Vegetarianism & Simple / Minimalist Living

Homemade fried rice with cabbage, eggs & Tofurkey

There are many reasons to go vegetarian. One reason is that it's simpler. I'm not a strict vegetarian, though I used to be several years ago. I now eat fish & seafood on occasion due to anemia. Years ago, however, after being a strict vegetarian, I reverted to eating also chicken and pork due to lack of discipline & social acceptance. It was not always easy or cheap to find tasty, healthy vegetarian dishes when out. Most restaurants would have just overpriced salads & unheathy carbs. At home, I cook 3 dishes on average at a time, but found it annoying to cook extra vegetarian dishes as well.

Yet recently, I discovered that the trick is to cook 2 vegetarian dishes and one meat dish for the hubby. When just cooking for myself, I cook/prepare quick dishes, like cheese ravioli (I eat dairy, eggs and once in a while I cheat with clams & mussels as they don't seem to suffer as more complex animals, though I probably will stop oneday) fruit & veggie salads with mozzarella, whole grain English muffins etc. Attached are photos of these for inspiration. As for eating out, I either eat before leaving home, carry a vegetarian snack or eat by myself at a vegetarian-friendly restaurant & meet with friends after dinner if the restaurant they're eating at doesn't have a healthy veggie often.

The only battle left is fending off pushiness & ill-founded, comments from some people that are not respectful of my life choices, such as you should try everythin, you don't know if you like it until you try, It's unhealthy and you won't be strong if you don't eat meat. No matter what reason I give them, they are still pushy. It is so rude because I rarely ever make comments about their or others choice to consume meat.

In any case, I do feel that you have to give a little more thought and plan at first until you get a hang of the vegetarian diet. Cooking vegetarian is healthier because left over, uncooked vegetables can be stored in the freezer for months and they retain nutrients. Meat spoils quickly, and there is always the risk of ecoli and other bacteria. Veggie dishes also cook quicker, although you have to consider preparation time.

Tasty vegetarian protein options
I have found that since I no longer eat meat and rarely eat seafood, I have felt tired at times due to lack of protein and B vitamins. In comes Whole Foods to save the day, as I discovered 2 very tasty veggie protein options: Gimme Lean "sausage"  and "ground beef" (tastes almost like the real thing) and Odwalla protein shakes (not grainy, except the original flavor). I also add nutritional yeast to my veggie dishes for extra protein and B vitamins. These three products cost less than $6 each.

Please post your simple recipes and suggestions, and how you feel that vegetarianism aids in your simpler lifestyle.