During February, following in the grand tradition of making hay while the sun shines, mice playing while the cat is away and other such happy pairings, we've been eating veg whilst the horsemeat scandal rages on. February's meat-free challenge seemed (to me as an ex-vegetarian) like it might be a slight cop-out - not particularly challenging. I suspected that bringing the rest of the family along too and making the month a pleasure, rather than a chore, might be where the challenge would lie. I was at least partly right - there have definitely been some ups and downs!
The ups? I made it through the month meat-free. We discovered how homemade pesto knocks the socks off the jars on the supermaket shelf - a parsley and walnut variation is our latest discovery. Mmmm! We ate lots of aubergine - my favourite vegetable. The grilled aubergine from the first week was a favourite Martin and I both agreed on. We shook up our cooking habits and discovered a few other new recipes - I'm definitely going to enjoy perfecting my own heavenly halloumi burgers.
The downs? Martin's comments about the month including "indifference" and "a missed opportunity to eat more pasta". He's a big fan of pasta as a tasty vegetarian option. I had been quite excited about the month as an opportunity to branch out beyond pasta, which I find a bit boring. It's clear our culinary desires still vary significantly! Martin ate vegetarian food at home (with only a few grumbles) but did scurry down to a local cafe desperately seeking a bacon sandwich after a week and has had a few meaty meals out - resisting a meaty sunday roast in a pub wasn't even on his radar!
The moments that tested me most? It was really hard not to sample the big pot of meatballs I made for the girls/freezer. And surprisingly, I missed my Sunday evening tinned sardines and harissa on toast fix - and easy meal we often eat if we've had a big lunch and want a light supper when the kids are in bed. Cheese on toast isn't quite the same.
We felt the girls were a bit young for food experiments so they did eat some meat and fish either at nursery or when they were eating at home without Martin or I. I had hoped to introduce them to a few new veggie dishes but things, including a vomit bug for both girls, conspired against me leaving little room for experimentation. When Martin's not around, the girls and I are secret lentil eaters so I'm not too worried - the girls are being brought up to expect a diet with a large proportion of vegetarian food. The mission to tempt little M to eat a bigger variety of veg will continue for many months!
Despite a tiny bit of meal-time friction I feel this challenge has been a valuable experience. It has helped us understand what food-compromises will work for our family. It's all about serving up tasty food that just happens to be meat-free. Serving meat, from sources we're happy with (often organic and British), a bit less often or in smaller quanities to add great flavour to a meal. And expanding our sustainable seafood horizons (which could be a whole other challenge in itself!). We'll all - myself, Martin, and the girls - continue to have different tastes. Martin, like many meat eaters, loves rich, cheesy vegetarian food; the girls, like many children, like quite plain food and shy away from lot of veg or new foods; and I'd put chilli, lentils and loads of veg in nearly everything!
One thing I've realised doesn't work well is trying to covert recipes that were created for meat into tasty veggie food just by swapping the meat for extra veg. I did a hasty vegetable paella this way. It was nice, but it suffered from being compared, unfavourably, to its seafood or meaty siblings.
One thing I think does work is maximising flavour of vegetarian dishes. I previously thought I need to replace the protein content, or the 'bite' that meat gives to a dish. Actually, we both agreed, extra flavour is the key to successful vegetarian food. I noticed some the recipes in this cook book that we've used a lot this month leave out the garlic until quite near the end of cooking - presumably to help it pack more punch.
Everyone eating the same meals at home definitely makes life simpler!
It has been an interesting time to try our own meat-free month, what with the scandal about unidentified horsemeat that has been unfolding first in the UK, and in the last week or so other countries too. People are starting to make the link between cheap food, environmental pressures and the short-cuts that farmers and manufacturers feel compelled to make to supply our huge demand for meat. Opinions in the media have varied. Some people have taken the opportunity to push a vegetarian diet. Plenty reckon we'd all eat horsemeat so long as it's labelled and animal welfare standards are reasonable. And many people are saying it has made us all trust processed food a lot less. Lots of valid points!
We'll keep on steering clear of most processed food. I'm not about to start hunting out horsemeat. But I'm not going to return to being vegetarian either. I think it's OK to eat a little meat. The UK has significant areas of land that aren't well suited to growing crops, and a treasured landscape created by livestock farming in these areas - we need to support this type of farming, not let it disappear. In future, alongside meaty treats, I'll try to resist always swapping meat for dairy products to create tasty veggie food and I'll try to include lots of fresh veg, grains and pulses in our diet. My reasoning for starting this challenge still stands - it's better for our health and for the planet to eat less meat. This month has been a mini-reality check. Our (and the rest of society's) food habits are bloody difficult to change, even when there is good reason. I'm sure temptation is the only way.
Despite the mixed feelings about the month, I'd be up for doing it again to blow away the culinary cobwebs. Perhaps in the summer when loads of beautiful veg are in season and the absence of a biting cold wind might make for fewer "is there anymore?" queries!
Inspired by my experiences this month I've decided to start a series of recipe posts called VengeVeg-ful Feasts - tasty meals full of flavour and veg, some with a little meat and some without. I'll highlight great recipes I've found and perhaps make up a few of my own. I'm wondering if the recipes should get a "Martin-rating" so you'll know how they fared with your average carnevore! Watch this space.
What dishes would tempt you or your family to eat less meat?