It's been more than a week since I swore off meat and to tell you the truth it's been easier than I thought. I did succumb and eat one shrimp dumpling on Saturday night, but aside from that have found vegetarian meals to be completely satisfying. Going veggie has meant that I've had to be more creative with my cooking and in the past week I've cooked vegetarian Thai red curry, eggplant parmesan, burdock and carrot salad and spaghetti with mushroom ragu. One of my favorite discoveries is sweet brown rice. I really dislike brown rice but sweet brown rice is a whole different story! It's a stickier version akin to sushi rice and I like to serve it as an accompaniment to other dishes. For a quick and healthy meal I toss in some beans with the rice and cook it all in the rice cooker. The result is a one dish meal that is high in protein and fibre.

I use a quarter cup of dried mixed beans (black, kidney, chickpeas, broad), soak them in water for three hours, drain and then cook with a cup of sweet brown rice in the rice cooker. You should be able to find sweet brown rice and beans at your local grocery store. This is particularly tasty with a fresh green salad.