Apple donuts, ice cream for breakfast, chocolate cake, creamy pasta, a boatload of chickpeas and more potatoes than you can shake an organic carrot at… welcome to the world of Broccoli Mum, where huge portions of delicious nosh are the order of every day.
And here’s the kicker, all of the above has helped the North East-based social media sensation lose more than four stone in weight since she embarked on a mission to consign yo-yo dieting to the past.
It was back in June 2020 when Ami Deane – vegan since birth – uploaded her first food photo to her newly-created Instagram account.
At the time, she was running Tyne Chease – the award-winning artisanal vegan cheese business she founded in 2014, offering those opting for a plant-based diet the chance to have a fancy ‘chease’ board.
But back to the birth of Broccoli Mum.
“I started it just for me – as a way to keep myself accountable,” says the 33-year-old, who lives in Rowlands Gill with her husband James and their two children Abe, five, and Romi, two.
“It was a place where I could post all my healthy food pics, and it inspired me to make my meals more veggie packed and vibrant.
“Of course anyone who was interested could keep track of how I was doing if they wanted to, but I never dreamt it would turn into anything more than that.”
Following years of restrictive eating and intense diets and exercise regimes – and a couple of years after having Abe – Ami decided that a way of eating called ‘the starch solution’ sounded like something she could get on board with.
“I’d tried so many things like eating 100% raw, only eating low carb, doing Slimming World, working out ridiculously. I would stay motivated for a few days or weeks but at some point, I’d always end up stuffing my face full of vegan Ben and Jerry’s,” she says.
“I had known about the starch solution for around a decade, but it wasn’t until I understood the principles of calorie density and how you can use it to enjoy HUGE portions while still getting lean, that it clicked for me.
“And I can honestly say I’ve never looked back since.”
Aside from making the dramatic then-and-now video, which has been viewed tens of thousands of times on her Instagram and YouTube channels, that is.
“It’s all about using those principles of calorie density to help build your plate,” explains Ami, who spent a childhood living in Ethiopia, Afghanistan and India thanks to her parents’ careers in international development, but returned to her Northumberland roots after coming back to the UK to complete a degree at York St John University.
“That means eating low calorie density foods like veggies, fruit, starches and legumes in abundance!”
And when she says ‘in abundance’ – she’s not kidding. A scan of the Broccoli Mum home page delivers piled plate after piled plate of pretty amazing looking dishes.
There is no room for processed food here – it’s all about the whole foods. And you can leave the oil at the door too.
“Ditching the junk food and even eliminating oil from your diet is a total game changer,” she says. “Oil is the highest calorie food on the planet – eliminating it can save on hundreds of calories a day.
“It can sound daunting, but it’s genuinely incredible what you can create with simple whole plant foods,” promises Ami, who prides herself on finding new ways to make healthy versions of anything her tastebuds desire.
“Pizzas, burgers, creamy sauces, cakes, brownies, curries and soooo much ice cream at all times of the day – the best way not to feel like you’re missing out is not to miss out!”
It’s this kind of attitude – and Ami’s authentic presenting style featuring sinks full of dishes and air fryers in need of a scrub – which caught the attention of more and more people looking for inspiration.
Take an Instagram video where she shares the discovery that you can make a gooey chocolate cake using chickpeas and oats. That one clocked up more than 1.1m views – the same as her lasagne soup with a dollop of tofu ricotta.
Then there’s the humble quinoa wrap, which has presumably been recreated all over the world following its 1.5m plays.
“Those posts went crazy… but you never know what is going to catch people’s imagination,” she laughs, quickly pointing out that millions of views isn’t the norm – yet.
An average Broccoli Mum Instagram reel picks up 2-3,000 likes and is viewed around 50-70,000 times, while a daily YouTube What I Ate today or recipe rundown gets between five and 10 thousand plays.
As well as hours of video footage and food snaps, the Broccoli Mum back catalogue also features four tasty meal plans – each priced at $7 (an indication of her international appeal).
“As I started getting more and more followers, they were all asking me to share the recipes for the stuff I was posting, so I started putting my first seven day meal plan together.
“I’m always looking for new ways to enjoy great food and share the recipes I’ve created.”
