Make me a vegetarian shopping list!!!!!!!

I haven't seen this item on the list: Quinoa.

I'm having a blast incorporating it instead of rice. I make a tabouli type salad from it instead of cous cous. It's my new super grain.

Fresh fresh fresh...is the key to foods.

Original Post by eninad:

I haven't seen this item on the list: Quinoa.

I'm having a blast incorporating it instead of rice. I make a tabouli type salad from it instead of cous cous. It's my new super grain.

Fresh fresh fresh...is the key to foods.

 

Glad someone said it!  I never let my pantry become emptied of quinoa, it is one of the greatest foods on the planet!  Just make sure you soak and rinse before cooking!!

My favorite way to eat quinoa: cook in faux chick'n broth (I get mine at Sunflower Market), when cooked add to it fresh diced tomatoes, fire roasted green chile, cooked black beans, corn, diced zucchini, a small mashed avocado and top it with some shredded fat free cheddar or soy cheese if that's your preference.  I like a dollop of salsa and fat free sour cream on mine, as well, and my daughter likes hers on a bed of broken blue corn tortilla chip crumbs from the bottom of the bag.  Best meal ever!

I'm a Veggie, been so for 2 years now.  One must for your list is eggplant.  There are 10,001 different ways to prepare them - and they are delicious if prepared properly.

Original Post by jmohr7049:

I'm a Veggie, been so for 2 years now.  One must for your list is eggplant.  There are 10,001 different ways to prepare them - and they are delicious if prepared properly.

Baba Ganoush, eggplant parmesan (MMMMM - i have a much healthier and yummier version if you like), ratatouille, on the BBQ with other veggies, basil, balsamic and Halloumi (cheese that you can grill!), stir fried with tofu and soy sauce, curried with spices and potatoes... <3 eggplant is so versatile! And most ppl who complain that its slimy just don't take the time to prepare it right... sweating it (salting and wickering out the bitter juices) is SOOOO important, especially for baking in my parmesan recipe.

as for your list, read the sprout thread, thats another great addition if you want protein and vitamins! 

I also love almond milk, TVP can be very useful as is Seitan (though i find thats an acquired texture taste). Happy shopping!

My absolute favorite vegetarian food is 'Fantastic' brand chili mix (in the organic section of the store)...add the beans/veggies suggested on the box, plus whatever else you like - I also like to add rice to it to puff it up to serve more people - delicious!

Spaghetti Squash - Great substitute for regular spaghetti

Cabbage - When making lasagna instead of noodles use cabbage

Cauliflower - cook until soft and mash it up like mash potatoes.  You can also add spinach and onion. S&P to taste if you want.

Fresh spinach with red onion and tomatoes

Sauteed spinach with red onion and mushrooms.

Olive tapenade on an english muffin with sliced cucumber.

Tomato, fresh basil with balsamic vinegar

My vegetarian (I consider cheese vegetarian) list is usually:

Tomatoes: to eat as a snack with garlic salt and for tacos
Carrots: again, to snack
Portabella mushrooms: for use on the grill or as a burger substitute or in fajitas
Cheese: usually slices from the deli as well as a block of colby-jack to use in vegetarian tacos or fajitas, but if you make the wraps I say below, then you need goat cheese or cream cheese.
Bell pepper (green, orange, yellow): for fajitas
Asparagus: for wraps
Tortillas and spinach wraps: tortillas for tacos/fajitas and spinach wraps for asparagus, goat cheese, olive tapanade, bibb lettuce wraps
Olives and capers: for the tapanade
Bibb or boston lettuce (or whatever lettuce you like): for the wraps
Black beans: for tacos
Red, dark red, and great northern beans: for chili
can of mushrooms: for chili
bag of onions: for fajitas, tacos, and chili
Quorn meat crumbles (does not contain soy): for tacos

Edit: I meant Quorn meatless crumbles.

Here are some links I thought you might find interesting:

Recipe for Rustic Grilled Eggplant dip:

http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/rustic-gri lled-greek-eggplant-dip.aspx

Ideas/recipes on how to eat less meat:

http://www.finecooking.com/item/18090/10-ways -to-eat-less-meat

Fall for vegetables:

http://www.finecooking.com/item/21016/fall-fo r-vegetables

Original Post by toadstirfry:

huh?  simple... go into the fresh produce section and get a well rounded selection of:

vegetables.. (that's easy enough, what do you like in a vegetable?)  myself i enjoy artichokes, aparagus, lettuce of all types...  peppers...   peas...  corn, though that's a grain...  still with the veggies.. many things are with the veggies.    spinach, kale, eggplant? (i may be wrong on some things, they may trick me and be a fruit.. but who cares?!

fruits:   oh, well that list is so big i'm going to be diabetic on yah.    i love peaches though, bit ripe, good for dunking into soymilk.    plums, grapes, avocados, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, nectarines...     bananas...     now there's a toxic combination of potassium overload if i don't mind myself.  can't forget tomatoes, i put them with everything when i'm steaming stuff.

