Take the Vegetarian/ Vegan Challenge

I cannot eat dairy for health reasons, so sometimes trying to find dairy-free foods can be a challenge. During the Vegetarian Challenge, I tried some new cheese substitutes and loved them. I feel better and have lost weight, too.

I am a teacher and told my students how I had changed my eating habits to avoid eating meat while take the Vegetarian Challenge. Well, they had the same reaction as all of my friends, family, and colleagues had, “Why?” My heritage is that of being Latino and the reaction of my heritage students was memorable because it sparked a huge discussion . . . Over the next days, when they came into my room, they would see the food I was eating and every comment was, “It smells good in here! What are you eating? That looks good!” I simply smiled and said, “Thank you. You know it’s a delicious, filling, vegetarian dish, right?”

My Vegetarian Challenge story involves my husband. He is a great meat eater, but he has had an open mind and is learning to like and incorporate a veggie or vegetarian diet into his lifestyle.

My daughter is 13 years old, and she became a vegetarian at the age of 8. YES 8 years old! I'll never forget that day of her important choice. Since she made that significant change to her diet, and I was the one cooking and supporting her, WE changed. My goal is to one day make tofu into something amazing. Right now, it is still the "odd" item in the stir-fry or omelet, etc.... Eating tofu in a restaurant is so delicious, but my goal is to take a recipe idea from this Vegetarian Challenge and master tofu!

As a person from Bengal, India, eating a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food is usual. However, I have been looking to catch a break from excessive meat & fish consumption, to give my digestive system less stress, and feel better about not contributing to reckless killing of animals. Chance encounter with Veggie Fest and the Vegetarian Challenge provided this opportunity.

An unexpected benefit of a vegetarian diet that I learned after starting the Vegetarian Challenge was how much it simplified the grocery shopping process. There are now entire sections of the store that I can skip over. As somebody with ADHD, this has made grocery shopping much less stressful. There are still plenty of options, but I no longer feel overwhelmed by the choices.

I felt headaches and strong cravings in the first three days of my Vegetarian Challenge. Probably in my head, but I pushed through this.

Well, I tried cooking with tofu for the first time ever with one recipe from the Vegetarian Challenge. I think Tofu Tuesday could replace Taco Tuesday! It was delicious. I will definitely make it again.

Making vegetarian meals with my mom in the kitchen was a great bonding experience for us. The Vegetarian Challenge recipes and food brought us closer together.

From taking the Vegetarian Challenge, we now search out more flavorful and healthy meals. We are using more of our garden produce, shopping more wisely, and eating much healthier foods.