Monday, January 12

trials in vegetarianism

Hubby has sworn off meat. I think this is great. Some years ago I ate vegetarian for a year. Thanksgiving to Thanksgiving. Sorry Braja, but the slaughtered bird was just too hard to pass up. It might please you to know that it made me sick when I ate it at the end of the year.

But the experience was an eye opening one and changed my diet for the better. Even after I started dabbling in murdered fare again, it wasn't a daily, or even meal-y routine. I had just found so many other things that I enjoyed eating. And meat is expensive, and I'm just a bit grossed out by it (but it tastes so damn good).

So I'm happy and surprised that hubby has gone vegetarian. He needs it health wise (astronomical triglyceride levels) but his main rub is the meat industry. We've watched a lot of Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs" and he's also read Fast Food Nation... basically the more we know, the less appetizing meat becomes.

Also note "meat" to hubby does not include all our wonderful friends of the sea. I don't think he could ever in his life give up eating fish and seafood.

ANYWAY getting past the reasoning behind our choices, I'm now having a great time preparing vegetarian dishes. Problem is, hubby is not very excited by them. I think part of the issue is that I'm jumping right to what I was eating near the end of my year of the veg. He's always complained that I eat like a rabbit. Or a bird. Lots of raw veg and seeds... LOVE them. He does not.

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I really want him to keep this up, and I fear if I don't start coming up with something a little less vegan, he'll quit. I went bonanza with beans and rice last week and he's just sick of it. He liked it at first but refused to eat it three days in a row (go figure). I stir-fried some potatoes with peas and carrots last night. Tonight I'm thinking something tomato saucy on a pasta.... or maybe a risotto.

But I thought I'd ask... what's you're favorite vegetarian meal? Keep in mind we're in Italian mountain boon-ville and the standard fare here is meat meat meat... maybe some kraut, potatoes, and polenta, but smothered with more meat. So no tofu or dishes with wonderful Indian or Chinese spices (this restriction, by the way, eliminates 90% of my favorite vegetarian dishes).

14 comments:

  1. Anonymous1:43 AM

    love vegetable wellington, all good,


    newman

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  2. Eggplant Parmigana?

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  3. Oooh, good one Amanda. He loves eggplant parmigana.

    I had to look up vegetable wellington and it looks great! Puff pastry stuffed with veggies. Awesome. I think I even have some puff pastry in the freezer.

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  4. This past weekend, S and I made a strong push to get ourselves back on track after the holiday binging on barbaric dishes. She made a mushroom soup without cream using broth (sorry, it wasn't vegetable broth though that would work just as well), a mushroom medley, shallots, sherry, white wine and some other healthy ingredients. And we ate it with crostini spreead with bleu cheese and topped with chopped roasted hazelnuts and honey. Not a bad meal.

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  5. Something with some lovely meaty mushrooms. Great with a creamy sauce over polenta. Also, what about a vegetable lasagna? Or a nice thick vegetable soup?

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  6. I'd love to help, but I enjoy my barbarian lifestyle. Roadkill with a little hoisin sauce? I'm there.

    On your husbands behalf though, try making it hardy. Stews, casseroles, whatever, just something that's going to fill his stomach. If he's hungry an hour later with nothing to show but a sore jaw from all the vegetable chewing he'll be looking for blood. Literally.

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  7. Hey Pilgram, welcome to my blog. I will be following yours. It seems life in mountainous Italy is not so disimilar from life in the Midwest of the States. I can sooo relate to the homework thing. Why didn't someone tell us we'd have to do it a second time around?!

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  8. Ah ! Vegetables ! As healthy as healthy can get !! I wish i had this resolve..
    And you say he got it from Discovery Channel !?! Thats some insight !

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  9. Anonymous12:30 PM

    Pilgram, thanks for the follow. Did you try looking for recipes on-line? I'm a horrible cook but can usually find something there.

    I look forward to reading more.

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  10. Since he'll eat fish, how about fish and some roasted vegetables. I could eat beans and rice for more than 3 days straight. Just sayin.

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  11. I finished up the beans and rice last night, along with come raw carrots. He came home late, so had to fend for himself. I think he ate all the bread in the house.

    I see the trend in the suggestions here... "beef" it up. Make something heartier. I'd start with eggplant parmigiana, but Punkone is allergic to eggplants... maybe I'll reserve some of the sauce to throw on a simple pasta for him.

    Fish is great but hard to come by here. He likes that frozen breaded crap... maybe I'll pick up a few boxes tonight.

    He's already losing his resolve and saying he'd eat meat if he new the cow was allowed to roam the hills and graze happily. I've got to kick it into high gear.

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  12. Anonymous9:46 AM

    Good try, nevertheless!

    I dreamt of being a vegetarian too, and the nausea helped me restrict myself to a vegetarian diet but as soon as I delivered, my taste buds for non- veg crept back up:(

    No Indian or Chinese? That'd be a tough restriction for me.

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  13. So far I've done the vegetable wellington and it went over so-so... too much goat was the complaint. Maybe I'll try it next time with ricotta.

    I also broiled some salmon and fennel which was a big hit. Last night it was grilled spinach/mozzarella/tomato sauce wraps.

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...and you may ask yourself, well...how did I get here?