Veg-Curious? Don’t Be Fooled by These 7 Myths About a Vegetarian Diet | No Meat Athlete →
And so it occurred to me the other day when I was talking to someone who called himself “veg-curious” that I should write more posts for the veg-curious. (This occurred to me because he said, “You should write more posts for the veg-curious.”) Today’s veg-curious-friendly topic: things you hear about vegetarianism that are just plain wrong.
Swiss chard is one of those things that it would probably never occur to me to buy of my own volition, but I got a huge bag of it in my veg box this week and needed to do something to use it up- and it turned out to be delicious!
Stir-fried Swiss Chard with Pine Nuts and Balsamic Butter
~350g Swiss chard
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp pine nuts
1 tbsp walnut oil (or use whatever oil you have to hand)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Sea salt
1/2 tbsp butter (or non-dairy alternative)
Mix the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and sugar together in a small bowl and put to one side. Cut the chard leaves away from the stems and tear or chop roughly, then chop the stems into small pieces.
Heat up a large frying pan or a wok and toast the pine nuts, tossing until lightly browned on both sides, then put them to one side. Return the pan to the heat and heat up the oil. Add the garlic to the oil and fry for a minute or so just to fragrance the oil, then add the chard stems and fry for about five minutes until they are soft and lightly browned.
Add the chard leaves and toss quickly until they begin to wilt, then add the balsamic vinegar mix and the butter, turning the heat down and stirring until the butter melts. Remove the pan from the heat and stir through the pine nuts, then serve.
This quantity made a nice meal for one all on its own, though it would also easily serve two if paired with some couscous or polenta.
There are (somewhat inexplicably, given the season) pears in the local farm co-operative where I buy most of my food this week, so I thought I’d do something special with them.
Maple and Pecan Pear Crisp
1 tbsp butter/vegan spread
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 pears, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup oats
Handful of pecan nuts, chopped
Melt the butter in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the maple syrup and spices, stir to combine, and then let the mixture come up to a low simmer. Add the pears and stir until well-coated and soft. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the oats and the pecan nuts, and let sit for a while so the oats can soak up the liquid.
This would be nice as a topping for pancakes, or mixed into porridge, or just eaten on its own (maybe with a scoop of vanilla ice cream).
![[A bowl of muesli, a purple smoothie complete with straw, and a large mug of coffee.]
Breakfast! This is what I have most mornings- a homemade smoothie, a large quantity of coffee, and some variety of muesli.
Muesli baseSpelt flakesBarley flakesJumbo rolled oatsMixed seeds (the mix I have is pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and hemp seeds)
I keep a mix of equal quantities of the above in a big lock-and-lock cereal pourer thingy, to which I add a variety of different things- this one has a small handful of branflakes, a couple of spoonfuls of sultanas, and a chopped banana added, before being mixed with some vanilla yoghurt. At the moment I’m experimenting with using homemade applesauce instead of yoghurt, in an effort to reduce my dairy consumption.
POWAR SMOOTHIE1 bananaHandful of frozen berries1/2 chunk frozen spinach (I’m guessing it’s about 1-2 fresh leaves’ worth?)1 tbsp oats1 tbsp honey1 scoop hemp protein powder1 cup water
Put in blender. Blend. Or use a hand blender if you’re like me. Then consume and flex your biceps a lot. This recipe is based on the No Meat Athlete smoothie formula, which is a really great basis for making a variety of smoothies around a healthy model. I don’t have one of these every morning but it’s a good way to cram a lot of great, nutritious things into a small and easily palatable form. I often chuck in a teaspoon or so of chia or flaxseeds or a ripped-up dried apricot or anything else that sits in the cupboard making me look healthy.
There’s no secret to the coffee. It’s just coffee. Though it is fair trade!](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lttnpsIeMl1r3w3wlo1_1280.jpg)
[A bowl of muesli, a purple smoothie complete with straw, and a large mug of coffee.]
Breakfast! This is what I have most mornings- a homemade smoothie, a large quantity of coffee, and some variety of muesli.
Muesli base
Spelt flakes
Barley flakes
Jumbo rolled oats
Mixed seeds (the mix I have is pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and hemp seeds)
I keep a mix of equal quantities of the above in a big lock-and-lock cereal pourer thingy, to which I add a variety of different things- this one has a small handful of branflakes, a couple of spoonfuls of sultanas, and a chopped banana added, before being mixed with some vanilla yoghurt. At the moment I’m experimenting with using homemade applesauce instead of yoghurt, in an effort to reduce my dairy consumption.
POWAR SMOOTHIE
1 banana
Handful of frozen berries
1/2 chunk frozen spinach (I’m guessing it’s about 1-2 fresh leaves’ worth?)
1 tbsp oats
1 tbsp honey
1 scoop hemp protein powder
1 cup water
Put in blender. Blend. Or use a hand blender if you’re like me. Then consume and flex your biceps a lot. This recipe is based on the No Meat Athlete smoothie formula, which is a really great basis for making a variety of smoothies around a healthy model. I don’t have one of these every morning but it’s a good way to cram a lot of great, nutritious things into a small and easily palatable form. I often chuck in a teaspoon or so of chia or flaxseeds or a ripped-up dried apricot or anything else that sits in the cupboard making me look healthy.
There’s no secret to the coffee. It’s just coffee. Though it is fair trade!
![[A bowl of quinoa studded with various vegetables and chunks of orange.]
