To Eat, Or Not To Eat...Vegetarian
/(Vegetarian) Food For Thought
I often surprise people with the fact that I am a vegetarian. I think it’s becoming more common than ever, but that certainly was not the case growing up when my parents didn’t understand why their 4 year old was becoming such a picky eater. It all started with my favorite babysitter telling me that she wasn’t going to eat the corndogs in our freezer because they were dead little piggies. That visual was enough to end my desire to eat meat, or piggies, ever again. The smell, the taste, it’s just a hard pass for me. It hasn’t been until my adulthood that I have begun to focus on the importance of supplementing my protein in other ways, and while it may not be as easy as chowing down on a chicken wing, it’s become a practice that is second nature. And feels much more natural.
My family eats meat, and I don’t force my tastes or thoughts about food on to them. We just make sure they get well rounded meals and try everything. And don’t get it twisted, they still eat all the candy and McDonald’s happy meals. We aren’t perfect here. So while you may love a rare cut or satisfying that craving for a late night juicy burger, you also may love some of these juicy veggie substitutes.
I have rounded up some of my vegetarian go-to meals for the whole family. These are recipes that I have found to serve our family of six. The more often you make meat-free meals, the easier it becomes to create a meal without it. A little food for thought.
Vegetarian Burrito Bowl
- We love to make these because they are so dang easy and the variety of toppings means we can change up it often.
2. Vegetarian Pad Thai - If you ask Curtis what he’s craving for dinner, it’s always Asian inspired. These are a great compromise for his taste buds and mine.
3. Black Bean Burger - Ok, these may not taste like the real deal, but that’s not what I personally want from my burgers anyway. This hits the spot and taste delicious. Warning ; they’re messy!
4. Creamy Pasta With Mushrooms - Mushrooms are one of my favorite foods and we incorporate them into a lot of our cooking. Sometimes when making main dishes such as this, Curtis will cook his meat on the side and put it in after I have served up my plate.
5. Vegetarian Chili - This is a year-round dish for us. It’s perfect for hosting and it even gets compliments for those meat eating guests. You can spice it up and spice it down to preference.
I hope you will give some of these a try and let me know what you think! Happy cooking!
Xoxo, Meegan
