Creamy Split Pea Soup

Here is another vegetarian recipe I tweaked from Betty Crocker Vegetarian Cooking. I liked this one enough I have made it twice already and love taking the leftovers for my lunch at work.

In a crock pot put:
I bag (16 oz) dried split peas (green or yellow)
6 cups water (or mix part vegie broth)
1 cup pealed and chopped sweet potato
1 cup chopped onion
1 tbs minced garlic
1 tsp salt

Cook on low for 6+ hours.
Add 3 cups chopped fresh spinach leaves
2 tsp dill weed

Simmer until the spinach wilts, about 15 minutes
Add
1 can coconut milk or 1 cup half & half (I like the coconut milk, because it adds a little middle-eastern flavor)
Cook until warmed through
Serve with your favorite deli bread.

For a low-fat vegan variation use low-fat almond milk instead of half & half or coconut milk.
Serves 8

Cuban Black Beans and Rice

Here is a crock pot black beans recipe that we both really liked.  I modified the original recipe to make it less spicy, substituting green chilies for Jalapenos.

Cuban Black Beans and Rice (serves 8)

(From Betty Crocker Vegetarian Cooking with modifications by me)

1 bag (16 oz) dried black beans

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped bell pepper

1 T minced garlic

2 dried basil leaves

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes

5 cups water

2 T vegetable oil

1 T cumin

1 small can green chilies

1 t salt

3 cups hot cooked rice

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

In a 3-4 quart crock pot mix all the ingredients except the rice and cheese

Cover and cook on high for 6 hrs, or low for 8 hrs or more

Serve the beans over rice, top with cheese.

For a low-fat vegan variation, omit the oil, and grated cheddar cheese.  You can also substitute brown rice for white rice.

Taking Inventory

Today was my grocery shopping day.  Before I went to the store, I decided to see how much meat I have in the house.  In addition to my kitchen freezer, I have a chest freezer in the garage.  I went through both of them and discovered that I had roughly 16 lbs of frozen meat!  I don't really want any of that meat to still be in my freezer on June 1st, so I decided to make a concerted effort to use it all up by then.  Since I am already doing 3 vegetarian dinners a week, and will change to 4 in May, that might be a challenge.  I decided I better not buy any more meat, and just plan my meat meals to use up what we have.  Only 1lb of the meat we have already is beef.  The rest is chicken, ham and pork.  So after I cook beef enchiladas tomorrow I will be done with beef for the next 4 months.  That is a strange thought.  I wonder if I will miss it.

Tofu Curry and Stir-fry

Tofu Curry and Stir-fry
This is one of my favorite vegetarian dinners, and it is ready in about 20 minutes.

Ingredients
1 package extra firm tofu
4 T olive oil, divided
1 can coconut milk
1 block S & B Golden Curry, Medium spicy
Stir-fry vegies
1 T soy sauce
1 t sugar
rice

Put 2 T olive oil in a skillet or wok and heat.  Drain the tofu and cut it into 1/2 inch squares.   Put it in the hot oil cook, stirring once or twice, until the tofu starts to brown.  Add the coconut milk and the curry block. Stir until the curry has melted and combined with the milk. Turn down the heat and keep warm.

Meanwhile, in a separate skillet or wok, heat 2 T oil on medium high.  Add stir-fry vegetables, and cook until done. Sprinkle with soy sauce and sugar.  I just use a frozen stir-fry mix, but you could also use fresh vegetables if you want.

Cook enough rice for however many you are serving.  The sauce recipe serves 2 or 3 adults as a main dish. Double as needed.

Serve as follows: rice, then vegetables, with the tofu sauce poured over the top. Salt to taste.

Getting Started

I preparation for our vegetarian summer I made a plan of attack.  I decided that I would gradually switch to vegetarian cooking by trying and collecting vegetarian recipes and incorporating vegetarian dinners a few a week.  I started in March cooking 2 vegetarian dinners a month.  I purchased a vegetarian cook book to start trying recipes and I also made a list of recipes that I cook already that are vegetarian. Each week in March I made one of my tried and true vegetarian recipes, and one new one.  In April I bumped it up to 3 vegetarian dinners per week.  In May I will do 4 and then go to all 7 in June.

Here are some of my tried and true, been-cooking-them-for-years, vegetarian dinners.

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese
Potato Casserole
Wisconsin Cheese Chowder (if I use cream of Mushroom or Celery soup instead of Cream of Chicken)
Cheese Stuffed Manicotti
Spaghetti with Maranara, Pesto, or Alfredo Sauce.
Eggs and Pancakes
Cheese Omlet
Vegetable Curry Over Rice
Tofu Curry and Stir-fry Vegetables
Carrot Casserole

I will start putting some of the recipes on the blog, but it might take a while to put them all up.  As I do I will put links to them on this page.

Our Vegetarian Summer

Starting in June we are going to attempt to have a vegetarian summer. Why, you may ask.  Well, there are three reasons.  The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints suggests that people should eat meat, "only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine." (D&C 89:13).  It is a part of the "Word of Wisdom" that is pretty much universally ignored by members of the LDS church.  Why would it be there, though, if it didn't have some benefit for those who practice it?  So we want to try it, that is, only eating meat in winter (not in summer) and see if there is some benefit.

The second and third reasons are why most people choose vegetarianism.  It is better for the environment and the food supply to eat lower on the food chain. It takes much less resources, for example, to grow and eat corn directly, than to grow corn, feed it to a cow, and then eat the cow.  Finally, there is something appealing in the idea of non-harming.  Why do we want to kill another animal so we can eat, when we really can eat just plants and do OK.

I want to document our experiment, sharing recipes and experiences.  I am not going to be militant about this.  If we go to eat at someone's  house, and they offer us meat, we will eat it, no problem.  I am just not going to buy and cook meat myself.  We will continue to eat milk and eggs.

So, Here we go. Wish me luck.