Need some help from the Veggie people

Grimm - Might suggest that you are going to send your family into shock over no meat for a week. Change comes hard especially to kids and possibly for you in having to cook that way for a whole week. How about some smaller goals? Try meat free for 2 days a week or even just dinners. My point is to start off small so the change is not that noticable to the family.
I guess my other question is why you want to exclude meat from your diet? That excludes alot of your daily protein, how do you plan to get that in? Is this choice the best to address the history of heart disease and pre-diabetes in your life? I would encourage you to read up on the American Diabetes Association website and do some more research. I get the wanting to do things in a healthier way per some of your last journal entries, maybe just start off on eliminating fast food (make a sandwich for lunch instead). Add in a fresh salad for your family at dinner time, put in it what you all like. Or set a goal to cook every meal at home for a week. I will PM you some other suggestions for some easy recipes but for now maybe try some of this and do some more research. Feel free to reach out anytime!!

1 jar light maranara sauce
1 bag part skim mozzerella cheese shredded
1 bag frozen cheese ravioli

Layer sauce then ravioli, sauce, ravioli.
top with cheese
Bake in oven 30-40 min. or until done.

*Pair with a salad or other vegetable

Kids Love It..

We are not veggie - but one meal my kids absolutely love is spaghetti squash (cut in half, brush with olive oil and bake for about 45 minutes) with a tomato based sauce. I usually add squash, zuchini, peppers (all colors), onion, mushroom, garlic to the sauce. It is very tasty and filling.

I really want to make this. I'm not a squash fan but might be ok with a tomato sauce on it. I'm willing to try it though, just have to find the squash.

I find it doesn't taste quite like other squash. It has a buttery flavor and I like it with still a little crunch. If you can find it, I would recommend trying it.

Vegetarian chili. I start with onions and garlic, add it shredded carrots and zucchini (they cook down so much, you'll hardly even notice them), 3-4 cans of beans, some frozen corn, a large can of crushed or diced tomatoes, and lots of chili powder and paprika, and some oregano. Simmer for at least an hour.

If you like thai or indian food, meatless curries are great. Look around for recipes online, but especially use this one: http://www.cbc.ca/bestrecipes/2010/09/squash-and-chickpea-curry.html

Omelettes or fritatas or other egg dishes are a good way to still get lots of protein without adding meat.

For breakfast, try maybe greek yogurt or cottage cheese? You can mix it up with fruit or nuts or what have you the night before in a container and then just grab it on your way out. When you have more time in the morning, try these pancakes: 1/3C. oats, 1/3C. cottage cheese, 1/8 tsp. baking soda, 1 WHOLE egg + 1 egg white, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and a dash of vanilla. Use a blender (in my case, a magic bullet!) to blend it so it's smooth, and then cook like normal pancakes. This is a recipe for one, so you'd have to multiply it all for your family, but they're good, especially with some saucy berries or a warm apple cinnamon topping.

Going veg, even temporarily, is hard, so first things first, don't kid yourself about how tough it will be. You can definitely do it, but going into it with a realistic mindset will help. You will miss meat! It is ok. You will be okay without it, too.

Keep it simple, and just try to eat things you are used to eating but without meat. Like spaghetti but without meatballs. Lasagna without ground beef (I like to layer zucchini or spinach instead with lots of fresh basil). Baked potatoes without bacon bits. Salads without grilled chicken. Soups with carrots and peas a wild rice but no turkey.

Personally, I think most meat substitutes (like veggie cheese or veggie meats) are poor substitutes. You can get used to them, or decided they taste good, but they really don't taste like meat. Plus they are LOADED with salt and chemicals to try to get them to mimic meat. Just stick to real food.

I find that making my breakfast and lunch ahead, I don't even think about them and it isn't a big deal. Smoothies and homemade breakfast bars can keep in the fridge all week long and, if you add enough protein, can be really filling.

For a breakfast bar, I would use this recipe matrix, it has a lot of options so you can just choose the things that fit your palate: http://www.nomeatathlete.com/homemade-energy-bar-recipe/ (Me and my kids like a combo of chickpeas, almond butter, bananas or applesauce, cinnamon and chocolate chips)

For smoothies, again, keep it simple: I usually do a banana, a cup of frozen blueberries, a handful of kale, vegan protein powder, rice milk, and honey or agave nectar to sweeten it a little. You could experiment with it by adding hemp nuts or cashews, chia seeds, green powders like the ones from Amazing Grass, or goji berries for an extra super-food kick.

