Anyone vegetarian or vegan?

So, I am a meat-lovin' fool! AND, I love to cook...it's one of my major retreats everyday. I love to make yummy food and plan great menus for my family. Here's my problem. I had to cut dairy for Greta. She has a sensitivity to it and I am breastfeeding. I was so sad to make this adjustment. It meant no cheese! To my surprise, within one week of cutting it I felt amazing. All of my tummy complaints (bloating, random stomach aches, constipation etc.) were completely gone. My skin looked better and I've lost tons of weight since cutting it (3 months now). To stay motivated to leave it out of my diet while breastfeeding I began reading about the benefits of not eating dairy...which lead to a little reading about being vegetarian. Just out of morbid curiosity..I began researching what all the fuss was about with the veg-heads claims about our meat supply. Here's a tip: If you don't want to be a vegetarian, don't look into where your meat comes from.

I'm seriously struggling with this decision. I can't imagine putting this meat into the bodies of my precious babies. I don't know what to do. I do all the cooking so I'd have to keep cooking meat for DH and older kids...they can make the decision on their own. However, I can make the decision to go veggie for me and my girls.

Are you vegetarian? How do you cook for your kids? What are the challenges (be honest...I want to know)? What are the benefits?

We are going veg for 30 days in this house so I'll learn a lot of the pitfalls their but want to know from others too.

 

We're not vegetarians, but I absolutely will not buy most of the meat that goes through the grocery store. I've done too much research on that kind of thing. There are several farms in our area that grow chickens and pigs, so we've been able to put in several orders. These animals have a better life than I do, they're outside, and they're eating food that is appropriate for them. It's a lot more expensive, but as far as I'm concerned, it is totally worth it. I believe there is a website called localharvest.org, or eatwild.org (possibly .com) or you could google CSA (community supported agriculture) to find any farms in your area.

 

I know Holly (fuschiagroan) is, so I bet she will chime in.

If I think about the topic for more than five minutes, I know I'll never want to eat meat again....so, I essentially stick my fingers in my ears and go lalalalalala....kudos to you for looking into this!

 

Hi there! My DH and I were vegetarians who occasionally eat fish/seafood for 8+ years now. We eat dairy products, but mostly just yogurt and cheese. While I was pregnant, I started craving meat, and I also ready a very good book about our food supply chain called The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. (I have talked about this book on this forum before but it really is that good!) Basically, we started introducing meat back into our diet but only on a very limited basis (once a week at the most). And like the PP, we only buy locally, humanely raised meat. It's not as hard as you might think! Find a local natural foods cooperative to get started.

We've really been examining our diet lately as we introduce our babies to solids, and as I am trying to lose the last 10 lbs of baby weight. We were very often "bad" vegetarians: after all, chips and ice cream are meat-free! But now that we have become role models we are trying very hard to be aware of what we are eating all the time.

When we first became veggies, we would buy a lot of fake meat products because we missed the meat so much. But after a while, we came to prefer how things like stir-fry, enchiladas, fajitas, casseroles, soups, you name it, taste without the meat. We always include a lot of legumes and nuts in our diet, as well as tofu. LOVE tofu. (Hated it first time I tried it but it grew on me.)

Here is a very simple recipe for "Tofu Fries" which we eat at least twice a week and is a great food for kids:

Cut up 1 lb extra-firm tofu into french fries. Thinner for crunchy fries, thicker for chewy fries. Toss with salt, pepper, olive oil. Bake in oven at 450 degrees for 10 minutes, flip, then 10 more minutes. Time can vary according to how crunchy you like them (you may have to experiment the first couple of batches). Dip in ketchup to serve. SO YUMMY!

I would definitely recommend more of a gradual approach to vegetarianism, and look into the "locavore" movement for the meat that you do eat. That way you can cook food for your entire family. Cooking separate "meat" and "veggie" meals would personally drive me nuts!

Get a good vegetarian cookbook too. One that I have had my eyes on lately is "How to cook everything Vegetarian" (just came out in late 2007). I also have a well-worn "1,000 vegetarian recipes" book. Exploring other ethnicities where vegetarians are more common helps too: Indian and Thai food are great for veggie deliciousness.

OK, signing off on this manifesto. PM me if you want to ask me anything!

PS: ok one more thing: I used to LOVE meat too, when I was growing up.

