Daughter wants to become a vegetarian.

Buddingblonde

Dont know if anyone has mentioned Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) - it is very cheap to buy and can be used in any recipe that calls for mince - chilli, bolognaise, cottage pie, mince and potatoes etc.
You can buy it from health food shops and Holland and Barrett.

I should mention that I have been veggie since 15 and I joined the Vegetarian Society and got loads of info from them. This is before the days of t'internet and now it is even easier. Make her do her own research and get her to get interested in cooking and she wont go far wrong.

tesuhoha

I'm not vegetarian but one of our favourite meals that we eat every week is cauliflower cheese and brown rice. Its absolutely lush. You should get her started on brown rice. Its much more nutritious than white. Put about a cupful in a heavy based pan, no salt and add about an inch of water. Bring to the boil and then allow it to simmer on a low heat until it is soft and the water is gone. Also try stir frying vegetables until soft, then serve with brown rice and grate cheese over the whole dish.. Delicious. You could also try stuffed auburgine, canneloni with a vegetarian stuffing, bean stew. No need for tasteless quorn and I'm not vegetarian but enjoy vegetarian food!

flower24

I was a veggie at a similar age, my mum was fine with it and started cooking with Quorn. I still don't like much meat and I myself cook mostly with Quorn.

Vaila

i became vegan at 9, and havent looked back since (i am now 19).

i dont really see a problem as there are many great alternatives to quorn such as redwood (pepperami,fish fingers,burgers,sausages,slices),linda mccartney.tofu,soya mice and tvp as well as the obvious things like eggs,cheese,beans for protien

i think you might find it less hassle to base your daughters meal around the family one,say you were having sausages,mash and peas then just swap the sausages for veggie ones for her

vegasvisitor

By the time I've read through the whole thread I can't remember the age of the child in the original post.

I was 16 when I became vegetarian. I was a 'fussy eater' in the house at the time because I didn't eat so many things with them being meat really. So I then cooked my own - pasta with tomato or cheese sauce, pizza, potato dishes etc. Sometimes frozen vegetable stuff too. In the beginning I ate 'fake' burgers that looked and tasted like real ones but even went off them after a while as they were so much like meat.

It isn't too hard to cook a veggie alternative, expecially if you're prepared to batch cook and get the young veggie involved. I used to batch cook veg curry and also freeze some cooked rice, that way I had some quick healthy meals. I also make and freeze lentil soup, which I enjoy in the winter. Both of these tend to taste really good once frozen. Even better than when just cooked I'd say! The veg curry is a weight watchers recipe which you will find online. I seem to remember OP's child is thin, so maybe add a tablespoon or more of olive oil when frying up the onion etc.

I'm not surprised to hear of the 'vegetarians' who eat fish. I even knew one who really didn't eat beef. She loved a fish supper with gravy lol. That said, OP did mention take away I think, so be aware that most chip shop items are cooked in beef dripping, so not vegetarian. Pesto is generally also not vegetarian due to the rennet in the parmesan cheese. I'm sure some don't bother about these things though, particularly when starting out. For a long time I didn't realise what was in things. Like Campari too for example (contains cocchineal).

One of my main hurdles these days is the curiosity of people. A few of my colleagues are a bit funny about it and make remarks about me being the only vegetarian that doesn't like vegetables. Not true, there's only really 2 that I don't like but they happen to be the ever popular choice of mushroom and red pepper!

Anyway, OP - best of luck with it all. I'm sure it will be fine. I agree that everyone does have a right to decide what they eat, no matter what age. I've enjoyed reading, makes me realise I'm not the only veggie in the world. :rotfl:

ladybirdintheuk

I started to be a veggie when I was 1, and for me it was axtually a huge turning point in wat I would eat. I got some vegie cook books and pretty much went through tryine every recipe and started having a far more varied diet than I did before. I don't think telling her that she needs to cook for herself is unreasonable if she is going to go veggie. And there is a lot more out there now - you couldn't get veggie burgers etc back when I started out, just tofu from the health food shop. It is efinitely a great way to get her thinking about what she eats and thinking about what nutrients etc she is getting into herself.

