First of all, let me preface this with: I am NOT a vegetarian.I am dabbling with vegetarianism. There’s a huge difference!I am not doing this for emotional reasons or based on a belief system about why the animal / meat industry is bad. I am doing this for health reasons…and because my doctor suggested it.
My hubby (of now 8 years) was recently diagnosed with super duper high cholesterol.Our doctor recommended more of a plant-based diet.He said basically if we currently eat one or two meatless meals a week, we should flip 180 degrees and only eat one or two meat-FILLED meals. The rest should be plant-based.
Which wouldn’t seem like such a big deal, but my hubby hates vegetables.Doh!
So what is a girl to do?
1) Be More Creative. I need to be creative in how I prepare veggies/fruits so that Dear Hubby is more likely to eat them. Dear Hubby is picky. REALLY picky. I need to give more effort in making dishes I know he is more likely to enjoy finish.Case in point – I recently made some Double Decker vegetarian tacos. They were chock full of veggies: (black beans, corn, red peppers, onions,BROCCOLI, and even pureed tomatoes!).Mission accomplished! He devoured.every.bite.
2) Read Blogs to Get Ideas.Never cooked tofu? Neither had I.Peruse blogs to find great recipes to start with.The better the recipes/meals, the more you enjoy them, the more likely you are to continue eating this way!This was simply one of the best lunches I’ve ever made-Tomato & Lemon Tofu Sammies:
3) Be willing to make a few mistakes.Now this is just funny! I attempted to make a vegan soup for Dear Hubby based on his favoriteZuppa Toscana at Olive Garden. I was so proud of myself, it tasted incredible.And then later, much later, after I’d started blogging about it and tweeting to the world about what an awesome vegan cook I am, I realized I used chicken broth as the base. Ha!Note to self – vegans and vegetarians don’t eat chicken broth.It was a good learning experience and can easily be tweaked (with vegetable broth) into a fabulous vegetarian meal.But I did have to laugh at myself. A lot.
4) Prepare a variety. I need toprepare a variety of veggies/fruits each week so that we are getting a balance of the various nutrients they offer. I have started to do this by buying different things that are on sale at our local market each week. Last week it was peaches, strawberries, coconut, and sweet potatoes. This week it was tofu, cherries, beans, and kale.
5) Change my viewpoint. I'm sorry but I have always thought vegetarians and vegans were weird (Plain. and simple. Sorry, no offense.) and thatthey were the unhealthy ones. I now know many (who blog) that are really wonderful!!! And I am beginning to research / dig into information that not only promotes a primarily plant-based diet, but speaks against the current American trend of MEAT, MEAT, and MORE MEAT (in the holy name of "protein") at every meal. Oh, that and our doctor recommended it.
6) Drink more Juice. Dear Hubby likes pretty much every juice I've ever made (with the exception of V8 because it was too onion-y for him). But Mean Green, and Shrek juice, and Pink Kale, and Golden Goddess Juice, are all awesome ways for him to get some extra nutrients that he otherwise wouldn't have.
There are so many ways to incorporate more plant-based meals into your diet! I am planning on launching a vegetarian MONTH soon, so you'll get a lot of great vegetarian recipes / meal ideas to choose from.
Questions:
What do you think of “dappling” with vegetarianism?
First of all, let me preface this with: I am NOT a vegetarian. I am dabbling with vegetarianism. There’s a huge difference! I am not doing this for emotional reasons or based on a belief system about why the animal / meat industry is bad. I am doing this for health reasons…and because my doctor suggested it.
My hubby (of now 8 years) was recently diagnosed with super duper high cholesterol. Our doctor recommended more of a plant-based diet. He said basically if we currently eat one or two meatless meals a week, we should flip 180 degrees and only eat one or two meat-FILLED meals. The rest should be plant-based.
Which wouldn’t seem like such a big deal, but my hubby hates vegetables. Doh!
So what is a girl to do?
1) Be More Creative. I need to be creative in how I prepare veggies/fruits so that Dear Hubby is more likely to eat them. Dear Hubby is picky. REALLY picky. I need to give more effort in making dishes I know he is more likely to
enjoyfinish. Case in point – I recently made some Double Decker vegetarian tacos. They were chock full of veggies: (black beans, corn, red peppers, onions,BROCCOLI, and even pureed tomatoes!). Mission accomplished! He devoured.every.bite.2) Read Blogs to Get Ideas. Never cooked tofu? Neither had I. Peruse blogs to find great recipes to start with. The better the recipes/meals, the more you enjoy them, the more likely you are to continue eating this way! This was simply one of the best lunches I’ve ever made- Tomato & Lemon Tofu Sammies:
3) Be willing to make a few mistakes. Now this is just funny! I attempted to make a vegan soup for Dear Hubby based on his favorite Zuppa Toscana at Olive Garden. I was so proud of myself, it tasted incredible. And then later, much later, after I’d started blogging about it and tweeting to the world about what an awesome vegan cook I am, I realized I used chicken broth as the base. Ha! Note to self – vegans and vegetarians don’t eat chicken broth. It was a good learning experience and can easily be tweaked (with vegetable broth) into a fabulous vegetarian meal. But I did have to laugh at myself. A lot.
4) Prepare a variety. I need to prepare a variety of veggies/fruits each week so that we are getting a balance of the various nutrients they offer. I have started to do this by buying different things that are on sale at our local market each week. Last week it was peaches, strawberries, coconut, and sweet potatoes. This week it was tofu, cherries, beans, and kale.
5) Change my viewpoint. I'm sorry but I have always thought vegetarians and vegans were weird (Plain. and simple. Sorry, no offense.) and that they were the unhealthy ones. I now know many (who blog) that are really wonderful!!! And I am beginning to research / dig into information that not only promotes a primarily plant-based diet, but speaks against the current American trend of MEAT, MEAT, and MORE MEAT (in the holy name of "protein") at every meal. Oh, that and our doctor recommended it.
6) Drink more Juice. Dear Hubby likes pretty much every juice I've ever made (with the exception of V8 because it was too onion-y for him). But Mean Green, and Shrek juice, and Pink Kale, and Golden Goddess Juice, are all awesome ways for him to get some extra nutrients that he otherwise wouldn't have.
There are so many ways to incorporate more plant-based meals into your diet! I am planning on launching a vegetarian MONTH soon, so you'll get a lot of great vegetarian recipes / meal ideas to choose from.
Questions: