Just Sara » vegetarian

Bento experiment #7

Sara — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 10:49:00 +0000

Yummy!

First ever veggie burger experiment! The burgers are made of chickpeas (cooked in water and then mashed) and diced potato, carrot, celery, a little bit of onion and some kale too, 1 egg white, salt and black pepper to taste. Patties are then rolled in breadcrumbs and cooked in a pan with just a little bit of sunflower oil.

A trick to avoid using too much oil: put a little oil in the pan, then use some kitchen paper to uniformly spread it in the pan and remove the excess oil.

The box also has some salad at the bottom, 1 tomato and some sauce made with fresh French cheese with a dash of chipotle paste, to give it a spicy/smoky taste.

Why I never really liked soy

Sara — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 14:23:52 +0000

Worth reading!

No offense, I like soy. But I also don’t. Actually, what I don’t like is the huge business behind soy-based products and how in some countries they are advertised as the (almost) only healthy option to replace meat or to top up your protein intake as a vegetarian. The following article very simply and clearly explain why a lot of processed soy-based food should not be included in any healthy diet, vegetarian or else. So… soy sprouts or dry soy beans, fine. But any processed soy is most likely as unhealthy as any other processed food. Food for thoughts… Click here

I guess I’m gonna make soy-free veggie burgers!

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Comments from another website where I posted this link:

SL: I tried the soy protein thing and just felt miserable every time I tried to eat it. I finally gave up. Then a friend sent me links to articles on why it bad for me. I figured my better judgement was doing its job and have never tried it again.

Sara: The thing is, all the GM stuff started with soy. I’m okay with responsibly farmed and produced soy, but there’s a huge industry behind soy-based food and if we try to eat healthy, we should avoid processed food, soy-based or else. So… I think I’ll just avoid heavily processed soy
Besides, veggie burgers can be done without any soy at all.

TS: ICKY!!!

SL: When I was a vegetarian I had never heard of tofu. My best friend was also a vegetarian and she did not eat that processed soy/tofu either. I do not remember what we did eat but we were healthy.

Sara: I don’t think tofu is the biggest problem. The real tofu from Asia is probably good, I don’t know, I’ve never tasted any tofu. But it really makes me laugh when I see “veggie meat” on labels. Either you are vegetarian or you are not. Period. If you are vegetarian because you believe it’s better for your health or the environment (I would argue the latter), then do NOT look for “meat replacements”, you shouldn’t even need the word “meat” on the label, ya know… I mean, one thing is eating choices and habits, one thing is fashion and business and consumers being manipulated, so that they think they need (heavily processed) “healthier” food.

SL: I definitely did not look for ‘meat’ substitutes.
Also, I was wondering if tofu was the substituted ingredient in veggie burgers. If I understand your comment tofu is not that ingredient.
I just did some quick reading. I see what you mean about tofu not being bad -that it is other forms of soy that may be/are hazardous. In retrospect, I think I was just overdoing the tofu at the time I was feeling negative about it.

Sara: Yep, the article doesn’t really focus on tofu, but rather on all other soy-based stuff. I also believe the “veggie burger” in the title is to refer to “vegetarian food in general”, not only veggie burgers. As you said, tofu is not found in veggie burgers. not that I know of.
I actually like veggie burgers, when they are made with fresh, healthy, sustainably grown ingredients. I make my own. Years ago, we used to cook a lot more than we do now. When I was a child, my mother didn’t by as many processed food. She still doesn’t, as we prefer fresh groceries.
But the amount of heavily processed food out there for the consumers to buy, is impressive now. Blame it on the lack of time… but I think we, as a society, have become more lazy, maybe. I can fix myself a perfectly healthy meal in 15-20 minutes when I get back home from work, but it’s definitely easier to stick something from the supermarket straight in the oven or the microwave. Well, unless I bought something homemade in some deli or vegetarian shop, what we find in most supermarkets is not even half as healthy as we’d think.
The other thing I’m also thinking is that being vegetarian requires that you do spend time cooking or preparing your veggies. So… maybe we, again, as a society, just need to find more time to spend in the kitchen?! lol

Yellow rice

Sara — Sun, 02 May 2010 20:37:11 +0000

Risotto allo zafferano con piselli

I love this recipe, I could live on that… and alas, too many other recipes!
Here we go:

Ingredients:
- 1/2 white onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- salt, black pepper
- saffron powder
- 1 cup of rice
- 1/4 glass of white wine
- 1/2 can of sweet peas
- fresh parsley
- pecorino romano or parmigiano cheese

In a pan, gently brown the onion with the olive oil.
Add the rice (I used arborio rice today), stir and then add the white wine. Let evaporate, stirring, then add about 0.6 grams of saffron, just the tip of a teaspoon. Stir constantly and cook at medium heat. Keep adding hot/warm water now and then, so it doesn’t stick to the pan. Add salt to taste.
When the rice is 2/3 cooked, add the sweet peas. Keep stirring and add water if needed.
When the rice is almost done, add some parsley and stir a little until the rice is done.
Serve with grounded black pepper and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

NB: this time I had Pecorino Romano cheese, which is a lot more ‘salty’ than Parmigiano, then I added a little less salt during the cooking.

