A Vegetarian Diet.

MsPitt

A lot of vegetarians eat eggs. If they eat fish they are pescatarian, not vegetarian.

xLyric

My daughter definitelt wants to go the vegetarian route. I know she is too into dairy to stop having milk and cheese, but what about fish, tuna, eggs ...that kind of thing. Should be continue to eat that or stay away from those items? I would love any recipes if you want to send them. My email is slucinda28@yahoo.

It depends on why she's doing it. Eggs are fine if you're a vegetarian, not if you're vegan. I'm a vegetarian, and I personally don't think you can call yourself a vegetarian if you eat fish. (One comment above said she was a pescatarian, that's the right term, though I doubt I spelled it right. :laugh: )

If she wants to do this because she's an animal lover, then no fish. If it's for health reasons, it's just up to her.

One thing I wanted to mention, DEFINITELY get some multi vitamins. Young kids especially, going without certain things, like B12, could keep her from growing. My sisters decided to be vegetarians and our doctor stressed that they weren't getting nearly enough iron or B12 so now we take a multi vitamin and B12 supplement. And depending on how far she wants to go with this, you've got to find the vitamins that aren't made with gelatin. (Also, she'll have to avoid Jello, gummy bears, etc.)

Luckymam

Yeah, if you eat fish, you aren't vegetarian. Basically, if you eat anything that had a face, you're not a veggie!

If you eat eggs and dairy but not meat, you're a veggie.

If you don't eat any product derived from an animal, you're vegan. A true vegan won't even wear wool or drink from a bone china cup.

SparkleKittie

That's good that she's so serious about it that young! It's such a healthy and mature decision for such a little girl!! Like another user and I said in the posts before, she will definitely dig the Tofurkey if she loves sausage. That could be a good starting point for you, to show her that you're serious about supporting her life choice. It will also be a very positive, healthy choice instead of the ultra-fattening meat sausages.

sarahliftsUP

Why is she going vegetarian?

If it's because of not wanting to harm animals, you can mention to her about animal by-products. Staying away from foods with ingredients such as gelatin, rennet, lecithin (soy lecithin is fine). These are all animal by-products, gelatin: ground up bones, common in yogurts, frosting/icing (pop tarts, marhmallows), rennet: enzyme from calf's stomach, very common in cheese so you have to be careful with that. Lecithin is in chocolate.. but soy lecithin is seen more often now.

Sorry, I just had to mention that! I become a vegetarian when I was 17 and didn't know about these things until six months later for most of them and felt so cheated! But I don't know how strict of a vegetarian your daughter wants to be but at least she will have the option of chosing.

For recipes, I eat everything and anything.. just not meat! Vegetarian Spaghetti, chili, stir frys, shepherd's pie, soups/stews, wraps, sandwiches, pasta dishes. You can add beans/lentils to a lot of things to get your protein. Make sure she is eating lots of leafy greens for iron. After a month of being a vegetarian you should take her to the doctor to get blood work, she may need to be supplemented for vitamin B12 and folic acid if iron levels are low.

It's really not that hard and you will be surprised with how many meals you can make vegetarian!

natashaaevans

Have you tried cooking with tempeh? It's much yummier than tofu and it's a whole food (not as processed as tofu). I use it in stirfrys and curries as a meat replacement - high in protein, low in fat and carbs.

california_peach

My husband has been an Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian(this means he eats eggs and dairy, but no meat) for over 20 yrs. While my sons and I are omnivores we eat a largely vegetarian diet. It is really easy to work the two together. I have a vegetarian cooking blog, called My Veggie Table (http://www.myveggietable.com) and I think it would really help you. I have tons of recipes which appeal to meat eaters, but they have no meat!

If you are interested in tofu, the secret is in the prep. You are going probably perfer firm or extra firm tofu. Then you need to drain it really well. I usually cut it into four pieces length wise and then place the pieces on a cutting board covered with paper towels. On top of that tofu place some more paper towels and then another cutting board. On the top cutting board place some heavy pot or maybe a tea kettle and press out all that extra moisture. This will allow you to get that nice browing effect on your tofu.

Mindful_Trent

There are healthy ways to be vegetarian and then there are unhealthy ways - as long as she avoids processed foods as much as possible, and eats a variety of fruits/veggies/grains/legumes/nuts/etc. she should be fine. I've known people who fall into both categories. Make sure you find plenty of veggie-friendly protein sources - beans, lentils, quinoa, dairy (if she's going to eat dairy), and lots of other sources. One of my favorite vegetarian protein sources is Seitan, a meat alternative made of gluten (primarily) - this is the recipe I use, and it's fantastic: http://www.postpunkkitchen.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=15959 I'm not vegetarian myself, but am trying to incorporate more protein sources into my diet, and I could seriously eat this every day in place of meat.

The key is to get creative with recipes - For example, I make home-made burger alternatives (there are black-bean burger recipes, lentil-burger recipes, mushroom-burgers... etc.). Eggplant parmesan is another favorite of mine. My mom and stepdad aren't vegetarians either, but they like all the vegetarian-recipes I make.