I am not a vegetarian. I will just go ahead and say it. I could live without a ton of meat in my diet, but if you’ve read my blog, I think you know that I have daily cravings for Prosciutto. I’ve thought about going vegetarian in the past because I understand the reasons behind doing so – too much meat in your diet is unhealthy for your body and for the environment. AND I love all animals so the thought of eating them doesn’t make me jump for joy. But, I just can’t do it. Plus, I don’t think I would be marrying Alasdair if I was vegetarian. You just don’t tell a Scottish man that you don’t or he can’t eat meat. He would go running the other way.

BUT, I do tell him that we need to eat vegetarian meals on occasion. If you can go all the way vegetarian, great. If not, you can still do your part for your health and the environment by including some vegetarian meals in your diet. According to Meatless Monday, going meatless once a week may reduce your risk of chronic preventable conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. It can also help reduce your carbon footprint and save precious resources like fresh water and fossil fuel. What Meatless Monday doesn’t say is that is can also reduce the strain on your pocketbook. That’s my best argument with Alasdair – when we go meatless, our grocery bill is a lot cheaper!

Check out some of my Vegetarian/Vegan recipes like my Southwest Quinoa and Black Bean Salad. This is one of my few recipes that qualifies as vegan. Meat is one thing, but shunning cheese and eggs is quite another!