Does anyone else remember the famous Hank Williams song, Hey, good lookin’. Whatcha got cookin’?
I do! And I was tempted to sing that very refrain in our kitchen earlier this week.
And just why did I have the urge to burst into said song?
It’s because Steve brushed up on his culinary skills and whipped up a vegetable stir fry for the family. (Since our family is eating vegetarian for three weeks and I was running out of meal ideas, I was most grateful for the help.)
Now before going any further, I need to make one thing clear: Steve is the sort of husband who will eat anything I put in front of him with nary a complaint. I can reheat the same tired casserole three nights in a row and he will eat every bite. And when he is done, he will graciously compliment my cooking.
However. There is one small area of eating that Steve is a bit particular about and that is the crispness of cooked vegetables. He likes for his onions and peppers and zucchini and broccoli and water chestnuts to be added to the cooking process at particular times so that their crispness is at the proper point when they are served .
I, on the other hand, just slop everything together, stir it around a couple of minutes and don’t give the Official Scale of Vegetable Crispness a second thought.
And so those are the reasons that my own personal Mr. Hubby has been delegated the delicate task of stir frying our vegetables. . .
. . . which he does with great aplomb and skill.
After we got done eating the stir fry (over brown rice and accompanied by 7-grain oven bread) we finished our repast with yogurt and fruit smoothies. (We’re also off all desserts for three weeks.)
Although I felt vegetable-y virtuous and exceedingly healthy when the meal was over, I was still sort of longing for a cheeseburger and a brownie.
Just sayin’ . . . .
I don’t know where I originally heard this, but it’s apt:
I could be a vegetarian, if only I didn’t love steak.
Kristina,
Ha. Love it!
That stirfry looks really good said the girl who at 10:58 p.m. forgot dinner
Go Steve!
Guerrina, I can just imagine how hungry you must be at 10:58 with no dinner! I have to say though, I don’t think I have ever once forgotten to eat. It would probably be a nice change of pace for me!
I admire your doing three weeks without veggies, but your post made me want a cheeseburger and a brownie, too!! Good luck!
Gayle, yep, three weeks seems like a pretty long time. I have some brownies in my freezer that I will thaw in a couple days, warm them, and top with ice cream. Yum.
Don’t know if my first one went the way of all comments or not, but will try again. I do know the song very well, my dad was a country/western singer in Fargo, ND – came to know the Lord and was a preacher for about 40 years. The veggies for me have to be almost non-crispy. Green beans have to be done completely – no crispness. I think it’s wonderful that Steve would do this. Well, if he wants his vegetables done a certain way, what better way to do it than doing it yourself.
Sharyn, isn’t it funny how different people all like their veggies cooked different ways? And yes, it is wonderful that Steve is willing to be our Veggie Chef.
I must have missed why you are only eating vegtables. I laughed when you said that about Steve – my mom says that folks in the South cook their vegtables to mush so she normally cooks all the vegies at our meals.
Becky, Southerners most definitely have their own methods and traditions for cooking veggies. As long as I’ve lived here, I’m not quite sure I fully understand it but they take it very seriously! Some good cooks in these here parts!
I have been off beef and pork and desserts for the three weeks which ends Sat!!!! I want a hamburger!!! I have done well without the chocolate which I thought would be harder. I have missed beef more and I usually only cook it once or twice a week if that often.
Ann, by now you’ve had your beef and chocolate and are no doubt quite happy about that! Sorry to hear about the recent loss in your family; grace to you today.
My daughter and I are very close to being vegetarians – about the only meat we do eat is chicken. Roasting vegetables is also an easy and tasty way to go. If you are interested in a recipe, I can share. I rarely cook vegetables any other way. Pastas are such a good variation for meatless meals also – I have a great lemon/garlic butter sauce that is wonderful on any kind of pasta and then just toss in some roasted veggies and you are set. I, also, would be interested in the reasons behind the change in eating if you want to share. My sister has been a vegetarian for years and you would be amazed at how I can cook up all the “fixings” for Thanksgiving for her. Still do a turkey but I am having issues with that lately also. I would still go for the brownie, however! Good for all of you for trying this.
