Growing up, I wasn’t exposed to the concept of vegetarianism. However, there is something very refreshing about taking a break and eating an all veggie meal. Red meat was never consumed all that often in our home to begin with and then my husband decided to eliminate it all together.
For about a year he was a pescetarian. Then he found it increasingly difficult to maintain this lifestyle, most especially when grabbing lunch during the work week. He became bored and grew tired of having salads day after day. I knew how important it meant to him, so to help motivate him I had to become more creative with our dinner meals.
I always found pleasure in looking for new recipes. Now it was more challenging. How do I make an entire meal out of ingredients that have always been considered as a side dish to us? Challenge accepted! I entered into a world of so many wonderful and unique ideas. I discovered “Meatless Mondays”. Quinoa patties, cauliflower rice, lentil burgers, zucchini spaghetti … so many options. We adopted this practice and I admit it was difficult at first. We found ourselves to not be as satisfied and still hungry. It took some getting used to.
Today, I would say it has brought me more pleasure in the kitchen. Our bodies thank us for this as we see and feel the benefits. Being part of a CSA this year has not only helped us eat more greens but introduced us to vegetables we didn’t even know existed. I look forward to the deliveries each week to see what new dishes I can create. Maybe one day we will all evolve and become herbivors, but until then it’s no longer Meatless Mondays in our household. It’s Meatless Monday through Friday with a side of weekends.
Forest Hills CSA 