My name is Allison, I was a vegetarian in the past. I was completely veg for 6 months a few years ago but then the Holidays came along and I lost my willpower. Then I started being mostly veg but ate meat when it was offered to me or when I wanted it. Eventually I was eating meat regularly again for the last year or so. Now I'm serious about becoming a vegetarian (and eventually a vegan) again. I think where I fell short in the past was that I tried to just quit cold turkey so to speak. I saw a video of how animals raised for meat are treated and killed which upset me enough to stop eating it. I think that slowly cutting out meat and animal products is probably a better method for me. I have been eating mostly vegetarian and vegan for the last month and want to continue to move toward a more animal friendly lifestyle. I think my main set backs have been my meat eating family who cook with meat daily and going out to eat and not always finding a lot of vegetarian options on the menu. I have a few books with vegetarian and vegan recipes and have enjoyed making them for myself. I look forward to learning more recipes here and getting the support I need to stay on track. 

Nice to meet you all. :) 

Hi and welcome Allison :-) glad you are transitioning back to a vegetarian diet.

Climb on board the veggie wagon - there's room for everyone (just mind your bum on the broccoli)

Welcome back! 

I think I've found that cravings are easier to resist when you've found a nice selection and variety of healthy foods that really satisfy you. There's a bakery chain in my area that produces (among other things) a chocolate chip cookie which is physically addictive, not vegan, and not very healthy to eat either! I stopped eating them quite some time ago and am experimenting with my own healthy, vegan, tasty recipes.

(My last attempt was a dough made from white all-purpose flour, sugar, vegetable oil, and cooked mashed butternut squash. It had a nice orange color and tasted okay, but those things weren't ready for prime time.)

Hi Allison, welcome back to veg*nism :)  I'm glad you've come back.

As long as you never give up, you can never really fail.  If you fall off the wagon, just get back on :)

What kinds of recipes are you most hoping to find?

I think it's good to start with some staples- foods that are nutritionally rich, easy to make, and good to go to in a pinch- then branch out from there.

What kind of food do you like?  Maybe we can help direct you.

Have you tried hummus before?  That's a popular one :)

Thanks guys. :) 

As far as foods right now I eat a lot of salads, smoothies, lettuce wraps, etc. I do like hummus but it's not my favorite meal. I like tofu and have been doing a lot with that. I also like mexican food. I've been making a lot of vegetarian burritos or mexican lettuce wraps with beans, sometimes chopped Bokka "chicken" patties, some salsa, a small amount of cheese, and a little ranch dressing. I love zucchini and mushrooms. I could eat them all day. haha I've been wanting to grill some up outside but it's been kinda cold and rainy (I'm in Nor Cal). I also LOVE sushi. I know they are pretty easy to make veg. I've had a few vegetarian rolls at restaurants but they are usually pretty boring compared to the other rolls (like avacodo roll or cucumber roll, just one ingredient and rice, no sauce, etc). I think I will miss the fish in sushi the most though when I go full veg. 

I've also made spring rolls with the rice  based wrap, veggies, and rice noodles with peanut sauce. That was pretty good.

 I really like all kinds of foods. :p I think the only things I'm not a huge fan of are eggplants and asparagus.