Favorite Meatless Meals for a meat lover?? (no soy products)

JennsRAQ

Well we cannot eat soy products (allergies) but I am hoping to find some great meatless meals for my family. My husband is a big time meat eater and can't handle it when a meal doesn't have meat! It drives me crazy! I'll make a healthy whole grain veg/pasta dish and he'll eat 2 or 3 helpings before going to the fridge, finding some hotdogs, and heating about 4 of them up since he needed "meat" (!! I don't know why one would qualify THAT as meat LOL)

Anyway, I'm looking for suggestions! I also have 3 kids six and under

morganadk2_deleted

My meat eater husband likes this! My daughter makes it with cranberries (Dried) i make it with prunes!


Butternut Squash and Lentil Casserole

Ok, this is one of my absolute favourites. It has a great balance of protein to carbs, and is low in fat and - even better - low in calories. I should add that I lost weight through a combination of educating myself about nutrition and the phenomenon of calorie counting. The way our body works is far too complicated to ignorantly assume that even accurate calorie counting is a sure-fire method of ensuring that we lose weight, but it is a fantastic guideline to ensure you are eating at a defecit.

I found this recipe on CC and it sounded crazy! Butternut squash, garlic and cranberries?or prunes!? But I was curious so I had to try it. Sure enough, with a little tweaking, it was a taste-bud sensation!

Butternut Squash and Lentil Casserole
Serves: 6
500g Butternut Squash
1 1/2 cups green lentils
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 cloves garlic
3g thyme
400g tomatoes, tinned
100g dried cranberries/or prunes
1 tsp olive oil
1 onion
1 chicken stock cube/veg stock cube
400 ml water

Boil the lentils in the chicken stock cube and water for 1 hour.
Roast the squash in chunks in the oven for 30 mins.
Warm the oil and add finely chopped garlic and coarsley chopped onion.
Add the squash and any fluids which may have come off during roasting.
Drain the lentils, reserving the stock and adding it to the pan.
When the squash begings to break up a little, add the lentils and tin of tomatoes.
Simmer for 20 mins then add cinnamon,nutmeg, thyme & cranberries.
Mix well and leave to simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until the squash has almost completely broken down and the sauce has thickened.

227 calories per serving, 0.2g F, 0.0g SF, 44.2g C, 6.9g S, 10.1g Fb, 11.9g P

This freezes well and refridgerates for up to 3 days. I know the combination of flavours sounds crazy, I was skeptical too, but it really tastes delicious! I eat it on its own, its quite a large portion. Would perhaps go well with a small green salad, and maybe some bulgur wheat or brown rice if you fancy some starchy carbs/grains.





Butternut Squash and Coconut Curry

Continuing the curry theme today! This one is delicious, made it for my family once, because I'd heard that butternut squash and coconut are designed for one another. This appears to have been true!

Butternut Squash and Coconut Curry
Serves: 6
1 cup green lentils
700ml water
1 large onion
1 tbsp olive oil
1 aubergine
1 butternut squash
1 carrot
3g ginger
2 tsp garam masala
200ml coconut milk, low fat
2 vegetable stock cubes
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 red pepper
1/2g yellow pepper
100g okra
400g cauliflower
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp corn flour

Cut the squash into cubes and roast in the oven for 20 mins.
Heat the oil with all herbs and spices for 2 -3 mins.
Add the chopped garlic and ginger along with the tomato puree and a dash of water.
Simmer for a minute or so then add the chopped onions.
Once the onions have softened add stock cubes, lentils and remaining water.
Add the cauliflower florets and cubed carrot.
Simmer for 20 mins.
Add the okra and butternut squash.
Simmer for 15 mins.
Add the coconut milk.
Addd the corn flour mixed with a little water, to thicken.
Simmer for 10 mins uncovered.

290 calories per serving, 7.0g F, 3.8g SF, 50.7 C, 8.9g S, 12.3 Fb, 11.4g P

schaapj2

English muffin mini pizzas:

1 whole wheat English muffin per person (or more depending)
Any veggies you like
Low fat pizza sauce
Reduced fat cheese-mozzarella, cheddar, colby jack-whcihever you like

Put sauce and veggies on English muffin. Cover with cheese. Put in overn at 350 degrees for a few minutes until the cheese has melted. Take out...allow a few minutes to cool...they are HOT!

Depending on how you make them, you can get them to be VERY low calorie (about 230 or so calories a piece or less even)

Helice

What ever you do dont try to replace the meat for lower fat 'quorn'... (unless he likes liver).. I tryed it wen i moved in with these veggies and it tastes like sludge =[
I was really hopeing i would like it to as its less calories..

But i guess if u need some ideas you could try like a dumpling instead of meat stew, etc..

catcrazy

It sounds like its a mental thing...if he knows it doesn't have meat he just won't be happy, my ex was the same....always had to have meat (even his cheese sandwiches had to have ham on them!) So not got a clue on whether this would work but how about trying those huge field mushrooms, my "demi vegetarian" sister wont eat things that had 4 legs (?? no idea where she is coming from!) and she wont touch these big mushrooms because they're too much like meat (according to her)

Stuffed field mushrooms (serves 2 or one hungry man!)

2 large field mushrooms (larger the better for a meatier texture
Large handful of spinach shredded
4 spring onions
Garlic (to taste, I use 1 clove but I'm garlic mad)
Drizzle of olive oil
50-75g Gorgonzola or other strong cheese, grated
2-4 ripe cherry tomatoes quartered
Pinch salt, black pepper and Italian seasoning


Preheat the oven to Gas 6.
Wash and dry the mushrooms and remove the stalks
Place hollow side up on an oven proof dish.
Plunge the spinach in boiling salted water for 2 minutes, drain and squeeze out as much water as you can (clean tea towel is good for this)
Slice the spring onion and mushroom stalks and crush the garlic then fry using a small amount of olive oil until soft, add the spinach and toss to mix
Spoon the onion and spinach mix into the middle of the mushrooms and pour any juices/oil
Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the onion and then arrange the tomatoes on top.
Sprinkle with salt, pepper and the Italian seasoning.
Cover (lid or foil) and bake for 20 minutes, remove the lid and allow another few minutes to brown the cheese a little..........yum!