Southern Girl vegetarian needs "Good" recipes !!!!!!?

Question

Well I've been a vegetarian going on three months now and I must say i do love it but I miss some of the foods that I use to eat. I miss the cabbage and collard greens and dressings.Me being raised a meat eater from the south, I have absolutely no other knowledge of how to cook this stuff without meat. I may not want the meat anymore but Im still a southern woman who likes what she likes. Can someone please help me? How can I make vegetarian meals that still have that southern twist??? What are some really good meat substitutes?

Answer 1

welcome to the southern cook vegetarian style

greens have several ways to be cooked

mama always cooked them till they were tender and then fryed them in olive oil or canola oil.

you can use soy butter if you do not use real butter

also personally sence i started keeping up with calories i do not fry them i cook them till tender and eat them with a little salt. personally i love them myself even better.

and not just for the lack of fat.

cabbage can be sliced and steamed and put a white cream sauce made with soy milk instead of regular milk. this is wonderful and if you like putting cabbage in vegetable soup is also wonderful keep it the background and not the main part of the soup unless you have a croud who loves cabbage and then you can make a soycream base for soup and make it the center of attention with sliced carrots and corn and peas as the background fair. personally cabbage and potatoes cooked tender and added to a soy cream sauce swiiming lightly is not to be beat.

Answer 2

You can still eat soul food - but just make it w/o meat. At least, that's what I do.

My mother firmly believes that you cannot eat collards without a ham hock. (rolls eyes) I make my plain greens all the time. If you are still looking for that meaty flavor, you might want to try adding a few drops of liquid smoke. I season mine with some creole seasoning and it turns out well.

With the dressing, you can make those quite easily by substituting the meat broth with vegetable broth. Beware of the sodium in the store-bought kind, though. They usually have a LOT. If you make your own and freeze it, in 2-cup portions, you can use it as needed. That works out really well for me - especially when cooking rice or other dishes that usually take beef or chicken broth.

You might be able to find a soy version of chorizo in the refrigerated health-food section in your local grocer. That might make a good substitute for kielbasa (if that's what you eat with your cabbage).

Yves, Veggie Patch, Bocca and Morning Star Farms all make decent meat substitutes. Each one has their strong suit - for example, I think Morning Star has the best chick'n nuggets, Yves has the best ground beef substitute and so on. You might have to purchase a few different brands of the one thing to find which you like the best.

I hope that helps!

Answer 3

http://www.all-creatures.org/recipes/col...

Answer 4

The best place to find recipes is in the book "recipes for a Small Planet" you can find something that will give you balanced carbs.

Answer 5

Just look up the vegetarian versions of your favorite recipes and check out new ones too.  Just because you are southern does not mean you wont like non southern food.  Heck..I'm not Italian and I love Italian food LOL

Here's a recipe for Vegetarian collard greens:

http://www.recipezaar.com/215631

There are tons of recipes for vegetarian Jambalaya, gumbo etc.

Answer 6

I am a raw vegan and I am Southern. Collards appear on my table about once a week, because I love them so. My recipe mimics traditional collards closely enough to make me happy, and incorporates my personal taste as well. You can tweak it to suit you.

Marinated Collards

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. collards

1/2 onion (or more, to taste), finely chopped

6-8 kalamata olives, finely chopped

1/4 red bell pepper, finely chopped (optional)

1  T extra virgin olive oil (or more, to taste)

1 t apple cider vinegar (optional)

PREPARATION

* carefully strip each collard leaf half from the stem.

* pile 2 - 4 leaf halves one on top of the other, and roll into a

   tight "cigar" shape.

* thinly slice the rolled leaves crosswise. This will produce

   long thin ribbons of collards.

* Place the collards in a large bowl.

* Add the chopped kalamata olives, finely chopped onions

   and red bell pepper (if using)

* Drizzle in olive oil and vinegar (if using)

* Massage mixture thoroughly until its bulk has been reduced

  by at least 1/2 (I usually shoot for a 3/4 volume reduction)

* Cover and allow to sit for at least one hour (best if marinated

   overnight).... if you are really hungry, this will still taste good

   eaten immediately after a thorough massage.

NOTE:

The cider vinegar is optional.  some people do not like to use vinegar.  Although I like the flavor that the vinegar imparts, and the vinegar does help the massage process go quickly. These collards are good without vinegar, if you do not wish to use it.  You can also try lemon juice.

VARIATIONS

I often add chili seasoning before massaging the greens.  I have also added curry powder.

This recipe can also be made with any other type of dark leafy greens (spinach, chard, kale, etc.)

Answer 7

Chili Con Elote (Chili With Corn)

2 onions

2 teaspoons paprika

2 garlic cloves

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 large sweet pepper

freshly grated black pepper

285 ml vegetable stock

2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste

285 g cooked corn

2 (400 g) cans kidney beans

2 teaspoons cumin

Chop the onion and garlic and fry gentle for a few minutes.

Chop the bell pepper, add to the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes longer.

Add the stock and tomato paste and bring to the boil. Add the corn and lower the heat to a simmer.

Mash half of the beans and add both the mashed and the whole beans to the pan.

Stir and simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve.

Crockpot Eggplant and Tomato Stew with Garbanzo Beans

1 medium eggplant, peeled -- cut in 1/2" cubes

2 cups chopped tomato

1 1/2 cups sliced carrot

15 ounces garbanzo beans, canned -- drained

8 ounces red kidney beans, canned -- rinsed and drained

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup sliced celery

3 cloves garlic -- minced

3 cups vegetable broth

6 ounces tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano -- crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried basil -- crushed

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 bay leaf

1. In a 3 1/2, 4 or 5-quart crockpot, combine eggplant, tomatoes, carrots, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, onion, celery and garlic.

2. Combine vegetable broth, tomato paste, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and bay leaf. Pour over vegetables.

3. Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Discard bay leaf. Makes 6 servings.

Southern Fried Vegetarian "Chicken"

1 tsp salt or seasoned salt

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp black pepper

dash cayenne (optional)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)

1/4 cup prepared mustard

2 tbsp baking powder

1/2 cup water

1 lb seitan or other chicken substitute, cut into 1-2" square pieces

oil for frying

In a medium to large bowl, mix together the salt, onion powder, garlic powder, flour, black pepper, cayenne and nutritional yeast.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the mustard and water. Add 1/3 cup of the flour mixture to the mustard mixture and combine well.

Coat pieces of seitan or mock chicken with the mustard batter, then coat each piece with the dry flour mixture.

Fry chunks of "chicken" in the oil on medium-high heat in a large skillet for 3-5 minutes, turning once until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel, serve with ketchup or barbeque sauce and enjoy!

Tip: If your chunks are turning brown or black rather than a crispy golden brown, your oil is probably too hot! Reduce the heat a small amount and try again.

Answer 8

http://www.vegweb.com

Or better yet, come meet me at USM and we can do some true vegetarian sampling.

And stick to your grits!

Why'd I get a thumbs down? Our cafeteria has great vegan and vegetarian options! Jeez. I wouldn't even have to be there.