Eating Vegetarian by Randa

08/07/2020

Here's what I made for dinner last night!

Curry soy chunks and brown stew soy chunks with a side of white rice. Here's the recipe that I used for the brown stew chunks. It was my first time making it and I must say...it came it out really good! The only difference is that I added a little bit of browning to the pot. https://youtu.be/MKlqS8Rn0rQ

27/06/2020

Jerk tofu, rice and peas and sweet potatoes. 🤤

For the jerk tofu, I bought spicy jerk marinade and mixed it with bbq sauce and browning. Baked it at 420 for 45 mins.

The sweet potato is the one that is light purple on the outside. It was peeled and boiled for about 15mins.

Traditional Jamaican rice and peas, courtesy of my mother-in-law ❤. (Let me know if you want the recipe)

21/06/2020

Who here has their gardening going on? I do! I have straightneck squash, sweet orange pepper, patio baby (mini) eggplant, chili pepper, ghost pepper, banana pepper (okay, I'm a ju**ie 😂), Boston pickling cucumbers, aloe vera and lavender. You will see from the photos that the eggplant is going strong, about 20 buds. Oh, and a dragon tree to the far right.

14/06/2020

Veggie Lasagna! 🍽 It's always better the next day.

For my recipe, I used corn, butternut squash, mushrooms, onions, spinach and lots of seasonings. Salt, pepper, garlic granules, crushed red pepper, basil, oregano, cilantro, paprika, celery salt, thyme and a little adobo. Mixed it all together with ricotta cheese. The reason there is space between my rows is because I used no-boil noodes.

Always start with sauce on the bottom of the pan. I used a garlic alfredo. Then pasta, sauce, ricotta mixture, mozzarella...in that order. Cover the pan with tinfoil and bake 35 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until top browns, about 10 minutes.

I topped it off with hot sauce because it's never enough. 😂

08/06/2020

Another one! Are you motivated to try something new yet?

This is soy chunks and kidney beans cooked in sofrito sauce. Soy chunks are a good meat replacement for curries and stews. They absorb the flavor of the seasoning so they'll only be as good as your sauce. Think of your typical curry chicken or beef stew, you would just replace the meat with soy chunks. These are dried so they double in size after being soaked in water.

I took a close up picture so you could see the texture.

08/06/2020

This next recipe is so good that I think it may be a new favorite. 🤤

Tofu in Coconut Carrot Curry 🍲 ...this recipe is really simple and easy to make. I recommend following the recipe exactly before making any changes because it is perfect. The only thing I would have done different is fry the tofu first but that's just my preference. Check out the recipe below!

UPDATE: zoomed in recipe in the comment section

08/06/2020

It's important to start your day off right. Consider fresh fruit with breakfast and lunch.

Today I had fresh mango 🥭, avocado 🥑 and deviled eggs 🥚. Both filling and healthy.

08/06/2020

I started eating before I remembered to take the photo...but I wanted to share it with you anyway! A salad can be lunch or it can be an appetizer before dinner. 🥗 It's a healthy snack that is low in calories if you can portion control on the salad dressing 😉.

For this one I kept it simple with lettuce and shredded carrots. The green olives were marinated with chili peppers and orange (store bought). Goat cheese and balsamic vinaigrette mixed together to made for a creamy dressing. The marinated olives and goat cheese dressing gave this simple salad lots of flavor. You don't need to do a lot to have a tasty snack!

08/06/2020

Now that it's summer produce prices will start dropping. That makes it a good time to start pickling! You can pickle anything from cucumbers, to tomatoes, to peppers to pears - yes, fruit! Fruit also makes for good homemade jam. If you think you need a canner, you're wrong. Here's how I successfully canned pickles and salsa without a canner.

1. Place lids in boiling water, leave in pot until needed
2. Fill dish bucket, or sink, with really hot tap water. Let jars sit in the water for at least 15mins, completely submerged.
3. Follow your pickling recipe. There are literally thousands online.
4. Remove jars from water and fill with pickled vegetables/fruit leaving 1/2" at the top. Seal with sanitized lids.
5. Fill up dish bucket/sink with fresh hot water.
6. Place jars in hot water for 15-20mins. You can press the center button down but it's okay if it doesn't stay.
7. Remove jars from water and allow to sit out over night or at least 8hrs.
8. You can periodically push the center button down to encourage a quicker seal or you can just leave it to seal on it's own.
9. In the morning, check to see if the center button is down. If it is down, it's sealed and does not need to be refrigerated until opened. If the button is not down, place it in the fridge.
10. If you're new to this, follow the pickling recipes exactly. You must maintain a certain acidity level for it to preserve properly.

