Originally published August 6 2005
Vegetarians can go low-carb
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Low-carb is not just for the average Joe and Jane any longer. Vegetarians are picking up the craze, as well.
Perhaps it is because I have spent a lifetime watching my weight (and all too often watching it go in the wrong direction) by counting one thing or another --- first calories, then fat, always cholesterol, sometimes salt.
How many servings does a half-gallon if ice cream make?
Then the low-carb craze hit and amid swimsuit figure-ready promises we were inundated by products and recipes to help us count yet another food molecule.
Trouble is, carbohydrates seem to be in everything.
Especially for vegetarians, cutting carbs can mean eliminating vital food groups, not the least of which include ice cream, pasta and chocolate covered fruit.
So it was with some trepidation that I looked at Robin Robertson's ''Carb-conscious Vegetarian'' (Rodale, 2005, $18.95).
And I noted with dismay it does have a recipe for the dreaded mashed cauliflower.
Regardless of your stance on carbohydrates, Robertson's recipes are appealing.
Jalapeno hummus with jicama, mushrooms stuffed with spinach and pine nuts, a salad of roasted Japanese eggplant and walnuts.
Ultimately, this reads like a vegetarian cookbook that just happens to leave out the bread and pasta.
She suggests serving them on a bed of shredded lettuce, as a topping to spaghetti squash, in pita pockets or on whole grain bread.
As further testament that Robertson succeeded in avoiding that low-carb feel, during testing I forgot the recipe was low-carb and served it on a bulky roll with bread and butter pickles.
Robertson's recipe replaces meat with a package of vegetarian burgers thawed and finely chopped.
Plan three or four medium to large mushroom caps for about two cups.
Also, the recipe calls for a low-carb sweetener, which I left out entirely with no noticeable effect on taste.
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