Remember when I shared my new year resolution to have life with less meat through mostly pescatarian eating? That feels like years ago now as 2020 has turned into feeling like a decade. But, it was just 9 months ago that I decided to focus on pescatarian eating and have a life with less meat.
This resolution was similar to last year where we were going to try and eat vegetarian for a few meals a week. However this year we figured we would change it up a bit to be mostly pescatarian. This means that we eat seafood + vegetarian. So eggs, dairy, and fish are all fair game.
This plan was all before the pandemic where meat became harder to come by. This actually worked out to our advantage during the panic shopping portion of the pandemic. We were totally cool with veggie burgers and tofu being the only things left at the grocery store. If we do indulge in meat, we tend to get it from our CSA farm as they added a meat share. This is a great option for us to be able to get local well sourced meat.
Now the big questions on the table are likely:
- Did I lose weight?
- Do the girls like the food?
- What are our favorite recipes?
First question: have I lost weight?
I feel like this is difficult to answer this year because due to the pandemic, my consumption of ice cream, alcohol and tortilla chips have increased significantly (everyone has dealt with this pandemic in their own way right? 😉 ). With that said, I haven’t gained weight and I’m actually down around 2 lbs from where I started the year. In a nutshell: eating out (through work travel, work lunches, etc.) does not equal alcohol + ice cream + tortilla chip eating at home.
Second question: do the girls like the food?
Mostly. My girls have never been into meat in that much. My six year old has even said she is a vegetarian but she likes ground beef (which is funny because we rarely eat that). They would much rather have a plate of cheese with a side of bread (like most 3 and 6 yr olds). With that said, I made BBQ lentils the other night and my 6 yr old asked for a second helping. My 3 yr old prefers veggie burgers over beef burgers. And both girls are lovers of shrimp and will eat most fish I make (e.g. halibut, salmon, tilapia, cod). Also, my 3 yr old has a weird affinity to smoked salmon as long as fresh dill is accompanying it.
Third question: what are our favorite recipes?
This lentil soup recipe. It is super tasty and packs a punch of fiber from the veggies and protein from the lentils. This means the soup is really filling! We’ve been enjoying this for lunches by combining it with some crusty bread – so good!
This red curry recipe. This one is SUPER easy to make and you can really adjust it based on whatever veggies you have around. And if you need a fast throw together meal, just use frozen veggies. If you want to add protein, you could add edamame or throw in some shrimp for the last few minutes of cooking.
This butternut squash and black bean enchilada recipe. This stuff is SO good and it feels indulgent and satisfying! It’s slightly more time intensive so be prepared for that but it is totally worth it! You can totally make this ahead and just do the last step of baking before dinner if you want it for a weeknight meal.
Salmon – no recipe here to share. We eat salmon almost once a week. We usually grill it or bake it. I top it with herbs or spices and rubs, depending what else I am having with it. We really keep it simple though because healthy eating doesn’t have to be a huge ordeal. It can just be some grilled salmon with sauteed green beans and rice, like one of these packs if you want to keep it super simple.
Sweet Potato Corn Chowder. Since soup season is here, I want to add another soup to the list because it is a new favorite of ours! And it’s even vegan but still completely satisfying and comforting food. This one takes a little more time with charring the corn and poblanos but it is SO WORTH IT.
Overall, I found eating less meat to be a positive thing in my life.
I am eating more veggies which is always a positive! And I am never really craving meat but we do eat meat for maybe 1 (2 tops) meals per week. Most weeks we don’t have any meat. This is a big change from where we’ve been a few years ago!
Have you ever thought about going pescatarian?
