@rockymtnhigh2 - Methinks that your D should give sweet potatoes and report back.
That reminds me of a recipe I like with potatoes (but could work with sweet potatoes?). Cut a few potatoes into small cubes. Toss in a mix of 1T olive oil, 1T grated parmesan a 1tsp spices (I use Red Robin spice - you could do combo of garlic salt and other spices). Bake on stone or cookie sheet about 30 min or til desired crispness.
It’s pretty easy to eat a healthy, tasty vegetarian diet. A large fraction of the people on the planet do it every day either by choice or by necessity. Best to learn from them rather than trying to imitate familiar meat dishes.
Some of our everyday favorites:
Bean burritos with Chihuahua cheese, avocado, salsa, side of sweet corn
Black bean tostadas with queso fresco, avocado, tomato, tomatillo salsa
Southwestern “stoplight salad” with black beans, red & green bell peppers, corn, cilantro, cumin
Cheese enchiladas
Huevos a la Mexicana
Corn and roasted poblano chowder
Vegetarian chili topped with cheddar
Black bean burgers with guacamole
Falafel, pita, hummus, tomato, cucumber, with olives, dolmas, feta on the side
Lentil soup
Quinoa tabouli with feta
Saag paneer (Indian creamed spinach and cheese dish)
Chana masala (Indian chickpea curry)
Three sisters (corn, beans, squash) stew
Butternut squash and kale risotto
Pasta e fagioli
Eggplant parmesan
Veggie lasagna
Homemade pizza
Ratatouille
Veggie quiche
French onion soup
Veggie and cheese crepes
Veggie and cheese omelets
Mushroom stroganoff
Various tofu stir fries
@milee30 after you get the sweet potato noodles, how do you cook them?
They’re actually not bad raw - crunchy but if it’s a thin spiral, good. Or - you can saute/steam them for 2-3 minutes. I use them in a recipe where you make a simple Puttanesca sauce, then stir in the sweet potatoes and just let them simmer with the sauce for a couple minutes before serving.
Other D&SIL sent a fun video- did sweet potatoes tonight they thought were good -sautéed in butter with olive oil, garlic and basil.
Well H used wine to flambé our zucchini noodles. Made a great video but tasted rather bitter. Improved with butter and Parmesan though.
Bumping this up
I’m trying to make more meatless meals. I like the list in post #41. Lots of ideas that you don’t even realize you’re not eating meat.
Last night I made Mejadra which is lentils and rice with middle eastern spices. I served it with cold yogurt with charred tomatoes. Both from Ottolenghi cookbooks. It was really good.
Also this week made butternut squash soft tacos with black beans and a mango salsa. Also really delicious and filling.
Any one else trying to eat less meat?
I appreciate all the recipe and dinner ideas. I am trying to avoid any soy products as my D often eats our leftovers and she is allergic.
That list in #41 is GOLDEN. I’m doing “meatless Mondays” in 2020 - I’ll be referring to that list.
Make a delicious chickpea and spinach pasta w/rosemary last night.
I will add that my H is not really currently on board with this Monday plan. I told him that I would sometimes make something he would still like -but he is VERY limited in his food choices so sometimes he’s going to get leftovers from another night - I love eating meatless and would like to at least a few times a week - but for now, meatless Mondays.
Also I made falafel last week for the first time. It was just from a mix at our Middle Eastern store - it was good and the spices were pretty on point, but I want to make it with dried chickpeas, soaked - the whole nine yards.
We like Melissa’s polenta (we like it for the slice-and-saute convenience and flavor, but it’s GF if you need that). This link is from Amazon, but our Safeway grocery store carries it.
https://www.amazon.com/Melissas-Organic-Polenta-Original-Flavor/dp/B07TYGCMGK
Usually we do it with a “wing it” sauce of veggies, sauce and shrimp or leftover meat. But I bet it would be really good with some of the vegetarinan sauces mentioned above.
I love the Moosewood books, but my favorite is Vegetarian Epicure. I’m not sure it’s still in print…
This Dutch Potato Soup is terrific.
DUTCH CHEESE AND POTATO SOUP
5 to 6 Russet potatoes
5 tbsp. butter
2 lg. yellow onions
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. dill seeds, crushed in a mortar
2 tbsp. flour
2 c. milk
6 oz. Gouda cheese, grated
Approximately 1 tsp. paprika
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes. Boil them in just enough lightly salted water to cover until they are tender. Do not discard the cooking water.
Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large, deep skillet or pot. Cut the onions in half crosswise and slice them thinly. Saute the sliced onions in the melted butter along with the bay leaves, stirring often, until the onions just start to turn golden. Add the crushed dill seeds and stir a minute more, then add the cooked potatoes along with their water.
Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet, stir in 2 tablespoons flour, and cook a minute or two over low heat. In a separate saucepan heat the milk, and then stir in into the roux. Stir constantly with a whisk until the sauce has thickened and is completely smooth. Add it to the soup.
