Mostly vegetarian with kids - do you cook meat on your kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

[Anonymous]

I'm not sorry for admitted that the cooking 'on' folks made me spit out my coffee this AM with laughter.
I loved the "try a fattier cut" response! LOL for days

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

My kid eats cheese, but unlike many kids, she also has had expose to a large range of different foods and doesn’t specifically need Velveeta on white bread with crusts off. Which, I would also feed her, because it’s tasty, but she certainly doesn’t need a steady diet of it.

You may also be surprised by how tasty tofu “ricotta” is. Even my picky, German ILs ask for it when they visit. Live a little, you may find out that Annie’s Mac and cheese isn’t the be all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Cowboy caviar is just a corn and bean salad. You might be thinking of Rocky Mountain oysters.

[Anonymous]

Is it too hard to not force your crazy ideology on your kids?

Apparently it is. Sad!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it too hard to not force your crazy ideology on your kids?

Apparently it is. Sad!

How is it "crazy ideology" to not eat meat other than seafood a couple times a week? To me, it is sad that you are so unimaginative.

OP, I was raised vegetarian. It sounds like you should work on getting your kid some additional protein. Beans, lentils, and yogurt are all good options. Otherwise, your menu sounds fine. Ignore the haters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it too hard to not force your crazy ideology on your kids?

Apparently it is. Sad!

+1. Still getting over nutritional yeast as a cheese substitute. Lol. What planet is this mom from?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

My kid eats cheese, but unlike many kids, she also has had expose to a large range of different foods and doesn’t specifically need Velveeta on white bread with crusts off. Which, I would also feed her, because it’s tasty, but she certainly doesn’t need a steady diet of it.

You may also be surprised by how tasty tofu “ricotta” is. Even my picky, German ILs ask for it when they visit. Live a little, you may find out that Annie’s Mac and cheese isn’t the be all.

Sorry hun, Velveeta isn’t cheese either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

My kid eats cheese, but unlike many kids, she also has had expose to a large range of different foods and doesn’t specifically need Velveeta on white bread with crusts off. Which, I would also feed her, because it’s tasty, but she certainly doesn’t need a steady diet of it.

You may also be surprised by how tasty tofu “ricotta” is. Even my picky, German ILs ask for it when they visit. Live a little, you may find out that Annie’s Mac and cheese isn’t the be all.

Sorry hun, Velveeta isn’t cheese either.

Do you actually feel anything whooshing over your head, or do you generally have comprehension and extrapolation issues?

[Anonymous]

OP here. I’m sorry this thread turned into an argument. I’m not the tofu/nutritional yeast poster, though I have no problem with either of those foods. I also don’t have a problem with meat eaters. I was always a fan of meat, but just found I lost my taste for it after being pregnant. I hate handling and cooking raw meat now, though I still eat it occasionally. OP is also cutting down on meat, I’m not sure why.

Thanks to the posters who offered advice. The beans and legumes are a good add and I always forget about those. Today’s menu:

Breakfast: apple cinnamon oatmeal with milk
Snack: rest of oatmeal with raisins, 1/2 banana with dab mixed nut butter
Lunch: whole wheat spinach black bean quesadilla, strawberries, sauteed sweet potato slices
Snack
Dinner: I actually bought ground beef! I don’t have to handle it much, I’ll just dump it in a pot with onions and jarred no-salt marinera and put over wheat pasta.

[Anonymous]

^ I meant to say that DH is also cutting down on meat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

My kid eats cheese, but unlike many kids, she also has had expose to a large range of different foods and doesn’t specifically need Velveeta on white bread with crusts off. Which, I would also feed her, because it’s tasty, but she certainly doesn’t need a steady diet of it.

You may also be surprised by how tasty tofu “ricotta” is. Even my picky, German ILs ask for it when they visit. Live a little, you may find out that Annie’s Mac and cheese isn’t the be all.

Sorry hun, Velveeta isn’t cheese either.

Do you actually feel anything whooshing over your head, or do you generally have comprehension and extrapolation issues?