And, I do remember that song also.
Mary, we are also big chicken, turkey and fish eaters; we might have red meat 2 or 3 times a month. However, I know I could never be completely vegetarian because I love my meat way too much!
And any sort of recipe you would like to share, I would like to have, especially having to do with cooking veggies; also the lemon/garlic/butter sauce sounds great.
Among other things, our family gave up meat and desserts as part of a 21-day fast our church was a part of. (Different people gave up different things.) It’s been a wonderful exercise in self discipline and eating more simply. It has also taxed my cooking creativity since I am a bit limited in my vegetarian recipes but overall, it’s been a great experience.
Some of my favourite vegetarian recipes have come off of two websites, weelicious.com and eatingwell.com
I have been vegetarian for close to a year and a half and MOST are supportive, except for a few in the medical community who are still confused and think that being vegetarian is part of an eating disorder (which it isn’t).
But I never really liked meat, even as a kid, and would hate having this hunk of meat sitting on my dish as a four-year-old…so going vegetarian just made sense.
MusicGirl, thanks for recommending those two websites; I will definitely enjoy browsing through those. Glad to hear that being vegetarian has worked so well for you; I can’t imagine anyone in the medical community looking on it as an eating disorder! Sounds like they need a bit more education!
Sounds like an interesting experiment. I’d love to hear more about the reasons behind it- if you are comfortable sharing. I’ve been a vegetarian for nearly 14 years and it works well for me but I choose to raise my daughter on meat. I’d be happy to email a few favorite recipes if you would like. But by far my current favorite recipe is the vegetarian version inspired by your dumplings recipe from a while back. In fact at this very moment as I write this comment I am also eating a left over bowl of it for breakfast from last night’s supper., Its that good- especially in the midst of our current brutal cold spell.
Have a great day!! Enjoy the three vegetarian weeks!
Jenna
Jenna, our giving up meat had to with a 21-day fast our church participated in. I’ve enjoyed the discipline of it but will be glad when it gets over tomorrow!
I’m so glad you were able to turn my dumplings recipe into a vegetarian dish; I really need to give that a try. And yes, any favorite vegetarian recipes of yours would be appreciated; we still want to eat vegetarian several times a month even after the fast, so I can use some ideas!
A wonderful tex/mex vegetarian dish (although I have made it with pork!). Rinse and drain a can of black beans. Add to a sauce pan with a can of diced tomatoes (with or without chilis), a can of hominy, and 2 tsp. cumin (or taco seasoning). Heat thoroughly. Serve with soft or hard taco shells, garnished with fresh cilantro, cheddar cheese, low fat sour cream or plain greek yogurt, scallions, black olives….use your imagination.
Anonymous, I hate to admit it, but I have never in my life cooked or eaten hominy! I didn’t even know you could get it in a can! (I know. I’m a bad Southern girl for even making that confession.) But your recipe sounds delicious; I’m going to give it a try.
Becky,
but there all different kinds of vegetarians though.
I was too lazy to ground beef the other evening for my crockpot chili, so I picked up Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Crumbles. It’s like ground beef but it’s veggie. It made my chili very tasty. I definitely will be using that for now on in my chili. Congrats on becoming vegetarians! I can’t because of my love for chicken
Michelle-
Michelle, I had thought about buying the Crumbles and am glad to get a recommendation that they are good. We also have been buying the MorningStar Black Bean burgers and they are wonderful!
We actually aren’t becoming vegetarians for good, just for a few weeks. (Although I am going to try to continue to cook vegetarian several times a month just because it’s so healthy.)
Mrs. Pam, I just found out that Hey Good Lookin’ was recorded in 1951. Didn’t know it was that old! (An oldie but goody, for sure.)
yep, I remember that song.
cheeseburger and brownie sound good to me…
but, I admire your healthy 3 week venture.