budget healthy mostly vegetarian eating ideas

[njcarita]

Here you go!

Black Bean Tortilla Casserole



1 large chopped onion

2 10oz cans Rotel tomatoes

½ cup picante sauce or salsa

1 tsp ground cumin

2 15oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed

½ cup reduced fat cream cheese

10 7-inch corn tortillas

2 cups shredded cheese

2 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded

have u tried it without the chicken??? looks yummy.... maybe i'll double the amount of beans

 

[njcarita]

I am not a vegetarian, but I often will eat meatless meals. Here are a few of my favorites:


Lemon Basil Pasta
Okay, another no recipe meal. Sorry. I cook up some thin spaghetti and drain. I add olive oil, fresh lemon juice and zest of the rind (you can experiment with this, but I like a good amount of lemon in this), fresh basil, sea salt and pepper to taste. Lemon peper is good on this too. Sometimes I add sliced kalamata olives. My family eats boatloads of this stuff.

yum.... think I am going to have this for lunch..... with a few lg scallops...
going to try to have seafood every other day.... for now

 

[mombrontrent]

I have been a vegetarian for 14 years now and not once have I ever thought about going back. I LOVE vegetarian food. The rest of my family does eat meat but alot of ours meals are vegetarian. A favourite is black bean enchaladas, so good and so easy to make:

Filling:
Fry some onion, fresh garlic and diced peppers (green, red, yellow, jalepeno ect, whatever is on hand) in olive oil. Add a can of rinced black beans and a cup or so of frozen corn niblets and heat a few minutes. Stir in some fresh or dried cilantro and a couple spoonfulls of cream cheese.

Sauce:
Sautee some fresh garlic and onion or jalepeno if you wish, add a can of diced tomatos and a can of tomato sauce. Stir in a good amount of chili powder and a teaspoon or so of oregano and a little cumin if you like. Simmer for 10 minutes or so.

Roll the filling in about 6-8 tortilla shells and layer in casseole dish. Pour the sauce over and spinkle with grated cheese, bake at about 400 for 20-30 minutes. Absolutley delicious and can be put together in less then half an hour and then another half an hour baking time.

 

[njcarita]

well this is what i had to eat yesterday:

Breakfast
coffee
1 pc toast with peanut butter and bannana

lunch
1 1/2 sandwich ( humus,cucumber and roasted red peppers)

snack
cup air popped popcorn with garlic powder

decaf coffee
handful of nuts

BIg snack( needed the protein in the afternoon)
cup brownrice with 2 poached eggs

dinner
green beans ,sweet potatoes,corn and stuffing

cup of decaf

handful of nuts

3 oz sangria

3 bottles of water during the day and took a mega cal/mg supplement

any suggestion ...ideas...

 

[prncess674]

I read your meals from yesterday and it looks like you are practically starving yourself all day, then loading up on carbs at the end of the day. Your breakfast and lunch don't sound substantial enough. A 1/2 sandwich with no protein is going to make you famished by dinner! I would also make a big salad with lots of fresh veggies and no croutons, cheese or heavy dressing. A little balsamic splashed on top makes a great low cal dressing. Also your entire family needs some healthy salad at dinner too.

If you have a grill I love to grill thick cuts of eggplant, squash, zucchini and red peppers. Just sprinkle a little olive oil, pepper and salt and they are yummy hot or cold. I usually make a whole bunch and eat them warm for dinner, then chill them and eat in a pita or wrap the next day for lunch.

If you don't have a grill you make them in the oven on a foil lined cookie sheet.

Another great meal, especially for the summer is vietnamese spring rolls with tofo as the protein. The crisp basil and other cool greens are great on a hot summer day.

 

[njcarita]

I read your meals from yesterday and it looks like you are practically starving yourself all day, then loading up on carbs at the end of the day. Your breakfast and lunch don't sound substantial enough. A 1/2 sandwich with no protein is going to make you famished by dinner! I would also make a big salad with lots of fresh veggies and no croutons, cheese or heavy dressing. A little balsamic splashed on top makes a great low cal dressing. Also your entire family needs some healthy salad at dinner too.

If you have a grill I love to grill thick cuts of eggplant, squash, zucchini and red peppers. Just sprinkle a little olive oil, pepper and salt and they are yummy hot or cold. I usually make a whole bunch and eat them warm for dinner, then chill them and eat in a pita or wrap the next day for lunch.

