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Vegetarian Kids Meals?
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Anonymous
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DD just decided she's a vegetarian (no meat), in light of Thanksgiving. Any menu ideas (and must haves!) to ensure we get what we need (ie: vitamins, minerals, et al) and are eating and growing properly? I plan to also consult with her ped, but thought I'd ask fellow veg moms also. Thanks! |
Anonymous
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The Vegetarian Resource Group has a lot of good health info on vegetarianism and recipes: www.vrg.org
If your DD is vegetarian and not vegan, you really don't have much to worry about. Maybe keep an eye on iron sources (some fortified cereals are actually a good source of iron), but if she's into eggs and dairy, you don't have to worry about calcium or protein. If she's vegan you might want to keep an eye on B12 as well. Personally, I eat a lot of hummus, black beans, flax seed mixed in with my oatmeal, eggs, yogurt, and TONS of fresh fruit and veggies. It's easy to be a teenage vegetarian and eat nothing but mac & cheese and french fries, so just make sure she's getting a variety of foods. This could actually be a great lesson for her in learning how to eat well. Have her read food labels to look for nutrients, fat levels, hidden animal ingredients, etc. |
Anonymous
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Lowish fat black bean burritos. Saute some olive oil, garlic, diced green peppers, onions. Rinse a can of black beans. Maybe add some corn. Mix. Layer into a tortilla with some shredded cheddar cheese and your favorite salsa. Spray a baking dish with Pam, and heat through (about 15 minutes) in the oven. Yum.
Agree with adding beans and legumes to the diet -- black beans, chick peas, lentils, etc. |
Anonymous
| whatever you do, do not get a tofurkey, it is horrible. May veg friendly stuffing with veggie boullion, spices bread celery and onions. What about a mushroom gravy for mashed potatoes. No sense in making a second meal, just add on to your meal. |
Anonymous
| We give our child a liquid vitamin and mineral supplement that includes iron, and we follow many of the food suggestions above. We also buy eggs that have high omega-3 levels due to the flaxseed in the hens' diet. Quorn is a meat substitute that actually tastes good and is made with mycoprotein and no soy. DC has had no problems with growth or hemoglobin levels and is very healthy. |
Anonymous
| We love The Vegetarian Family Cookbook. Lots of great recipes everybody can enjoy (including some vegan). |
Anonymous
| I have a friend who makes a nut loaf for the vegetarians on Thanksgiving. |
Anonymous
| We buy a Quorn roast and make a terrific marinade with sherry. I have to beat off the meat-eaters with a stick to stay away from my meal! |
Anonymous
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Some options:
Peanut Butter soup Lentil's and Rice Butternut Squash and Apple Soup |
Anonymous
| Seconding the Quorn roast....if you want a turkey substitute on Thanksgiving, this wins easily over any Tofurky or nut loaf type option, in my opinion. It's also not enormous/won't take forever to eat. |
Anonymous
Yeah, their sliced products are not so bad, but I don't see how they can still sell the big Tofurkey chunk thing. It's foul. (Pun kind of intended- couldn't resist.) |
Anonymous
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The NY Times has a ton of veggie recipes in their Recipes for Health section. And I think they are putting up lots of vegetarian side dish recipes for thanksgiving.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/series/recipes_for_health/index.html |
Anonymous
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Vegetarian, here. We love our Tofurkey! If you have leftovers, you can cube and dry them and then use them as erasers. Earth-friendly!
Our last vegetarian Thanksgiving included: baked squash with brown sugar; mashed potatoes with wasabi; vegetarian stuffing with cranberries and nuts; spinach, brown rice, and feta bake; Tofurkey for the traditionalists; quorn chicken breast" strips Piccata (roux with lemon juice and capers). Bread rolls, homemade soy pumpkin ice cream, apple pie, three hours of sitting on the couch, consumed by shame and regret that we ate all of it. |
Anonymous
LOL! Another vegetarian here, and I'll second this. Though I will say it's maybe worth doing just once because the stuff is so weird. |
Anonymous
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We usually have a lentil loaf for Thanksgiving. Or, I just stirfry tofu with vegetarian gravy as our turkey replacement.
And - don't forget squash!! We live off of squash in the fall and through winter. LOVE butternut squash. You can add it to anything, put anything on top and it's delicious. We put it in pasta, rice, as a gratin with onions and herbs, etc....DD also loves spaghetti squash. And sweet potatoes. We eat lots of chickpeas (hummus, falafel, etc) and lentils. Also - check out the LA Times article on raising kids veg: http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-vegetarian-kids9-2009nov09,0,4323261.story |