Guest guest Posted May 21, 2008 Report Share Posted May 21, 2008 I have been a vegetarian for 32 years, from ovo-lacto to eventually near-vegan. My transition was so painless I didn't even know it had happened. It began when I bought a copy of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET, the book that basically started the North American vegetarian trend (and still in print, which gives you some idea of its value). It explains the impact of meat production, and gives primer on understanding what a " whole " protein is, then gives a great selection of recipes base on those principles. (I still heartily recommend this book!) I just kept eating my regular diet, and experimenting with recipes yummy-sounding recipes from the book. Then I would repeat to those recipes because I enjoyed them so much, meanwhile I was still adding new recipes to my repertoire. Since we only eat about 21 meals a week, the newer-style recipes kept displacing the old spam, spam, spam or spam meals. After about two years, I realized I wasn't buying meat or fish anymore because the new recipes had completely (and painlessly) displaced my previous way of eating. I also got a copy of RECIPES FOR A SMALL PLANET when it came out later on (a kind of sequel for DIET FOR... ) I became firmly entrenched in meatlessness, and started actively seeking out vegetarian recipes. As I moved away from meat, I slowly lost my taste for dairy milk, then eggs. I never missed these things because they had already been displaced by so many things I enjoyed more. My wanderings have taken me increasingly deep into ethnic food traditions, because so many traditional ethnic cuisines have a strong vegetarian element that has been proven by time: vibrant, flavorful, and healthful. But there was no point at which I said " I am going to become a vegetarian. " For me, personally, that's too much like " flavor of the month " . Instead, I had simply started exploring, and one recipe led to another until I found myself in a very interesting place -- a place so interesting that I wanted to just keep on exploring that place, and left my point of origin behind. Now, with spreading food riots around the world, skyrocketing food prices as food gets turned into ethanol (ethanol was supposed to use food WASTE, not food!!!), the opening 1/3 of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET becomes ever more relevant: 10 kg (22 pounds) of grain and soybeans to produce 500 gr (1 pound) of beef on your plate. Our modern twist is that we take food from our people and feed it to our machines. Even people on the enforced vegetarian diet of poverty cannot afford to buy food. Injustice added to injustice. Sounds smarmy, maybe, but I hope it helps. Seabird2 - In , " broo mist " <broomist wrote: > > Just finished " The Pig Who Sang to the Moon " , > and my decision to abstain from meat is 90% complete. > Would love to make the transition as smoothly > (and painlessly!) as possible! > > -- > Barry > Chicago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 I gave away, on Freecycle, my copy of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET just last week. I did not get it until I was vegetarian so I did not need the transition, but I can see how it would help. I have a NOT QUITE VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK that is a great transition book, too. It has a lot of vegetarian recipies and ones that aren't that you can just drop the meat out of later. Of course part of it is fish and even chicken, but it is still a helpful book. Katie seabird2gs <kluanedawson wrote: I have been a vegetarian for 32 years, from ovo-lacto to eventually near-vegan. My transition was so painless I didn't even know it had happened. It began when I bought a copy of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET, the book that basically started the North American vegetarian trend (and still in print, which gives you some idea of its value). It explains the impact of meat production, and gives primer on understanding what a " whole " protein is, then gives a great selection of recipes base on those principles. (I still heartily recommend this book!) I just kept eating my regular diet, and experimenting with recipes yummy-sounding recipes from the book. Then I would repeat to those recipes because I enjoyed them so much, meanwhile I was still adding new recipes to my repertoire. Since we only eat about 21 meals a week, the newer-style recipes kept displacing the old spam, spam, spam or spam meals. After about two years, I realized I wasn't buying meat or fish anymore because the new recipes had completely (and painlessly) displaced my previous way of eating. I also got a copy of RECIPES FOR A SMALL PLANET when it came out later on (a kind of sequel for DIET FOR... ) I became firmly entrenched in meatlessness, and started actively seeking