If you don't have a grill you make them in the oven on a foil lined cookie sheet.

Another great meal, especially for the summer is vietnamese spring rolls with tofo as the protein. The crisp basil and other cool greens are great on a hot summer day.

yes I agree.... i need to up the protein in the morning.... any suggestions without consuming too much dairy??? occassional is ok.....

and it wasnt 1/2 an sandwich it was 1 and 1/2 sandwich...

i am really not a big eater.... just a wrong eater..... eat junk...

here is what i ate today..... think i did better... cause i was not starving thru the day....

Breakfast:
1/2 pineaple greek yogart with sprinkling of sliced almonds
1/2 toasted sandwich round with peanut butter
coffee

1 cup of mint tea

Lunch
Lemon pasta with 4 lg scallops ( YUMMY) (thanks blanq)

snack
handful of mixed nuts
1/2 toasted sandwich round with peanut butter

Dinner
1 hummus/tomato/red pepper sandwich

coffee

snack
stuffing with mashed sweet potatoes and green beans

3oz sangria....

 

[williamson_ja]

I'm not a vegetarian, but eat mostly meat free (I'll eat meat about once a week). Here are some of my favorite meals:

taco salad using beans and brown rice instead of meat

minestrone soup

spaghetti with olive oil, fresh basil, garlic, and balsamic vinegar (usually sauteed veggies go in this dish as well)

Grilled portabello mushroom burgers

veggie enchiladas (homemade wheat tortillas filled with sauteed veggies, beans, and rice covered in enchilada sauce, olives, and green onions)

veggie pizza- make your own wheat pizza crust and top with with sauce, sauteed veggies (thin sliced zucchini, mushrooms, onions, broccoli, etc), beans, and cheese if desired. When I make it for the family, I leave cheese off 1/2 of the pizza because I don't like it and a couple of my kids don't like it either- the other 1/2 of the family can't live without it.

I don't know what to call this, but it's sort of like a quesadilla without the cheese. You spread roasted red pepper hummus on a wheat tortilla and then some refried beans. Top with another tortilla and cook on the stove. I usually cut these into little triangles. The kids love these!

falafal with tatziki sauce

spaghetti squash with feta cheese and olive oil

fetuccini alfredo (sort o[f) cook up some fetuccini noodles (I use wheat), then instead of a cream based sauce, I steam up some cauliflower. Blend that in the blender with almond milk, garlic, basil, oregano, and salt. Pour this over your noodles and it tastes a LOT like fetucchini alfredo but super healthy for you!

Hope some of this helps. I don't usually measure or cook by recipes, so if anyone wants to know how to make something, i can give you some general guidelines but not a specific recipe. It's all really easy. Good luck. I don't generally cook different things for my kids and husband. Sometimes I'll modify something to an extent (like putting cheese on some and not the rest). I will make the kids and hubby regular hamburgers when I make portabellos for myself. There is no making 2 whole different dinner though. It's too hard. Besides that it's really nice and healthy for them to be eating this stuff too.

Good luck in your efforts.

 

[Poohforyou]

As others have said beans are a great source or protein. Quinoa is a grain that can be used in place of rice or small shaped pasta. It is a complete protein which makes it really beneficial to a vegetarian diet. Be careful about the amount of cheese you eat in place of meat though. In most case it is not better for you since it has more fat and less protein than many cuts of meat.

 

[Eastern]

These are two of my favorite Wegman's soup recipes. They are filling and can be frozen in portions to use later. Serve with salad and bread.

https://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/...toreId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=347707 Spicey red lentil chili

http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/s...52&catalogId=10002&langId=-1&productId=348528 Moroccan lentil with chickpeas soup

 

[njcarita]

. Be careful about the amount of cheese you eat in place of meat though. In most case it is not better for you since it has more fat and less protein than many cuts of meat.

I'm attempting as dariy free as possible.... so no cheeses, milk etc....

 

[njcarita]

These are two of my favorite Wegman's soup recipes. They are filling and can be frozen in portions to use later. Serve with salad and bread.

https://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/...toreId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=347707 Spicey red lentil chili

http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/s...52&catalogId=10002&langId=-1&productId=348528 Moroccan lentil with chickpeas soup

im going to have to try the moroccon lentil soup... just up my alley....
not into real spicy food... so not sure about the red lentil chili...
but thanks for the recipes

 

[VBsHustla]

Here's what I eat, hopefully it will be helpful!!

