You're a Vegetarian? What do you eat?

I am astonished sometimes by the things people ask me when they find out that we eat a plant based diet. People are always shocked (especially in Texas) that we don't eat any meat-ever. The top three things people ask are:

1. How do you get enough protein?
2. How do you get enough calcium?
3. What do you eat?

One and two are easy answers. First off, most Americans eat WAY too much protein and calcium, and unfortunately they usually don't eat high quality protein or calcium. The recommended daily intake values for protein are 58g/day for men and 46g/day for women; for calcium 1,000mg/day. To put this in perspective 1 cup of roasted chicken has 40g of protein, while 1 cup of 1% milk has 288 mg of calcium. As you can tell it's not too hard to get protein/calcium if you are eating a carnivorous diet. In fact it is easy to eat an excess of protein and calcium, which can actually be bad for you. Granted, it takes a little more planning to get enough protein and calcium if you are eating a plant based diet, but it is possible-and healthy. If you don't believe me here is the statement from the ADA:

"Scientific data suggest positive relationships between a vegetarian diet and reduced risk for several chronic degenerative diseases and conditions, including obesity, coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and some types of cancer. Vegetarian diets, like all diets, need to be planned appropriately to be nutritionally adequate."

It is the position of The American Dietetic Association (ADA) that "appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, are nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases."

The ADA continues, "Plant sources of protein alone can provide adequate amounts of essential amino acids if a variety of plant foods are consumed and energy needs are met. Research suggests that complementary proteins do not need to be consumed at the same time and that consumption of various sources of amino acids over the course of the day should ensure adequate nitrogen retention and use in healthy persons. Although vegetarian diets are lower in total protein and a vegetarian’s protein needs may be somewhat elevated because of the lower quality of some plant proteins, protein intake in both lacto-ovo-vegetarians and vegans appears to be adequate."

"Lacto-ovo-vegetarians have calcium intakes that are comparable to or higher than those of nonvegetarians. Calcium intakes of vegans, however, are generally lower than those of both lacto-ovo-vegetarians and omnivores. It should be noted that vegans may have lower calcium needs than nonvegetarians because diets that are low in total protein and more alkaline have been shown to have a calcium-sparing effect. Furthermore, when a person’s diet is low in both protein and sodium and regular weight-bearing physical activity is engaged in, his or her calcium requirements may be lower than those of a sedentary person who eats a standard Western diet. These factors, and genetic influences, may help explain variations in bone health that are independent of calcium intake."

So as you can tell, eating a well planned plant based diet, full of variety, is healthy; and in fact is better for you than the standard American diet that we are so accustomed to eating.


So on to my third point-What do you eat? Well, we eat a planned diet full of variety. We rarely eat the same thing twice in a month. I love eating a plant based diet. It has made me not only more conscious about what we are eating, but it has opened us up to a variety of foods that we would have not eaten otherwise. We love it, try it-I bet you'd love it too.

Here (in pictures) is what we have eaten over the last couple of days. If you would like the recipes on any of these let me know.

Garlic Spinach Mozzarella Bread and Sliced Cucumbers

Mixed Salad with Breaded Tofu

Fried Chinese Noodles and Simmered Tofu Teriyaki (not shown)

Sweet and Sour Peppers with Pasta Bows and Garlic Bread

Morningstar Farms Hickory BBQ Riblet Sandwich with Sweet Potato Fries and Mixed Greens

The rest of the menu for this week include:
Three Bean Rice Salad and Rolls
Moroccan Bulgur and Pita Bread

If you would like to see what we eat more often let me know...I'm more than happy to give ideas.