Several years ago while living in New York City, I adopted a vegetarian lifestyle. I had a friend who explained the ins and outs of vegetarianism to me and helped me learn a new way of eating and thinking about food.
But when I moved to Los Angeles I found it difficult to keep it up. I thought L.A. would be the land of thin, beautiful, active, healthy people. But in actuality, it is the land of fast food and chain restaurants.
I fell off the wagon…hard.
But now I’ve decided to give it another shot. I enjoyed being a vegetarian and its health benefits. The hard part is figuring out new things to cook. All of my veggie cookbooks are packed away in storage at my mother’s house. When I’m at work, lunch is easy because I have a vegan salad bar in my office complex and several of the local restaurants have strong vegetarian options.
It is important when trying a vegetarian diet to actually eat vegetables. It is very easy to substitute pastas and cheeses for meat. But that will make you gain weight fast. Being meatless is not the same thing as being a vegetarian. Potato chips and french fries may not be an animal product but they are not the healthiest choices.
So, my question to you, dear readers, is can you recommend any good vegetarian cookbooks? I have one of the Moosewood Collective books but I need some more inspiration.
