Vegetarians Unite...And Make Delicious, Economical And Nutritious Food

DianeB

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I noticed that there a few other vegetarians on this forum. I wanted to start a thread about cooking inexpensive vegetarian food.

For the most part, I eat legumes, grains, greens and seasonal fruits. Been trying to follow the dollar a pound diet. Never eat anything over a dollar a pound, well, a buck fifty a pound with inflation. Seems to have made me healthier. Lost a few pounds and my clothes fit again.

Also, I have been experimenting with making my own faux meat. It is amazing what can be made out of wheat gluten, tofu and TVP.

Will post recipes and tips later on. Right now, my kitten is driving me nuts. She despirately wants me to take her out to play with the chickens.

What kind of meals do you create? Is there any places to get good deals? Good recipes or tips? Meal planning and so forth?
 

me&thegals

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Can we participate even if *we* are not strictly vegetarians? Are you accepting recipes that include eggs or dairy?
 

DianeB

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I am a lacto-ovo vegetarian. Even if you still eat meat your welcome. Everyone is welcome. Please, post only vegetarian recipes or include appropriate substitutes for meat.

I can try and change the title if you like. It was suppose to be fun and catchy.
 

me&thegals

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It is catchy! I'm just trying to work out exactly what kinds of recipes you would like and if we could contribute even if we are not strictly vegetarians...

Here is my favorite, very, very economical if you have a garden and chickens:

Swiss Chard Pie
1 onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon oil
1 bunch Swiss chard
6 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 piecrust (see below for no-roll crust recipe)

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Brown onion and garlic in oil. Trim and chop chard (can include greens and stems), add to pan and cook down until wilted. Beat eggs and milk in bowl. Mix in salt and chard mixture. Pour into piecrust. Sprinkle cheese on top, pushing slightly into chard mixture. Bake until knife inserted into center comes out clean, about 30-40 min.

1 piece (including 1/8 of crust below): 367 calories,
13 grams protein, 5 grams fiber
Vitamin A 170% Vitamin C 42%
Calcium 24% Iron 23%
 

noobiechickenlady

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Not a vegetarian, but we do eat a huge amount of veggies, especially compared to the average American.
Tonight we are having FauxeMex.
Marinate your protien choice in
1/4 cup lime juice, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 large cloves Garlic (food processor or minced) red pepper flakes & 1 tablespoon brown sugar
You can saute this, bake it, broil it or grill it. Depends on what you feel like & what you are having. The more delicate the protein, the less time you need to marinate.
Side dish of black beans with cumin, garlic, chili powder, cilantro, & diced tomato & onion.
Basmati rice cooked in broth (I'll have just a small serving of this, as I'm cutting down on my carbs to help my weight)
Salad on the side with the usual suspects, leafy greens (I like a Mesclun type mix), mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, peppers, carrots.

As far as meal planning, I like the offerings by Leanne Ely on savingdinner.com. There's free stuff to sample and lots of options.
 

DianeB

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me&thegals said:
It is catchy! I'm just trying to work out exactly what kinds of recipes you would like and if we could contribute even if we are not strictly vegetarians...
To be honest, I just would like a place were we can discuss budget vegetarian meals and meal planning. I plan on both contributing and using ideas.

I just made some rice for lunch. I didn't use exact measurements, but it worked out well.

1 cup of medium grain brown rice
2.5 cups water
2 TBSP Bill's Best Chik'Nish Seasoning (Love this stuff...adds rich flavor to almost any grain and bean dish...bought at the health food store)
1/2 juice of large lemon
1 TBSP butter
1-2 tsp salt
2-3 tsp curry powder (optional)

Bring the water to boil and add rice, seasoning, salt and lemon. When most of the water has absorbed add butter. Stir in to melt.

This is simple, cheap and delicious. I am pretty sure you can mix around the seasonings. Like adding basil or Italian seasoning instead of curry powder. Or add some chopped nuts to make a pilaf.
 

sylvie

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I am vegetarian.

I enjoy many different cuisines and challenging myself to making an interesting recipe vegetarian. Bistro recipes are a good example.

Am way past using meat analogs. The simpler taste of pure ingredients with a few spices and herbs do the trick.
I don't consume soy products.

Linda McCartney and Lindsay Wagner's books for basics. The book "RAW" is intriguing.
I have posted a few recipes throughout the site but will look up more like Spanish grape almond soup when I get to my notebooks.

So glad to know another vegetarian is on here! :weee
 

DianeB

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It is only after a few years of being a vegetarian that use meat analogs. I do make them myself to insure that they are made of whole, nutritious ingredients. I found a few recipes online that are great.

Soy really doesn't scare me too much. Buy only organic or non-gmo. Do try no to over use it, though. Once in a while is fine.
 

freemotion

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I am definitely an omnivore, but do have many ovo-lacto vegetarian days/meals since raising my own milk, cheese, and eggs. The homegrown seem to have enough nutrients in them to sustain my energy throughout the day, whereas commercially produced versions did not.

I will testify to the deliciousness of that Swiss Chard Pie recipe!!! It does quite well with substitutions, too.

Here is my summer favorite, but it is sadly past the season now....

Tomato Basil Pie

Bake a one-crust pie shell. Coat it with shredded cheese while hot and return it to the oven to melt the cheese.

Layer sliced tomatoes (you may cut them hours earlier if you wish and allow them to drain so the pie won't be so watery. I never remember to, so I just carefully tilt it after cooking to drain the excess water), minced garlic, whole basil leaves, and lots of cheese, ending with the cheese.

Bake at 350 until the cheese is browned, about 25-30 minutes.


One thing that has really helped with the vegetarian days here is to utilize the preparation methods in Sally Fallon's book, Nourishing Traditions. While decidedly an omnivore's cookbook, there is MUCH information on how to unlock the maximum amount of nutrients from grains and legumes, along with some great info on soy, dairy and eggs. The book is used by ovo-lacto vegetarians for this reason. I highly recommend it.
 

DrakeMaiden

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sylvie said:
I am vegetarian.

I enjoy many different cuisines and challenging myself to making an interesting recipe vegetarian. Bistro recipes are a good example.

Am way past using meat analogs. The simpler taste of pure ingredients with a few spices and herbs do the trick.
I don't consume soy products.
Me too to all of that. Except we eat meat on occasion, but try to source it from somewhere it was either humanely raised or wild.

I do not eat typical meat substitutes because I have had problems with soy products. I usually substitute either eggplant or mushrooms for meat when making a recipe that calls for meat. I also used to make the original garden burger recipe, but it took a long time to make . . . now I just make portabello burgers, they are quicker and I think they taste better too. :)

My favorite relatively cheap vegetarian foods are Indian. I also love Thai food and make it mostly vegetarian (hard to get away from fish sauce).
 

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