Going Vegetarian

[Angelskates]

So after consulting with my doctor and a dietician, we've decided that I am going to take some supplements only for the first month, and by then I am hoping to have my nutritional needs met solely through my diet.

I can't find quinoa here And I still can't find burghul either

reese - I don't think you can say that any dietary/life style choice is totally healthy. There are vegetarians and vegans with great, healthy diets and lifestyles and there are some who have terrible diets and lifestyles, exactly like our meat eating counterparts - some of them have wonderful diets and lifestyles, some don't. It's up to the individual.

At the moment, I am craving carbs - I wonder if this has anything to do with the not eating meat?!

[BittyBug]

And I still can't find burghul either

Bulghur / cracked wheat.

reese - I don't think you can say that any dietary/life style choice is totally healthy. There are vegetarians and vegans with great, healthy diets and lifestyles and there are some who have terrible diets and lifestyles, exactly like our meat eating counterparts - some of them have wonderful diets and lifestyles, some don't. It's up to the individual.

Very true. When I was in my 20's I lived for years on cereal, potato chips and sour cream dip. Vegetarian without vegetables. Not exactly healthy (although it seemed to work fine for me at the time).

[bardtoob]

Very true. When I was in my 20's I lived for years on cereal, potato chips and sour cream dip. Vegetarian without vegetables. Not exactly healthy (although it seemed to work fine for me at the time).

Yummayyyyyyyyyy!!!

[Holley Calmes]

And was it you who had a thread about going vegan where the majority of us vegetarian and vegans advised against it because it was being done for the wrong reasons? Or was that someone else? I don't remember

Yeah-that was me. But I went back and looked at the thread, and I don't think "the wrong reasons" were words ever used. I had wanted to lose weight. If that's a wrong reason....maybe it was the fact that I said I had a friend who had lost weight very quickly on a vegan diet that made everyone assume I was trying vegan to lose weight too quickly, which I never stated. But hey-I did want to lose weight, and I don't see anything wrong with that. Maybe some people thought I wasn't taking it seriously enough, and everyone had good intentions in giving me advice, which I appreciated. It just wasn't for me.

[Artemis@BC]

Very true. When I was in my 20's I lived for years on cereal, potato chips and sour cream dip. Vegetarian without vegetables. Not exactly healthy (although it seemed to work fine for me at the time).

LOL. To paraphrase Surgeon General Millicent Griffith on The West Wing, "You were in your early 20s then. You could have survived on eating styrofoam."

[made_in_canada]

Very true. When I was in my 20's I lived for years on cereal, potato chips and sour cream dip. Vegetarian without vegetables. Not exactly healthy (although it seemed to work fine for me at the time).

I'm in my 20's and I survive on coffee, cheese, crackers, and cereal, lol. Are you telling me that I won't be able to do this forever

[*Jen*]

Yeah-that was me. But I went back and looked at the thread, and I don't think "the wrong reasons" were words ever used. I had wanted to lose weight. If that's a wrong reason....maybe it was the fact that I said I had a friend who had lost weight very quickly on a vegan diet that made everyone assume I was trying vegan to lose weight too quickly, which I never stated. But hey-I did want to lose weight, and I don't see anything wrong with that. Maybe some people thought I wasn't taking it seriously enough, and everyone had good intentions in giving me advice, which I appreciated. It just wasn't for me.

Perhaps those words weren't used, but at the time I thought it was implied. The best way to lose weight is to limit calories, not food groups Besides, losing weight quickly is neither good for your body nor particularly sustainable.

Either way, no point rehashing it now. I'm sorry you felt so bad on that diet, and I echo what others have said - a vegan diet can be brutal if it isn't well balanced, which can be hard to do without professional nutritional advise.

[aliona22]

I'm mostly worried about putting on weight because I'll probably eat more cheese I could never be vegan!

I'm not taking any supplements at the moment - should I just try a multi-vitamin? Or do I need to add something else?

I take iron supplements every other day and B12 every day. I'm vegan but eat fish once in awhile; I had a lot of problems with dents in my fingernails before I started taking the iron supplements. I also take 2000mg Vitamin D every day because I spend a lot of time around other people and used to get sick a lot.

My main sources of protein are:
- All kinds of salads with shelled edamame or lima beans, etc.
- Lots of mediterranean food like tahini, hummus, baba ganoush, and chickpeas in a variety of dishes... I try and avoid falafel because it's fried.
- Seitan. If you can find restaurants that have seitan dishes and cook it well, or if you can learn to cook it well... oh man, it is SO good.
- Tofu and hemp with vegan mozzarella on pizza. I'm not a big fan of tofu either but I like it chopped up and grilled on a pizza... yum! Also hemp seeds are delicious on pizza too.
- Almond butter (on everything!)
- Soy milk (I drink a ton of this every day and it has calcium in it too!)

If you eat a lot of protein spreads on veggies you can keep the calories down and fill up!

Also, just so you know... a lot of people are "vegetarian" because they don't want to eat animals, or support killing animals for food. But animals used in the dairy and egg industries are treated even worse and endure greater suffering during their lives. If you are going to rely heavily on dairy products or eggs in your diet, you should always buy "free range" products (not "cage free" or "barn raised") and buy animal products from farmers' markets when you can.

[Angelskates]

Bulghur / cracked wheat.

I know what it is, my family is Lebanese-Australian and tabouli is one of my favourite ever salads. I just can't find it here

- Lots of mediterranean food like tahini, hummus, baba ganoush, and chickpeas in a variety of dishes... I try and avoid falafel because it's fried.