Bit by bit, add the grated cheese, stirring slowly all the while. Then add the paprika, Worcestershire sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. Keep the soup barely simmering on a low flame, stirring often, for about 15 minutes more. Serve hot. Serves 6.
When you are done with this…google Potatoes Romanoff from Vegetarian Epicure. Another favorite of mine.
The America’s Test Kitchen book is good too.
There are a lot of vegetarian recipes you can make in your instant pot!
We have tried a lot of different brands of plant based ‘ground meat’. The LItelife has been the most agreeable to all. It is pea based. The seitan, soy, and wheat based are just not as tastey for us. The basic ground crumbles Litelife is very easy to cook with spaghetti sauce and pasta. Also made a Veg crumble stroganoff with topping of yogurt (zero fat plain) in substitute for sour cream. We have been using Planet Oat Milk vanilla with cereal.
When going vegetarian remember to have enough complete proteins- not just vegetables. The amino acids missing in many beans/lentils/dals are complemented by rice amino acids. There is a reason “beans and rice/rice and beans” is common. Many dishes listed i would consider the vegetable in a meal. Sag paneer (spinach and cheese-Indian) is a side dish. Likewise with many of the other vegetables- eggplant for one- and starches. Fats and proteins last longer for satiety.
Think protein, veggies (fruits) and carbs instead of going vegetarian. Vegan is not the traditional Indian vegetarian diet- they have used cows for eons. remember that beans… have their share of carbs- count those in your starches!
I noticed that Aldi has been advertising a new (?) line of plant based “meat” products - has anyone tried any of them???
You can get complete proteins from “just vegetables.” Yes, rice and beans—most beans are low in methionine and high in lysine, while rice is just the opposite, so put them together and you’ve got complete proteins galore. Same with corn and beans.
Quinoa provides complete proteins all by itself. Wheat and just about any legume (beans, lentils, peanuts) also gives you complete proteins, so a peanut butter sandwich, a bowl of lentil soup with whole grain bread, or hummus and pita are all winners on that score.
More to the point, you don’t necessarily need to get complete proteins in a single dish, or even in a single meal. Most nutritionists say a well-rounded vegetarian/vegan diet that includes a wide variety of fruits, nuts, legumes, and other vegetables each day will give you enough of the various amino acids your body needs; your body will use all of them, so you really don’t need to fret too much about putting them together on the front end.
If you’re still worried about it, include eggs and dairy in your diet. But do so in moderation. Most Americans consume about twice as much protein as they need, mostly animal protein, but animal protein also tends to come with animal fat, and that can be deadly if done in excess. Some studies indicate that people who live on high-protein diets are at much greater risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some forms of cancer.
“Most Americans consume about twice as much protein as they need, mostly animal protein, but animal protein also tends to come with animal fat, and that can be deadly if done in excess. Some studies indicate that people who live on high-protein diets are at much greater risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some forms of cancer.”
I thought the thinking on animal fats being bad had shifted the past few years.
My husband and I are also veering toward much more of a plant-based diet than in the past. He’s good at making up stuff. I’m not. I need a recipe, a plan and inspiration. I also get tired of the same old ways of preparing veggies. These two cookbooks have really helped me discover new stuff to eat, prepared in new ways.
Plenty, and, Plenty More - both by Yotam Ottolenghi
My issue currently is trying to make meals out of what the CSA provides in the winter. I made carrot soup because we are drowning in carrots. In the old days I’d have had it with salad and homemade bread, but dh doesn’t like eating carbs - so the usual vegetarian dishes of pasta and rice are a hard sell. If anyone has any great ideas for turnips, cabbage (both red and green!), potatoes and a giant kohlrabi, let me know!
Coleslaw.
I love German style braised red cabbage.
Things like turnips, potatoes, and kohlrabi are good in braised dishes like a pot roast -meat or non-meat, pot pies, and the like.
Carrots = carrot cake. 
I like Moroccan Carrot Salad. Here are a few recipes I’ve made that I like:
https://www.marthastewart.com/318104/moroccan-carrot-salad
https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/moroccan-carrots
re post #53. We differ on the definition of a vegetable. I am not thinking “animal, vegetable, mineral” when I think of them.
Vegetables are not the same as protein plants- do not equate them. Different plants have different amounts of various nutrients. Vegetables can have very little or a fair amount of protein. Protein plant foods may also have a fair amount of starch that interferes with blood sugar maintenance. Balance… You do not necessarily get complete proteins from just vegetables- it depends on the specific plants.
Look at history for reasons why different cultures developed different diets. Climate plays a role. Also consider genetics that play a role in the ability to like/tolerate various foods. Cilantro is currently in vogue- for some of us it ruins dishes. Likewise with other foods the majority may like. You ruin foods by adding coffee- no amount of sweetener or milk will change that dessert for me. I must have more capacaicin receptors than my Indian H- a little goes a long way for me.
As a physician I see studies that contradict each other as the decades (even just a few years) go by. It is complex. Vegetarians can be fat, can be thin and have heart disease.
We have eaten vegetarian for 5 days now. My H is all in and would love to continue indefinitely. I broke the news to him we are having chicken tonight.