As children grow older, they begin to make decisions for themselves that reflect their personal tastes, preferences, and beliefs. For some, this may mean that they opt to eat a vegetarian or vegan diet, even if the rest of their family is carrying on eating meat. This doesn’t need to be a source of conflict or challenge, as it’s actually really easy to provide vegetarian dishes even whilst everyone else is eating meat. Check out these three meal suggestions to help get you started.
Roast Dinner
If you’re doing a traditional roast, all of the trimmings (potatoes, vegetables, and gravy) can be made vegetarian as long as you don’t use meat fat or stock to cook anything. Alongside the meat, make sure there is an appealing vegetarian alternative – this could be a nut roast, a vegetable pie, or even a vegetable hash. If you don’t fancy doing the extra work, ask your child to pitch in. Many of these veggie options can also be bought, pre-made, from stores, so you won’t have an extra dish to cook.
Burgers
If you’re firing up the grill to cook up some burgers and hotdogs, don’t forget to buy (or make) some veggie burgers for the vegetarians in your family. Beans, grated veg, and cheese are all great options that can spice up a standard veggie burger. Don’t forget the sides such as slaw, potato salad, and fries, all of which should automatically be vegetarian.
Spaghetti Bolognese
If you’re looking for your go-to spaghetti bolognese recipe, why not consider swapping out the minced meat for some beans or lentils? Not only will this mean the veggie in your midst can enjoy the dish with you, but it will also be a healthier option for the meat-eaters among you. This is also possible with many meat pies and stews which call for minced meat – if the sauce is tasty and rich enough, no one will even notice the meat is missing.