Veggie Recipes for Meat Lovers

Are you looking to incorporate more veggies into your diet with a new year? Here is a great starter recipe for you meat lovers that are on the fence about changing up your diet with more veggies. Vegetables do not have to be boring, tasteless, and dirt like. My husband had this same vision of vegetables, he was an anti-veg type of guy due to the horrific experience he had as a child. Sharing the terror of how his mother would cook vegetables to the point where they could be transformed to baby puree. Gross. Lifeless. Tasteless. Uninspiring. Damaging.

Overcooking vegetables results in the overall loss of nutrition content and pointless to eat other than pure aesthetics to your plate.

New Years goals and resolutions are a great way to get started taking control of your health and diet. Our waistlines are controlled by 80% of what we put into them and 20% what we do to them (proper sleep, exercise, stress, etc). My family was the family that had basic vegetables in the house: green beans, broccoli, carrots, corn. Super exciting. One day I made the radical decision to cut the crap. In that same breath of a decision I also decided to join a CSA which is a food coop with local farmers. By joining the CSA we began to transform the way we ate and how we ate food. Eating seasonal foods, foods that we had never tried before, vegetables that looked and sounded less than tempting to eat.

As we began to transform the way we ate, we wanted to know if we could still accomplish a “meat” type vegetable. A former employee of mine was a vegetarian and reformed meat eater. His diet helped to evolve my own foods and my family. One of our favorite dishes contains no meat products at all and is the most easy and flavorful meals I enjoy making.

Portabello Burger

One of the most delectable fungi I have had the pleasure to cook with. Meaty and universal to pretty much anything you want to cook. Mild in flavor and truly a hearty addition to any dish. Portabello mushrooms can be purchased pre-packaged (which are more expensive) or you can purchase them loose and by the pound which run about $3.99 per pound.

I have grilled, sauteed, and eaten these babies raw, they are magnificent. Not as much as they are when made into a burger. Here is how you can have an all veggie burger without sacrificing taste or texture (serves 2):

1 zucchini, sliced length wise into 1/4 inch sticks
1 Portabello Mushroom, sliced length wise into thin slices, not too thin
1/4 red onion sliced
1 red bell pepper (you can add any other bell pepper but the red tastes best)
1 TBSP coconut oil
1/4 avocado, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
Favorite bread item – This dish is EXCELLENT on ciabatta, we have had on Dave’s Killer Organic and English muffins. Also amazing on a salad.

Warm the pan over a medium heat and allow coconut oil to melt, toss in the onions and mushrooms first as they will soak up most of your oil. Cook for 2 minutes before adding in remaining veggies. Toss in pan to equally cook and coat. I like to use a lid to hold in the moisture and create a great browning and crunch to the zucchini. Be careful not to overcook, this is a saute type dish, cook the mushrooms and onions enough to be soft without being mushy.

While the vegetable medley is still warm serve atop your bread of choice with sliced avocado and cheese if you so desire. Provolone is excellent as is Swiss or a smoked gouda.

If you are feeling exceptionally edgy with your vegetables add in some thinly sliced eggplant for a truly mind blowing meaty flavor and taste to your vegetable medley burger. Eggplant is a savory, delicate veggie with a robust amount of meat.

Embrace your inner vegetarian. Even though you are a meat lover does not mean you cannot have a love affair with veggies. Vegetables do not have to be dull, lifeless and boring. Moreover veggies are not all about salads. You can create amazing smoothies, sides and full meals with the right veggies. Find some great meal ideas in our recipe section and spice up your meal ideas this year.