For dinners, I like to do buffet style because my kids are picky. Taco night includes black beans and brown rice and an array of veggies with salsa and corn tortillas. Spring roll night includes rice vermicelli, rice paper wraps, and again an array of veggies that we can stuff the rolls with. On pizza night, everyone gets a small crust and gets to load it up with whats on the counter, often leftovers from earlier buffet nights that week.

Soups are also super easy and can be made ahead or put in a crock pot so they are ready when you get home. Again, I keep it simple. A favorite is a can of kidney beans, a can of crushed tomatoes, a box of veggie stock, and a big handful of rice. Then I just throw in whatever other veggies I have laying around (frozen mixed veggies or potatoes, mushrooms, zucchini are all good) and a packet of seasoning (a chili mix is always good).

Hope this helps! Good for you for trying something new! Feel free to message me if you have questions :-)

The possibilities are endless!!!! .....

Use whole portabella mushrooms for burgers. Marinade them in light italian dressing & just thrown them on the grill. put them on a multi-grain bun & top with whatever you'd put on a burger. Yum.

Sautee a whole bag of fresh spinach with garlic, artichokes, sundried tomatoes & then add some light cream cheese or laughing cow cheese wedges to make it creamy. Stuff a little into Arnold's Itallian Pita whoile grain bread pockets (100 calories) This is great for lunches at work, just reheat the filling & stuff the pita. It comes out to around 175 calories per serving, give or take depending on how you make it. And it's pretty filling. Serve it with a salad or another veggie side & it would be a good dinner too.

Make a veggie lasagna, use thin strips of zucchini or egg plant in place of the noodles. Just layer whatever veggies you want into it. I used brocolli, thin shreads of carrots, spinach, mushrooms. I used low fat cottage cheese & a little bit of skim mozzerella & a jar of marinara sauce. Turned out delicious & I even froze the leftovers for lunches at work. I entered the recipe into MFP & a large portion was 199 calories.

You can use spaghetti squash instead of ground meat for tacos. Just bake the squash, scrape it out with a fork & add taco seasoning or salsa, fahita sauce, whatever you want. Serve it on tacos or wrap it up in tortillas & make borritos. Serve it with your favorite toppings, cheese, guacamole, light sour cream, lettuce.

Spaghetti squash is a fantastic food, it can be served a million ways, just adding marinara sauce, maybe some mushrooms is delicious or sautee with garlis & herbs, maybe some fresh basil & cherry tomatoes, & a little parmesean.

I'm a squash & yam lover too. Butternut squash, acorn squash & yams, just bake, mash up & eat. No butter or anything, delicious just the way they are. And you can eat a ton with barely any calories.

If you really want to enjoy your veggies, try roasting them. Brussel Sprouts, brocolli, cauliflower, asparagus, carrots, basically any veggie you want - chop into rather large pieces, top with olive oil, or even just spray with Pam cooking spray, add garlic & whatever seasons you like, maybe Mrs. Dash, spread out on a foil lined cookie sheet, bake around 400 degrees until they're crisp/tender & toasty. Add a little parmesean cheese if you like. My absolute favorite way to prepare veggies.

I could go on forever, but that's probably enough for now!!! Hope this helps some!

Master this basic recipe;

saute chopped onions and garlic. Roast whatever veg you fancy by chopping them into small pieces, tossing with a tablesppon of oil, and baking for half an hour. Squash, carrots, aubergine, zucchini, mushrooms, fennel, celery, asparagus, leeks, red peppers, etc all work well. Then add drained canned tomatoes, herbs, pepper, and some concentrated veg stock.

This gives a base for all sorts of things. Use to make lasagne by layering with pasta and topping with cheese sauce. Add kidney beans and chilli for veg chilli, to serve with rice or a baked potato. Fill cannelloni tubes, top with cheese sauce and bake. Add haricot beans and bake, for homemade baked beans. Add butter beans, a pinch of saffron, and smoked paprika and you have a Spanish style dish. Add some pesto and you have a sauce for pasta, coouscoous or rice. Make the roasted chunks bigger and you have a vegetable casserole. And so on...

Invest in a steamer, for green vegetables especially.

Make friends with pulses, all beans and lentils are very versatile and good for you.

Lastly, stuffed veg are great - use a simple stuffing of breadcrumbs, herbs, garlic and lemon juice or an egg to bind, and fill mushrooms, scooped out aubergine, zucchini, small squash,red peppers, top with grated cheese and bake.

Best of luck and let us know how you get on!

We eat these foods regularly:
- pasta - marinara or with a faux alfredo sauce (no dairy here)
- veggie burgers
- taco salad (with beans/chili)
- pancakes and eggs
- curry
- chili
- soup