Help! I need some recipes without Meat or Dairy

[DanielSchumacher]

Howdy,

It's been a while since I've been on but it looks like things have been lively. I've decided to eat vegan for a month for Cottage Living's blog, The Front Burner, and I'd love some of your suggestions! Do you all have any recipes or sites you visit when you don't feel like eating meat (or dairy)?

I've been doing it a week so far and it's gone well. I have a big sweet tooth and miss baked goods badly. Thanks!

[Polly Snowbush]

Health reasons have dictated a low fat, non-dairy diet so this site has been a great help. http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook:Vegan_cuisine

Now drink soy milk and even oils are restricted. I sneak in safflower and olive oils. Use celery seed instead of salt. Pepper, in all its' varieties, is a mainstay. A lot of fish cooked in this kitchen using fresh herbs. Hard to get away from egg white use. Turkey everything if we want meat. Amazing what you can do with Tofu. Just love to add fresh ginger into dishes. Shop a lot at ethnic stores especially Oriental & Asian.

http://www.veganchef.com/ndchoco.htm What would life be without chocolate - for your summer sweet tooth.:rolleyes:

[Memmey]

Hey Daniel, What you mean? what you mean you don't eat no meat..I'll cook you some lamb....:p

I don't eat meat only seafood and just a tiny bit of eggs but lots of cheese.:o
Soy works perfect to take the place of milk IMO.

Saute some onion, garlic, fresh zucchini and mushrooms with a little white wine and red pepper flakes , sea salt and fresh parsley. Toss that with a good pasta and viola! Don't forget to have a nice glass of wine and listen to a little Bel Canto while you cook.

[cheapdiva]

Pesto and pasta - just cook the pasta and toss with pesto! Summer veggies cooked with a little oil in the frying pan and then served over couscous - YUM!! Peanut noodles (spicy and quick) are delicious. Happy to provide a recipe for this if interested.

Can you do seafood? Do vegan's do fish? I could (probably) become a vegetarian if I didn't have to give up seafood. And I have to have dairy - LOVE milk (heck, I'm from Wisconsin:()), cheese and life without ice cream? I'd rather die.

[windswept]

This is one of my favorite vegetarian recipes, I make it often and it has won over numerous carnivores. It can easily be made vegan by either substituting soy cheese, or just eliminating the cheese. Its so flavorful, that the cheese wouldn't be missed. Corn or flour tortillas can be used, just make sure to check the ingredients first ;)

Black Bean & Rice Enchiladas

1 green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1/4 cup picante sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 cups cooked brown rice
8 (6 inch) corn tortillas, warmed
1 cup salsa
1 cup reduced fat shredded Cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
In a large nonstick skillet, saute the green pepper, onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add the beans, tomatoes, picante sauce, chili powder, cumin and red pepper flakes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until heated through and mixture thickens. Add rice; cook 5 minutes longer or until heated through.
Spoon a rounded 1/2 cup down the center of each tortilla. Fold sides over filling and roll up. Place in a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Spoon salsa over each tortilla. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese and cilantro. Bake 2-3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

[dedavis]

Since I went dairy free (except for butter) and cut way back on sugar, I've found a lot of good ideas from the Specific Carbohydrate Diet cookbooks and website: http://scdrecipes.com/recipes/
You'll have to scroll through them to find the ones without dairy or meat.

Indian and Thai cooking is delicious and often vegan. You won't miss the meat or dairy.

Deb

[dedavis]

Ooops, wrong link. Try this: http://scdrecipe.com

[DanielSchumacher]

Thanks for all the advice! I can't wait to try the fresh zucchini pasta.

To answer one of the big questions, vegans don't eat any animal products (red meat, chicken, fish, dairy. Even honey.)

You can read about my experience at The Front Burner (http://frontburner.cottageliving.com), but so far the hardest thing for me has been cheese. I really miss cheese. And buffalo wings (I never ate them, but I've been craving them for 4 days). Hamburgers. Ice cream. I can still eat Tater Tots, though.

