Welcome

Welcome to the first issue of The Cheap Vegetarian's Guide to Survival! This idea was born about two and a half years ago in a nice kitchen i was housesitting after i had made some delicious conconction using beans, rice, and a made-up chipolte chilli. It dawned upon me that over the years, i had become fairly creative and had made some damned good vegetarian food that even omnivores like, and my lovely boyfriend suggested a cookbook. The idea was born. The Cheap Vegetarian's Guide to Survival.

You see, back in the day, there were all kinds of misconceptions about what it means to be a vegetarian, most of which involved someone being on a high horse prosyletizing at people about them being inhumane, and encouraging them to eat food that was more expensive than they could afford. This misconception came from a few bad apples that are inevitably in every barrel. Furthermore, the misconception that being a vegetarian is expensive, i believe, comes from the fact that the meat substitutes available are indeed more expensive than the meat products. For example, most hot dogs or frozen chicken patties go for price $X.xx, while the vegetarian substitutes tend to go for somewhere around $X.xx + ($X.xx)75%, making it seem as though being a vegetarian costs about 75% more than not being a vegetarian. Soymilk also fits into this equation, should someone choose to drink that over regular cow milk.

Here's the flaw with that reasoning: most of the time, if you're eating right, you don't use meat substitutes. Most of the time, you eat vegetables, beans, rice, cereal (just like anyone else), fruit, and some deserts, just like anyone else who's having a balanced diet. Depending on your choices, you might be eating eggs and cheeze too. I'm pretty sure that omnivores are found eating all of those things from time to time.

People ask "but what about protein?" Let me tell you, there are plenty of ways to get protein without eating meat. The aforementioned eggs, yes. There are also beans and rice, which combined make a complete protein. Milk and soymilk are other excellent sources, as are tofu, seitan, cheezes of all sorts, sour cream, etc. Be creative! Even mushrooms turn into protein when they're cooked. I've been a vegetarian for 9 years, and it hasn't been a problem for me to get protein.

"What about iron?" people ask. Another interesting fact -- black beans and dark leafy greens contain more iron than just about anything out there. Eggs are also good for that. Interestingly, i find that when i'm PMSing (about to lose an egg) i crave eggs. It's really the one time of month that i ever make myself an omelette. And i make a damned good omelette.

So you see, there are plenty of things to choose from besides expensive meat substitutes for your nutrition. Actually, those meat substitutes aren't much better for you than the quality of the meat they're trying to mock either! And let me tell you here and now, if you're poor, beans and rice are your friend.

So, i'll get around to writing a mission statement in the next posting. In the meantime, i hope i've given you something to ponder. Soon to come are recipes and tips.