Breakfast:
-oatmeal with one banana, strawberries, blueberries (and if I have them, raspberries and blackberries) I eat this every day, and it keeps me full for hours if the oats are steel cut.

Lunches:
-salad: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, chickpeas, olives and then I chop it all up
-I throw rice in boiling water and then when there's a few minutes left, I throw in a bag of frozen veggies (usually Trader Joe's has good assortment packs) and a can of black beans. Super good and cheap. Sometimes I also add in a little bit of an avocado.
-baked potato, cut up fresh tomato and basil, and cooked spinach (heat up some garlic, throw in spinach, and then squeeze 1/2 of a fresh lemon on top) I bake a bunch of regular and sweet potatoes over the weekend and just microwave them throughout the week.
-black bean burger patty thing (I either make them or occasionally eat this kind from a company called Little Green from Whole Foods) that I just cut up, because I don't eat them with bread and grilled/baked asparagus (I just put it on a pan with salt and pepper and keep it in the oven for like 10 minutes.)
-leftovers

Dinners:
-We eat lots of stir fries (rice, veggies like broccoli, carrots, asparagus, Bok Choy, any greens like kale and Swiss Chard, mushrooms, etc.) I eat this plain, but my sister and brother each have their favorite sauce that they put on.
-Soup and salad, very occasionally with some homemade bread (we like to make olive Focaccia bread)
-On Sundays, we eat baked sweet potatoes, broccolini, carrots, and usually another veggie
-grilled vegetables (zucchini, asparagus, corn, onions, peppers, mushrooms, little cherry tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes - we use some potatoes that we've already baked and refrigerated and cut them into fry shaped pieces to grill)
-pasta (with canned or fresh tomatoes and basil to be super simple, or something like shallots, lots of freshly squeezed lemon juice, Kalamata olives, artichokes, etc. We try lots of different things.)
-black bean chili
-Mexican rice, lots of lettuce, black beans, a toasted tortilla, avocado, and salsa (delicious!)


Sorry if that was super long, but hopefully at least something might be helpful! Good luck!

 

[MaggieBailey]

decided to try and eat mostly vegetarian ... for health reason... weight ..high bp.... not any moral objection...

But really don't know what to eat.... and darn those veggies are expensive

I do plan to have fish a few times a week ( so i guess that would be a pescitarian sp?? ).....

so what the heck do i eat..

today for breakfast i had:
a cup of half decaf coffee
toast with peanutbutter and bannana
6oz cranberry/grape juice


for lunch I am making a humus/cucumber/roasted red pepper sandwich..

totally lost as to what to have for dinner ( making a turkey breast for familY)..... Maybe Ill have the sides...


help...

If you can find it, try reading The Abs Diet Book. It's more of a "way of life" book then a diet book. My husband is an ex marine and super health conscious, and I have been becoming more too! This book is written by the editor of Mens Health, and he is often on the Today show (he's the "eat this, not that" guy) They have tons of recipes and ideas, all really easy! Just by changing how I eat I've lost 4 pounds in 2 weeks. Beans are a great way to get protein and not eat meat. As far as healthy goes, bison is very healthy, even better then some cuts of chicken and fish! But it's a bit steep in price. Good luck to you!

 

[smile5sunshine]

I'm kind of surprised that no one has mentioned EGGS yet. They are cheap and good for you! try Quiches/Friattas, egg salad, & hard boiled on salads.

Hope you found some good suggestions here

 

[njcarita]

Here's what I eat, hopefully it will be helpful!!

Breakfast:
-oatmeal with one banana, strawberries, blueberries (and if I have them, raspberries and blackberries) I eat this every day, and it keeps me full for hours if the oats are steel cut.

Lunches:
-salad: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, chickpeas, olives and then I chop it all up
-I throw rice in boiling water and then when there's a few minutes left, I throw in a bag of frozen veggies (usually Trader Joe's has good assortment packs) and a can of black beans. Super good and cheap. Sometimes I also add in a little bit of an avocado.
-baked potato, cut up fresh tomato and basil, and cooked spinach (heat up some garlic, throw in spinach, and then squeeze 1/2 of a fresh lemon on top) I bake a bunch of regular and sweet potatoes over the weekend and just microwave them throughout the week.
-black bean burger patty thing (I either make them or occasionally eat this kind from a company called Little Green from Whole Foods) that I just cut up, because I don't eat them with bread and grilled/baked asparagus (I just put it on a pan with salt and pepper and keep it in the oven for like 10 minutes.)
-leftovers