TUBERS!   any tuber any time..   :D

molds, spores..   i love mushrooms...   you can do anything with them...   behind closed doors i mean.

beans...  love those.. again,  you can do as you wish.

of course a good salad with tons of variety is more than enough daily.

but i never ever buy processed junk... (that's not vegetarian, sorry....  soy products are  highly questionable... want soy?  get the real thing without the pretending it's meat or something... though i gave up and got down on my knees for "silk"  soy milk.  i guess it's ok..   my stomach doesn't go gurd on me after drinking it.. i still question it's genuine ways...  

i love 'morning star'  bacon.. but it has CASEIN in it among other dairy type elements.. so that's not VEGETARIAN.

want nuts?  try to get the untouched stuff.. plain, simple and pure..  no canned, roasted, jarred....

if one adds dairy to their vegetarian list..well scratch off the vegetarian...   canned foods?  forget it.. frozen, are YOU kidding me?   soy products in a box, jar or bag?  WHAT?  heh,  yeh give me a break and run 40 laps!

dairy is real bad,  most i know, including myself, who had eaten it aren't the happiest people in the world.   i believe dairy is bad chakra.   but who am i... i just listen to my body.

eggs?  HOOT, yeh, right!  torture a chicken for a ovum!   great deal,  why not pick on a fish while you're at it or beat up on a hormone puffed up cow while you're at it.. have that cow's milk why don't you?  ha!

i think i made my point.

want candy?  OH OH!  kill a pig!   hi mr. piglet,  i like to have some jello and some hard candy... OINK OINK please don't! NOOOO!  

it's amazing to find out what's in foods...  so i go as fresh and simple as possible.

besides my body tells me straight out if there's something iffy.   i'm not sure but i think i have some sort of 'dissagreement'  either allergy or inability to process animal proteins or fats. 

 I'm usually not very mean on caloriecount, but this is the most ignorant post ever. Many vegetables are BETTER frozen because they retain nutrients that are lost. Like my guinea pigs' hay and food, vegetables exposed to light lose about half of their vitamin C in the first week.

Also, the poster said "vegetarian" NOT "vegan" or "strict vegetarian". 

Original Post by vicenspice:

Baba Ganoush, eggplant parmesan (MMMMM - i have a much healthier and yummier version if you like), ratatouille, on the BBQ with other veggies, basil, balsamic and Halloumi (cheese that you can grill!), stir fried with tofu and soy sauce, curried with spices and potatoes... <3 eggplant is so versatile! And most ppl who complain that its slimy just don't take the time to prepare it right... sweating it (salting and wickering out the bitter juices) is SOOOO important, especially for baking in my parmesan recipe.

 Can you please share your yummy and *healthy* eggplant parm recipe? I adore eggplant, but that dish is (typically) an artery clogger. Thanks vicenspice!

Original Post by fall7up8:

Original Post by vicenspice:

Baba Ganoush, eggplant parmesan (MMMMM - i have a much healthier and yummier version if you like), ratatouille, on the BBQ with other veggies, basil, balsamic and Halloumi (cheese that you can grill!), stir fried with tofu and soy sauce, curried with spices and potatoes... <3 eggplant is so versatile! And most ppl who complain that its slimy just don't take the time to prepare it right... sweating it (salting and wickering out the bitter juices) is SOOOO important, especially for baking in my parmesan recipe.

 Can you please share your yummy and *healthy* eggplant parm recipe? I adore eggplant, but that dish is (typically) an artery clogger. Thanks vicenspice!

Bake it and don't use any oil. Not really any way to make it "healthy' and actually make it true to form eggplant parm. You can always just not coat it with breadcrumbs and go light on parm and mozz.

I'm vegan now but before I used to buy a lot of quorn products. Now I'm vegan I buy loads of Linda McCartney products :] So good. I also eat a lot of noodles and thai salads. Cucumber salad especially since I found it's vegan too :D I also eat alot of home-made bean chilli/ratatouille

Typical Shopping List:

Cucumber

Tomatoes

Aubergines

Courgettes

Spring Onions

Chilli

Garlic

Red Onion

Canned Tomatoes

Canned Butter Beans

Canned Kidney Beans

Tomato Purree

Soy Sauce

Peanut Butter

Elephant Rice

Frozen Berries

Faux Meat - Vegan or Quorn

Baked Beans

Sheese/Cheese

Baked Potato

Soya/Skimmed Milk

Olive Oil

Plain Flour

Sweetener

Lychee Pop

Vegetable Oxo's

Instant Noodles

Humous - SOOOO MUCH HUMOUS

Pitta Bread

Tortilla's

Tomato Salsa

Cereal - Coco Pops is vegan :]

Nuts

Fruits - Canned or Otherwise

Ect.


HOPE THAT HELPED!

Original Post by janiedd1006:

Thanks for reaffirming that I am a vegetarian. I was reading Toadstirfry's post and was getting nervous.  Anyway, I love this site, I have been a almost vegetarian for years, only ate beef, but in the last 6-8 months, beef has grossed me out, so I need all the help I can get. After reading your posts, I am not doing too bad.