out vegetarian recipes. As I moved away from meat, I slowly lost my taste for dairy milk, then eggs. I never missed these things because they had already been displaced by so many things I enjoyed more. My wanderings have taken me increasingly deep into ethnic food traditions, because so many traditional ethnic cuisines have a strong vegetarian element that has been proven by time: vibrant, flavorful, and healthful. But there was no point at which I said " I am going to become a vegetarian. " For me, personally, that's too much like " flavor of the month " . Instead, I had simply started exploring, and one recipe led to another until I found myself in a very interesting place -- a place so interesting that I wanted to just keep on exploring that place, and left my point of origin behind. Now, with spreading food riots around the world, skyrocketing food prices as food gets turned into ethanol (ethanol was supposed to use food WASTE, not food!!!), the opening 1/3 of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET becomes ever more relevant: 10 kg (22 pounds) of grain and soybeans to produce 500 gr (1 pound) of beef on your plate. Our modern twist is that we take food from our people and feed it to our machines. Even people on the enforced vegetarian diet of poverty cannot afford to buy food. Injustice added to injustice. Sounds smarmy, maybe, but I hope it helps. Seabird2 - In , " broo mist " <broomist wrote: > > Just finished " The Pig Who Sang to the Moon " , > and my decision to abstain from meat is 90% complete. > Would love to make the transition as smoothly > (and painlessly!) as possible! > > -- > Barry > Chicago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 22, 2008 Report Share Posted May 22, 2008 thank you dear for couple of informations and suggestions seabird2gs <kluanedawson wrote: I have been a vegetarian for 32 years, from ovo-lacto to eventually near-vegan. My transition was so painless I didn't even know it had happened. It began when I bought a copy of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET, the book that basically started the North American vegetarian trend (and still in print, which gives you some idea of its value). It explains the impact of meat production, and gives primer on understanding what a " whole " protein is, then gives a great selection of recipes base on those principles. (I still heartily recommend this book!) I just kept eating my regular diet, and experimenting with recipes yummy-sounding recipes from the book. Then I would repeat to those recipes because I enjoyed them so much, meanwhile I was still adding new recipes to my repertoire. Since we only eat about 21 meals a week, the newer-style recipes kept displacing the old spam, spam, spam or spam meals. After about two years, I realized I wasn't buying meat or fish anymore because the new recipes had completely (and painlessly) displaced my previous way of eating. I also got a copy of RECIPES FOR A SMALL PLANET when it came out later on (a kind of sequel for DIET FOR... ) I became firmly entrenched in meatlessness, and started actively seeking out vegetarian recipes. As I moved away from meat, I slowly lost my taste for dairy milk, then eggs. I never missed these things because they had already been displaced by so many things I enjoyed more. My wanderings have taken me increasingly deep into ethnic food traditions, because so many traditional ethnic cuisines have a strong vegetarian element that has been proven by time: vibrant, flavorful, and healthful. But there was no point at which I said " I am going to become a vegetarian. " For me, personally, that's too much like " flavor of the month " . Instead, I had simply started exploring, and one recipe led to another until I found myself in a very interesting place -- a place so interesting that I wanted to just keep on exploring that place, and left my point of origin behind. Now, with spreading food riots around the world, skyrocketing food prices as food gets turned into ethanol (ethanol was supposed to use food WASTE, not food!!!), the opening 1/3 of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET becomes ever more relevant: 10 kg (22 pounds) of grain and soybeans to produce 500 gr (1 pound) of beef on your plate. Our modern twist is that we take food from our people and feed it to our machines. Even people on the enforced vegetarian diet of poverty cannot afford to buy food. Injustice added to injustice. Sounds smarmy, maybe, but I hope it helps. Seabird2 - In , " broo mist " <broomist wrote: > > Just finished " The Pig Who Sang to the Moon " , > and my decision to abstain from meat is 90% complete. > Would love to make the transition as smoothly > (and painlessly!) as possible! > > -- > Barry > Chicago Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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