Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

My sister recently decided to become a vegetarian. She is also gluten & dairy free due to some health issues. I only eat chicken/turkey/fish (no other meats). My sister eats fish as well. She's currently living with us.

HELP! LOL. Her & I love to cook and invent new receipes or experiment with ones we find. We've been having a lot of fun finding new things- but of course it can be costly.

We bought Tempeh this weekend and want to experiment with that...any ideas? good books/websites you recommend? Stores you shop at?

Any advice/tips/ideas?

TIA!

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

I was a full blown vegetarian (no meat at all) but now I eat some chicken, some turkey and some fish. I have experience with dairy free but I do not know anything about gluten free.

I find shopping at Whole Foods is the best for a vegetarian/health restrictions. They have so many gluten free products, dairy free items, hard to find vegetarian items and you can also get small portions of fish or other proteins for the people in your house who do eat it. So I'd suggest Whole Foods. I never shop at Trader Joe's but from what I have heard, it would probably also be an option.

For cookbooks, I would go to a local library, find the cookbook section and just browse it. They have all the vegetarian and vegan books together and they also have sections for health restricted diets like dairy or gluten. See what appeals to you. I have heard "How To Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bittman is amazing. It is HUGE. However, I hate cookbooks with no pictures because I like to visually see the recipes first. But if you are ok with no pictures and just want recipes and/or information that would be a great starting point. It is like a textbook/encyclopedia. It is big!

I have liked many recipes from "the essential vegetarian cookbook". I don't know if there is an author attached to the book, but you can google it. It has an orange cover and asparagus is on the cover.

When I was full blown vegetarian, I personally stuck to a lot of beans, fruits and veggies and of course carbs!

Some of my favorite vegetarian dishes are:
-Vegetable Stirfry (which is great because you can modify this for all of you. You can add in some chicken or fish for those who eat it. Or serve it over rice for those who eat it. Or it can be a dish in itself for those who can't have the protein or the rice)
-Fried Eggplant & Eggplant Parm
-Mushroom (or cheese and mushroom) Pies
-Rice and Beans with Guacamole
-Squashes (acorn, butternut, spaghetti) tossed with fresh vegetables
-All pasta
-All salads (greek, mixed, asian, garden, caesar, cabbage, etc.)
-Mushroom and Pepper Fajitas
-Vegetarian Pot Pies!!! (i think this might be gluten and dairy free- wait minus the puff pastry part)

Good luck exploring!!

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

I love postpunkkitchen.com. I also use substitutions to my favorite meals when possible for example use vegan butter, soy milk, etc. I google what I want with vegan a lot and a bunch comes up.

Good luck!

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

Whole Foods is an excellent place to buy gluten free products and a number of Vegetarian items. You said she eats fish/ seafood and they have an excellent selection there too. For the dairy par,t pick up soy butter, Veganise ( vegan mayo) and soy milk. You can usually just substitute dairy in an a recipe with these. There are also dairy substitutes made out of rice/ almonds ( ie,, almond milk and cheese) You should check these out too and see what she likes best.
If she eats eggs play around with different egg white omelets. A great way to get cholesterol free protein. I'd also look into lots of bean recipes as they are gluten free. I also love a simple tofu/ veggie stir fry with brown rice. Asian cooking might be good for her as there is usually no dairy in the recipes.
I just discovered the website skinnytaste.com . They have lots of excellent Vegetarian, gluten free and seafood recipes.
Good luck

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

I'm not gluten free but I buy Amy's foods in the regular supermarket, also Quorn products are meatless and I love the taste. I don't eat soy.

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

I'm not veggie or anything, but I love tempeh. I slice it up or cube it, marinate it in soy, ginger and garlic and fry it lightly. I like to eat it on a sandwich or in a salad. I love tempeh!

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

check vegweb.com.. I always have find awesome stuff and it is all vegan

Re: Vegetarian/Vegan Girls...a few questions..

thanks for all the suggestions girls!!

I'll pass them all along to my sis!