Hey Daniel, What you mean? what you mean you don't eat no meat..I'll cook you some lamb....:p

I don't eat meat only seafood and just a tiny bit of eggs but lots of cheese.:o
Soy works perfect to take the place of milk IMO.

Saute some onion, garlic, fresh zucchini and mushrooms with a little white wine and red pepper flakes , sea salt and fresh parsley. Toss that with a good pasta and viola! Don't forget to have a nice glass of wine and listen to a little Bel Canto while you cook.

[ChapterTwo]

Hi Daniel,

I'm a vegetarian - Have you tried soy cheese to fill the void?
Tomorrow I'll list a recipe for you...

ChapterTwo

[DanielSchumacher]

Thanks Chapter II, I can't wait for the recipe. As far as soy cheese goes, I tried some last night on what turned out to be some pretty decent pizza (roasted zucchini, sun dried tomatoes, red peppers, and broccoli with cheddar flavored soy cheese).

The "cheese" didn't really taste like much but felt weird to the touch (a bit like a brain. I mean I've never touched a brain, but that's what I'd imagine it feels like). Not that there's anything wrong with raw food feeling weird (ground turkey, anyone?).

Do you have a favorite brand? Have you tried almond cheese? My roommate made almond milk for the first time a few weeks ago and it was amazing.

[cheapdiva]

Daniel -
Do you often fantasize about feeling brains? HA! What the heck is almond milk and how do you "make" it? What about coconut milk - that doesn't come from cows in Hawaii!!??

[Polly Snowbush]

1 cup roasted almonds to 4 cups water in a tightly closed jar. Refrigerate for one day and then cheese cloth strain. Had to look that up. Well my jar is set with a vanilla stick in it. Going to make pudding. Glazed rasberries on top.

Soy - same song, different verse.

Would like to try one of those ice creams on a stick.....

Couldn't live Vegan. Goats milk becoming the new choice for drinking. Ah to get it fresh and unmessed with.

[DanielSchumacher]

Daniel -
Do you often fantasize about feeling brains? HA! What the heck is almond milk and how do you "make" it? What about coconut milk - that doesn't come from cows in Hawaii!!??

No, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about feeling brains. Not much more than the average person, I guess. Here's another recipe for almond milk. It was quite time consuming but worth it. Just make sure you chill it before drinking.

http://happyfoody.blogspot.com/2006/08/homemade-almond-milk.html

[Evelyn]

Here is newest, favorite recipe for Eggplant Parmesan. It is made with all fresh ingredients!
You'll need to swap out the fresh mozzarella Daniel.....

10 large roma tomato's, sliced in half
3/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, coarse chopped
16 large basil leaves
3 pounds eggplant; recipe recommends japanese.....but I can't always get them.
2 tsp salt
2 Tblsp balsamic vinegar
12 ounces mozzarella thinly sliced; preferrably fresh
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese.....oops....another cheese. sorry!!

Arrange tomato's face down on a roasting pan. Heat 1/2 cup of the olive oil in a separate pan, add the garlic and cook until the garlic is golden. Pour the oil/garlic over the tomato's. Sprinkle with half the basil and slow cook at 200 for 3 hours. Let tomato's cool, then slip off the skin. Drain oil and reserve. Coarse chop tomato's.

Slice eggplant lengthwise 1/4 inch thick and lay on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt and let site 1 hour. Then wipe salt and pat dry the eggplant.

In a small bowl combine remaining olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Whisk. Brush both sides of eggplant and grill on barbecue or stovetop 2 min. Or broil.
per side.

Brush a 9 by 13 baking pan with the researved oil. Layer the 1/3 of the eggplant, tomato's, cheese and remaining basil. Repeat twice more ending with cheese.

Sprinkle with 2 Tblsp reserved oil.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

enjoy.

Evelyn