Tag Archives: omnivore

Recipe: Sweet and Savory Vegetarian Meatloaf

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Vegetarian Meatloaf RecipeThose who visit my blog’s fan page on Facebook got a glimpse of this Sunday night and convinced me to blog about it so, here it is! Originally from Family Circle magazine, this sweet and savory meatloaf recipe converted into a vegetarian meatloaf recipe with ease. The major substitution was using two 12 oz. packages of Boca crumbles in place of 1 1/4 pounds of ground beef. I also kept the egg in the recipe because I’m not familiar enough with alternative binding foods. If anyone could recommend something that might hold this together, I’m all ears!

I made these in mini loaf pans, which unmolded perfectly but, as you can see, were very tender when sliced. Still, they were quite delicious. And, the serving is very generous… could definitely get by eating only half the mini loaf. (For those following the Weight Watchers program, one mini loaf is 9 points according to my calculations.)

Oh, and, as some of you may know, hubby isn’t a squash fan… he hates the stuff, but enjoyed his mini loaf. He said he could taste the squash. Yet, we also debated whether or not he would have “tasted” it if he didn’t know (prior to eating it) that it was made with squash. Next time, I ain’t sharing my secret ingredients with him. :-p

Sweet and Savory Vegetarian Meatloaf – Serves 4
2 – 12oz. packages Boca crumbles
2/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup sweetened applesauce
1 large-ish zucchini, peeled and shredded
2 large-ish carrots, peeled and shredded
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 egg
1.5 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic pwder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mist four mini loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. Combine Boca crumbles, oats applesauce, squash, carrots, ketchup, egg, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Scoop mixture evenly into the four mini loaf pans, packing it down into the molds. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before turning the loaves out onto a plate.

Whatever happened at the pig roast?

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This question has been haunting me for months now because my lazy butt never posted a conclusion to the saga.  Many thanks to Mel for commenting on one of the original pig roast entries today and giving me the kick I needed to finally clue ya in on what happened.

In a nutshell, the pig roast turned into a vegetarian feast… well, at least for my hubby’s family!  The campground’s roast was extremely popular… so popular, that the line to attend the dinner extended out of the pavilion.  That evening was extremely hot.  There was no relief from the heat.  At roast time, none of hubby’s family members felt like standing in the line for the roast.  Part of the deal of attending the roast was that everyone was expected to bring a side dish to pass.  The sides made by my in-laws were all vegetarian.  My mother-in-law suggested that we all just eat the sides for dinner.  One of hubby’s aunts offered to drive to a nearby market to purchase some meat, but his mom shrugged it off, saying the sides would be good enough. So… there you have it.  I fretted over the roast and his family ended up eating a meatless meal instead.

It’s definitely not a true happy ending, because a pig was still roasted and consumed that evening by others at the campground.  I will say that the campground did its part to minimize this.  The pig was cooked in a covered roaster which was kept behind the pavilion… it was not out in the open or on display.  I actually made an effort to look and find it to snap the photo.  My guess is that most camp goers didn’t even realize it was being cooked until they were served pork that night.  So I’m at least thankful that the actual roasting wasn’t made into a show.

I don’t envy other veg*ns who find themselves in this situation, because I’m sure every case is different.  For those who have to decide whether or not to attend a roast, I’d recommend finding out as much information as you can.  Before our trip, I emailed the campground to ask how the pig would be prepared, so at least I had an idea of what to expect before I got there.  Other than that, it is a very difficult choice to make.  Fifty percent of the people who took my original poll felt that I should attend the event.  I did, and I think the situation worked out as well as it could have.  But at the end of the day, each person has to decide what they personally can live with.

Hubby the Hunter

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My hubby is a hunter.  He recently returned from a week out in the woods, hunting deer.  It may seem odd to some people that a vegetarian/animal lover would marry a hunter, but for me, it all comes down to mutual respect.

The way I see it, hubby has been hunting for years.  It’s an activity he enjoyed long before we ever met.  His experiences as a hunter helped to shape him into the man he is today… just as activities I enjoy have helped to shape me as a person.  He gives me space for my activities, and I do the same for him.

Also, I’m tolerant of him hunting because he does recognize how I feel about it and isn’t a jerk about it.  He respects my feelings and views about it, even though they don’t mesh with his.  This didn’t happen overnight though.  In the beginning of our relationship, some experiences were trying…. like, the time he asked me to go to the outlet mall with him.  That mall is a 90-minute drive.  Hubby waited till we were about 20 minutes from the mall to inform me that the main reason we were going to the mall was because there was a gun show across the street that he wanted to attend too.  Quickly miffed about this lack of information, I tried to make the best of the situation and attended the gun show with him… but I wasn’t inside for long.  Seeing pro-hunting propaganda like bumper stickers touting “Vegetarian is an old Indian word for lousy hunter,” along with animal skins hanging among the displays just escalated the frustration I was feeling and made the situation go from bad to worse.  I left and waited outside for him to finish with the show.  I know he felt bad because he purchased a book about cats for me before he left the show.  That event was a turning point for us, I think.  I wasn’t truly upset about the bumper stickers or animal skins… I was upset at what seemed like him being insensitive in not telling me that we were going to participate in an activity that might not mesh with my beliefs.  We both learned something that day and we’ve moved forward ever since.

Before he left for hunting, I made it known that I wouldn’t be thrilled if he pulled up in the driveway with a deer carcass on his car.  He said to me, “Honey, you know how I feel about putting bumper stickers on my car… you really think I’m going to tie a dead animal to it?”  He promised to get the deer processed before coming home if he shot one.  And he held true to that.  He didn’t shoot a deer, but he also told me that as the week progressed, and the likelihood of getting the deer processed before coming home decreased, he decided he wasn’t going to take a shot if he saw one.  When he told me that, I honestly had mixed feelings.  I was happy that he was taking my feelings into consideration but at the same time, I felt bad that my beliefs were interfering with his hobby.

One thing I’ve realized about hubby though, and he’s said this about himself, is that he doesn’t hunt solely for a prize.  He hunts mostly for the overall experience of having time off work, being out in the woods, spending time with his father and anyone else who may go along, seeing other wildlife like a black bear while in his blind, etc.  He said he truly didn’t care that he didn’t get a deer… and I believe him.

Does anyone else have similar experiences to share?  Are you a vegetarian with hunters in your family?  Would being a hunter be a dealbreaker?  I’m interested in hearing your thoughts!!!