Having dependable, essential kitchen tools simplifies meal preparation. They can dramatically speed up the time to when dinner is on the table, and make it easier on you. But it can be overwhelming to decide which ones to purchase when you're first starting out. Seriously, I'm going through that right now with deciding which air fryer to buy! As a note, you don't need to run out and get all of these right away, and it's not intended to be a complete, exhaustive list. For example, I ...
9 Easy Vegetarian Breakfasts
Breakfast can be tricky when you're trying to figure out a new diet. It's how you begin the day. It sets the tone. This is true if you want to lose weight, go gluten-free, or keto. And it's true if you want to go vegetarian - or move to a more vegetarian diet. If I start the day with pancakes with loads of butter and syrup, I pretty much give up the day for being healthy. And yes, I know there are ways to make pancakes healthier. And I agree, sometimes we need a treat. But the fact ...
Plant-Based Cheeses – Taste Tests
Many people think all cheese is vegetarian, and add it to vegetarian casseroles, pastas and veggie burgers thinking they're fine. But this isn't necessarily true. In fact, most are not vegetarian cheeses. Is Cheese Vegetarian? Traditional cheese makers use animal rennet as the coagulant. The coagulant is important as it thickens the milk into the thick curds needed to make cheese. Animal rennet typically comes from the stomach of a calf, goat or lamb. As a note, the animals are not ...
10 Beginner’s Tips for Going Vegetarian
My top 10 beginner's tips for going vegetarian, whether you're just starting out on this dietary journey or need a jumpstart. First of all, even though this post is about beginner's tips for going vegetarian, a vegetarian diet isn't for everyone. I'm not even a complete vegetarian, so I get it. I eat fish when we eat out. And I'll eat what friends cook for me in their homes. But when I'm in my own home, I'm 95% vegetarian. But even getting to that ...
May Vegetarian Challenge: 10 Umami Flavor Boosts
So what's all the fuss about umami flavor and what is it? Well, if you want to cook vegetarian (or vegan) dishes, you need to know. Umami flavor Umami is a Japanese word translated as "a pleasant savory taste". Simply put, umami is the meaty savory flavor a lot of vegetarians miss as times. Think of it as a flavor bomb. Technically, umami flavor is the glutamate content of a food that connects to the umami taste receptors. If you're interested in diving more deeply into the ...
The Essential Vegetarian Pantry
The Importance of the Essential Vegetarian Pantry Having a stocked essential vegetarian pantry is important, and especially now when we're limiting trips to the market. And when we gird ourselves to venture down the aisles, many items are out of stock. In truth, my vegetarian pantry hasn't changed a bit over the past month, or over the past year. And the value of this peace-of-mind is limitless. For example, when I placed a pick-up order this morning at our local market, and saw the first ...
5 Easy Ways to Boost Energy
This post offers 5 easy ways I use to boost energy through the day on a vegetarian diet. Most of these can also be used on a vegan diet. A few days ago, I posted about our March Vegetarian Challenge: Fatigue, and listed some of the common dietary reasons you might feel fatigue on a vegetarian diet. For example, the bioavailability of nutrients, vitamins and protein found in plants is not as great as that found in animal products. This means we need more protein and more ...
March Vegetarian Challenge: Fatigue
Fatigue A meatless diet can be healthy, for sure, but vegetarians need to be sure they're getting enough nutrients in their diets. Otherwise, in their search for better health, they can end up with unintended health issues. For example, experiencing low-energy is not uncommon for people new to a vegan diet. And you can feel fatigue on a vegetarian diet as well. It's frustrating. Because, hel-lo, none of us are trying to achieve low energy. We want to feel the best ...
February Vegetarian Challenge: Protein
Protein This month is all about protein. My last post talked about how to figure out how much protein you really need, and why it's important. It's complicated, and there's a lot of conflicting information out there. But even an approximate amount of protein to shoot for each day is important. My goal is 63 grams of protein a day, or roughly 20 grams per meal. But that just doesn't always happen, so I need backup plans. Maybe it's a high protein smoothie with protein powder, stirring ...
February Vegetarian Challenge: Protein
This post discusses how to figure out how much protein you need every day, and a list of vegetarian - friendly proteins. Welcome to month #2 of the Monthly Vegetarian Challenge. Each month I'll post tips around specific themes for anyone wanting to add more vegetarian meals to their weekly menus. Additionally, we'll tackle 1 - 3 seasonal recipes tied to the theme that month, with a contest. This month's theme is PROTEIN. This post covers how to figure out how ...
January Vegetarian Meal Challenge: Citrus
A NEW YEAR...A NEW DECADE..A TIME FOR CHANGE It's a new year and a new decade. A time when so many of us take stock of daily habits and goals we want to set. For a lot of people, it's around food. Maybe it's to lose X number of pounds before, say, swimsuit season. Or, to try a vegetarian diet for a week or go vegan for a month (hello Veganuary!). When the rush of excitement with something new begins to fade, the biggest challenge for most people is figuring out what on earth to make ...
