Becoming a Vegetarian in 4 weeks: Week 3

A common mistake new vegetarians make is simply replacing meat with eggs and dairy products such as milk and cheese as their protein source. From a health perspective, they might as well keep eating meat, because these foods are fiberless animal products containing saturated fat and cholesterol. While these foods are part of a healthful diet (when consumed in moderation or in low-fat forms) and an important source of calcium, anyone serious about vegetarianism should understand how to incorporate nonanimal forms of protein into a diet.

Replace some dairy products and eggs with soy milk, rice milk or soy cheese. Choose the fortified varieties when possible to make sure you're getting enough nutrients.

Many ethnic cuisines, such as Chinese or Japanese, are less meat-centric than American cuisine and offer a wide variety of food options that don't include meat or dairy products. Exotic grains, such as bulgur, quinoa and couscous, can take you out of the potato or bread rut. Research new ingredients, such as tempeh or tofu, or experiment with new spices, such as curry.

	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Sunday	Tofu "scrambled with mushrooms, peppers and onions, vegetarian "sausage" patties and whole-grain toast	Mixed greens salad and whole-grain pita with hummus and fresh fruit	Cannellini beans, greens and orecchiette (little ears) pasta with garlic and red pepper flakes
Monday	Lowfat scone and lowfat plain yogurt served with fresh fruit	Mixed greens salad with lowfat dressing and grilled cheese sandwich	Vegetarian "sausage," potato, corn and onion chowder with silken fortified soy milk or lowfat milk base
Tuesday	Lowfat granola with calcium-fortified soy milk or lowfat milk, served with fresh fruit and whole-grain toast	Miso soup with cubed tofu and sliced scallions and assorted vegetable sticks	Pizza with steamed broccoli, crumbled tempeh, soy cheese and tomato sauce
Wednesday	Protein smoothie made with soy protein powder, calcium-fortified orange juice, frozen banana and tofu with lowfat bran muffin	Spinach salad with hard-boiled egg, red onion, sliced mushrooms and warm vinaigrette with whole-grain roll	Baked potato topped with Textured Vegetable Protein veggie chili, cheese and onion
Thursday	Lowfat cottage cheese with fresh fruit salad and whole-grain toast	Tofu "egg" salad sandwich on whole-grain bread and coleslaw	Thai noodle sesame-peanut salad with cubed tofu and peanut sauce with marinated cucumber slices
Friday	Oatmeal with calcium-fortified soy milk or lowfat milk with fresh fruit and whole-grain toast	Broccoli quiche and small green salad with lowfat dressing	Assorted grilled veggies and portobello mushroom with sliced, grilled polenta
Saturday	Soy protein fortified waffle with lowfat plain yogurt and fresh fruit	Whole-grain pita with baked falafel balls, shredded carrot and zucchini with lowfat plain-yogurt dressing	Spinach and mushroom lasagne and a small green salad with lowfat dressing