I know we get a lot of questions when we tell people we eat mostly vegetarian, I guess you would actually call it pescatarian because we eat all sorts of seafood. It's a fair question seeing as the day I suggested the switch to my husband, he looked at me like I had four eyeballs and asked "What the hell are we going to eat?!"
We've done this now for I'd say about two years...maybe a little more. We stopped when I was pregnant because all I wanted to eat was steak, steak and more steak. Throughout our time making the switch we started to learn what to keep in our pantry at all times and what some easy go to recipes are. Since my husband is a big guy he eats a lot, and when I cook I have to think about quantity and taste.
Below I've included a list of what we always have on hand and some recipes we commonly use in the house. These are all SUPER healthy and tasty, you don't feel like your losing out on anything.
PANTRY ESSENTIALS:
- Black Beans
- Canneneli Beans
- Kidney Beans
- Stewed/Diced Tomatoes
- Tomato Sauce
- Tomato Paste
- Canned Corn
- Every single spice that you can imagine (Start with cumin, cinnamon, oregano, curry powder, basil)
- Lentils
- Quinoa
- Brown Rice
- Parmesan Cheese
- Olive Oil
- Carrots
- Yams
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Onions
- Celery
- Basil
- Bellpeppers
- Spinach
- Kale
- Lemons
- Limes
- Some fish (usually salmon)
- Organic Eggs
- Honey
- Canned Tuna
- Greek Yogurt
- All different kinds of fruit...lots!
- Nuts (usually walnuts or almonds)
- Almond milk
- Butter
- Garlic
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Chicken broth
- Quinoa Pasta
- Hummus
- Popcorn
- Bread Crumbs
I'm sure I'm forgetting some, but that's what came to mind and will make you a surprisingly large variation of meals. It will take you awhile to accumulate the spices and sauces, unless you feel like dishing out all that cash in one trip. Now here are some amazing recipes, which I recommend making a large batch of to be able to nibble on throughout the week. Click the name for the recipe.
This bowl is awesome because you really just put any variation of veggies in it. And if your feeling lazy and don't want to cook, skip the spices and the wok. Throw in your fav veggies and put a big spoonful of hummus. SO good!
This recipe is amazing because I throw in what we have on hand veggie wise. Also, this can be used to stuff just about anything. I've stuffed potatoes, eggplant, mushrooms and it all has tasted amazing. The best part is, it's so healthy you can put as much parmesan as you like. YUM!
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ReplyDeleteroasted broccoli with parm is SO GOOD! def one of my go to's when I am eating cheese. And so easy. i could seriously just eat that as a meal and nothing else.
ReplyDeleteI need to try that veggie bowl asap.
Love the blog liz!
ps. Penelope is AH-dorable :)
I know right!? Wait are you vegan? You'll have to send me over some good recipes to try, new healthy recipes are like gold to me lol
DeleteThanks man, she's a joy :)
I did the Whole30 in april (http://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/) and now I am easing into just doing regular Paleo (for the most part. don't want to give up happy hour). I really like it and i can decide how strict to be, just what works for me. basically just trying to eat whole foods makes me feel a lot better, i have more energy
DeleteI totally agree with you. It is not hard, you just have to have a game plan and if you can prep its great! Plus i don't mind eating the same thing for a few meals during the week.
I have a fav recipe right now, i will send it to you