 

QUOTE(Becca34 @ Mar 3 2008, 12:41 PM) [snapback]650459[/snapback]
I know Holly (fuschiagroan) is, so I bet she will chime in.

If I think about the topic for more than five minutes, I know I'll never want to eat meat again....so, I essentially stick my fingers in my ears and go lalalalalala....kudos to you for looking into this!


:rotflmbo: me too! I love my bacon too much to do that research.

GL to the OP! I know there are couple of veg moms on here so hopefully they'll help you out.

 

Thank you for the info! I'll look into all of it. I too was saying "I have to stop thinking about and researching this meat issue or I'll never be able to eat meat again..." now I'm thinking "If I have to avoid knowing how this food gets to me...why on earth would I put it in my body"...maybe it'll pass but for now I'm officially disgusted. I'll try it for a bit and buy meat from local sources until I can make an official decision.

Any other veg moms?

 

I dont eat chicken (its too gross raw for me to eat cooked!). I was a veggie for about 5 yrs but now I just eat pork and ground turkey mostly.

Dont watch the movie Fast Food Nation, its visuals of the meat! YUCK!! I rented it when I was still in the nausea stage of my pregnancy and threw up for hours then couldnt eat for days.

I think this is one of those issues that IF you can turn a blind eye then you will have no problem eating meat. I know I cant research it or think about it or even see it raw or I wont eat it.

 

I'm another of the 'eat locally' people. We don't cook beef or chicken very often, but when we do it's always local and/or organic. I love the book The Omnivore's Dilemna; it really got me thinking about why we as Americans eat so much food that is not really all that good for us. My husband and I have always liked beans, nuts and grains, so removing most of the meat from our diet wasn't hard. We hardly miss it, and my goal is that my girls will never know what they're missing.

I have to admit that when we do eat meat it's for something decadent like bacon (there's a local farmer who has organic nitrite-free bacon nearby) or a burger (again, local humanely-raised beef).

Ok... now that you've done the research on meat, be careful... the research is addictive! Once I started thinking about meat, that led me to research other foods and why we should or shouldn't eat them. My personal crusade now is all of the foods that contain preservatives, chemicals and food coloring. I did a month long test to see if I could only eat natural foods (ie - no ingredients that I couldn't pronounce). It was harder than I thought, but I felt so good.

 

QUOTE(girls! @ Mar 3 2008, 05:15 PM) [snapback]650407[/snapback]
Are you vegetarian? How do you cook for your kids? What are the challenges (be honest...I want to know)?
What are the benefits?


Hi there! As a veggie Mom just wanted to tell you it is possible to eat well and not eat meat! I have
been a vegetarian for about 20 years, so I decided when I had my babies that I could not (would not)
feed them animals. I did alot of research on line to find out what I would need to feed them to ensure
they were not lacking in any sort of nutrients (I don't pay that much attention to what I eat unfortunately!)
My favorite sites were:
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/infant.html
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/veggiefruit.htm

The only challenge (if it could even be called that) was when I introduced them to solids, I made
the baby food myself. So the cleaning and prep took some time; but it was SO worth it knowing
I was giving my babies healthy, fresh and organic fruits/veggies.
They were introduced to a wide variety of veggies at an early age and to this day I have no problems
with them not eating them......

The benefits are many; and really depend on your reasons for going veg.....like you, once I learned where
meat came from, I could no longer eat it.....I feel good knowing that my boys are as healthy as they are
and they have never relied on the flesh of an animal to sustain them. I feel good knowing they eat a wide
variety of foods and are willing to try anything I make for them. I feel good that I am raising them to have
kindness for all animals, that a cow will always be a cow and never a hamburger, and a pig will always
be a pig, never bacon.....I could go on and on and on; but I am sure you get where I am coming from.

Good luck on your 30 days meat-free! :good:

 

I'm a vegetarian and my oldest eats chicken, dh eats meat (out of my house.) Biggest challenge - eating out. The kids are stuck with grilled cheese and mac & cheese or pasta when going out. At home there are so many vegetarian meats that are tasty and nutrition that you can prepare just like meat! But there are so many nutritious meals that can be made without using meat or even fake meat. And tofu can be yummy!! I also made their baby food and it was no hassle but I was THRILLED to have them on table food so I could stop it.

 

That's cool that you and the girls are going veg!

