We Are Semi-Veganese, If You Please

One big change in our daily diet that has kept me from updating the past few weeks: we have decided to become vegetarians! So now in addition to no dairy, we also now are trying to eat no meat. We've agreed to continue eating eggs and fish, in large part because otherwise no one would ever want to invite us over for brunch or dinner, and also because it would be nigh impossible for us to eat when on the road. (There are only so many times we can eat fresco bean burritos from Taco Bell.)

I've been wanting to make the transition for a while. We rarely eat red meat--when we did, it was always not from our kitchen. I was a vegetarian for about three years when I was a teenager, but I did a horrible job of making sure I was getting what I was missing from meat. The audiobook of Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen is what finally convinced Sham that we can not eat meat and still be healthy athletes.

So I've been busy trying to make sure we Do This Thing Right.

I've checked out dozens of vegetarian cookbooks from the library and I used my iPhone to take photos of all the recipes that caught my eye. The next rainy Saturday I hope to start a catalog system of these recipes on our computer. I also bought a digital subscription to Vegetarian Times for $10.

We purchased chia seeds and corn meal so that I could make iskiate* and pinole*, which Sham had heard about so much in Born to Run. Chia seeds are a surprisingly little-known super food: a energizing muscle and tissue builder, they are also high in protein, calcium, and fatty acids like Omega-3 (see here for more)!

Our typical weeknight meal consists of plate of vegetables (peppers, spinach, tomatoes), corn tortillas heated up on the stove, salsa, and Trader Joe’s incredible 99¢ refried black beans with jalapeno peppers. We make tacos out of them until we are full. It's a yummy, healthy, and fast go-to meal, but I'd like to find other quick vegetarian meals that I can prepare parts of ahead of time.

Here are some of the vegetarian recipes I've found on line that I'm interested in trying out:
* Cauliflower Mash with Miso and Sage
* Mushroom Chili Stew
* Chickpea Sunflower Burger
* Rustic Bread & Eggplant Lasagna
* Bubble and Squeak Cakes
* Curried Red Lentil Soup with Lemon
* Quick Walnut Pâté Sandwiches with Pears and Arugula
* Super Quick Tomato Basil Cream Pasta
* Pepita Fettucini with Spinach and Cranberries
* Broccoli Lentil Soup with Roasted Pepper Coulis

Have you thought about going vegetarian? Are you a carnivore who has a favorite vegetarian dish? Do you have any expert, veteran vegetarian advice for newbies?

* denotes there will be a future post about these!