At first, your low carb diet seemed like the best dream you'd
ever had. A dietary expert was actually telling you to eat as
much meat, eggs, and cheese as you possibly wanted. You could go
to any restaurant, order the biggest slab of beef on the menu
and—since you weren't eating bread or potatoes with meat—you
could still claim you were watching your waistline when offered
dessert. But, now that the low carb honeymoon is over, you might
be finding that the thought of another pork chop, omelet, or hunk
of cheese makes you sick to your stomach. If you fit this
description, there is a way to keep your carbs low, but your
spirits high. Instead of a steak for your next breakfast, lunch,
and dinner, why don't you try a low carb vegetarian dish?
Don't worry—you don't need a special ID card to eat vegetarian
foods, nor do you need to wear sandals and burn incense. In fact,
with nuts, fruits, and vegetables, you eat vegetarian foods all
the time! But, if you're ready to skip steak once in a while,
it's time to replace some of your meat entrees with vegetarian
options. And, believe it or not, it's easier than you might think
to whip up a low carb vegetarian dish.
"I can't believe it's not vegetarian!"
The easiest way to take your low carb diet on a vegetarian trip
is by using meat substitutes. Meat substitutes taste, feel, and
even smell like the real deal. When you simply substitute these
faux meats in any of your meat-based recipes, you'll have to
check the package twice to make sure it really says "Vegetarian"
on the label. From tofu to tempeh, seitan to TVP, there are just
about as many meat substitutes as actual meats on the market
today. You can have vegetarian ribs, shrimp, steak, chicken,
turkey, salmon, and just about any other meat you can think of.
But, if you really want a break from meat, the real thing or even
fakes, vegetarian dishes can serve you up right.
If you want to take a break every now and then from meat, faux or
otherwise, stir fries, grilled veggies, and low carb pastas top
the vegetarian list.
Stir fry your favorite low starch, cruciferous vegetables,
including broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, daikon, radishes,
chard, turnips, and watercress. For protein, add in seasoned
tofu.
Grill up asparagus, peppers, zucchini, summer squash, or any of
the veggies above. Marinade your healthy delights in a little
olive oil, salt, and pepper. For an extra zip, add cayenne
pepper.
Go Italian with a low carb pasta topped with your choice of
garlic, herbs, and tomatoes. Add a light sprinkle of Romano or
Parmesan cheese for the perfect touch.
Your low carb world has just gotten a bit brighter—there are so
many vegetarian options that you can add to your diet. You don't
have to give up meat, but if you want to add variety to your
menu, grab something vegetarian today. And, you might just like
the way those sandals feel after all!
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