People often wonder what I make for Thanksgiving for my boyfriend who is vegetarian. The first two years I made lasagna. It wasn't until I researched some alternatives on line that I created a full Vegetarian Thanksgiving meal. The local newspaper posted a few options today. Here is the link for you to read. If you wanted a complete Vegetarian Meal and not just the Turkey substitute, you can contact me via Twitter @lucymfel send me a direct message with your email, and I will send you the recipes.

For those enjoying Timothy Turkey, remember moderation and portion control is key. Remember to always give thanks to those cooking the food and enjoy the day with your family.

This recipe can be served as dinner and appetizer. This recipe can be done with children. I prepared this recipe with my nephew and he prepared both of the pizzas for dinner. Adults should supervise children while they are preparing the pizzas. While you are waiting for the pizza to cook, parents can use the time to chat with the children and teach them valuable information about nutrition.

Ingredients

Flatbread
Vegetarian Soy Mozzarella Cheese
Ragu Organic Garden Veggie (No meat sauce)

Assorted vegetable toppings:
1 small onions
1/2 tomatoes
1 mushrooms
1/2 green pepper
1 piece of Worthington Soy FriChik (6 come in a can)
Red Pepper Flakes
Oregano
Pepper
Salt (Salt Substitute or Adobo Lite)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1. Pre-heat oven at 425 degrees.
2. Spread EVOO on flatbread to give it a nice golden brown crunch.
3. Spread Ragu Organic Vegetable Sauce on flat bread.
4. Top with soy mozzarella cheese.
5. Dice onion, tomato, mushrooms, green peppers, and Worthington FriChik piece.(Chicken, Beef, or Pork can be added)
6. Spread vegetables around the flatbread.
7. Sprinkle oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.
8. Top with soy mozzarella cheese again.
9. Put in oven for 15 minutes until brown.(If using Tortillas 10 minutes)
10. Let cool and serve.

At the request of one of the followers of #estoyadietapr I am going to write a simple recipe using Tofu. What is Tofu? Here is a definition along with the definition of soy and other meatless products. Like turkey, beef, or chicken, if you don’t marinate the tofu, it won’t taste like anything. You can use beef, chicken, and vegetable broth to marinate the tofu for those who are not vegetarian or vegan. For those who are afraid they are going to mess up the product and waste their money, House Foods America Corporation has tofu steaks with infused flavors such as BBQ, Cajun, and Garlic. Tofu comes in different textures from silky to extra firm. You can go to Walmart, Grande, or Freshmart to look for tofu in the vegetable section.

Ingredients

1 lb. package of extra firm or baked tofu. Well drained and cut into strips (seasoned or unseasoned)
1 Bag of Frozen Birds Eye Asian Stir Fry or any other frozen stir fry vegetable mix. You can also cut fresh vegetables such as baby carrots, broccoli florets, and mushrooms. (Birds Eye stir fry comes with two seasoning packets)
2tsp. peanut oil
1 small onion, cut in half, then thinly sliced
1/4 cup red bell pepper strips
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 scallions (white and light green parts), slivered
2 Tbs. grated fresh ginger or you can by the ginger powder still gives the same flavor
1 tsp. red pepper flakes, or to taste

Sauce

1/2 tsp. honey
2 1/2 Tbs. hoisin sauce or premade seasoning packets
2 ½ Tbs. of water


Cooking Instructions

In wok or large, heavy skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.
Add onion and bell pepper and stir-fry 1 minute. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add stir fry or fresh cut vegetables and scallions. Stir-fry 2 minutes. Add ginger, red pepper flakes and honey; cover and cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.
Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix hoisin sauce and 2 1/2 Tbs. water until well blended.
Add to stir-fry and mix gently, then add tofu strips (marinate unflavored tofu in hoisin sauce or buy pre-flavored tofu from House Foods) and toss gently.
Cook, stirring occasionally, just until heated through. Serve right away over rice or noodles.As with all recipes, the tofu can be substituted for chicken, beef, or pork.

Any of the recipes that I post can be substituted with meat such as turkey chicken or even beef if you wish. All recipes can be modified to your liking. Here is my vegetarian taco recipe.

Ingredients

1 Can of Loma Linda Vege-Burger or Redi-Burger (This can be substituted for ground chicken or turkey)
1 Box of 18 taco shells or tortilla wraps (Any brand)
1 Packet of Taco Seasoning
2 Garlic cloves: 1 for the Vege-Burger Soy Mixture and one for the Topping.
1 Tomato
1 Red Onion
1 White Onion
1 Green Pepper
1 Can of Corn
1 scallion
1/2 teaspoon of lime juice (fresh or from concentrate)
3 leaves of Cilantro chopped
2 tablespoon of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (For the saucepan) Save some for the vegetable toppings as well.
1/2 cup Water.
Vegetarian Soy Cheese or regular Shredded Mexican mix cheese.
Salsa or Pico de Gallo
1 Can of Vegetarian Re-Fried Beans or you can make your own.


Make your own seasoning:

1/2 teaspoon of Chili Powder or spice it up as much as you would like.
Dash Red Pepper Flakes.
1 teaspoon of Salt to Taste
1 teaspoon of Pepper to Taste
1 teaspoon of Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon of Paprika
1 teaspoon of Cumin
1 teaspoon of Oregano
1 teaspoon of Curry

Cooking Instructions

• Dice the garlic clove and toss it in the pan with Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This should be done in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
• Put the Vege-Burger Soy in the pan and all of the dry ingredients from the Taco Packet Mixture or Your own Spice Mixture. Since the Vege-Burger mixture is already brown in color, you don't need to cook it too long. If you are using any meat, make sure to cook thoroughly and drain any excess fat.
• Sautee all ingredients and add 1/2 cup of water.
• Put on simmer and cook for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally, tasting to add more salt or dry ingredients, and making sure you still have some of the liquid in the mixture.
• While the Vege-Burger mixture is cooking, chop the tomato, garlic clove, green pepper, red onion, white onion, scallion, and cilantro leaves.
• Add the lime juice and canned corn.
• Mix and set in a bowl.
• Add a pinch of salt and pepper to vegetables.

