Vegetarianism
So... You think you can't live without bacon and chicken wings.
I, too, used to believe that greasy Culver's Butter Burgers were an undeniable part of life, essential to my being, and impossible to turn down. But as it turns out, I was wrong. In fact, the Tomato Florentine Soup and Crinkle Cut Fries are a lot more manageable of a meal, and leave a lot more room in your tummy for a Concrete Mixer afterwards.
I have been a vegetarian for over a year now. While I still eat seafood- partially to make meeting my protein needs easier, partially because I have an undeniable love for crab rangoon- I do not eat meat or poultry.
I decided to stop eating meat last year for a couple of reasons.
The main reason was simply because I felt bad. Growing up, I was a very curious child, and I often asked what kind of animal was on my plate. I wanted to know the difference between gyro meat and burger meat, and why steak was such a luxury, but we had ground beef multiple times a week. I wondered why I never had to eat all of my hot dog, but I wasn't allowed dessert until my turkey sandwich was finished. Yet every time I asked these questions, I was told that we shouldn't talk about those things at the dinner table. As I got older, I started to think, if what I was eating was too gross to talk about, should I really be eating it? And with this thought, each meaty meal began to make me feel worse and worse.
Another reason I decided to become a vegetarian was because of the things that I read online. Article after article repeated the same sorts of facts. That six million animals are killed each hour for food, 56 billion per year; That the meat industry produces 150 billion gallons of methane, and is the leading cause of greenhouse gases; That producing a single hamburger requires the equivalent amount of water needed for two months worth of showers. I read countless facts and statistics such as these, all the while learning about global warming, water shortages, and world hunger in school. It started seeming silly to me that we destroy our only planet and murder countless innocent animals just for a burger.
And so, with those reasons in mind, I made the decision to stop eating meat.
I thought that it was going to be difficult to miss out on big, juicy steaks, half-priced boneless wings, and Culver's iconic Butter Burgers. But honestly, it wasn't. I occasionally got cravings for the flavor of buffalo and A1, but I never had a desire for actual meat, and it was easy enough to simply put those sauces on a veggie burger, or use them as a dipping sauce for fries in order to satisfy my craving. Honestly, it was so shockingly easy to give up such a large part of my diet that if I was living on my own and cooking for myself (and cookies didn't contain eggs), I might have tried to go vegan.
Besides being asked if it's hard living without bacon, the second most frequent question that I get is, "Where do you get your protein?". As I stated earlier, I do eat seafood, which does make things a lot easier in the protein department. But besides fish, there are plenty of other meatless protein sources out there. Rice, eggs, nuts, soy, and beans all contain a lot of protein. Dairy products like cottage cheese and yogurt are great sources too, and so is oatmeal, quinoa, and some fruits and vegetables. In addition to all of these natural sources, there's also lots of cool new ways to get protein. Soy based "meat" products are sold in nearly every store these days, as are protein powders and bars. It's not difficult to find meatless forms of protein, you just have to give a little more attention to what you eat.
Another concern for a lot of vegetarians is getting other nutrients and vitamins that are not usually found in plant-based foods. These include vitamin B-12, calcium, vitamin D, iron, zinc, and omega-3. The great thing about living in such an advanced society is that all of these important nutrients can be taken in the form of a supplement. Personally, I take calcium chews (which taste like chocolate! and also contain vitamin D, zinc, and iron), and B-12 supplements. Since I still eat fish, I don't have to worry about omega-3, but that is also available in pill form.
Now, I'm not writing this to say that you're a bad person if you eat meat, and I'm not trying to "convert" anyone to vegetarianism. I simply want to show that IT IS POSSIBLE to survive without consuming meat, and if you've always wanted to be a vegetarian, you should try it out- it's probably easier than you think. Plus, being a vegetarian is sort-of a big part of my life, so I think it's an important thing to mention on my blog.
Beyond that, I hope that this serves as an understandable explanation as to why no matter how much people rave about those maple-bacon muffins that I keep seeing on Pinterest, you're never going to be able to find the recipe on my blog. On the other hand, I look forward to sharing all of my favorite vegetarian recipes with you, and I hope that you find them just as tasty as recipes that do contain meat.