I haven't read back through the whole thread, so forgive me if this has already beed discussed, but could you start having a few more vegetarian meals as a family too? There are lots of yummy things out there that don't contain meat, or that you can add the meat to at the end. Then she just has to fend for herself on the other days? (you could maybe even get her to cook for the whole family once a week if you think she could handle it once she gets a bit more practiced at doing it regularly?)

One thing we do here when we are having freezer-to-oven food (we are normally a cooking from scratch household, but once or twice a week we are lazy!) is that if we are doing ~something~ and chips/potatoes/mash then my something us a veggie thing (which goes on the same tray as the chips) and DHs something is a meaty one which goes on a separate tray.

Gingham_Ribbon

A couple of thoughts - if there are other issues going on in her life she MAY be using this as a way to have some control over her life.

And the most important things she should be eating as a vegetarian child are pulses, dairy and eggs. She needs to make sure she's getting enough protein, B vitamins and IRON.

Have a look at this thread for ideas of things she might like, and tricks for getting extra iron etc into her.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/257885

It's an old menu planner of mine from when I was veggie, but the only veggie in our house now is our eldest boy. He's allowed to be a vegetarian ONLY if he eats the things he needs to stay healthy. He likes pasta, so I add pinto pinto beans to the sauce. I add red lentils to vegetable soup. I give him chopped, dried dates and apricots on his cereal.

He is allowed to make choices about his food and leave things he doesn't like but he is not allowed to reject pulses - with the understanding that he can do what he likes but I have to make sure he's healthy and if he won't eat them he'll eat meat so he has plenty of choice.

iamana1ias

ladybirdintheuk wrote: »

I started to be a veggie when I was 1, and for me it was axtually a huge turning point in wat I would eat. I got some vegie cook books and pretty much went through tryine every recipe and started having a far more varied diet than I did before.

.

Really??!! :rotfl:

LilacLouisa

Gingham_Ribbon wrote: »

A couple of thoughts - if there are other issues going on in her life she MAY be using this as a way to have some control over her life.

And the most important things she should be eating as a vegetarian child are pulses, dairy and eggs. She needs to make sure she's getting enough protein, B vitamins and IRON.

Have a look at this thread for ideas of things she might like, and tricks for getting extra iron etc into her.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/257885

It's an old menu planner of mine from when I was veggie, but the only veggie in our house now is our eldest boy. He's allowed to be a vegetarian ONLY if he eats the things he needs to stay healthy. He likes pasta, so I add pinto pinto beans to the sauce. I add red lentils to vegetable soup. I give him chopped, dried dates and apricots on his cereal.

He is allowed to make choices about his food and leave things he doesn't like but he is not allowed to reject pulses - with the understanding that he can do what he likes but I have to make sure he's healthy and if he won't eat them he'll eat meat so he has plenty of choice.

I was just going to recommend the OP and daughter looked through some of the excellent advice and recipes on the OS forum. I was reading your vegetarian meal planner again only the other night, it was full of practical and appetising recipes, really inspiring!

thorsoak

Grand-daughter C***** is 7 years old - and, like a lot of 7 year olds, she has decided that she will be a vegetarian - except that she will eat chickens - because she doesn't like chickens because they peck you!

And, like many 7 year olds, she wants to convert the rest of the family to her form of vegetarianism, and her conversation with Daddy (J*****) went like this:-

"Daddy - you like pigs, don't you?"
- "Yes, C***** - I like pigs"
"They're funny aren't they, Daddy?"
- Yes, C***** - a bit like you!"
"But you eat sausages and chops"
- Yes, C*****, I like them
But Daddy - they're made out of pigs!
- That's why I like pigs C*****
"Well done Daddy - you've really let the pigs down!"