[Lola]

We started a meat lovers thread so why not a vegetarian/vegan thread.

Why did you become one?

What are your main sources of calcium and protein?

Do you have any kick ass recipes for anything vegetarian or vegan, if so, share it with us.

I am always in the hunt for new recipes.

 

[High/Deaf]

I am always in the hunt for new recipes.

I guess, as a vegan/vegetarian, you have to hunt for something. Replace that old urge to track and kill/trap something.

Full disclosure, I am NOT a vegetarian. I'm OK with it and see more and more young people going that way - many for moral rather than health reason (don't want to eat anything with a face). But I also think if God didn't want us to eat meat, he wouldn't have made it taste so damn good. To each their own.

 

[Lola]

I guess, as a vegan/vegetarian, you have to hunt for something. Replace that old urge to track and kill/trap something.

Full disclosure, I am NOT a vegetarian. I'm OK with it and see more and more young people going that way - many for moral rather than health reason (don't want to eat anything with a face). But I also think if God didn't want us to eat meat, he wouldn't have made it taste so damn good. To each their own.

It’s for health reasons as well as moral issues. Thanks for the acknowledgement. Don’t know if I could be a full blown vegan though as I love my dairy products too much.

 

[Chitmo]

We eat vegetarian meals fairly regularly but it's mainly for variety. I still have a steak on the bbq a few times a month. I'm not opposed to it but I don't see cutting all animal protein out of your diet as being beneficial to one's health. It's all about balance and moderation.

 

[Scottone]

I was eating a vegan diet for a year or so and I'm still off dairy. Basically, I reintroduced meat for convenience reasons....cooking vegan stuff is a lot of work. Here is a favourite vegan recipe that I still make quite a bit and its one of the easier ones

Thai Vegetable Red Curry | Healthy Vegan Recipes | Veganuary

 

[jb welder]

Not a vegetarian but have cooked some. Spinach lasagna with cashews, spinach, ricotta, (and made with spinach noodles) is tasty and you have lots of protein and calcium in there.
Cashews work good in lots of other stuff too.

(P.S., I don't think there is a 'meat lovers' thread. There is a bbq thread that is lacking in grilled vegetarian content, hint hint.)

 

[JazzyT]

I was a vegetarian for twenty years. I wanted to change the world. How'd I do?

Today I'm a flexitarian. I eat what's on me plate, but I'm not a "meat lover".

Recipes? Go ethnic. Tons of Indian veggie dishes, for example.

It's so hot here, I've been doing a lot of cooking on the BBQ, How about baba ghanoush?

Grilled Eggplant Baba Ghanoush Recipe

tip: the smokier, the better. If you are using charcoal, put eggplant right on (not too hot) coals. Keep an eye on that! You might have to go back to the grill.

 

[Scotty]

I was for a number of years. Heath, moral and environmental. Drive your car for 6 hours or eat a cheeseburger at a fast food joint. Same energy consumed. I enjoy eating meat and fish but try to do it in moderation...and that fluctuates seasonally. When I eat mostly vegetarian, it’s often south or west Asian meals. Boiled or plain-ish veggies?? No thanks. Gotta dress em up spicy or make them a prime focus

 

[Guest]

My favorite restaurant is The Green Door on Main St. in Ottawa, followed by The Table on Richmond Rd. Both are vegetarian cafeteria style restaurants that weigh your plate of food at the cashier.

 

[Lola]

We eat vegetarian meals fairly regularly but it's mainly for variety. I still have a steak on the bbq a few times a month. I'm not opposed to it but I don't see cutting all animal protein out of your diet as being beneficial to one's health. It's all about balance and moderation.

I can’t consciously eat meat. I just can’t. There’s options. Quinoa is a complete protein. I get all the protein I need from other sources. Each to their own. I respect the meat eaters and would never knowingly try to convert someone. What you eat is your business.

 

[Steadfastly]

My wife and I went vegan a couple of months ago. We recently found out my wife is very allergic to dairy and also allergic to wheat (not just gluten). My Father-in-law and his wife went vegan about a year or so ago and his wife was on the hefty side. She is now very slim and trim. I needed to lose some weight and was having a hard time doing so. After watching the video, Forks Over Knives (It is no longer on YouTube but you can find it on Netflix), we decided going vegan was a healthier choice than our previous diet. I thought I would be hungry a lot but that is not so. One thing I did miss was butter so I found a recipe to make butter using refined coconut oil. It is not quite like butter but it looks and melts like butter and is satisfying enough. The only thing is really miss is cream in my coffee but I am starting to like it black. I guess it is a learning curve.