Quinoa with orange and cashews, from the No Meat Athlete Half Marathon Road Map e-book. I am not doing much of the running at the moment, but his recipes are great and full of tasty, animal-free nutrition. I recommend checking out the main site for the food alone, though his fitness/running stuff is excellent too.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltosnelGsg1r3w3wlo1_1280.jpg)
[A bowl of quinoa studded with various vegetables and chunks of orange.]
Quinoa with orange and cashews, from the No Meat Athlete Half Marathon Road Map e-book. I am not doing much of the running at the moment, but his recipes are great and full of tasty, animal-free nutrition. I recommend checking out the main site for the food alone, though his fitness/running stuff is excellent too.
Thanks so much! One of the things I’m trying to focus on in my cooking is making things where meat isn’t really a factor in the recipe- like you say, a lot of the time recipes centre around the meat and often in vegetarian cooking the aim is to substitute something in for that meat, rather than just changing how one cooks. Especially when vegetables are so delicious!
I really love my veg box too- it’s a privilege to have access to such a good scheme (on top of living in a city with a weekly farmers market too) and getting to eat super-fresh, organic vegetables on a student budget is excellent.
![[Chopped french beans coated with red miso and pine nuts on a bed of mixed salad in a bowl]
French beans with miso and pine nuts on a mixed leaf salad(makes about two helpings)
Large handful French beans1 tbsp pine nuts1 tsp butter or oil1/2 tbsp miso (I use a slow-aged red miso because it’s so fucking delicious, but use what you have to hand, although you may want to reduce the quantity for darker misos)
Chop the beans into short pieces, about 2-3cm. Heat up a medium frying pan and briefly toast the pine nuts, then place them to one side. Put the beans in the pan with enough water to cover, then simmer for 5-10 minutes until the beans are tender. Drain, then return them to the pan on a low heat with the butter/oil and miso, stirring until the beans are thoroughly coated, then stir in the pine nuts and serve!
This is the sort of thing that tastes even better after a day or so in the fridge, though you need to bring it up to room temperature before eating.
This was also fun to make this time as the French beans I got in my veg box were a blackish-purple when raw, but slowly turned green as they were simmered!](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltbdhqWIsM1r3w3wlo1_1280.jpg)
[Chopped french beans coated with red miso and pine nuts on a bed of mixed salad in a bowl]
French beans with miso and pine nuts on a mixed leaf salad
(makes about two helpings)
Large handful French beans
1 tbsp pine nuts
1 tsp butter or oil
1/2 tbsp miso (I use a slow-aged red miso because it’s so fucking delicious, but use what you have to hand, although you may want to reduce the quantity for darker misos)
Chop the beans into short pieces, about 2-3cm. Heat up a medium frying pan and briefly toast the pine nuts, then place them to one side. Put the beans in the pan with enough water to cover, then simmer for 5-10 minutes until the beans are tender. Drain, then return them to the pan on a low heat with the butter/oil and miso, stirring until the beans are thoroughly coated, then stir in the pine nuts and serve!
This is the sort of thing that tastes even better after a day or so in the fridge, though you need to bring it up to room temperature before eating.
This was also fun to make this time as the French beans I got in my veg box were a blackish-purple when raw, but slowly turned green as they were simmered!
(via apple, apples, car, fruit, green, road - inspiring picture on Favim.com)
seriously i have so many apples from the orchard right now what should i do with them?
make apple butter and apple pie! that’s what i do
Really tempted to buy a big pile of cooking apples at the farmers market and fill my freezer with stewed apple…
![[A bowl containing a stew of butter beans, sweetcorn, celery and carrots.]
Slow-cooked Succotash, from 125 Best Vegetarian Slow Cooker Recipes. This was made with locally-grown fresh vegetables and some delicious smoked Spanish paprika, though I stirred in a spoonful of yoghurt this time to take the edge off the spiciness.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lt49vwvgiZ1r3w3wlo1_1280.jpg)
[A bowl containing a stew of butter beans, sweetcorn, celery and carrots.]
Slow-cooked Succotash, from 125 Best Vegetarian Slow Cooker Recipes. This was made with locally-grown fresh vegetables and some delicious smoked Spanish paprika, though I stirred in a spoonful of yoghurt this time to take the edge off the spiciness.
![[close-up of a bowl of tomato soup with a spring of basil in the middle]
Creamy Tomato & Basil Soup (without the cream)(serves 2)
1 tbsp olive oil1 onion2 carrots1 small potato1 clove of garlic400g tin chopped tomatoes300ml vegetable stockSmall handful of fresh basil
Heat up the oil in a medium-sized saucepan. Chop the vegetables, add them to the pan, and fry gently until the onion has softened. Pour in the tomatoes and stir for a few minutes to heat through, then add the vegetable stock. Bring up to the boil, then cook on a fast simmer for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are all soft and compliant. Blend the soup (you may need to add a little extra water at this point if it’s too thick) then chop or tear up the basil, stir it in, and serve.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lsrdskyCJ71r3w3wlo1_1280.jpg)
[close-up of a bowl of tomato soup with a spring of basil in the middle]
Creamy Tomato & Basil Soup (without the cream)
(serves 2)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion
2 carrots
1 small potato
1 clove of garlic
400g tin chopped tomatoes
300ml vegetable stock
Small handful of fresh basil
Heat up the oil in a medium-sized saucepan. Chop the vegetables, add them to the pan, and fry gently until the onion has softened. Pour in the tomatoes and stir for a few minutes to heat through, then add the vegetable stock. Bring up to the boil, then cook on a fast simmer for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are all soft and compliant. Blend the soup (you may need to add a little extra water at this point if it’s too thick) then chop or tear up the basil, stir it in, and serve.
