Does Anyone Know Any Vegetarian Recipes?

people have been eating chicken and meat for thousands of years. what happened now? did i miss something?
:)

A friend of mine recently asked me about a vegan (vegetarian without dairy or eggs) and some other dietary issues. This is the response I gave her. Some of it won't apply to you, but might be of interest. If anything piques your curiosity, Google it for more info.

The world is full of great, filling, tasty, comforting, and exotic vegetarian foods. I think people eat a lot of vegetarian meals, but don't even think about them being vegetarian. I think if you say, "We're having spaghetti tonight" and don't mention the lack of meat, most people won't notice or complain. I also try to make each meal full and special: salad, bread, side veggie, a small appetizer (like black olives in a dish and chopped tomatoes with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and optional cheese), and fruit for dessert. It's a full meal.

I use convenience foods when possible like prewashed salad and jarred sauces.

Rice and pasta cook quickly and are inexpensive.

Beans, beans, beans.

Macaroni and cheese. There are soy and gluten free ones out there.

What about eggs? Goat cheese and milk is easier for humans to digest than cow's milk. Raw dairy is thought by some to be healthier that pasteurized.

I push fresh fruit on the family at breakfast and salad on them in the evening. I also try to push the veggies as much as possible.

Are you okay with eating soy? We've stopped it for the most part, but it's an ingredient in a lot of foods. Some people think soy is not healthy. http://www.casadeluz.org/casa/content/why-soy-not-health-... I haven't watched this video, but Todd has. So, I can't really respond to it, but I think soy, like anything, it okay in moderation.

Our son eats meat and eggs, but we avoid dairy, wheat, and refined foods in general (like white breads and sugar).

My favorite condiment, salad dressing, and cooking ingredient is Garlic Sass dressing http://www.freshdressings.com/

Check out some books from the public library.
Laurel's Kitchen is a standard tome
http://www.amazon.com/New-Laurels-Kitchen-Laurel-Robertso...

Baby Cakes is fun and different (from the bakery in NYC)
http://www.amazon.com/BabyCakes-Gluten-Free-Sugar-Free-Re...

Check out Vegetarian Times . It has great online (and in print) recipes.
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/

Check out Moosewood Restaurant (the famous Ithaca restaurant)
http://www.moosewoodrestaurant.com/

A lot of the fake dairy or meat substitutions are gross, but some are good. There's a lot of trial and error.

Breakfast:
Soy yogurt
Cereal with rice or soy milk. We like vanilla Rice Dream rice milk. Get a couple of different kinds of cereal, museli, granola, etc. and alternate them.
Wheat free, gluten free frozen waffles. Not too bad. Van's waffles are good.
Fruit
Smoothie
Grits -- okay with some Garlic Sass dressing and Tabasco sauce
Breakfast taco with tofu scrambled with salsa, some beans, guacamole, bacon, eggs, or soy chorizo on a corn or spelt tortilla
Bacon
Eggs
Gimme Lean sausage (in a tube and similar to Jimmie Dean sausage)
Toast: try spelt, rye, or other grains with jelly, olive oil, or flax seed oil. Margarine is an option, but I don't use it; it seems too unnatural for me.
Soy breakfast links
Muffins: make some vegan ones and freeze them.
Oatmeal
Hash browns
soy bacon -- pretty good and gets crispy
vegan biscuits and gravy
bagel with vegan cream cheese, margarine, olive oil, flax oil, peanut butter
Here are some sites with breakfast ideas and recipes
http://www.veganwolf.com/veganmenu.htm#veganBREAKFAST
http://www.vegancoach.com/vegan-breakfast.html
http://www.chezbettay.cm/pages/breakfast1/brkfst1.html

Lunch
Soup. So many vegan ones.
Almond, cashew or soy butter sandwich on spelt bread
All kinds of good soy sausages (and lots of bad ones). We like the Tofurky Kielbasa Sausage and Beer Brats
Tacos, tacos, tacos: fish, soy chorizo, beans, rice, guacamole
Baked potato with olive or grapeseed oil, salt, salsa, etc.
Veggie burgers with guacamole, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, sauerkraut, pickle relish, or other toppings noramlly on your burger

Snack
Green smoothie (fruit juice, banana, kale or other green veggie, and a scoop of protein powder. We like The Ultimate Meal vegan protein powder. http://www.ultimatelife.com/CatalogMeal.htm
Fruit smoothie
Fruit
Veggies and chips and tofu dip. I like the White Mountain Tofu Onion Dip http://www.whitemountainfoods.com/tofu_onion_dip.htm
Hummus
Chips (made with good oils and organic, non-GMO corn) and salsa

