A new beginning

About two years into our marriage, my husband revealed to me that he thought meat was "weird," especially ground meat of any kind. There was actually a heirachy of weirdness. From most weird to least weird:

1. eggs

2. ground meat

3. pork

4. chicken

5. beef

The weirdness was exponentially exacerbated if

a) the meat had been cooked the day before and refrigerated, and became inedible if it was

b) microwaved to reheat it.

However, the heirachy of weirdness could be superceded if:

a) the meat was prepared in a delicious, technically superior way, or

b) there was enough flavor or hot sauce to cover the taste of the meat.

Thus began our journey of a thousand vegetarian recipes. I began renting cookbooks from the library and perusing online recipe banks for vegetarian recipes. In the beginning, it was rocky, but over the last couple of years has become a happy lifestyle for our family. We eat vegetarian 90% of the time, including fish about once a week (fish does not fall into a "weird" category unless microwaved). The other 10% is primarily composed of one thing-- Buffalo chicken pizza (because it falls into the "hot sauce/flavor covers the chicken" exception). In addition, we almost always order meat at restaurants and have no problem eating meat at other people's houses. You could call us social carnivores. But at home, veggies and whole grains rule!

Additionally, I feel our family is better following the mandate to "eat meat sparingly" from the Word of Wisdom of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Most people only concentrate on the no alcohol/coffee/tobacco stuff, and totally overlook the guidance regarding the food we eat-- grains being the staff of life and fruits and vegetables to be eaten with "prudence and thanksgiving." As a marathon runner, I especially appreciate the promise associated with the Word of Wisdom, that I will "run and not be weary, and walk and not faint."

This blog will be for recipes only. It is not to showcase any photography skills and it is not my second business. IT is just to share my favorite recipes with those of you who want to add in more meatless meals to your rotation. I will try to keep editorializing down to one paragraph per entry, and there will only be one photograph per entry as well.

Enjoy!