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getting discouraged
Started
by kim epperson
on July 10, 2011
I know that my meals need to have whole grains, protein, and veggies but im having a hard time thinking of things to put together... there are soo many recipes that id like to try but im not in a position to go to the store and buy lots of ingredients for one meal. what do you guys usually eat on a day to day basis? what are your go to foods that are well balanced and make you feel good??
Hey Kim,
Get "The Everything Vegan Cookbook" by Jolinda Hackett. It has over 300 recipes that cover every type of meal and snack. That coupled with The Kind Diet and you cant go wrong. The EVC also has the calories, sodium, fiber and protein per grams at the bottom of each recipe. Best thing is that the recipes use everyday ingrediants that wont cost you a lot. My mum got it for me for my birthday and I have been cooking up a storm. Hope this helps xxx
Hi Kim,
My husband and I primarly eat from the cookbooks of Dr. John McDougall. I have recommended them on here a few times primarily because the meals are simple to make, quick, and healthy. Also, you can get everything at a regular grocery store and all the stuff you can use again for other recipes. They make a lot each time so you can freeze some and have times where you don't have to cook! I particularly like his Quick and Easy cookbook, but if you go onto his website you can find recipes from his newsletters for free.
Also, he does not cook with salt so you may have to add a bit when you eat the meals. That way you ultimately use less salt.
thank you guys ill be sure to check those out :)
I find we eat the best, and most complete meals when I plan ahead. I sit down with pen, paper and weekly grocery flyers and browse through cookbooks/online recipes at the beginning of the week. I try and make sure we get a variety of foods and cooking styles, but I pick recipes which use similar ingredients (e.g. if a recipe for veggie curry uses ½ can coconut milk, I'll make asian mac n cheese on another day to use up the other half...) Same with beans/grains: I cook a batch to last 2-3 meals (e.g. I can use a pot of chickpeas to make curry chickpea patties w/ mango/avocado + chickpea cutlets w/ mushroom sauce and mash + chickpea tacos.) Planning a week at a time saves time, money, "what's for dinner?" stress, and means only 1 trip to the grocery store. Also, if you can, try and buy grains and legumes in bulk. If stored well, they can last a while. Meal planning gets easier and faster the more you do it. The more you cook, the less ingredients you'll have to buy, as your kitchen will soon be stocked with "vegan cooking essentials". Making sure you have enough grains/protein/veggies daily also becomes second nature, you don't need to make tremendous efforts, you get to a point where you just instinctively know what you should eat.
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