I think you’re just testy bc your body is craving something other than...cowboy caviar, nutritional yeast and basil (aka “cheese” in your mind), and tofu. I feel so bad for your kid. Is she starving? It’s ok to eat real foods!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, eating fish and seafood every few days leaves you nowhere near vegetarian. You sound pescatarian at least so there’s that. Fish and seafood are animal meats, with the same sort of protein and B12 benefits.

Aside from that, my 2 year old, living in a completely omnivorous house, eats more “vegetarian” foods than it would appear your child does. We serve a lot of hummus, white bean dips, etc., plus roasted chickpeas, “cowboy caviar” with pita at lunch, tofu in a bajillion different combinations (eg. In stir fry, breaded with panko, and baked in nuggets, crumbled up with nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute). We make a lot of vegetable curries (eg. Spinach, butternut squash, chickpea), dal, falafel, lentil patties, etc.

We do a clear “meatless Monday”, but many other of our dinner meals are vegetarian. DD may or may not eat the meat portion of dinner that day, but I know she gets lots of nutrients the rest of the day.

She also JUST started drinking milk at 2.5, but would normally have 1 serving of cheese and 1 serving of yogurt a day.

Yuckto all her foods! Poor kid. Why wasn’t she drinking milk before 2.5?

I think those foods sound delicious!

Really? Cowboy caviar? Nutritional yeast and basil as a cheese substitute? Tofu? Gross. This sounds like some paleo, new age crap.

Why can’t you just eat white bread bologna sandwiches and meat and potatoes like a good American?

Or .... cheese?

Nutritional yeast is not a cheese substitute. Not a good one.

My kid eats cheese, but unlike many kids, she also has had expose to a large range of different foods and doesn’t specifically need Velveeta on white bread with crusts off. Which, I would also feed her, because it’s tasty, but she certainly doesn’t need a steady diet of it.

You may also be surprised by how tasty tofu “ricotta” is. Even my picky, German ILs ask for it when they visit. Live a little, you may find out that Annie’s Mac and cheese isn’t the be all.

Sorry hun, Velveeta isn’t cheese either.

Do you actually feel anything whooshing over your head, or do you generally have comprehension and extrapolation issues?

I think you’re just testy bc your body is craving something other than...cowboy caviar, nutritional yeast and basil (aka “cheese” in your mind), and tofu. I feel so bad for your kid. Is she starving? It’s ok to eat real foods!

And I think you’re testy because you don’t have a grasp on the English language.

I already said our house is completely omnivorous. I also said that my DD consumes dairy daily. She just hasn’t drank milk, which was her preference. I even indicated that she now does.

So, because you have some kind of grudge against anyone who might seem to prefer vegetables: We are having friends /families over tomorrow for ribs, steak, beer, wine, whisky..whatever. I’d invite you, but there will also be cowboy caviar, whit bean dip, and a bunch of other things with home made pita, crackers, and tortillas, and apparently that’s awful in your mind. I won’t lose a wink over your opinions of me, while completely enjoyingeating any of them. And I trust, neither will the children and normal adults joining us.

I don’t see how one thing in your mind precludes another? Because we enjoy tofu, we somehow don’t like “real food”. Seems you need to understand that MANY cultures enjoy and thrive on vegetarian fare. Tofu has long been a “real food”, as are legumes. I provided options to serve them in a toddler friendly manner, all of which are balanced and appropriate, because that was OPs question.

So, maybe it’s maybe you that needs some self examination. Are you really that threatened by tofu? Do you work as a lobbyist for the diary or cattle industry?

But hey, it doesn’t bug me if you enjoy bologna on Wonder bread. I know what I feed, and it’s plenty “real” food enough for me. I’ll enjoy my reduced cardiovascular risk.

[Anonymous]

People who are hung up on “mostly vegetarian” are funny.

I realize many people think of “vegetarian” as a personal identifier.

Personally, I think of it in terms of diet.

So, someone who eats “mostly vegetarian” would be a person who eats, say 80% meat-free meals.

A vegetarian meal, or a vegetarian diet... not a vegetarian person.