Dinner/Supper
I tend towards ethnic or thematic meals. I push the salad with every meal and maybe fruit for dessert.
- Make your own pizza night. I make spelt pizza dough and freeze it. I pull out a batch when it's time for pizza night. Soy cheeses are gross. The ones that taste and melt the best actually have dairy in them. The vegan ones are awful. There's a product line called Follow Your Heart, and they make an okay vegan cheese. http://www.followyourheart.com/. They also make Vegannaise, which is okay, too. Have a tasty sauce and a great selection of toppings. Everyone makes their own pizza. Serve with the pre-washed salad greens in a plastic box. Kids seem more inclined to eat foods when they make them themselves.
- Indian night. We eat brown rice at home and white rice at restaurants (brown rice has a lot more nutrition). Lots of great varieties like brown basmati. I buy a premade Indian sauce. Got to look closely for ones made without ghee or cream, but there are lots of tasty ones there. Eggplant, cauliflower, garbanzo beans, carrots, tofu, chicken, broccoli, potatoes, etc. can be cut up and simmered in the sauce. Sometimes I cook the veggies separate with some Garlic Sass dressing and serve the sauce warmed on the side. Lentils (there are some tasty Indian mixes, a plain ol' can, or making them myself). Serve with the pre-washed salad greens in a plastic box.
- Build Your Own Burrito night. Prepare ingredients and put on table with tortillas for people to make their own: cheese, beans, salsa, chopped cilantro, onions, tomatoes, guacamole, lettuce, etc. Serve with salad, a side vegetable like corn and zucchini sauted together.
- Thai night. Lots of good sauces to mix with coconut milk. Cook veggies, tofu, and meat in soy sauce and Garlic Sass. Veggies can also be simmered in Thai sauce or sauce can be served on the side. Lots of good Thai rice like brown, purple, or red jasmine. Serve with the pre-washed salad greens in a plastic box.
- Spring roll night. Serve with soy sauce and Garlic Sass dressing. I make a peanut sauce with peanut butter, garlic, lime, cilantro, soy sauce, and cayenne pepper. Rice wrappers, rice noodles, mushrooms, tofu, chicken, shrimp, carrots, green onions, salad greens, etc. It's labor intensive, but fun when company comes over. I roll some to get started, then everyone gets to roll their own.
- Pasta night. There are lots of alternatives to wheat pasta, if you are avoiding wheat. The spelt pasta is on the aisle with the wheat pastas. The rice pastas are on the gluten free aisles. Those alternative are good. And the quinoa ones are okay. Some of the others are yucky, thought. Your favorite sauce from a jar. I think it is possible to make a good pesto without cheese. Or garlic oil. Sauted squash or broccoli. Salad. A little antipasto with some olives, sun dried tomamotes, fresh tomatoes in balsalmic vinegar, sauted mushrooms, etc.
- Mediterranean/Middle Eastern night. Hummus, tabouleh, dolmas, baba ganouj (pardon the spellings), pita, salad, olives. Most premade, so it's a bit expensive, but so easy and tasty.

Check vegetariantimes.com or subscribe to their magazine. Also, make sure you go to the freezer section at your grocery store and buy some veggie crumbles or other soy-based "hamburger". It makes incredible tacos, goes really well in spaghetti sauce, and even makes a passably good meatloaf. It has very little flavor, so it goes well in things that call for spicing (like tacos). Unless you've been eating tofu with your meat diet, your family probably won't care for it at first. But Boca and Morningstar Farms (and other companies too) make great meat substitutes, so you have many options other than tofu. Don't forget beans - black beans, lentils, and chickpeas are my favorites, and we're headed into soup season. Enjoy!
-K.

2 of my simple favorites:

1. veggie burritos: pre-prepare rice; I use brown rice. warm burrito tortillas in oven; wrapped in foil on low temp. In large skillet mix 1 can black beans (drained), 1 can corn (drained), 1 can refried beans (read labels, many contain lard), about 1-2 cups of cooked rice depending on your texture preference. I add 1-2 chopped chipotles and some of the adobao sauce for spice and flavor. Final prep has 2 options: 1. burrito style...place healthy portion of bean mixture on burrito shell with some salsa and shredded cheddar, roll and eat. 2. enchilada style: same as 1 but add some sheese and salso to the the top and microwave until cheese is melted.

2. eggplant parm: bread and fry sliced eggplant - you can bake it if you prefer lower fat version. Layer in baking pan with sliced tomatoes, chopped basil leaves, chopped garlic, fresh mozzerlla and grated parmesan. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes

I just made a vegetable lasagna last weekend that even my husband (real steak and potatoes type of guy) enjoyed. I made up the recipe so I don't have exact measurement. I just eyeball everything...

I thinly sliced zucchini, yellow squash, portabello mushrooms (you can also use eggplant, but I don't like eggplant). Layed them out on a cookie sheet, sprayed them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted in the oven for 20 minutes or so. Watch them because they can burn quickly.

Meanwhile, I cooked whole wheat lasagna noodles (or you can use the no-boil type). Sauce: sautee minced garlic and crushed red pepper flakes in olive oil for about a minute. Add 2 large cans of crushed tomatoes, fresh or dry oregano and basil, salt and pepper. Simmer for about 15 - 20 minutes (makes more sauce than you'll need but you can freeze it for later).

In a bowl combine ricotta, mozzarella, parmesean (sp) cheese, one egg, oregano, basil, pepper and mix well.
Then start making your layers in a baking dish by alternating, sauce, noodles, cheese, veggies, repeat. Top with a layer of mozzarella and parmesean cheese and bake for about 30 minutes.

Hope you try and enjoy. Good luck!