Thanks for reading,
Jaden Joy
I, too, used to believe that greasy Culver's Butter Burgers were an undeniable part of life, essential to my being, and impossible to turn down. But as it turns out, I was wrong. In fact, the Tomato Florentine Soup and Crinkle Cut Fries are a lot more manageable of a meal, and leave a lot more room in your tummy for a Concrete Mixer afterwards.
I have been a vegetarian for over a year now. While I still eat seafood- partially to make meeting my protein needs easier, partially because I have an undeniable love for crab rangoon- I do not eat meat or poultry.
I decided to stop eating meat last year for a couple of reasons.
The main reason was simply because I felt bad. Growing up, I was a very curious child, and I often asked what kind of animal was on my plate. I wanted to know the difference between gyro meat and burger meat, and why steak was such a luxury, but we had ground beef multiple times a week. I wondered why I never had to eat all of my hot dog, but I wasn't allowed dessert until my turkey sandwich was finished. Yet every time I asked these questions, I was told that we shouldn't talk about those things at the dinner table. As I got older, I started to think, if what I was eating was too gross to talk about, should I really be eating it? And with this thought, each meaty meal began to make me feel worse and worse.
Another reason I decided to become a vegetarian was because of the things that I read online. Article after article repeated the same sorts of facts. That six million animals are killed each hour for food, 56 billion per year; That the meat industry produces 150 billion gallons of methane, and is the leading cause of greenhouse gases; That producing a single hamburger requires the equivalent amount of water needed for two months worth of showers. I read countless facts and statistics such as these, all the while learning about global warming, water shortages, and world hunger in school. It started seeming silly to me that we destroy our only planet and murder countless innocent animals just for a burger.
And so, with those reasons in mind, I made the decision to stop eating meat.
I thought that it was going to be difficult to miss out on big, juicy steaks, half-priced boneless wings, and Culver's iconic Butter Burgers. But honestly, it wasn't. I occasionally got cravings for the flavor of buffalo and A1, but I never had a desire for actual meat, and it was easy enough to simply put those sauces on a veggie burger, or use them as a dipping sauce for fries in order to satisfy my craving. Honestly, it was so shockingly easy to give up such a large part of my diet that if I was living on my own and cooking for myself (and cookies didn't contain eggs), I might have tried to go vegan.
Besides being asked if it's hard living without bacon, the second most frequent question that I get is, "Where do you get your protein?". As I stated earlier, I do eat seafood, which does make things a lot easier in the protein department. But besides fish, there are plenty of other meatless protein sources out there. Rice, eggs, nuts, soy, and beans all contain a lot of protein. Dairy products like cottage cheese and yogurt are great sources too, and so is oatmeal, quinoa, and some fruits and vegetables. In addition to all of these natural sources, there's also lots of cool new ways to get protein. Soy based "meat" products are sold in nearly every store these days, as are protein powders and bars. It's not difficult to find meatless forms of protein, you just have to give a little more attention to what you eat.
Another concern for a lot of vegetarians is getting other nutrients and vitamins that are not usually found in plant-based foods. These include vitamin B-12, calcium, vitamin D, iron, zinc, and omega-3. The great thing about living in such an advanced society is that all of these important nutrients can be taken in the form of a supplement. Personally, I take calcium chews (which taste like chocolate! and also contain vitamin D, zinc, and iron), and B-12 supplements. Since I still eat fish, I don't have to worry about omega-3, but that is also available in pill form.
Now, I'm not writing this to say that you're a bad person if you eat meat, and I'm not trying to "convert" anyone to vegetarianism. I simply want to show that IT IS POSSIBLE to survive without consuming meat, and if you've always wanted to be a vegetarian, you should try it out- it's probably easier than you think. Plus, being a vegetarian is sort-of a big part of my life, so I think it's an important thing to mention on my blog.
Beyond that, I hope that this serves as an understandable explanation as to why no matter how much people rave about those maple-bacon muffins that I keep seeing on Pinterest, you're never going to be able to find the recipe on my blog. On the other hand, I look forward to sharing all of my favorite vegetarian recipes with you, and I hope that you find them just as tasty as recipes that do contain meat.
Thanks for reading,
Jaden Joy
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