Vintage Ads just warm my heart, similar to my love of old cookbooks, which always gives wonderful kitchen inspiration.
As I came across this old ad for Snow Flake Sodas, yes, I looked them up, they are soda crackers, I realized that I need to be incorporating many more meatless days into our menu plan.
Taking advantage of our garden (I just got my first yellow squash and zucchini), farmer’s markets, CSA, and roadside stands are some of my favorite benefits of these hot, summer months. Yet, even with the produce, I have to get creative because with our three teen boys because a plate of vegetables is not really their kind of meal. Now, they are not picky eaters at all, but that just doesn’t stick to their ribs, so incorporating grains and legumes are my next go to choice.
I serve a lot of eggs, and frittata type dishes, but unlike the ad, fish is not something I serve, but I want too. (And yes, I kind of think of fish, as meat, but I guess 50 years ago, they didn’t.) Ever since I was a little girl, I haven’t liked fish, but I know how incredibly good it is for me, so I am working towards a few recipes that my family likes.
Meatless meals are not only great for the budget, but they allow our bodies to take a little day of rest. Now, I don’t do them often, but I’d love a working list of great meals that actually fill you up.
Do you try and implement many meatless days?
If so, how many? What are some of your strategies and favorite recipes?
What are you cooking up for Tasty Tuesday?
Remember, link up to your direct recipe post, link back here in your post, please only link up two recipes and no giveaways or your own linkies. Thanks so much.
I tried to link up my recipe but for some reason it didn’t pull my picture, and I have no way to fix it.
For meatless meals, I make rice and bean dishes, frittatas with lots of veggies, or vegetarian soups. I cook a meatless dinner about once a week.
Thanks for the linky.
Thanks for hosting! I shared a recipe for spinach tart and also food science information on soaking beans.
I just took a vegan online workshop and so we’ve had a few more meatless meals than we normally do. Some of our favorite are beans and rice – pintos or black beans mexican style or red beans cajun style. We also really like stir fry served with rice or rice noodles. I learned how to make pancit a while back which is a Filipino stir fry and its really good – I sometimes leave out the chicken. http://www.schneiderpeeps.com/2011/05/mothers-day-international-fun.html
Thanks for the weekly recipe “party”!
For me, I associate “meatless” with cheap. Not that vegetarian is always cheap, but if I designate a day “meatless,” I’m doing so because I want a bargain basement budget meal. Tuna fish might fit that bill, but not other fish, which is quite pricy. Soup & bread, beans & rice, that’s what designated meatless days are for me. Everyone takes a fish oil supplement and I don’t have stinky fish stinkin’ up my house. Win-win!
Unless it’s battered and fried, fish is unlikely to be all that rib-sticky either. I always think of fish as a very light meal. That could be due to me refusing to eat any fish except very light white fish, or tuna from a can. I just can’t stand it!
I have to laugh because I thought fish WAS meat! I guess when I think meatless I think no meat at all. And yes, I try to do at least one meatless meal a week. In the winter I find it easier because we eat a lot of soups and so I’ll do things like homemade cream of tomato soup or potato soup. In the summer it gets a bit more challenging but we do breakfasts things like pancakes and eggs, or veggie quiches. I also often do bean and rice burritos…SO yummy and filling. And occasionally I find a new inspiration for a meatless meal which is always a good thing!
@Lydia (Thrifty, Frugal Mom), Lydia – When I saw that ad, I chuckled too. I consider it a “meat,” but I guess 50 years ago, they didn’t. 😉
@Jen, Funny…wonder what food group it fell into?! 🙂 Anyway, when I read your comment my mind was jogged by a recipe I had posted for Easy Egg Stacks. I often make them meatless and we LOVE them. Might be an idea for your gang too. http://www.parents.com/blogs/thrifty-frugal-mom/2012/04/10/tasty-tuesday/tasty-tuesday-easy-egg-stacks/
We do beans and cornbread once a month, but I don’t really have any other meatless meals …. It does really save money, though, to not have meat.
We often have meatless days in our house. I am trying to reduce the amount of meat my family consumes for both environmental and health reasons. Every week I try to feature a ‘Meatless Monday’ post on my blog to raise awareness of the Meatless Monday movement. (Meatless in the case of Meatless Monday means vegetarian – so no fish, no stocks made from meat or fish, but you can use eggs and dairy.) Vegetarian meals can be really delicious, although I would hesitate to commit to being totally vegetarian as I do love meat and fish. Thank you for hosting 🙂
My husband and I both love vegetables so to incorporate meatless meals once or twice a week is not a huge challenge. One of our favorites is stewed lentils served over rice and fresh spinach. We usually have lots of the lentils left over so I add fresh mushrooms and diced zucchini as the “meat” base of a veggie shephard’s pie to have later in the week.
We do big salads on meatless days. It’s easy to throw together and fills you up when you add some yummy cheese (feta or gorgonzola), nuts and fruit. Homemade dressing is a must and makes something special out of a simple meal.
We don’t do very many meatless days, but I think breakfast for dinner is a fun way to have one! I should do that more often. Thanks for hosting Jen! 🙂
We’re not doing many meatless meals here because the kids aren’t into fish or eggs, nor is my dh. I think of fish as meat, too, especially when one looks at the cost of fish. I keep meaning to work on my meatless repertoire because those meals are often faster to make than the meat ones.
We do lots of veggie meals to save money since I try to only buy antibiotic/hormone-free meat (which is expensive). Veggie fajitas, chili, black bean & yam quesadillas, chilaquiles casserole (see eatingwell.com), Coconut curried veggies in the crockpot over rice, sloppy lentils (like sloppy joes) & sweet potato fries, bean burritos w/corn & rice. All of these are husband-approved.
Well we go meatless pretty much everyday at our house, simply because mama’s vegetarian (the kids and hubs not completely). They all have meat 1-3x’s per week or sometimes not at all. Here are a few quick suggestions. Something I always keep in mind to boost protein at any meal are these add ins: nuts, beans, lentils, grains (quinoa, couscous), avocados, cheese all work well to give a protein/fat boost to almost any veg meal.
1. soft taco bar
2. lentil soup
3. minestrone soup
4. fresh summer veggie pasta
5. easy to make homemade, black or white beanburger patti’s
6. salads enhanced with nuts, avocado’s and cheese
7. veggie stir fry
8. breakfast for dinner- omelette’s, whole grain pancakes, oatmeal with fresh fruit
9. any variation of salad ingredients you like along with quinoa or couscous
10. roasted veggies added to fresh salads
12. mushroom burgers
13. grilled cheese with tomatoes and spinach
14. a mediterranean night of taboulleh, tzaziki, pita bread and hummus
15. black bean and corn enchiladas
16. manicotti
We eat one meatless meal each week. We like pasta dishes, Mexican recipes, pizzas, quiche, and soups (in the winter). I have found that when we eat meatless, we need bread as a side item. So, that is also my day to bake homemade bread, rolls, corn muffins, etc.
Vegetable lasagna and baked zitti are our meatless staples. Filling and fairly inexpensive.