meatless mondays

If you didn't catch Oprah recently, she and 378 staffers went vegan for a week. As you may have already gathered, in our household, I am vegetarian and Husband is not. Usually our difference in eating habits isn't really inconvenient, but sometimes I wish that I could just make one veggie meal all the time and not have to worry about factoring in Husband's meat component.

So here's what I have in mind, Monday shall now be known as Meatless Monday in our home (surprise, Husband!), for a few reasons:

1) Veggie meals can usually be made on the cheap.

2) Husband could use more veg and fibre in his diet.

3) One less day each week I have to prepare meat.

4) It's our small way to lessen the demand on the Earth's resources.

In addition to Husband going meat free with me for one day each week, I'm going to start eating vegan one day a week. I'm not going to say it'll be the same day every week, since leftovers and such really dictate our meal plan. But I was really inspired by the health benefits outlined on Oprah's show. I want to learn how to incorporate protein into my diet without the use of animal products, like cheese, eggs, yogurt and butter. Has anyone out there tried nutritional yeast?

My sister-in-law C has been eating a quasi-vegan diet for more than a year now, after discovering an allergy to lactose, dairy and all milk ingredients. She uses many substitutes in her diet, including vegan margarine and fake chocolate chips. In adapting her eating habits, she's discovered many products that taste like the real thing.

Preparing for this change, I hit up Google for some recommendations and stumbled upon this blog where a husband and wife team are cooking their way through the Betty Crocker Cookbook and veganizing all of the recipes. Lots of great ideas here!

Have you ever adapted your food choices for a certain diet? How did it work out for you? Any vegans out there have any tips to share?