Refurbished leftovers

Sara — Sat, 01 May 2010 12:28:38 +0000

Yesterday I cooked some polenta. I had one of those sachets with polenta and dried mushrooms, you can easily cook in 15 minutes or so. Just boil 2 lt or water, add the polenta mix and stir for 10-12 minutes.
Of course, the portions were too many, so I had put the leftover (about 4 portions!) in the refrigerator.

Now… Cold polenta isn’t creamy anymore, so you can either slice it and fry it: not too healthy but very very good! or you can slice it and re-heat it with some vegetables. I had sweet peas, so that’s the result:

Polenta with porcini and sweet peas

All this cheap meat will cost us the Earth

Sara — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:49:08 +0000

“The headline read “Why I lost my appetite for meat”, the article was by a favourite novelist, but my wife wouldn’t pick up the magazine. “If I read it, I know I’ll have to become a vegetarian again and I just can’t bear to,” she said. I was braver — nothing this side of Armageddon is going to make me give up meat — and I did read it. The excerpts from Jonathan Safran Foer’s new non-fiction book Eating Animals left me feeling uncomfortable — so much so that I had to read the whole thing.”

via Alex Renton – Times Online.

The debate still goes on… Is vegetarian the answer?

Something to make us think

Sara — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:06:48 +0000

“Climate chief Lord Stern: give up meat to save the planet”
Click here to read The Times article.

How about giving up meat 5 days a week? Thank could be a nice step too, I guess.

For the quinoa aficionados

Sara — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:05:21 +0000

Quinoa With Corn and Zucchini
This is an article I had found back in July. I first had some quinoa in Ecuador, they make a very good soup with it. Quinoa can be found in a lot of stores in Europe and the US now. It is tasty and has very good nutritional value. It can be used in a lot of recipes, so… be creative and give it a try!

Say kinda veg

Sara — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 09:03:07 +0000

After writing my previous blog entry, I’ve been thinking of the food I’m supposed to avoid for at least 2 weeks. And I soon came to the conclusion that being vegetarian in Italy is very complicated. Not to mention being vegan, ha!
I had lunch with family and noticed that most of the best recipes in Italy have either meat or fish. Shucks! I guess diets do change along the years. Isn’t the Mediterranean diet mostly based on cereal and vegetables, few sugars, few processed foods, low fat and as for animal protein fish preferred to meat. Then maybe, I can try stick to an alcohol-free, mostly vegetarian Mediterranean diet??

To veg or not to veg. That is the question.

Sara — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 15:29:05 +0000

I’ve been rethinking my diet this year. I’m not on diet, I just pay more attention to what I eat. I avoid too processed foods, fat and sugars. I definitely eat less pasta, which have been sort of a guilty pleasure ever since my teenage years, especially for the portions.
The thing is, a couple of times in the past 3 years I’ve been thinking of eating less meat, but the times I would try to I would always end up feeling tired, occasionally having sore muscles. I suppose the substitute proteins intake wasn’t balanced enough. Then maybe if I pay more attention to the food I eat, I might really manage to lose some weight without starving myself.
A friend of mine 10 years ago or so, went on a vegetarian diet. She stopped eating meat for maybe 3 or 4 years. Then she started eating meat again, but rarely, and keeps going on her sorta-vegetarian diet. It seems to work and she definitely doesn’t starve herself. Also, she can’t really live without sugars and sweets, but she still keeps her weight under control. Of course, it’s a matter of metabolism, as we all have our own balance and should adjust to our body physiological needs. My friend’s exact same ‘diet’ might not work for me. But I recently tried to have meat no more than 2 times a week. All in all, I feel good. And I love fish, so I’d go for some healthy cooked fish (no wacky sauces or extra oils). Now, the real vegetarian has a whole vision behind the ‘diet’ and I’m not sure I completely agree on every point of it. But still, I’d like to try a vegetarian diet for good. Let’s say, for a couple of weeks, to see how it goes. Maybe a month.

Now vegan, mmm, this is a bit too much for a start. Maybe I can go vegetarian and then if all goes well, also try vegan? We’ll see. One of the nice things I noticed is that if I stay completely away from the booze for even just a week, I can lose up to 3 pounds. This is insane. And also, I do like a little glass of wine now and then. So, it take quite a lot of self-control.
And don’t even think of cutting me off the coffee. I really love coffee. I would hate to have to avoid it completely. Please, no, leave at least one little coffee in the morning, please… Oh, and don’t take those BigRed gums away from me! But hey, don’t they say that the mind is strong than the body? One day I might really wake up and make up my mind I’m going to stay away from coffee for a month. If it ever happens, I will let you know how it goes…

Seriously, I used to be fit. I wasn’t fit at all for a while. When I’m stressed I eat more and if I don’t eat more, I absorb more, or my metabolism hibernates so I gain weight even drinking still water. Then now I’m feeling better. I’ve noticed some changes. I dropped a few pounds and I’m not gaining back the weight. It’s a positive thing, I believe, even if I’m still a bit far from my ideal weight. But the place I’m moving to has some Pilates classes nearby. How about starting Pilates too?
Seems like it’s going to be a busy Fall, this 2009…