Excitingly for lovers of the spud, one of them is called the Potato Reset and involves a week of recipes and plates filled only with potatoes and non starchy vegetables.
“People genuinely can’t believe the amount of potatoes you can eat while still getting lean,” says Ami. “But trust me – it happens!”
Following the enthusiastic take up of the meal plans, last year saw Ami join forces with her sister-in-law, Snigdha Asirvatham to create an oil-free Indian cookbook.
“We started discussing how cool it would be to do a cookbook of oil free Indian food when we were in India for Amba – my brother – and Sniggs’ wedding. Sniggs and her sister Nimi, always made us the best oil free Indian feasts when they visited, it was a no-brainer. Just over a year later and we’d done it!”
Released just before Christmas, the cookbook features more than 60 recipes featuring colourful dishes such as butter tofu, sweet potato curry, jeera aloo, beetroot sabzi and bhindi masala.
“We’ve been really delighted with how well it has been received,” says Ami. “We had such a great time making it together… I mean who wouldn’t have a good time making and eating all that amazing food!”
There is already talk of an Ethiopian-themed follow up.
“I lived in Ethiopia from four to 11 and have loved Ethiopian food ever since… it was always the first restaurant I’d be searching for whenever we travelled somewhere new. I still need to perfect my injera,” she adds, speaking of the African cuisine’s signature flatbread.
Before that though, she’s put a special sweet treats collection together in time for Valentine’s Day.
“It’s a mini cookbook with some of my favourite desserts. People seem to love new ideas for satisfying those sweet cravings. The kids and I have had a lot of fun trying out the recipes.”
Broccoli Mum followers are well acquainted with Abe and Romi who regularly appear in Ami’s videos – sometimes even taking charge of making the main dish of the day.
Abe making pizza and Romi’s apple donut rings are in danger of tipping the cuteness scales over.
“They love being on camera, even when I’m not recording, they’ll often talk to my phone on the tripod,” Ami laughs.
Maybe it won’t be long before a Broccoli Kids Youtube channel pops up?
“That would definitely be fun! I like showing how I get my kids to eat healthily because it sets them up for life. It’s so important to help our kids develop a healthy relationship with food early on, which is what we’re trying to do with Abe and Romi.”
Having signed over Tyne Chease to its new owners more than a year ago, Broccoli Mum has become a full-time occupation for Ami, although all the editing usually has to wait until the kids have gone to bed.
“They love the filming and the cooking, but they’re not such a big fan of me being at the computer,” laughs Ami.
“It is pretty full on and I used to feel that pressure to constantly be uploading new stuff. Having watched loads of vegan influencers like High Carb Hannah, Plantiful Kiki, Chelsea Mae Cullen and Chef AJ for many years, you can get carried away with creating more and more new content.
“Last year I was guilty of filming far too often, but I’ve scaled it right back and found that you don’t have to do anywhere near as much as I was doing.
“I’m much better at having days off these days and feel like I’ve got the balance right… although I still can’t quite believe people all over the world are logging in to see what I’m making for tea!”
Broccoli Mum’s go to recipes for:
Comfort: Mash and fat free gravy, veggie sushi, veggie packed pasta bake with tofu ricotta, butter tofu with onion bhaji, cauliflower alfredo pasta, twice baked garlic spinach potatoes, tofu tikka oil-free naan wraps.
Treats: Banana ice cream, chocolate baked oats (which I call chocolate cake), chickpea blondies, chips with tofu mayo, crispy doritos made out of quinoa, oil free poppedcorn, healthy banana and oat muffins.
When you’re feeling under the weather: Any kind of vegetable soup. Usually, a thick smooth green soup full of kale, broccoli, spinach etc. Berry, spinach and orange smoothies.
When you need lots of energy: All the carbs! Potatoes of any variety; date and chickpea bliss balls; a big bowl of chocolate peanut butter porridge.
Follow Broccoli Mum on Instagram and YouTube… and we’re betting it won’t be long before you’re writing poetry about chickpeas and sweet potatoes.
Newcastle Building Society has supported the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation for more than a decade, donating more than £3m to help support the Foundation’s life-changing work.
