Committing to Carolyn

On By youmeanmeIn Musings, Recipes

I’m a tortured omnivore. I enjoy meat and  have grown so used to it I struggle to think of consistent vegetarian meals. I enjoy cooking in spurts so meat dishes appeal to me when I’m at a creative low.

The downside is that I don’t enjoy thinking of the way animals are treated so that I can have a tasty meal. Even a little thought to the matter makes me queasy.

It may be easier if I were willing to purchase from farms directly. If I knew my chicken was being raised well rather than in agony I’d feel just dandy eating her.

The truth of the matter is that I’m a wee bit lazy when it comes to walking my talk. Farms require research, relationship building and a 45 minutes drive each way. The grocery with my 8 drumsticks already packaged from who knows where is 5 minutes away.

Laziness leads me once again to consider more vegetarian fare. This then lead me back to looking at information about food rationing in WW2, which took me to Carolyn’s 1940’s Experiment. I’ve been addicted to the site for years. Coming back to admire her determination and debating if I could ever do such a thing.

I often only last a week or so when I honestly attempt to live on the rations but I’ve had some unexpected success when I haven’t been trying.

This year I’ve decided will be different. I’ll continue towards eating more like the 1940s. For me this means:

  • Less convenience food
  • Lots more vegetables
  • Meat sparingly
  • Stretching food through creative cookery

To to set myself up for success I’ve made a list of recipes I want to try from her site in January.

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The ‘R’ column in the margin is the recipe number on her site. In addition to these I have a few meat dishes on the menu using the lamb and ham.

ML has no real interest in giving up meat but has promised to eat his ‘cheater food’ outside the home and not tell me.

I’m hoping that this start to the year will give me a good basis for a sustainable way to consume less meat and enjoy time in the kitchen with ML.

What tricks do you use tobe creative and frugal in the kitchen?

6 thoughts on “Committing to Carolyn”

  1. The thing that helped me reduce my meat, well actually get rid of meat entirely was realizing that even if you find the meat from a farm, the animals still have to die. Even the smallest farmer has to kill the animal. Also, there are so many resources online for wonderful vegetarian and vegan meals. Good luck on your journey!
    http://ohsheglows.com/
    http://kblog.lunchboxbunch.com/
    https://minimalistbaker.com/
    https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/recipes/vegetarian/vegan/

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  2. lauralynne

    We’re cutting back on meat consumption, too, this year. It’s really incredible how easy it is to suddenly be eating some animal product at every meal. Both of us have been vegetarians for long periods of time in the past, so its not a question of whether or not the meatless meals appeal to us, but more a question of how much beef/chicken/pork to buy so that it is served sparingly as opposed to smack dab in the center of the plate.

    I also follow the 1940s Experiment and have also considered doing it, but I don’t think it’s something I could sustain right now!

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  3. “ML has no real interest in giving up meat but has promised to eat his ‘cheater food’ outside the home and not tell me.” — This is my husband, lol! Some people can completely give up meat “cold turkey” and for others it can take time. Introducing new recipes slowly can be helpful. I don’t think my husband ate things like falafel and veggie burgers before me, but he likes them now. One “recipe” that got a thumbs up from him (and was super easy!) was veggie burgers on whole grain buns with mayo, sun dried tomato spread, shredded cheese, and a few fresh spinach leaves. [Some veggie burgers are really gross (the soy-based ones, IMO), but others are really good, so you may have to try a few brands to see what you like.] Not sure if you have Amy’s or Dr. Praeger’s brands in Canada, but those are two that we like. 🙂

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