I love Lebanese food, and I shallow fry or bake falafel every week or so - yum!

I buy eggs from a local farm, and know where the cow I get my milk from lives too

I've recently discovered haloumi cheese - yum!!!!

[KikiSashaFan]

I've recently discovered haloumi cheese - yum!!!!

It's so good pan fried until it's slightly melted and put on top of a salad.

[Artemis@BC]

It's so good pan fried until it's slightly melted and put on top of a salad.

Best way to cook haloumi, IMO, is Greek style (saganaki): dredge in corn starch, pan fry (in butter!) til browned, and serve douses in lots of fresh lemon juice. OMG soooo good!

[reese]

My main sources of protein are:
- All kinds of salads with shelled edamame or lima beans, etc.
- Lots of mediterranean food like tahini, hummus, baba ganoush, and chickpeas in a variety of dishes... I try and avoid falafel because it's fried.
- Seitan. If you can find restaurants that have seitan dishes and cook it well, or if you can learn to cook it well... oh man, it is SO good.
- Tofu and hemp with vegan mozzarella on pizza. I'm not a big fan of tofu either but I like it chopped up and grilled on a pizza... yum! Also hemp seeds are delicious on pizza too.
- Almond butter (on everything!)
- Soy milk (I drink a ton of this every day and it has calcium in it too!)

If you eat a lot of protein spreads on veggies you can keep the calories down and fill up!

Also, just so you know... a lot of people are "vegetarian" because they don't want to eat animals, or support killing animals for food. But animals used in the dairy and egg industries are treated even worse and endure greater suffering during their lives. If you are going to rely heavily on dairy products or eggs in your diet, you should always buy "free range" products (not "cage free" or "barn raised") and buy animal products from farmers' markets when you can.

Seitan is SO GOOD. I'd barely heard of it before I went vegan, but it quickly became one of my favorites. This seitan ribs recipe (with video demo!) is amazing: http://www.everydaydish.tv/recipe/susans-ribz-z And with all the bbq sauce I put on it, it's not exactly health food!

Back in my vegetarian days, I loved cheese and ate it on everything. I still occasionally miss Swiss cheese, although it's been so long that I think I miss the idea of it more than the actual taste/texture... or something, I don't know. They point is, animals used and abused by the dairy industry have it just as hard, if not harder, that animals raised for meat. When female cows and chickens are no longer producing milk and eggs at a profitable rate they are sent off to slaughter. Male cows and chickens are obviously useless to dairy farmers and are separated from their mothers and sold at auction the day or day after they are born. Babies who become veal calves almost always come from dairy farmers who have no use for newborn males.

[PrincessLeppard]

Also, just so you know... a lot of people are "vegetarian" because they don't want to eat animals, or support killing animals for food. But animals used in the dairy and egg industries are treated even worse and endure greater suffering during their lives. If you are going to rely heavily on dairy products or eggs in your diet, you should always buy "free range" products (not "cage free" or "barn raised") and buy animal products from farmers' markets when you can.

Yes, I do this as well.

[DAngel]

I know China, well actually most countries outside North America can be unaccomodating to vegetarians, so you should be prepared to forego restaurant foods!

I guess it depends on what your definition of "unaccomodating" is...

Many countries in South/East/South EastAsia have long history of vegetarianism and many people still don't eat that much meat (compared to NA). It's not hard to find vegetarian options in normal restaurants. Vegetarian restaurants are available too, if you know where to look for them. For example, in my country, Indian vegetarian food and chinese "monk food" (fake meat galore) are relatively easy to find.

[Artemis@BC]

Seitan is SO GOOD.

I almost bought this t-shirt a while ago. I still might, if they ever offer it in red or black.
http://www.cafepress.ca/+seitan_wors...shirt,24370337

I think this one might be a little OTT, though:
http://www.cafepress.ca/+seitan_as_s...shirt,75605415

Ooh, just spotted this one!
http://www.cafepress.ca/+seitan_isnt...shirt,55912625

[LastEmpress]

I'm not a full on vegetarian/vegan (I love fish too much and have a codependency on cheese ), but I do try to make my diet as 'plant based' as possible.

I've gotten some fantastic recipes from http://ohsheglows.com. She is full vegan, so some of her ingredients might be difficult to find if your food buying options are limited (I live in a small town so sometimes 'specialty' ingredients are hard to find sometimes), but I can substitute easily if need be. They're especially great if you love cooking and like to see 'progress shots' of what the meal should look like.

One of my recent favorite things to make has been a 'dip' that consists of guacamole (or just mashed and seasoned avocado), chopped red, green and yellow peppers and a can of black beans. So good either on a wrap for lunch or with tortilla chips.

Lebanese food...

[Angelskates]

I finally found quinoa!! I also found Australian organic, stone ground tahini, and bought a dehydrator. Yeah, the health food store problem made their rent today just with me Still looking for the burghul, but I have a good lead - apparently the local Indian market may have it...

[bardtoob]

[GarrAarghHrumph]

Let me know how the dehydrator goes for you. I've been intrigued by those for some time.

[Angelskates]

Let me know how the dehydrator goes for you. I've been intrigued by those for some time.

I tried it today with mango, banana and apple. The results are worthy! So easy and yummy! I can't wait to try tomatoes! And I have a biscotti recipe I want to try too, and a pancake recipe.

I've put in my weekly order to the local organic farm and this week I get carrot, Swiss chard, summer squash, beetroot (), fennel (), cherry radish, New Zealand spinach, arugula, edible rape, sunflower seed sprout, pea sprout and stem lettuce. Recipes, especially raw ones, welcome!