DH and I have been vegetarian for years. I'd go vegan, but I am hopelessly addicted to cheese, yogurt, and eggs. I had to give up dairy for a while (possible milk protein allergy in DD) and it just about killed me.

My babies eat pretty much everything we do by now (except dairy, since I'm still waiting to find out DD's allergy status, and salty processed stuff). They love table food (Greek lentil soup, chickpeas and rice, kale soup, etc), they love legumes (mashed black beans on toast is a popular snack), and they are crazy about marinated tofu and veggie burgers. They also go nuts for soy milk, though I only give them a little bit occasionally, since I want them to get their milk from me.

So far, we haven't had any real challenges. They're doing great.

Just a couple things that come to mind -

Whenever you say the word "vegetarian" to most people, they gasp "But how do you get enough protein?" You've probably read all about this, but protein is really the least of your worries. It's everywhere. You'd pretty much have to eat a diet of all fruit not to get enough protein. What you do want to watch out for is iron. Make sure you & the kids are eating enough legumes and dark leafy greens. It's best if you can pair them with a source of vitamin C (tomato, peppers, glass of OJ), since this helps you absorb the iron better.

Since Greta's going to have to be vegan (unless she outgrows her sensitivity), you'll also want to keep an eye on calcium and fat intake. I don't know how long you're thinking of nursing - as long as she's nursing a lot, you'll have her bases covered that way. But if she weans, or doesn't nurse as much, then you may have to get creative. There are good plant sources of calcium, I just can't remember them off the top of my head. :blush: If soy is not an option, you could give her rice milk. And babies/toddlers need a lot of fat for healthy neurological development, which (as you've discovered!) is hard to get if you're vegan. I'd make sure she gets plenty of things like avocado, nut butter (once she's old enough - or sunflower seed butter til then), etc.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes.

 

QUOTE(girls! @ Mar 3 2008, 12:15 PM) [snapback]650407[/snapback]
Are you vegetarian? How do you cook for your kids? What are the challenges (be honest...I want to know)? What are the benefits?

We are going veg for 30 days in this house so I'll learn a lot of the pitfalls their but want to know from others too.

Just wanted to chime in here that my DH and I have been vegetarians for a long time (no meat, chicken, fish, just fruits and vegetables!). My husband has been one his entire life and I've been one for the past twenty years. My DH won't eat a fried egg and he wouldn't eat an egg buried in a brownie when he was young but he has eased up on that. We do drink milk and eat cheese and yogurt in our house. We are raising our children as vegetarians too. My DH was born in India but moved here when he was a young child and basically grew up vegetarian in America.

Right now, I am nursing, making our own baby food and supplementing with Earth's Best glass jar food as well. My kids are full-term but small so I give them a lot of whole milk organic yogurt and other high nutrient, high calorie foods -- organic cream cheese is another favorite. I also cook lentils and rice with apples, sweet potatoes, and so on

I love to cook too and I adapt a lot of "regular" recipes to be vegetarian. When a recipe calls for bacon I usually use some adobo sauce (from a can of chiles in adobo sauce) to give the dish a bit of a smoky taste and more depth. There is an egg substitute that you can get at Whole Foods and other grocery chains that is made of tapioca flour and potato starch. I use that for most of my baking. Aside from eating green vegetables, we eat a lot of legumes cooked all different ways.

After all these years, I really only miss eating fish now and then. It isn't a hardship for us at all. It will be interesting though to see what happens when our kids are older and they want to have a burger!

Good luck to you!

 

Thanks so much for all the tips and advice! Fun stuff!

 

I'm a weird mishmash of vegetarian/vegan. I was completely vegan when I got pregnant - meat by choice and dairy because of allergies - but, during the pregnancy, my lactose intolerance lessened so I ate the occassional dairy. I've just met with a dietician about raising the boys vegan or vegetarian and I decided, for now, that just vegetarian is ok with rare dairy. I don't think I'll ever go back to eating meat (have been vegie since '90) but it seemed so difficult to get the requisite fat and nutrients into the boys without dairy. When they get older and want to eat meat, we'll talk then but I won't be shy telling them exactly what they want to eat. I'm going to start adding legumes and tofu to their diet any day now. I really really hope they like them or I'm scr*wed.

By the way, I always tell people that I went 40 weeks and had 2 seven pounders on a mostly vegan diet so don't let anybody tell you you need to eat meat for a healthy pregnancy.