Voila! You now have 12 gifts for family and friends for only $25. Or maybe your garden produced more than you can use and the freezer can't hold anymore. This is a great way preserve produce that would otherwise go bad, saving you money. I made sweet and spicy pickles but added some dill to it. I'm on my last jar so I will probably make another batch soon.

08/06/2020

Stuffed Butternut Squash! This is really yummy and you can make up the recipe as you go. I took a butternut squash, sliced it in half and scooped out the seeds. I baked it for about 45mins at 350 degrees, until the flesh was tender. Then I stuffed it with rice, corn, beans and soy 'beef". Topped it off with some coconut mozzarella cheese. You can stuff it with whatever you like, get creative!

08/06/2020

Hi everyone! I'm so terrible at this...I cook and always forget to take pictures because I'm greedy 😂😂😂. To make up for it, I'm going to give you 3 posts today and 4 tomorrow. I don't just talk the talk, I walk the walk (when I'm in the mood for cooking). Starting with tonight's meal!

Today I made vegan pulled pork using jackfruit as the "pork". I used fresh jackfruit because it was available here but this recipe works with frozen and canned jackfruit as well. Typically, you would pull the jackfruit apart so it looks like shredded pork but again, I'm greedy and wanted to eat LOL. I used this recipe with coleslaw and a potato bread bun: https://tasty.co/recipe/vegan-pulled-pork-sandwiches

20/04/2020

Step 3: Remember to have a piece of fruit and vegetables with lunch and dinner. Make an effort to have fruit with breakfast as well. If you are used to a lot of protein then add plant protein alternatives to both meals. High protein vegan items would include tofu (soybeans), chickpeas, beans, lentils, h**p seads, quinoa and nuts (I love peanut butter!).

This homemade veggie burger is one of my favorites. You can add lettuce and tomato like you would a regular burger. If you don't want to wait for the chickpeas to soak you can buy canned chickpeas. Don't forget to add a piece of fruit to this meal. 🙂
https://www.self.com/recipe/chickpea-sweet-potato-burgers

Hearty sweet potatoes and chickpeas create a burger that's about as meaty as it gets without using any meat. Dried chickpeas keep these patties crispy; soak them overnight so they're ready to cook when you are.

19/04/2020

Step 2: If you're going to eat salad, make it a good one. There's more to salad than just lettuce and some salads don't even have lettuce. Different vegetables have different nutrients so it's important to switch it up. Check out the two salads and dessert below.

18/04/2020

Try a red lentil dahl for your next meal. I recommend baked sweet potatoes as a side dish.

18/04/2020

Step 1: Understand what it means to be vegetarian or vegan. One of the most common mistakes is people eating salad and apples for all meals. Not eating properly can lead to dangerous health problems, including malnutrition. You need different vegetables, fruits and legumes to get all of your vitamins and nutrients. If you normally eat a lot of red meat, then you would need to find a plant based replacement for iron and protein or you will start to feel tired.

I recommend getting one of my favorite books, Vegetarian by Nicola Graimes which can be found on Amazon. The hardcover is $16 and the paperback is $10. The beginning of the book has 109 pages of explaining the different types of food. It may seem silly but many people haven't heard of gooseberries or celery root. Below are a few pages to give you an idea of what is in the book.

18/04/2020

Hi everyone, There have been a lot of posts recently about people wanting to eat more vegetarian/vegan meals. I'm here to help you get started the right way. Whether you're looking to switch out 2-3 meals a week or completely transition, all are welcome here.

All vegetarian meals can be converted to vegan. If you would like to see more on a specific topic or have questions, please send a message or comment on a post and the answer will be posted to the page.(it can be anonymous if you want 🙂)

*this page is just getting started so please excuse any quirks