You can cook 4 tacos at a time in the microwave for about 55 to 60 seconds. This recipe takes no more than 20 minutes to make. This meal can serve four people. Add the cooked Vege-Burger mixture in the taco shell, top with Vegetarian Soy Cheese, vegetable mixture, and salsa. Vege-Tacos!

Coma frecuentemente Contrario a lo que dicen muchas dietas el comer frecuentemente ayuda a perder peso.

Si se come frecuentemente es decir cada tres horas o similar se balancea los niveles de algunas hormonas en la sangre. Este hace que el cuerpo tenga un metabolismo más rápido y evita los ataques desesperados de hambre que son el resultado de bajas en la insulina.

Además de las comidas normales hay que incluir snack o meriendas. Es preferible comer menos en las comidas normales y dejar algunas calorías para las meriendas. Comer merienda no significa comer papitas fritas, las meriendas tienen que ser saludables e incluir proteína. Ejemplos: una fruta y un puñado pequeño de nueces, un sándwich: una pieza de 2 o 4 onzas de pollo con poca grasa con una porción pequeña de pan y lechuga aderezado con poca grasa o con salsa casera sin grasa, un yogurt bajo en grasa sin azúcar, un licuado de leche baja en grasa con fruta sin azúcar.

Tome mucho Si, toma mucha agua. El agua ayuda a hidratar el cuerpo. Aunque nuevos (e incompletos) estudios dicen que no hay que tomar los tradicionales 8 vasos de agua al día este es un tema en debate. Los entrenadores personales y personas en campos relacionados siguen recomendando tomar mucha agua, y las personas que tomamos mucho agua al día sabemos que la necesitamos.

El agua da sensación de llenura y nos ayuda a mantener una piel sana y evitar el retenimiento de agua en el cuerpo. También ayuda a eliminar toxinas.

Reduce el consumo de carbohidratos simples. Los carbohidratos simples incluyen muchos alimentos que no tienen valor nutricional, son altos en calorías y alteran los niveles normales de insulina produciendo mas hambre. Entre estos están:

Harina blanca. Todos los alimentos de harina blanca como pan, pastas, repostería etc. Patatas (papas) consumirlas en moderación y acompañarlas con alguna grasa o proteína. Azúcar blanca.

No se trata de eliminarlos y ponerte restricciones sino reducirlos. Se puede consumir carbohidratos buenos como frutas, verduras, y harinas y granos enteros. Si haces este cambio bajaras de peso sin pasar hambre, garantizado.

Come algo crudo Los vegetales crudos tienen mas fibra y proveen muchas vitaminas. Trata de comer ensaladas (aderezadas con limón o vinagre solamente). Las ensaladas no necesariamente tienen que ser de lechuga, puedes usar cualquier vegetal de temporada. Las ensaladas casi no tienen calorías y dan sensación de llenura además ayudan a evitar la constipación.

Toma vitaminas Es importante asegurarnos que estamos ingiriendo las vitaminas que nuestro cuerpo necesita.

Suplementos El aceite de linaza (flaxseed, lino) con su alto contenido de ácidos grasos Omega 3 nos ayuda a mantener balance en nuestro cuerpo.

Ingredients
4-6 Large Steak Tomatoes
1 Can Loma Linda Redi-Burger Ground Soy (This can be substituted for ground Turkey or Chicken. The soy product can be bought at Freshmart in San Juan or your nearest grocery store that sells Vegetarian food.)
1 Medium Onion diced
1 Medium Green Pepper diced
1 Garlic clove diced
1 cup of cooked brown and wild rice
(For a quick rice option use Uncle Ben's Ready Whole Grain Medley Brown & Wild)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Oregano: 1 leaf Freshly chopped or dry
Tomatoes Sauce 1 8 oz.
1 cup of water
Mozzarella Slices (Vegan options are available at Freshmart in San Juan or your nearest Grocery store that sells Vegetarian food)

Cooking Instructions
•Wash tomatoes and scoop out the inside. Add left-over to your Soy/Rice mixture.
(Steak Tomatoes are great for this recipe because they stand better in the baking dish.)
•Sprinkle salt and Extra Virgin Olive Oil over each tomato. Coat the baking dish 9 x 13 with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
•Cut the tops and save for decoration.
•Coat the sauté pan with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and heat on medium.
•Begin to sauté the diced garlic clove, onions, green peppers, and left over tomato.
•Cook up the Ground Soy as you would ground meat.
(Since Soy does not have any fat content, there is no need to drain.)
•Add salt, pepper, and oregano.
•Add 1 cup of water and 1 can of tomato sauce; let it simmer for about 10 minutes.
(Taste for more salt or pepper; add if needed.)

•Cook brown rice by following instructions on the package (90 seconds in the microwave. Substitute white rice for brown.)
•Once Ground Soy and rice are cooked, combine both in the sauté pan.
•Stuff the tomatoes with the mixture leaving about an inch of space at the top and put them into the baking pan.
•Bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees or until fork tender.
•During the last 2 minutes of cooking, top with a slice of mozzarella.

•For decoration, place the tops on the cooked tomatoes. Serve with a side salad.This can also be done as stuffed green peppers. Enjoy the recipe!