The amazing lady behind "We Want Happy Herbivore on the Ellen Show" e-mailed me earlier this week asking if I had a low-fat baked oatmeal recipe. I'd never heard of "baked" oatmeal before, but damn! It sounded divine!

I got busy searching for baked oatmeal recipes and was surprised at how oil and egg-heavy most recipes were. Eggs in oatmeal? Still, I was optimistic I could make it work fat-free vegan-style, and I did!

This oatmeal is outstanding and so …

Spices are any home cook's secret weapon. The right spice can make any meal go from ordinary to extraordinary... and spices can tie any meal together. Increasing your spices is also a great way to intensify flavor in low fat cooking. A lot of recipes rely on oils and other fats for flavor and removing them can make a recipe fall flat. The next time that happens, try double - or tripling the spices called for in the recipe.

Here …

Last time we talked to Kate about how she defeated her debilitating condition by diet alone (even when her doctors put no credence in the vegan diet as a cure!). Now she's back to talk to us about vegan mommyhood, dating as a single vegan and making mixed-diet families work. 

HH: You are a mom to two adorable vegan boys. Tell us about them.

Kate: My boys are 4 1/2 and 2 3/4 right now. They have both been raised …

I continually feel pressured to create new recipes for happyherbivore.com. I know that I shouldn't, but I do. And although the unforgiving heat turns me into a slacker every summer (it's just too hot to cook!) this summer I've felt especially guilty about not creating more recipes...

Truth is, I've had little time to do much of anything. Between finishing up the final touches on my upcoming cookbook and working on all of the upcoming Happy Herbivore projects (Herbisport's …

Today's inspirational interviewee, Kate, comes to us from Boston and shares with us how she defeated her debilitating condition with diet alone. In part 2 (next week) we'll also talk to Kate about vegan mommyhood, dating and making families with mixed diets work.

HH: First, the million dollar question. How long have you been vegan and what made you go vegan?

 Kate: I have been vegan since March 2004. I went vegan shortly after I'd been released from the hospital …