Dinners:
-We eat lots of stir fries (rice, veggies like broccoli, carrots, asparagus, Bok Choy, any greens like kale and Swiss Chard, mushrooms, etc.) I eat this plain, but my sister and brother each have their favorite sauce that they put on.
-Soup and salad, very occasionally with some homemade bread (we like to make olive Focaccia bread)
-On Sundays, we eat baked sweet potatoes, broccolini, carrots, and usually another veggie
-grilled vegetables (zucchini, asparagus, corn, onions, peppers, mushrooms, little cherry tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes - we use some potatoes that we've already baked and refrigerated and cut them into fry shaped pieces to grill)
-pasta (with canned or fresh tomatoes and basil to be super simple, or something like shallots, lots of freshly squeezed lemon juice, Kalamata olives, artichokes, etc. We try lots of different things.)
-black bean chili
-Mexican rice, lots of lettuce, black beans, a toasted tortilla, avocado, and salsa (delicious!)


Sorry if that was super long, but hopefully at least something might be helpful! Good luck!

thank You,,,, this was very helpful!!!!
question do u take any supplements?? i have been taking a heavy duty ca/mg supliment every other day.... cause im limiting dairy.....any other suggetion//

 

[VBsHustla]

thank You,,,, this was very helpful!!!!
question do u take any supplements?? i have been taking a heavy duty ca/mg supliment every other day.... cause im limiting dairy.....any other suggetion//

I take a multivitamin and vitamin B-12. B-12 is the only one that can't be found in plant foods. I also take B-6 every few days. And sometimes I take a DHA omega-3 supplement that's made from algae whenever I feel the urge (like 1-2 times per week.)

I don't take calcium, because I personally believe that dairy causes osteoporosis (for several reasons: to me, there's no reason why human adults need to drink the milk of another species - that's unheard of in nature, countries with the least dairy consumption have the lowest rates of osteoporosis and those with the highest rates have the highest levels, there has never been a reported calcium deficiency in anyone who is not starving, etc.) But yeah, sorry for that tangent, I just get calcium from vegetables (green vegetables like broccoli and kale have a lot.) I get blood tests fairly regularly and don't have any deficiencies or anything like that. If you feel more comfortable with the supplements then that's cool, too! It sounds like you're doing great!

 

[Eastern]

im going to have to try the moroccon lentil soup... just up my alley....
not into real spicy food... so not sure about the red lentil chili...
but thanks for the recipes

You can just omit the cayenne pepper and tobasco sauce (I never put the tobasco in I just use the cayenne).

 

[MEM]

If you can find it, try reading The Abs Diet Book. It's more of a "way of life" book then a diet book. My husband is an ex marine and super health conscious, and I have been becoming more too! This book is written by the editor of Mens Health, and he is often on the Today show (he's the "eat this, not that" guy) They have tons of recipes and ideas, all really easy! Just by changing how I eat I've lost 4 pounds in 2 weeks. Beans are a great way to get protein and not eat meat. As far as healthy goes, bison is very healthy, even better then some cuts of chicken and fish! But it's a bit steep in price. Good luck to you!

Once a Marine, always a Marine! Didn't you get that lecture from your DH? My DH is also a Marine, formerly on active duty.

 

[njcarita]

I'm kind of surprised that no one has mentioned EGGS yet. They are cheap and good for you! try Quiches/Friattas, egg salad, & hard boiled on salads.

Hope you found some good suggestions here

love eggs,,,, thanks for suggestion about the different ways to have them....
i have been in a rut.... been having 2 poached eggs over brown rice every other day...

 

[williamson_ja]

thank You,,,, this was very helpful!!!!
question do u take any supplements?? i have been taking a heavy duty ca/mg supliment every other day.... cause im limiting dairy.....any other suggetion//

If you are willing to eat some greens, you don't need even the calcium supplement. Dairy doesn't "do a body good" like the commercials tell you it does. Countries that don't eat dairy at all have almost NO incidences of osteoporosis. Calcium supplements can actually harm you because your body generally can't process the type of calcium in them and it leads to kidney stones (which can be very painful). Anyhow, my two cents worth is to just eat lots of veggies of every color... but make extra certain to eat lots of dark green leafy veggies (they contain the most calcium).