Photo by Bobbi Lin
From Food52: Everything you need to eat like a vegetarian for a whole week.
You’ve likely done Meatless Monday before, and/or familiarized yourself with tofu, grain salads, the six-minute egg. But if you’ve never ventured into the world of vegetariana for longer than just a day at a time, we’d like you to reconsider. There are a million reasons to eat your vegetables—a desire to eat seasonally, health, general sustainability. But mostly, vegetables are darn good. And a vegetarian diet can be a colorful, hearty, inexpensive, delicious one.
You don’t have to follow along with the whole week’s worth of recipes; take inspiration from a couple of recipes, or just from one. And if you take one thing away, take this: Eating and cooking vegetarian food is pretty much the same as eating and cooking omnivorously. It’s all about layering textures and flavors. And if you’re worried about the whole protein thing, don’t be. Build meals with the trifecta of grains-greens (and other veg)-protein as your guide, and you’ll eat roundly and be plenty full.
Ready, set…. Photo by Bobbi Lin
Grocery List For A Family Of 4
Arranged by area of the market
- 1 to 2 large bunches beets (about 7 beets total) with greens attached (golden preferred, but red okay)
- 2 large bunches spinach or kale
- 8 medium-large yellow onions
- 1 bunch fresh chives
- 1 bunch fresh sage
- 1 bunch fresh parsley
- 1 large white potato
- 1 pound carrots
- 2 avocados
- 1 hothouse cucumber
- 2 bell peppers
- 24 ounces feta
- 1 dozen eggs
- 1 package extra-firm tofu
- Two 28-ounce cans of whole tomatoes
- One 14-ounce can whole tomatoes
- Two 15-ounce cans chickpeas
- 10 cups vegetable broth
- Grains (rice, farro, quinoa, etc.)
- 1 pound tagliatelle or similar pasta (dried or fresh)
- 2/3 cup pecans
- 1 pound brown lentils
If you don’t already have these things in your pantry and fridge, stock up on them, too! One loaf of bread you love (for sandwiches and sopping up soup), lemons, garlic, butter, mayonnaise (for sandwiches), coarse Dijon mustard, maple syrup, at least three cups plain Greek yogurt, Parmesan, olive oil, sesame oil, sesame seeds, Sriracha, za’atar, bay leaves, turmeric, cumin, coriander, cayenne, red wine vinegar, salt, and freshly ground black pepper.
Photo by James Ransom
Do it: Cook the grains while your sauce is bubbling away—and make four extra cooked cups’ worth. They’ll be lunch tomorrow. Roast the beets and rinse and store the greens; those are for tomorrow’s lunch (and for lots of impromptu side salads, too).
Tips: Use canned whole tomatoes (with their juice) instead of sauce for a winter-appropriate adaptation. Swap in whatever greens you want (arugula, kale, or turnips greens would be good) for the spinach. Trade the grains for bread for sopping up the sauce.
