Actress Drew Barrymore has been on our radar for years, ever since she starred in the movie E.T. as a small child. She’s been known for many things, among them her on and off vegetarian lifestyle. In 2002, she gave up on being a vegetarian in order to wear fun clothes, telling IMDB “…Dressing is like an art form – it’s so much fun.” She was back on the vegetarian bandwagon in 2010 and then blamed the diet for making her a picky eater.
Now that she’s dating Will Kopelman, she’s back to eating meat. She says that she finds vegetarianism simply too difficult to do on her own. She loves to cook for her boyfriend and finds it easier to make the same foods for both of them. Barrymore follows a list of celebrities who are “on again, off again” with vegetarianism, including Natalie Portman, who famously gave up her vegan lifestyle during her pregnancy.
People choose to become vegetarians for many reasons, but more choose it for the health benefits than any other reason. According to the American Dietetic Association, vegetarians tend to weigh less, have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, as well as reduced rates of cancer and type 2 diabetes compared to meat eaters. Despite these benefits, many people who try to follow a vegetarian lifestyle don’t stay with it long term.
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By J.J. Kunkle from The Fit Life
The Thanksgiving my husband and I share is a bit different than most. We love our families, but because Thanksgiving tends to focus on food and eating, it’s the one holiday we typically reserve for just the two of us.
Aside from the occasional fish dish, we eat a vegetarian diet. In addition to eating vegetarian, we also eat very health consciously—avoiding processed foods, preservatives and salt as much as possible. So, since we’ve been together, on Thanksgiving we take off for the Smokey Mountains. We rent a nice, little one bedroom cabin and together, cook a nice vegetarian meal for Thanksgiving. Then we spend the long weekend hiking in the mountains. Last year we made quinoa stuffed red peppers.
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While Thanksgiving can be a challenging day of the year for all dieters, it’s especially difficult for vegetarians and vegans who abstain from eating turkey. There is no shortage of vegetable dishes at most Thanksgiving tables, but the meal often revolves around turkey as a main course.
While the vegetarian diet is diverse and exciting, there are certain parts of the Thanksgiving meal that can be challenging to navigate on a meat-free diet.
Meat-Free Main Dishes
This year, whether you are eating a vegetarian diet, vegan diet or simply want to cut down your consumption of animal products, you can easily swap the turkey out of your Thanksgiving dinner without sacrificing tradition. While offering meat substitute like “Tofurkey” is one option, many home cooks prefer to take advantage of fresh seasonal produce and hearty grain salads.
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As the weather grows cooler, it’s easy to fall into the temptation of hearty, stick-to-your ribs comfort foods. When you think of comfort food, you probably think about tucking into a rich bowl of beef stew or a cheese-laden pasta bake, but hearty doesn’t have to mean unhealthy this year.
Comfort foods tend to be rich and decadent, which holds especially true for vegetarians who have to rely on cheese and often fattening dairy products to give their favorite hearty dishes the textures and flavors they crave.
Next time you’re looking for a healthy, hearty dish to warm you up, think meatless with one of our favorite meat-free recipes.
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