cooking for a vegetarian in the family

[CLModerator]

Hi there--

You'll notice a new column titled Kitchen Strategies in our January issue. For an upcoming issue, we want to talk about cooking for a vegetarian in the family and need your help finding a family to feature.

Are you a vegetarian surrounded by omnivores? Or, do you cook for a vegetarian in the family?

If yes, and you don't mind some help in the kitchen, please email me at jen_richards@timeinc.com. Tell me a little about your story and ways we can help you in meal planning.

Thanks so much!
Jennifer

[nancymaring]

Jennifer...I'm the only vegetarian in my family...and my request is "Please, DON'T try to cook for me!" ...There is ALWAYS something I can eat! Always veggies, bread, salad, whatever.
I personally find it is less stressful on everyone if they just cook as normal....meateaters get soooo worried if they think they have to cook a non-meat meal.
I'm also the only vegetarian in our supper club. There was a small kerfuffle at the start..."oh my gosh, what will Nancy eat?" but once they got comfortable with me, it has not been an issue. I have the BEST people in my supper club, and LOVE that they just forget about my eating choices. Again, there is ALWAYS something I can eat, even if it's just 2 servings of dessert!!!
(although more then once, they have kept me in mind..."Hey Nancy, I made a little bit just for you." They really are the BEST!)

Probably not the answer you were looking for...but really, my vote is "don't fuss over me. I'll be just fine"

cheers...nancy

[JuliN]

My niece is a vegetarian and I consider myself semi-vegetarian because I tend to choose other dishes over meat.

There are a number of vegetarian dishes that meat eaters love, and I just tried a great one at Thanksgiving. It's festive and is great for special occasions--

Phyllo Purses with Roasted Squash, Peppers and Artichokes from CL Nov 2004. A number of the meat-eaters at Thanksgiving decided to forgo the turkey in favor of these savory purses. They were absolutely great. I was hoping there would be some left for my niece to take back home with her, but they disappeared rapidly.

Juli

[tperes]

JuliN -- thanks for the heads up on that recipe. I vaguley remember seeing the title. I think I might try to make that for an upcoming get-together!
Were they very time-consuming?

tanya

[JuliN]

It wasn't as time consuming as I had originally expected. Most of the time is chopping the various vegetables. I had never cooked butternut squash before, and I was amazed how hard they are when you cut them! At any rate, it's time well invested. The aroma as they are cooking is heavenly and the combo of veggies and herbs is terrific. The sauce is great, too.

BTW, this was my first encounter with butternut squash and I just loved it. I'm planning on trying some of the veggy recipes from this month's CL that use that ingredient.