07 June 2011

meatless mondays

i used to be a vegetarian.

now i'm not.

i even dabbled with veganism for a while. i have a lot of respect for people that can live this kind of lifestyle, because it's not that easy. (although my good friend, morgan, over at little house of veggies makes it look easy...and delicious.) even today, i like to mix in plenty of vegan recipes in once in a while. i like a good balance. but as of right now, it's safe to say that i'm carnivorous. while i was pregnant, i didn't quite feel like i was getting enough protein, even with upping the amount i was taking in from alternate meat-less sources. so, i caved. and then i started breastfeeding and felt like i needed even more protein to keep up with my ravenous child. most specifically of the meat-variety. i'm talking steak, and other like-tasting sourcesi haven't turned back since. i won't say that i'll never go back to a vegetarian lifestyle, because i still hold a lot of the same ethical beliefs. and in treating our environment better and preserving natural resources. i really do believe that there are a lot of benefits to going meat-less.

for that reason, (and also... because organic, free-range meat is expensive), cort and i are implementing meatless mondays at our house. this shouldn't be too hard a challenge, and i think actually, quite a fun one - thinking outside the box and away from our meat and veggies staple every night.

last night, i made a recipe that came from one of my favorite vegan blogs, angela from oh she glows. the protein power goddess bowl (i may have left the actual name out with serving the dish to cort) includes an abundance of protein in the lentils and kale. two of my favorite ingredients. and kale is such a superfood, we should all be eating more of it. you can find the recipe here. i'll definitely be adding it in the mix.


protein power goddess bowl  - image via here

what are your favorite meat-less meals? do share.

happy tuesday.

6 comments:

Ellie said...

We love tortilla soup. So easy and delicious with fresh avocado and cilantro on top. We also love a black bean and quinoa dish similar to this: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/quinoa-and-black-beans/Detail.aspx

Morgan's black bean chili is also one of my absolute favorites, along with any other type of soup (including red bean chili, broccoli soup, any type of squash soup). But my favorite thing is taking recipes we love and making them vegetarian by substituting the meat out for veggies. For example: stuffed bell peppers filled with brown rice, spinach and mushrooms instead of ground beef, or spaghetti sauce with grilled zucchini squash, mushrooms and onions.

I feel the same way. We used to eat way less meat before I became pregnant and then I felt like I was starving all of the time if I didn't get some steak in me. Which is weird because before I was pregnant I think we bought red meat a total of 2 times our entire marriage...almost two years. Breastfeeding was definitely worse. I'm still nursing but a whole lot less, so now we have meat 2 or 3 times a week and I like that balance. It works well for our tummy's and our budget!

Kristin said...

That looks so amazing!!

Erin Bradley said...

I like the new blog look! Maybe one of these days I will update mine. It's been far too long since we have talked. Miss you!!!!!

whit said...

looks good..always looking for veggie meals. thanks for sharing!!

Julie said...

i've made this before and it is yummy: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/spaghetti-zucchini-walnuts-raisins-recipe-00000000035747/index.html

and the mexican vegetables on cornbread from this menu were good. still hoping to try otherr:
http://eatathomecooks.com/2011/04/menu-grocery-list-recipes-year-2-week-27-vegetarian-edition.html

LittleHouseofVeggies said...

Hey Laura! I haven't read blogs in forever and I am loving yours, totally getting lost in reading it! I am kind of obsessed with all of the good ideas you post on here! Doing meatless Mondays is SUCH a goo thing to incorporate! If everyone had meatless mondays the differences it could make (envionmentally)would be huge! So that is such a great goal to try to incorporate. It totally doesnt have to be all or nothing! :) ANd that salad looks so good! And thank you for the compliment!! mwah!