My 11-year-old daughter has been a vegetarian since she was six. She used to eat Kroger pepperoni out of the bag and then one day decided she liked animals too much to eat them. It’s just a phase, I remember thinking. Turns out I was wrong and here we are five years later, and she remains a vegetarian. I will dabble in it with her every now and then but typically go back to eating animal protein. My husband and our son are very much meat lovers.
While I completely support her choice to not eat meat, it does come with challenges. Luckily, she will eat eggs so that often saves me when figuring out meals. Five years in and I think I am close to being an expert in how to make it work to ensure she is still getting good nutrition while not making my husband and son also go without meat. The challenge is that I refuse to constantly make two separate meals. I need recipes where I add the protein (such as tofu for her and chicken for the rest of us) in last so that we are basically having the same meal and it’s not adding a ton of work for me.
When I come across a good recipe that works for all 4 of us, I am careful to hang onto it.
The other night I made a delicious lentil soup and then added seasoned ground beef into the portion for my husband and son. The best part was I made it on a weekend and froze it so we had it for later in the week. I love anything I can make ahead to make my weekdays easier.
The lentils and other beans give this recipe good protein on its own so I didn’t have to worry about adding anything else for my daughter. I then just cooked and seasoned ground beef and added to a portion of it so it was a meal for the whole family.
Keep this recipe handy as the colder weather starts to creep in.
You’ll need:
- Avocado or Olive Oil- 2 Tbsp
- Yellow Onion- 1 medium diced
- Red Bell Pepper- 1 medium diced
- Jalapeno- 1 diced (I put ours as a topper as my kids are sensitive to anything too spicy)
- Minced Garlic- 4 cloves (I use the jarred garlic for convenience)
- Cumin- 1 Tbsp
- Chili Powder- 1 Tbsp
- Paprika- 2 tsp
- Salt- 1 tsp
- Black Pepper- ½ tsp
- Dried Oregano- ½ tsp
- Black Beans- 1 15 oz can undrained
- Pinto Beans- 1 15 oz can undrained
- Frozen Fire Roasted Corn- 1 cup (You could use regular frozen or probably even canned too)
- Brown or Green Lentils- 1 cup
- Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes- 28 ounces (I use mild because my kids don’t like it spicy), undrained
- Diced Green Chiles- 4 oz undrained
- Cream Cheese- 8 oz, softened
- Reduced Sodium Vegetable Broth- 4 cups
Optional if making as a meat dish
- Ground beef- I used about ¾ lb grass fed beef
- Seasoning- I used taco seasoning and it turned out just fine
Instructions:
Dice/prep all produce and open cans- I like doing this as a first step to help speed things up
Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat then add oil
Add onion, bell peppers, jalapeno if using. Cook for 3-4 minutes
Add garlic and cook for 1 more minute or until fragrant
Stir in cumin, chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper & oregano
Cook another 30 seconds and ensure everything is combined
Add black beans, pinto beans, corn, lentils diced tomatoes, green chiles and broth
Stir well, bring to a boil
Reduce heat and simmer covered until lentils are tender, about 35 minutes
Add cream cheese and allow to cook on high until it’s all mixed together
If you blend the cream cheese with a bit of the liquid from the crock pot, it makes it even creamier (but does add a step and dirties more dishes)
Separately, cook beef and add to the non-vegetarian option if desired
You can also make this in the crock pot
Sauté vegetables first with garlic and spices
Transfer into slow cooker
Add all other ingredients including the cream cheese
Cook on low for about 8 hours or high for 4 hours
Separately, cook beef and add to the non-vegetarian option if desired
Enjoy!
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