Vegetarians ( and Vegans ) Thread!!!

[darkmatter]

I’m in the Midwest and I don’t have any family or friends that are strict vegetarians or Vegans. The only experience I had was at a temporary worksite, there was a couple from the Granola state that claimed to be Vegans. They were quite vocal about not wearing leather or eating anything associated with an animal product. One day, as I was leaving the work site in my full length leather duster and outback hat, (I’m six foot, five) one of them said rather derogatorily to me: “How many Cows died to make that coat?” I said without thinking about it: “All of them.” The expression they had------priceless.

 

[rebel-rousing-at-night]

Quote:
I'm not vegan but I find myself eating meat so much less protein in my diet. I have become addicted to Lifeway Kefir. Partly due to my diet I have lost weight but also I have lost a lot of muscle mass which is not good at all.

Anyway I asked my sister (she's basically vegan) what I could use for protein. She suggested hemp seeds. I order a lot from Swanson's Vitamins. I found a 3lb. bag of organic hemp powder for about $20.00. I put some in a jar in the fridge and the rest in the freezer. It is 38 % protein and I forget how much fiber.

I got the hemp powder because it was a bargain at about $20 for 3lbs. For breakfast I mix a few walnuts,hemp powder,uncooked oatmeal and kefir together. The hemp powder does have a bit of a "green" taste but so what? It's not that bad and I need the protein.

 

[featherz]

I eat WAY more protein than I need, and I don't eat any meat. It's easy to do, really. I'm addicted to a few brands of protein shakes - made properly they are better than ice cream to me - there's 38g right there. I use high protein flour w/ egg whites to make pancakes. I add plant protein powder to my oat bran. Quorn is a yummy non soy based meat substitute that I use now and again, especially on a WW/High protein tortilla. OO and greek yogurt, yummy! Friendship cottage cheese is awesome for those that will eat dairy. Vegetarian chili.. Oo and seitan - made properly I love seitan. Made by me, not so much - but working on it!

I end up with at least 100g/day, more on some days - and that's not counting veggies/fruit/etc.

 

[gritsar]

I long to go vegan but as my recent thread explained/asked, I can't because of my severe dietary restrictions. I can't have most fruits and fruit juices, with the exception of bananas, peaches and pears. No tomatoes or corn, high fiber veggies cause problems. Very few legumes, although I can cheat a bit on those. No dairy products except hard cheeses. Eggs in limited amounts. No soy, no nuts.

 

[Attila the Hen]

I was a vegetarian for about 10 years, then I married an avowed carnivore and adopted 5 kids who were all hooked on junk food. Today I could more possibly return to eating less meat but now I have celiacs which is an allergy to wheat. I travel all week these days and it is very difficult to find something to eat when you elimate meat and wheat. All the vege burgers (which I never ate anyway) have wheat as do most other things. I have another issue with my bones which I think requires me to eat more protein.
All excuses perhaps, but thank God for chickens and the beautiful eggs they give me.
I really believe that unless I am willing to kill an animal, I don't have much right to eat it. Having said that, I don't abide by this belief and buy meat that someone else has killed for me. The other bottom line problem I have is the way animals are treated in factory farming. If it is humanely done, then it is more acceptable--I guess.........I'm just grateful to those who do it for me these days.
BTW Indian food is the most wonderful fare on this planet.

 

[kuntrygirl]

What's the typical shopping list for a vegetarian (vegan)?

 

[lorain's fids]

A very good thread!
I'm a vegetarian. I have been so for over 10 years now. I stopped eating meat after I did some reading on how animals went to slaughter, and how they were treated at the farms and the conditions they were being raised in. I am not against people eating meat or anything, but I truly beleive that no animal should have to live and die in horrific conditions. My daughter is also a vegetarian, she actually stopped eating meat before I did, she was 10 at the time. I do see more and more people becoming vegetarians.

 

[Kevin565]

I'm so glad someone started another vegetarian thread! I've been a vegetarian my entire life and plan on becoming a vegan

 

[itsy]

I'm a meat eater (trying to raise my own meat/and or purchase from local, reputable, small farms), but I wanted to share this blog with you guys. The gal that writes it is vegan. Here's her about page. Not only is she an amazing writer, she also posts THE BEST RECIPES out there.

I started making her salad dressings and I learned how to make tahini milk from her. I also began eating massaged kale salads because of one of her recipes.

If you are a veggie/vegan or anything in between, you MUST check it out. Meat eaters should check it out, too... for the variety in your diet alone!

 

[mandelyn]

My husband is vegetarian but I haven't given myself the title yet. I haven't bought meat in a good long while though... no sense in making a roast if I'm the only one eating it. After researching diet (husband just cut out meat, no research) we've gone more to a whole food diet, local if we can, minimally processed if processed at all.

We've been enjoying some venison from the neighbor... some from Indiana, some from Ohio, and some from Kentucky. We had some Kentucky grass fed all natural, aged beef. WOW.

Meat is supposed to be small servings. Gone are the days of 16 ounce steaks for us. 6 ounces, tops. Usually I use a small amount and mix it into a rice/grain dish or chili... to stretch it thin through the meal to reduce actual meat consumption. A large t-bone steak can cook enough for 3 meals (6 servings), the big thick kind of steaks.

The key to any diet is variety. I try to get at least 1 of every color veggie into a meal, with a whole grain base. No more iceburg and ranch salads. A salad has everything in it... Roma tomatoes, Sprouts, Romaine and other lettuce, raw mushrooms, almonds, shredded carrot and purple cabbage, cucumber, little bit of diced sweet onion, strips of red and green peppers, and a home made dressing. When you want to change the flavor, add and subtract the components.

We do the same with Chili. 4-5 types of beans, then on from there. Done in a crock pot, each item added when needed for it's cook time, so that no one thing is over/under done.

Rice/grains almost always gets lintels cooked with it.

You don't have to become a vegetarian... but a lot of the recipes are REALLY good, so it's good to try out recipes until you have a little collection of favorites. Doesn't mean you have to call yourself anything... just eat healthy with as much variety as you can without using anything overly processed, artificial, or full of poison.

My main ingredient of anything is Garlic... garlic in EVERYTHING.