We haven’t looked at veggie meals for a while, but you should always be considering vegetarian meals, at least a little, because it’s not only better for your health but super keen for the planet as well. While you don’t need to totally cut meat from your diet to reap health and earth-minded rewards, you should attempt to cut at least three meat-based meals per week.
If you’re looking for a way to get started on meatless meals more often, but are worried your family will freak, a good way to go is with some simple tweaks. You can make tons …read more

I know from past polls here that several of you (our readers) are vegetarians like Jennifer. I also know from comments that many of you struggle with preparing meat-free meals due to resistance from spouses or other family members.
Me? I’m not a vegetarian, but I do eat several meat-free meals each week. My spouse eats what I cook! Actually, he doesn’t mind the meat-free thing.
Are you trying to make changes in your diet to become more meat-free?
Maybe you’ll be inspired by World Vegetarian Day on October 1.
It’s the beginning of vegetarian awareness month. Visit World Vegetarian Day for some veggie …read more

Today the Lifestyles Channel is holding a potluck / picnic of sorts. Each of the channel blogs will be somehow discussing potlucks and picnics today – a favorite recipe, maybe some planning tips. Here at Tree Hugging Family, we’ll be looking at how to hold a green picnic.

Pack green silverware and plates. That means real dishes or at the very least a smart eco-alternative.
Bring at least one meatless main dish.
Aim for a healthy organic picnic.
Block the sun with eco friendly sunglasses.
Toss an earth friendly Frisbee.
Don’t forget the human safe bug spray and sunscreen.
Forget stuff like balloons to mark your picnic …read more

In celebration of Peggy’s look at the meatless life lately – wait, have you missed that? Well, Peggy’s been looking at meatless living and I added one myself. Here’s a look back at some meatless posts we’ve done:

Meatless Meals: How to Cook Everything Vegetarian
A Veggie Resource in the Health and Science Channel
Meatless Meals: Veggie Books for Kids
Tofu Recipes for Kids
You can also get involved by taking the Meatless Meals Poll

So, back to our one meatless meal. Having been a vegetarian for years and years, people always think I’m going to bring the suck dish to the potluck or family event. …read more

I’ll post about the results of the Meatless Meals poll on Tuesday. Please take a few seconds to take the poll if you haven’t already. It’s located on the sidebar.
And if you missed the Meatless Meals posts, here they are in the eco cooking category.
Plus, did you know that you can make chocolate zucchini bread? Here’s a recipe from All Recipes. Try it out.
Photo courtesy of Lisa Solonynko.

One of the best ways to eat less meat as an adult is to love vegetables as a kid.
Look for these books the next time you go to the library:
Oliver’s Vegetables. Oliver learns that there are other foods besides french fries.

A Turkey for Thanksgiving. Well, not really. The book is a fun portrayal of a vegetarian Thanksgiving holiday.

Aldo Applesauce. Aldo is a new kid and a vegetarian who gets made fun of at first.

The Jumbo Vegetarian Cookbook. I think the name speaks for itself.

During this Meatless Meals week, I thought you’d like to know about a neighboring blog in the Health & Science Channel: Veggie Chic by Jul.
One post you might especially like to try out is 5 ways to slowly go vegetarian. Or, semi-vegetarian, whatever your goals are.
Veggie Chic features recipes, tips on staying meatless while traveling and info on restaurants for veggies. And a lot more yum stuff.
Also, check out Weird and Wacky Facts. Wow, someone out there makes bacon-scented air fresheners.

One resource I chose to help me with my quest to eat more meatless meals is Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. I have owned his How to Cook Everything for years and have been greatly impressed. I won’t exactly call this a cookbook for dummies, but Bittman explains everything. And I do mean everything, but it’s not insulting. I like it. He also tells you which recipes are vegan and which are vegetarian.
Now, I might as well go ahead and say it, “I love tamales.” If I try a new Mexican restaurant, I always try the tamales first. …read more

If you want to pick just one day a week to not eat meat, pick Monday because saying Meatless Monday is fun.
Meatless Monday is a national health campaign to help prevent health problems caused by eating too much meat. The website offers recipes, health and nutrition info, tips, recipe e-cards and whatever else you might expect from a site called Meatless Monday.
It’s not your granny’s cookbook site. In fact, I’d even call it a somewhat manly site. They have a section called Monday Night Foodbowl.
If you don’t get enough inspiration from that site, try out Vegetarian Times or Vegetarian …read more

Of course, the first of the Meatless Meals posts should give you some pretty good reasons to eat less meat. I think the reasons below are beautiful.
It’s good for you and the environment:
Research shows that vegetarians have lower rates of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke and some cancers. Also, eating less meat can help lower body weight and cholesterol. So, even if you don’t totally veg out, you can still gain health benefits by lowering your meat intake.
“Growing” meat takes a lot of resources. Animals eat a lot of grains. The energy it takes to …read more