where you know you have recurring income and you know you're going to be good, that makes that jump. It's going to be scary no matter what, but it makes it a lot easier for your mental health.

Wow.

Which is key. Yeah.

That's pretty cool.

Yeah. I mean, it's crazy to reflect back on because at the time I really wouldn't anticipate what has gone on.

So what was the dream for you five years ago before you launched like your first PDF and your book deal? What was like?

I think I wanted to be like a vegan YouTuber. Like, I just wanted to cook in my kitchen and make probably long form content. Never the short video content, just took off. So, like, it hasn't happened. I still want to do long form content. It's like when we were talking earlier, like, you always want to do all this stuff, but where do you find the time? So I think I just wanted to, like, I wanted to be able to have you read the book the Alchemist.

Oh, wow. It's my favorite book. Yeah.

Really? Okay. So I have a story about that book. Before I left my job, I was very torn and my dad went to the Y, our local ymca, which is like a gym, and picked up a book. And he said, he read the back of it and it was the Alchemist. And he said, carly, I read the back of this book. It was at like a free book stand. And I think you, you need to read it. And I read it and that was really the push that I needed. Where the book talks so much about following your life's path And I just felt this was what I needed to be doing. And that pushed me because I'm like, this is a sign. Whatever, whatever way we want to take it. I don't know how much I believe in all of that, but it was weird. And it came at the perfect time.

I think the messages and the teachers and the people in our life do come at the perfect time when we're ready to make those leaps and whatever it might be in relationships or career or, you know.

So do you feel like the universe, like, conspires?

It's interesting because I just had this neuroscientist recently that came on that was like, the universe doesn't care about you. You. It's neutral. Yeah, it's like you setting the intention and setting your. Your value system, your energy towards what you want is what will create it. The. And, you know, I guess the universe is neutral. But I believe the universe works in your favor when you work in your favor.

Right.

When you are in alignment with your values, your vision, your relationships, and you honor your integrity with your word towards your values. And you move in accordance with the dreams and the desires that you have. I believe synchronicities come into your life. Signals, signs. I believe things open up. It doesn't mean it's always going to be easy and effortless, but I feel like people come into your life, you start paying attention to different things that will give you the right information, the right connections, the right door to start entering through. It's not all going to be handed to you, but you've got to take the actions towards the signals, the signs and the synchronicities that are in front of you. But I think when you're in that alignment and you feel something and you think it and your heart is connected to it, that's when the universe opens up for you in a big way. So I agree with that.

I love that. And I have another story to kind of go with that, share it. So after I had left my job, I'm doing the plant based thing, I had a call with Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, who I know I don't think you've released the episode, but he's on your show. Yes, very good friend of mine. And we were both kind of scrapping it on Instagram, like growing our platforms. And he said, are you writing a cookbook? And I said, no, I don't really know how to cook, but I'm out here showing my journey. Right. And he said, you should write a cookbook. Like, I think that it would be a really good career move for you.

And so this one, you had like $50,000.

50,000, like, growing. And I thought, oh, that's an interesting idea. I had never thought about it before. Literally two days later, I look in my DMs and I was DMed by a literary agent about writing a cookbook. And I thought, isn't this weird? And she turned out to be. Thank goodness. I'm not recommending that anybody open their DM and suddenly, like, blind faith work with someone. But she was amazing. Worked out. But I think that that is weird to me. Like, the way things fell together. It's just weird, isn't it?

The alchemist, he talks about, like, the universe conspires in your favor. Is that like his quote or.

Yeah, I don't know if that's his quote. It could be. But that book, for anybody who I think is struggling with their life path, and I really am a big believer that you don't necessarily have to do what you're passionate about for work. This could just be your life value system and living in accordance with the, like, world. You want to see that. That book is number one.

I love it. Yeah, it's great. Is there anything else in your heart or mind that you think we should be talking about today?

