What are the best diet vegetarian foods and recipes?

Question

ok, i have tried basically everything minus the atkins. i became a vegetarian a while ago and i lost about ten pounds from simply eating healthy, but i need to lose more, and i am working on a VERY tight budget. any help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Being vegetarian is a great way to save on your budget.  Being vegan is even cheaper!  Animal products are some of the most expensive food items on the market.

Beans and rice are some of the cheapest, most filling vegetarian foods out there, and you can do so much with them to add variety and flavor!  Salads are another great cheap option--you can take a plate of greens and add nuts and fruit to it along with a low-calorie dressing, and voila! You have a healthy, cheap meal.  Oatmeal and quinoa topped with some cinnamon and fruit are great breakfast options that fill you up with a low price.  Watch it on the dairy, though--there are a lot of fats and calories that hide out in the animal products we eat.

Another thing you have to remember with losing weight is that you have to exercise, not just eat healthy.  Walking--just at a slow stroll--for 30 minutes a day is a great start.

Drink a big glass of water before and after you walk, and also before you eat something--sometimes our bodies think we're hungry, when in fact we're only thirsty.  All the water helps raise your metabolism, too.  And green tea works wonders for you mood and your health, too.

Congratulations on losing weight, and good luck!

Answer 2

Just keep up with what you are doing and keep active.  Avoid ALL refined white carb items like white bread, white rice etc.

Answer 3

You can't beat a nice vegetable casserole with lots of low calorie flavours to liven it up like chillies, ginger, vegetable stock cubes, herbs and garlic. Putting lots of green vegetables in it makes it even more slimming. Use pulses for protein such as butterbeans or chick peas. Don't serve with extra carbohydrate.

Another good thing about this is you can make a huge batch of it and freeze individual portions. Try your local market if you have one or supermarkets shortly before they close to get cheaper produce.  It's great to heat up and take for a packed lunch in a wide necked flask (Argos sell reasonably priced ones).

Try this for a delicious fat burning recipe.



6 large onions

1-2 cans of tomatoes

1 large head of cabbage

2 green peppers

1 bunch celery

various herbs and seasonings

large punnet of mushrooms  

chopped chillies

2 or 3 cloves of chopped garlic

vegetable bouillon stock

Answer 4

eat only whole wheat bread and pastas (CHEAP)

brown rice (CHEAP)

beans (CHEAP)

miracle cabbage/diet soup (google it) (CHEAP)

lots of water (FREE)

celery and watermelon (CHEAP)

bananas (CHEAP)

***I eat a banana every morning for breakfast plus another serving of raw fruit, like a kiwi, some grapes or berries or something - then i wait to eat anything until lunch, I tell everyone this because seriously if you just do this you'll lose weight, and it helps with digestion a lot too (which helps you lose weight). Don't drink coffee either, just lots of water until about 3-4 hours later then eat lunch.

***Make lunch your biggest meal, some ideas

- bean and rice burrito (whole wheat tortilla, brown rice)

- natural peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat bread (with mashed raspberries, strawberries or slices of banana or apple)

- brown rice and steamed or stir fried vegetables

- veggie pizza on whole wheat crust (home made is cheaper)

- baby carrots, snap peas, celery, peppers to go with it lunch

Just have a big salad for dinner with some nuts/seeds in it for omegas and protein

And lots of water all day!

whole wheat pizza crust:

    1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

    1/2 cup lukewarm water

    1 tablespoon yeast

    1 teaspoon salt

    2 tablespoons vegetable oil or melted margarine (both work fine)

Directions:

Preheat oven 425 degrees.  Mix the yeast with the lukewarm water untill the yeast is disolved. Let it stand for a couple minutes. Add the salt and vegetable oil/melted margarine. Mix. Add the flour, and mix. Roll out the dough. Put it in the oven for 5 minutes. Take it out and rub margerine over it.  Add toppings, and cook for 10-15 more minutes.

Serves: 1-2

Preparation time: 20 min.

Just put on some spaghetti sauce and an assortment of veggies, like sliced zucchini and broccoli.

cheese is pretty fattening and I'd advise against it, plus it's expensive

making your own bread is cheaper too

Answer 5

1. Bananas. At Trader Joe's (I don't know if you have them wherever you are) bananas are 19 cents each. Bananas are cheap and really, really good for you.

2. Fat free cottage cheese. So much protein it's not even funny. Eat the cottage cheese with a little honey and sliced bananas for breakfast. For lunch, eat it with zucchini, bell peppers, and an egg white omelet!

3. Egg-whites. Very, very low calorie. Each egg white only has 17 calories. You can eat 10 egg whites and it's only be 170 calories!

4. Tofu. 'Nuf said.

5. Fresh vegetables. You need to find the ones you like. Personally, I love cauliflower, cabbage, zucchini, bell peppers, brussel sprouts, broccolli, onions, and asparagus, and I eat those veggies almost exclusively.

6. Hummus. Dip raw vegetables in hummus. It's delicious. Fresh, raw vegetables maintain 100% of their nutrients. If you cook them, they lose a lot of the nutrients.

7. Make raw veggie wraps -- trust me, they are delicious. Buy whole wheat tortillas or wraps, spread 2 tablespoons of hummus on it, and put some raw veggies in it. Wrap it up and enjoy. If you MUST cook your veggies, steam them.

8. Apples. An apple a day... Seriously, though, apple-skins are antioxidants, which protects against cancer.

Happy eating!