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We're supposed to eat five servings of vegetables every day, which I definitely achieve, as long as you believe the logical stretch that coffee is actually vegetable juice because it is made from beans. Or berries, I guess, but still. Work with me here. However, when I look at my truly healthy friends and nutritional idols, five vegetables in one day would be the minimum. But the only time I was ever able to do the five veggies a day thing was when I was a vegetarian, simply because I couldn't exist solely upon a diet of Special K and peanut butter. Also, I often ordered salads at restaurants, as everything else had meat in it so the choice had been made for me. As a result, I lost 20 pounds over the course of two years, without even trying, and despite stopping for an order of McDonald's fries at least once a week. There are a million reasons to go vegetarian. For instance, studies confirm that vegetarians tend to be thinner as a group than meat eaters. Downside: that group also tends to smell a lot like patchouli. Another plus: it's good for the environment. It takes more fossil fuel, water and other resources to make one pound of meat compared to one pound of plant foods. For instance, it takes 16 pounds of soybean-based cow food for every pound of beef on the grocery shelves, but man, think of how many yummy Boca Burgers you could make out of those soybeans instead? And soybeans don't poop everywhere and taint the groundwater with E.coli. The downside: bacon is really fucking delicious. The American diet is rich in saturated fats, which is one of the risk factors for heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer--four of the leading causes of death in the United States. The folks at Johns Hopkins have suggested that we lower our overall intake the easy way, by going vegetarian one day a week. Considering how many yummy things are vegetarian, even if you hate chili and bean burritos, you could try a different recipe every day for a month and never wonder what to make for dinner on Monday night and also never find yourself wondering, "Where's the Beef?" So, good for you, good for the planet, and yummy on top of it. Add the bonus of guilt-free bacon on the weekends, and I'll chalk this up as a no-brainer, so I'm starting this next week. I'll keep you updated on this experiment. --Weetabix Got a great vegetarian recipe to help me out? The comments would love to know about it! 5 CommentsLeave a comment |
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FEED ME
Hey Weet! Me and my boyfriend have recently made the switch at home; only eating meat when we go out for dinner from time to time. I highly recommend the Moosewood Low Fat cookbook - so many good things in it (try the sun dried tomato polenta cutlets - they're great with bbq sauce and a green salad)! Also, Quorn 'chik'n nuggets' and 'cutlets' are great - you can even use the cutlets just like you would real chicken in recipes!
Cauliflower and Green Beans, Indian Style
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seed
2 tablespoons olive oil; more if needed
1 small red onion, cut into medium dice (about 1/2 cup)
1 small head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into 1-inch florets (about 3 cups)
8 ounces green beans, trimmed and snapped into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped into small pieces
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh ginger
Toast the cumin and mustard seeds in a large dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until very fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes; watch them! One look away and they will burn. Immediately transfer to a small bowl. Put the skillet back on medium-high heat for 1 minute. Pour in the oil and swirl to coat the pan. As soon as the oil is shimmering-but not smoking-add the onion and stir to coat with the oil. After about 30 seconds, add the cauliflower, green beans, and carrot in an even layer across the pan. Season with salt and pepper and let cook undisturbed until the vegetables have begun to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is nicely browned, 5 to 7 minutes. If the pan bottom gets too dry and starts to burn, add a scant tablespoon olive oil. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to sauté until the cauliflower is tender, another 2 to 3 minutes. (Cut through a floret with the edge of the metal spatula; the floret should slice in half without crumbling.) Stir in the garlic, ginger, toasted cumin and mustard seeds. Cook for another minute to blend the flavors. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
Spoon over basmati rice and never wonder where the meat is!
i see you have 101 cookbooks website in your sidebar - heidi is a friend of mine and she and wayne are all out vegetarians so everything on her site is of veggie descent and damn good. i think her new book is out as well - her recipes are great basics if you are just starting out.
That's it, now I have to cook one of Heidi's recipes for a Lunchbox Guru!
but mcdonald's fries aren't vegetarian!