The trade-off? I don't know how much weight I've lost because I don't want to weigh myself until I get a little thinner but I have lost at least 3" off my waist and am just about to the point where I need to put another hold in my belts as they are not tight enough anymore or go buy some new ones. I was wearing an 18" neck dress shirt and they were getting very tight to button up. Now I can put my hand in between my collar and neck very easily. I need to go out and buy some smaller shirts as the old ones are too big on me. I also have a lot more energy and my fingers are a bit slimmer as well. I still have large hands but the fingers are not quite as big. I played a narrower heck guitar the other day and couldn't believe how clean I played it.

We do have a little bit of fish from time to time. We have fish maybe once a week at most. The only thing a vegan might want to do is take a B12 supplement as you may not be getting enough of that in your vegan diet. Other than that, you might want to give it a serious look. Frankly, I always thought vegans were a bit fanatic but they may have hit on something. Oh, and my wife is real happy in the changes she sees in me and herself. From what the video shows that I mentioned, we have way too much meat in our diet.

I can't wait for ski season this year!

 

[guitarman2]

We eat vegetarian meals fairly regularly but it's mainly for variety. I still have a steak on the bbq a few times a month. I'm not opposed to it but I don't see cutting all animal protein out of your diet as being beneficial to one's health. It's all about balance and moderation.

This is the way I feel as well. I love sometimes going to a vegetarian restaurant or having an all veggie meal at home from time to time for the variety.

 

[JazzyT]

I can’t consciously eat meat. I just can’t. There’s options. Quinoa is a complete protein. I get all the protein I need from other sources. Each to their own. I respect the meat eaters and would never knowingly try to convert someone. What you eat is your business.

Most meat eaters in the west eat more protein than they can metabolize as protein. The result is you pee out nitrogen.

 

[Chitmo]

I can’t consciously eat meat. I just can’t. There’s options. Quinoa is a complete protein. I get all the protein I need from other sources. Each to their own. I respect the meat eaters and would never knowingly try to convert someone. What you eat is your business.

That's a personal choice..which is cool. I'm not judging, I'm simply starting from health perspective cutting out meat completely isn't necessarily healthier. We're designed from an evolutionary perspective to consume it. If ever there was anything we consider normal to consume in our society that is kinda weird when you stop to really think about it it's dairy. We're the only species on the planet that consumes milk as adults and it's from another species to boot!

 

[Guitar101]

We're the only species on the planet that consumes milk as adults and it's from another species to boot!

That's because we can buy it. Put a bowl of milk down for your dog or cat and see if they drink it. If yes, now there are 3 adult species that drink it. How about monkeys, raccoons etc. Cold 1% milk is goooooood.
What about eggs. Mrs Brown said it best when she said "I wonder what crazy bastard saw an egg come out of a chickens ass and said to themselves, I think I'll eat that"

 

[torndownunit]

That's a personal choice..which is cool. I'm not judging, I'm simply starting from health perspective cutting out meat completely isn't necessarily healthier. We're designed from an evolutionary perspective to consume it. If ever there was anything we consider normal to consume in our society that is kinda weird when you stop to really think about it it's dairy. We're the only species on the planet that consumes milk as adults and it's from another species to boot!

I have tried about every diet variation out there to combat migraines (have had them since I was 7). I am always surprised when people say dairy is the one thing they couldn't cut out. I found it the easiest.

 

[Chitmo]

I have tried about every diet variation out there to combat migraines (have had them since I was 7). I am always surprised when people say dairy is the one thing they couldn't cut out. I found it the easiest.

I have milk in the fridge because my kids love it. A 1L of milk would spoil before it was finished back in my bachelor days.

 

[High/Deaf]

Our fridge back on the prairies .......

 

[Ti-Ron]

I was eating a vegan diet for a year or so and I'm still off dairy. Basically, I reintroduced meat for convenience reasons....cooking vegan stuff is a lot of work. Here is a favourite vegan recipe that I still make quite a bit and its one of the easier ones

Thai Vegetable Red Curry | Healthy Vegan Recipes | Veganuary

Did that recipe yesterday, thanks a lot for the link!

 

[Steadfastly]

Here is the vegan butter substitute that I use. Remember, it must be refined coconut oil.

www.forkandbeans.com/2015/07/11/vegan-butter-substitute/