Eating more meatless meals helps out the environment more than you might think. After all, it takes a lot of water and grain feed (which also requires water to grow) to bring meat to the market. We won’t talk about all those livestock farts, but they’re actually a greenhouse gas problem!
That said, start Thanksgiving off on a green foot by enjoying a nice meat-free breakfast — Pumpkin Ginger Waffles. You can make this recipe even more green by choosing organic ingredients like eggs, milk and flour.

This recipe is courtesy of Casa Laguna Inn & Spa in Laguna Beach, California and …read more

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

Back in March we featured several posts on the benefits of going meatless at least a few times a week.
Here’s one more: You won’t have to worry about your cat jumping from the refrigerator to the top of cabinets and hanging out above your stove while chicken cooks.
He knows I can’t reach him — way up there with the Crock Pot I never use. I think he knows he shouldn’t jump into the skillet…
Must remember to put him in another room when I’m cooking any kind of meat.
Image via Peggy Rowland.

Have you been keeping up with Tree Hugging Family this week? Too busy to come get your daily fix of green? No worries, here’s a round up of what you may have missed.
First off the wildly popular contest post – why, well, who doesn’t love a good contest? The only thing better is 10 contests, which is exactly what you’ll find here.
Other great reads this week include:
25 Safe, Non-toxic, Homemade Cleaning Supplies
Organic Chocolate Easter Bunnies for Kids & Organic Cotton Veggies and Fruit for Infants (Peggy’s longest title known to man)
I asked everyone, “How many cleaning supplies are under …read more

It seems we have more than a couple vegetarian readers at Tree Hugging Family. “I don’t eat meat” was the most popular choice, followed by “I eat 3 or more meatless meals each week.”
Actually, the votes went from top to bottom with “None” at the end being the least popular choice. I don’t know who you are in the poll, so don’t be afraid to tell the truth! ;  )
Here are the Meatless Meals posts in the Eco Cooking category in case you missed them.
Thanks everyone. Please look for a new poll in the next few days.

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.

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

Please skip over to the sidebar and take the Meatless Meals Poll.
We’ll talk about the results in a few days.

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