Going veggie, well, kind of

[Skylace]

In my quest to make serious lifestyle changes to better myself and my family I have decided that we will be eating a lot more fresh fruit and veg. Not only is it better for your overall digestive system but it is good for weight control (I still want to drop about another 30 pounds or so). So we (my husband, mother and I) will be eating total vegetarian meals four days out of the week. The other two days (for me) will be fish, fruit and veg and one day out of the week I can have red meat, chicken, etc if I want.

Now we're going vegetarian, not vegan. I still need my dairy and eggs. I did go out and purchase two great cookbooks (or I think they are) by the author Nava Atlas. One is her 5 ingredient cookbook which I am really enjoying because I have never really cooked total veg before and these recipes are simple and easy to put together. The other is her family cookbook and it has recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.

Going veg will mean more trips to the store. At least once a week, because you can't stock pile fruits and veg without them going off. This in mind, I think it is a fair compromise. And hopefully next year I will have a bit of my own vegetable and fruit garden going and won't have to get as much at the store all the time. At least not in the summer and part of the fall.

I wanted to share the one recipe I have tried so far from one of her books. I have sadly not been able to do anymore at the moment because my schedule at work is so screwed up that I don't seem to get home until around 6:30 and my energy level is at -1 and dinner has consisted of lots of canned soup This meal however was a nice change of pace. Tomorrow I will be making the leek and potato soup.

If anyone else has some great veg recipes they would like to share, please do. Cold ones for the summer would be great and with fall coming warm ones are welcome


Gnocchi with Fresh Greens

16 oz bag frozen gnocchi (I actually used bagged, unfrozen and it worked fine)
2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
10-12 oz fresh spinach or Swiss chard, well washed, stemmed, and coarsely chopped
1 14-16 oz can low-sodium diced tomatoes (Italian-style, if desired)

1) Cook the gnocchi according to the package directions and drain.
2) Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pot or steep-sided stir-fry pan. Saute the garlic over low heat until golden, about 2 mins
3) Add the greens and cover. Steam, using only the water clinging to the leaves, until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook just until everything is heated through.
4) Combine the gnocchi with the greens mixture in a serving container and toss well. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

I didn't add the salt and pepper myself as it tasted just fine without.

[eefanincan]

Yum I'm going to look up those cookbooks as I'd like to do something like this myself. Even cooking for two, sounds like these recipes will make up some good lunches and leftovers.

[faceless]

I stopped eating red meat for about 5 years in my early 20s. It really works well and once you've got the cloying taste and smell of animal fat out of your system you'll probably find it pretty hard to go back... I only went back to meat because I was skint and hungry and there was some corned-beef (of all things!) to hand.

[Skylace]

Well I don't want to give up red meat. I really do love it. But I know that eating too much of it isn't good for you. There is no way I could not have a nice t-bone or NY strip for the rest of my life.

Also, my husband has gone off chicken so this seems a good idea. Especially since he doesn't really like fish or any other pork besides bacon

[Aja]

I have some nice veggie recipes i can post ........we eat mainly chicken or fish to be honest .....but a veggie diet can be a great one ......we dont eat a lot of red meat it just dont agree with us anymore .....prolly a steak once in a blue moon ......and stuff with ground beef twice a month.......but we do at least twice a week veggie recipes .......i'll post some recipes this week

[Skylace]

Thanks Aja!

[eefanincan]

Looking forward to those Aja!

[luke]

i only really do two vegetarian meals, but they're both quick and easy, so you all probably know them anyway ...

one is just pasta with tomatoes, garlic, onions, peppers, mushrooms, a bit of tomato paste and a bit of stock, salt & pepper, basil, a bit of oregano or whatever herbs you like. i sometimes put in a few jalapeños as well or some peas. for the meat eaters, a bit of bacon works a treat as well

the other is a vegetable stir fry, without or without noodles ( you can get these handy straight to wok noodles now ) and you can make it with all sorts of veg, i usually use whatever i've got from carrots, onions or spring onions ( add these last to keep the crunch ) or both, mushrooms, peppers, spinach, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, bean sprouts ( like the spring onions add these near the end as you want the crunch ). you can mix these up with combinations of chilli, garlic, ginger ( add these to the oil at the start, i use groundnut oil ) and either sweet chilli, hoisin or oyster sauce with a bit of stock and some soy sauce if needed and pepper to make completely different tasting meals. again for the meat eaters this works well with chicken, pork - whatever really. i don't have a recipe as i kinda just do it as i go along with what i've got, the best thing is to taste it as you're going along ... i did try a version with coconut milk or cream once but that didn't come out so well ...

both these dishes are quick and easy to make, adaptable, and they're both nice when they're cold as well, or can be reheated

[Skylace]

Stir fry's are so nice. I like them cold as well. Thanks for these luke.