There's nothing like getting knocked out with Strep Throat and general cold that takes you away from your goals. One thing I've learned about diets in general... is that you have to be prepared. Planning is something that has to get done. When I first started this journey, planning was very difficult, but now it's done pretty quickly. Practice makes perfect. The secret is that you plan not only for your meals, but also for those times when the day to day gets in the way and you're unable to cook. For example, this time I got really sick so I wasn't able to cook... Brian doesn't cook so what did we eat? Brian's "go to" meals... We had plain strand noodles with Marinara Sauce and he learned how to make a "fideo" thankfully... and one day we had a delicious vegetarian pizza from our "Dion's" pizza company. So having a mind set helped us keep our meats in the freezer so we could continue with the goal and we discovered an interesting pizza we never would have tried before.
I'm still pondering the benefits or usefulness of a vegetarian diet as a life style. I learned that without planning, a vegetarian might depend too heavily on carbohydrates such as bread or rice and not eat enough vegetables, (which could be disastrous for the waist line)... or they might depend too heavily on raw foods which for me would get a little boring. One thing I've learned though is that being vegetarian doesn't mean you have to look for ways to make meat dishes meatless... the truth is that I've uncovered some amazing dishes that are naturally vegetarian. They've never required meat and are incredibly delicious. I think people are so consumed with their preconceived notions about eating habits lose out many culinary delights. But there is another truth to being vegetarian, and that's that the general cost of food is significant lower. I've seen this to be true. Now, here's a delicious recipe to try. I LOVED it!
Moroccan Vegetable Soup
GTLF: Meatless Main Dishes P. 29
Serves 4, working time 30 min., total time: 1 hour
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
1 1/3 C lentils, rinsed and picked over
1 tomato, coarsely chopped, or 1 C no salt added canned tomatoes, chopped with their juices
1 C low sodium tomato vegetable juice
2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground ginger
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
19 oz. can chick peas, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil until hot but not smoking over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender about 7 min. Add the carrots and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until the carrots are crisp tender, about 5 min.
2. Add the lentils, tomato, tomato vegetable juice, paprika, coriander, cumin, ginger, salt, and pepper to the pan, stirring to coat. Add 6 C of water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 min. Stir in the lemon juice. Divide among 4 bowls and serve.
Nutritional Information: 7 g fat, 416 calories, 0.7 sat. fat, 67 g carbohydrate, 25 g protein, 0 mg cholesterol, 653 mg sodium.
Tips:
1. GTLF suggests that the soup is even better the next day. But they say always add the lemon juice just before serving. (I don't get that.)
2. Brian made this one and the vegetables were really chunky. I think "thinly sliced" is just for presentation.
3. This recipe has a little kick. I plan on making it for my next cold, it clears the sinuses that's for sure.
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