Any other vegetarian/vegan families?

[clothmama]

I was also going to ask for the recipe - sounds lovely!

Thanks for that, it sounds like even without the meat Louis is getting enough, he loves eggs and things!

Ohhhh can I have the recipe too, I've always wanted to try some

Sam...

but find vege restuarants are often so much more interesting and inventive than meat ones where they do...steak.

I have a problem with veggie restaurants - I am soooo used to having to choose between 2 or 3 things on the menu that I am alway overwhelmed by the choice and take forever to choose

I think people always assume it is difficult to get enough nutrition from a veggie diet but it is actually very easy. Charlotte loves beans of all types and when we give her chilli, she picks out all the kidney beans first!

Taneli has never eaten meat, tho we are all major carnivores.
he will eat chicken and fish fingers, but most of his protein comes from cheese yogurts, kidney beans (and others), eggs, etc etc. its never worried me. Boo seems to really like meat, which makes it much easier to feed him what we are eating!

i agree with sometimes too much selection at veggie resturants tho!

Shevi you can make a really yummy lentil soup just by cutting up an onion and a few cloves of garlic, frying them off with a knob of butter (or olive oil for kosher or vegan) then add 2-3 cups of lentils (tiny orange ones). If you add boiling water and then cook them for about half an hour minimum and add salt and the right amount of liquid for your perferred thickness that makes a yummy simple soup. I think its much tastier with butter but if you wanted to do it with olive oil and then perhaps add some chopped chilli's and or toasted/roasted + crushed cumin seeds then that gives it a different flavour but for me that makes it too close to my Daal recipie.

CP + Beans

oooh i'd love the daal recipe too!!!
Lentils are Boos favourite food at the moment. have been chucking a handful in when i boil up rice for him, so it has more nutrition and interest than just boring old rice (as i can be assured he will eat it...but not necessarily what i serve him with it!!!)
also he is not scared of food with proper flavours...unlike his big bro who would eat pasta and cream cheese everyday if we let him!!! My mum says he is in nature more like me, and also in food tastes. apparently at 2 my favourites were chilli con carne (yuck now!!) and lamb that i could gnaw off the bone!!!
ps. thank you very much for the recipe!!! sounds yummy! i will make it for with a milk meal first time so i can do with butter if thats how you say its bestest!

My Mum was saying the other day how she used to buy meat on the bone and boil the bones up for us kids and when Mark was little he used to suck the marrow out of the bones. She was saying it was a shame you can't do that anymore but I think it sounds disgusting!

Ok, I love this Daal recipie it was kind of adapted from how a friend of mine from college used to make it. Yum, we started an international dining club at colllege so we could share our national foods and I miss this now she has gone back to Dubai!

I am no good at ammounts as generally don't cook with them. I usually make a HUGE pot of this and freeze some, it freezes really well.

Mini orange lentils (5 cups?)
Head of garlic.
Pre-fried onions in a packet (not essential but adds flavour)
whole cumin
whole black mustard seeds
Tamarind sauce (little purple topped pot you can get it in anywhere which sells international food)
Limes (1-2)
salt
chilli's, fresh or dried.

If you peal and slice a few cloves of garlic and fry them in a tiny bit of olive oil, when they are brownish add the lentils and then boiled water to cover them, simmer. They will soak up water and can stick to the bottom easily so beware, if they are simmering away and the water is reduced too much, just add more, you can't over cook them. Peal the rest of the head of garlic and add it to the simmering lentils. I LOVE garlic so use loads but if you are not keen or worried no one will ever invite you over again, use less! Leave them for about 10-15 minutes. I then add about 3 large teaspoons of tamarind sauce, this will turn the orange lentils brown and give a slightly tangy flavour. Add chopped chilli or crushed dried chilli, I would use a minimum of about 10 dried ones to a big pot and crush them to bring out the flavour but you don't have to use chilli at all if anyone dislikes it. Leave the daal simmering, cover the bottom of a small nonstick pan with black mustard and cumin seeds in equal ammounts to about 2-3 mm in thickness and toast them untill they are brown (but be careful not to burn them) they will need stirring constantly and when the mustard seeds start to crack they are probably ready. Crush them in a pestle and morter and add at least four heaped tablespoons to the daal. Leave it to cook for a few more minutes, add a handful of pre-fried onions and salt to taste (it can need quite alot but obviously for children you might want to hold back). Don't add salt before this as its easy to over salt while the daal is reducing. Finally, squeeze lime juice over and stir in (at least one lime) before serving.

Sorry that I'm not more precise with measurements and I hope you enjoy it, the little orange lentils are easy to digest so are great for everyone I think..

CP + Beans

yummy! thank you, and i LOVE Tamarind Sauce!