Eggs gross me out too, because they come out of chickens, Isn't that odd, my body just reacts like this and I can't help it.

I have one question, I eat the morning star and boca burgers, they do not taste like any type of meat to me.  What does the hot dogs, sausage taste like.  There are times, few and far between, that I have the urge for a hotdog with ketchup, but I am scared to bite into the soy ones. I am normal otherwise!!:)

thanks, Jane

Hey :] Congratulations of getting over the hurdle.

I find that Soy hot dogs are a bit plain, look for a good celebrated brand packed with flavour. Also be willing to add sauce and lots of it. However the Quorn sausages are nice, especially Linda McCartney ones as the skin is firm and slightly crunchy. However if you like the smooth skin go for Quorn brand. However if you loved burgers (like me) instead of buying Quorn, buy the meatless dry mix that you add to water, stir and make circle moulds before baking. These are the most delicious creation ever. They have a great texture and taste delicious. And it's 'home made' xD kinda.

Also when I first became veggie I had soya bacon and hated it. I tried it a a few days ago - quite a while after - and I loved it. If you're so used to the taste of mean, vegetarian versions might taste bland or wrong to you. So choose the Quorn packed with flavour until venturing off into the subtle tastes of soy :P however don't take my word for it alone: try it, just don't write it off just yet, give your taste buds time to adapt to this world of new flavours :D

Recommend:

Quorn Chicken Nuggets <3

I haven't seen bulgur on the list yet. In addition to being the usual grain in tabouli, it's also easy to prepare, tasty on its own, and easy to use as a base for pilafs or as a "meaty" texture in chili.

A good guide to go by...If God doesn't grow it-you don't eat it!

trancendenz is mostly right fall7up8, its pretty easy thought laborious...

sweat the slices of eggplant with salt and leave for a good 15-30mins. Sponge off as much liquid and salt as possible - i dont rinse them. I then dunk them lightly in a mix of egg and skim milk, and then in a mixture of whole wheat flour and breadcrumbs (maybe 50-50) but only to coat them LIGHTLY - more like slap them in on one side and then the other and take whatever stuck on. Spray a cookie sheet with some Pam, place the slices on and bake, turning them over halfway through (350F for about 20-30mins depending on how thick your slices are).

Finally, i place those baked slices in a pyrex dish, alternating a layer of eggplant with layers of tomato sauce and grated skim (less fat) mozarella cheese. Usually have about two layers of each. Rebake for maybe 20mins or until sauce bubbles and cheese is melted. VOILA! not completely guilt free, but still better than lasagna (no fat from meat and very little carbs). I never tried putting it into the counter on here, but it musn't be so bad if you don't eat a huge piece and if you have a salad with it!

good luck!

One of my favorite meals is sweet potato with peanut butter.  Sound strange?  Maybe, but it's delicious!  Just bake the sweet potato and top with about a table spoon of peanut butter.  It's sooo good.  I eat this with lima beans a lot.  You can also buy organic refried black beans for really good burritos.  Make sure to check the label.  The kind I buy has nothing but black beans and water and maybe a little salt, I can't remember.  Very good with salsa, guacamole, and spinach on wheat tortillas.  Be careful with soy milk though if you have a baby and are looking for an alternative for them because the hormones can be harmful.  Almond milk was a great suggestion and rice milk (though I'm not a huge fan of the taste on it's own) is very good for milk shakes.  Also, if you're feeding your baby almond milk instead of formula or whatever, make sure they are getting good fat from somewhere.  Ooo!  And for breakfast Ezekiel 4:9 cereal is absolutely delicious!  The bread is good too though a bit expensive.  I hope this helps!  Sorry I went on a tangent about babies, just had a long conversation with a mom friend of mine about that.

Of course, veggies (fresh or frozen!) is a must.  One of my favorites right now is asparagus, baked for 15 minutes with a little parmesan and a touch of olive oil.  Delish!  veggie sausages tend to be a little tastier than the hot dogs, which often have artificial smoke flavoring added to them and taste like smoke more than anything else.  I love Yves products, and they make everything from burgers, to "chicken" nuggets to veggie ground round. The ground round is great for tacos, to put in pasta sauce, or lasagna.  The big thing with going veggie is making sure you're getting enough iron and protein.  If you don't dig eggs, buy nuts, and soy.  And I like to switch out lettuce in my salads for spinach because spinach is loaded with iron, and is a little tastier than your standard iceberg.  

This is one of my favorite links. It's an ultimate vegetarian grocery list.  http://www.grocerylists.org/wp-content/upload s/2009/09/GrocerylistsDOTorg_Vegetarian_v1_0. pdf

Please try followin link for vegeterian receipes.

http://www.sanjeevkapoor.com/Recipe.aspx?Reci peId=1940&Header=Cuisine%20Of%20The%20Mon th