I just think that if you, if anybody takes anything away from this, I think there's two different people that are probably listening to this. Maybe some that are interested in plant based eating and some that are interested in business. But if you're somebody who's interested in plant based eating, what I would challenge you to do is get in the kitchen. I think cooking is a lost art. I think that one of the greatest investments you can make in your health and your future, in your children's future, if you have children, is learning the skill of cooking. And nine times out of 10, cooking at home is healthier than restaurants. And cooking with plants will make you fall in love with cooking because the stakes are so low. You don't have to worry about like, salmonella from your chicken or over the temperature. No, like, you fix it, it's veggies, it's beautiful, it's fun. And that's what I'm all about. Like, plant based cooking is fun as heck. And I hope you come away listening to this. Maybe, maybe you're gonna try a plant based meal. Doesn't have to be mine. Go on Pinterest, whatever.

Yeah, yeah. It's beautiful.

Yeah.

Okay, cool. The book is Plant yout scrappy cooking 140 plus plant based zero waste recipes that are good for you, your wallet and the planet. It's a beautiful cookbook, so congrats on this. I'm excited to bring it back and share with my fiance and have her dive into this because she's really into plant based cooking, so I'm sure she'll want to try some stuff.

Oh, I can't wait.

With me. So we'll have to like take a photo and send it to you if we. When we start making some, some stuff here. I want to acknowledge you, Carly, before I ask you the final couple questions. For your relentlessness and your drive and your courage to be there for your mom and your dad when he was struggling as well and also be there for yourself at the same time and for your, your purpose of this season of life. To not abandon yourself fully only for, you know, your mom, but also to make it a both and you know, say I'm going to be there for her for as much time as I can and I'm going to do what fills my soul as well and nourishes me and hopefully nourishes others as well. So I really acknowledge you for the journey over the last few years because I can only imagine how challenging and painful it was to witness that and to experience it and at the same time, you know, the beautiful things that come from pain and sadness and suffering as well. So I acknowledge you for your courage, for your heart, for your generosity, and for your desire to help others become healthier through your talents and your gifts. So I really acknowledge that in the.

Yeah, that was really, really nice. And I'm eternally grateful that you gave me a platform to talk about it. And I think it's so cool to be on this podcast because I'm a listener myself and I listened during like those grinding days for sure. So. So this is very full circle and I just have so much gratitude that you're providing me with a platform to even talk about this stuff.

Of course. Yeah, I'm excited. I'm excited to get this out there. Okay, Carly, I've got these couple final questions before I ask them. People can follow you plantyou.com y o u they can go to Antu on Instagram and all the places on social media they can check out your content. It's really fun. It's inspiring. So check it out. Get the book. Subscribe to your newsletter. All the different things. This question I ask everyone at the end called the Three Truths. So imagine a hypothetical scenario. It's your last day on Earth. You get to live as long as you want. You know, you don't live in a blue zone, but you act like it, right? So you get to live as long as you want and you get to create everything you want to create. But for whatever reason, on the last day, you've got to take all your work with you, all your cookbooks. This content, any content you create, it's gone. We don't have access to your information anymore that you shared with the world. But you get to leave behind three lessons, three truths, and that's all we would have to be remembered by your content. What would you say are those three truths for you?

Live in alignment with the world that you want to see. Take care of your vessel on this earth, because health is everything. And have some fun. Don't take life too seriously. Live each day like I think all of us are. Work, work, work. And it's important to have some fun too.

Absolutely. Those are beautiful. Live in alignment. Take care of your vessel, your health, and have fun. Final question, Carly, what's your definition of greatness?

Oh, I already stole it with the three, the three values. But it really is like living in alignment with the world you want to see. And that could mean for you, what do I want to see for Carly 10 years down the road? What do I want to see for my children? In cross examining that and making the steps to make that happen, I think that is greatness to me. And that can take on so many forms. Doesn't have to be financial, doesn't have to be work. It's just life.

It's beautiful. Carly, thanks so much.

Thank you so much.

Appreciate you. We want consistency, sustainability, and we want to taste good. Yes. So start with the stuff that you enjoy, introduce simple, sustainable choices and build from there. Right? And as we start to build, we start to build momentum and our microbiome is given a chance to change with us.