Hey guys! We are headed out to the boulder field again this morning to do a little climbing, but I wanted to tell/ask you about a few things before we leave.
I'll explain the shoes first. Back when I was "embellishing" my own Sanuks I promised the first three people who asked that I would do a pair for them too. You know how that works...a lot of people started asking and then I realised that my fingers wouldn't be able to keep up! My fingers are sore for days after just one pair! Three pair I can handle, 30 pair, not so much. Luckily Crys (AKA Crystal, my best childhood friend) was one of the first to ask. Crys had her 30th birthday last week and her friend Amy and I worked out a way to get this pair to her by her birthday. Her favorites were my hippie shoes, so I just did the same design in different colors. She said that she really liked them!
Now the other thing I wanted to talk about......I'm hungry just thinking about it.....as of today, Ben and I are vegetarians for the next 28 days. There are several reasons why we chose to do this, but the main reasons are feeling better, weight loss, and to kinda try it on for size (you never know, we've heard that some people never go back). We are still eating eggs and dairy (isn't that vegan when people don't eat dairy or eggs?) but no meat and we are restricting our calories. The only problem is that I need recipes! Do any of you have any good ones? Send me a link! Anyone have any tips or tricks for surviving the first few days? I've heard they can be pretty brutal. And have any of you ever tried this with success? Tell me, I need all of the motivation I can get! Help! xo, Hungry Mama
Comments
Sorry I can't help on the whole recipe thing. It would be a dark, dark day if my husband ever said "I don't think I want to eat meat anymore." Then I'd have to take him to the ER to get his head examined! A meal isn't a meal without meat in it...likewise, a pizza isn't a pizza with vegetables. Hello Meat Lovers!
As for me, I could totally forgo meat and be perfectly content. Good luck!!
Red lentil soup, double yum.
Also another great website to look at is tasty kitchen, under special diet needs. I am by no means a vegetarian but I do take a break from meat every now and then.
Okay, vegetarian: We do a Daniel Fast from time to time, and there are a lot of helpful online resources for that. My number one bit of advice would be: Be careful that you don't add unhealthy additives to go meatless! A lot of processed vegetarian foods have MSG and stuff added to make up for the lack of animal products.
Our favorite meatless dishes are: tomato soup, lentil soup, split pea soup, potato soup (yeah, a lot of soups.) Also, stir fry is just as good without the meat - just add some almonds! How about homemade pizza, whole wheat crust, with cheese and veggies? And once on a Daniel fast we discovered that we LOVE homemade pimento cheese - cheddar cheese, pimentos and mayo, all to taste. Not so good for weight loss, but sooo yummy!
here's my favorite vegan recipe. it's not really a recipe, just something i did one night and we love it enough to make it often.
basically it's a soft taco without any animal products. i saute whatever veggies i have - usually mushrooms, corn, bell pepper, onion and some halved cherry tomatoes towards the end. i spread vegetarian refried beans on a big tortilla, jam pack it with sauteed veggies, then grill it in a pan for a few minutes or microwave to heat it up.
add salsa and homemade guacamole (i just add lime or lemon juice to an avocado and cilantro if i have it. honestly - i never miss the cheese/sour cream (though i love them both).
fat free vegan blog is a great source of recipes. vegan hope blog is a great source all around. and the engine 2 diet is a great book.
hope that helps!
Here's my favorite vegetarian recipe. I hope you make this. It is really easy and yummy. It was given to my mother by a family friend, so it's been around awhile.
Ingredients
1/2 cup Wheat germ
1 cup Rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon Poultry seasoning
1/2 Onion
1/3 cup Barbeque sauce
1/3 cup Shredded mozzarella, Parmesan, Swiss, or other like cheese
2 Eggs
Preparation
Mix all ingredients and let rest 5 minutes to bond. Fry in spaghetti sauce for about 15 minutes.
http://www.amazon.com/More-Less-Cookbook-World-Community/dp/083619263X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278974118&sr=8-1
It has tons of great, healthy recipes with natural ingredients and ways to combine foods to get complete proteins, etc., without using meats. Plus, TONS of great bread recipes. It has become my "go to" cookbook these days.
We tried this about 3 years ago, and now eat about 85% Vegetarian. You totally can do this.
Beans are going to be your friend. And quinoa. I love the Fat Free Vegan's blog, she has some good recipes. Also VegWeb is a good resource.
Good luck!
I don't know anything about vegetarian diets--but I REALLY like a good veggie burger. I'm sure there are great recipes out there.
http://aurorascreations.blogspot.com/2010/06/spinach-and-ricotta-shells.html
http://aurorascreations.blogspot.com/2010/01/french-bread-and-creamy-tomato.html
About a year ago out of pure laziness, started cutting meat from my diet and lost a little weight. I do simple things like making my normal spaghetti sauce without meat, or stir fry with no meat. Also love fettucine alfredo, but it's pretty fattening. Things like that are supe reasy and don't take much effort! Good luck and good for you!
http://theveganversion.blogspot.com/
Please go to my blog to pick up your award 'A Blog With Substance'
http://novicemommie.blogspot.com/2010/07/drum-roll-please-announcing-winner-for.html
As for going no meat....I am sure you know I am 99.9% vegetarian. I eat about 2 bites of chicken every 6 months or so. I don't even have meat in my house most of the time. I have lots of vegetarian recipes since I've lived this way for over 20 years now. Our favorites are veggie goulash, burritos, couscous with beans and veggies, bean burgers, etc. I stay away from all fake meat products though because I try to avoid soy products. You can easily do this and enjoy it!!!
It so nice of you to make it for other people! Very generous!
I think it is great you guys are going vegetarian! I wish I had the time and money to do the same!
Love you guys!