• Think about the meat that is in your diet. What do you eat the least of? What do you feel most guilty about eating? What meats do you most want to give up for your health?

• Make a mental plan of the order in which you will give up meat. For most people, this order is: red meats, white meats, fish & seafood. If you intend to discontinue all animal products (vegan), this list would go on to include eggs & dairy.

• Begin by giving up the first category of meats on your list; for most people this will be red meat.

• Gradually decrease the amount of red meat that you eat while increasing the amount of your vegetarian dishes. Decrease the portion eaten at each meal and/or reduce the total number of meals that include red meat until it is eliminated from your diet.

• For your first vegetarian meals, start by redoing familiar favorites into meatless dishes, using meat substitutes where appropriate: veggie burgers and hotdogs, beef-style soyburger or TVP for tacos and pasta sauces, vegetable lasagne, etc.

• Try a variety of vegetarian recipes. Buy some cookbooks; borrow from a library and copy the recipes that you try and enjoy; get some online (see links). This will help you to become familiar with meatless meals and ingredients. Photographs are an added benefit, so that you can see just how appetizing the completed recipe looks.

• Read books on vegetarian/veganism as a lifestyle. Whenever it seems too "hard" to be a vegetarian, you'll be motivated by the knowledge of the benefits to your health, the environmental awareness, and the compassion you show to animals to support your decision and bolster your enthusiasm.

• Experiment with exotic cooking. Most of us are limited to a few familiar recipes that we routinely use. Since you are making changes in your diet anyway, this is the perfect opportunity to expand your culinary horizons by exploring largely vegetarian cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese, Indian, and Middle-Eastern.

• Experiment with new ingredients, try new things. Rice milk, soy milk/butter, TVP(textured vegetable protein), tofu, grains(couscous, millet, quinoa, etc.), exotic fruits & vegetables.

• Eat a varied and balanced diet, and you'll get the nutrition you need. It was once believed necessary to carefully plan and combine certain foods with certain other foods in order to form "complete proteins." We now know that this is a myth. As long as you eat a variety of foods each day, you'll be fine!

• When you have successfully eliminated red meat from your diet, move on to the next meat group on your list, and the next. Soon, your diet will be meat-free, and tastier than you thought possible!

DOs and DON'Ts:

• Do be patient, and don't rush through the weaning process. Few people can quit anything "cold turkey," and the meat habit is no exception. (yeah, i gave it up in one afternoon and haven't looked back since, but i tend to be an extremist and besides, i was never that fond of meat, anyway) It took your palate a lifetime to grow accustomed to the taste of meat and it will probably take time to quit now, but with patience and dedication you will succeed!

• Don't think of yourself as deprived. Once you eliminate meat, your previously corrupted tastebuds tend to become more sensitive; you will regain the ability to discern subtle flavors and enjoy foods in a new way.

• Do be forgiving of yourself. If you "fall off the wagon" and sneak a swedish meatball at a wedding reception, don't throw your hands in the air and give up. Remember, it takes time--don't be discouraged!

• Do sample different brands or varieties of something before deciding that you don't like it; i tried every type of soy or veggie burger before arriving at the handful that i still use today.

• Do get support from a local vegetarian organization, or make contacts through a vegetarian forum online; the encouragement of other like-minded people can be a valuable asset, and you can get lots of great tips from the more veggie-experienced.

• Even if you don't intend to go vegan, don't make the mistake of replacing meat with unhealthy substitutes such as cheese and eggs (which are high in saturated fat and cholesterol), or fat- & sugar-laden carbohydrates. Even a vegetarian diet can be unhealthy. Be selective and choose wisely.

• Do realize that, just as you learned to enjoy your first foods as a child, your tastes will develop as a baby vegan. After eating veggie burgers for awhile (once you find your favorite kind), you may not only enjoy them as much as beef burgers, but even prefer them. For example, one vegan friend of mine described her first bite of a hamburger after three meat-free years as tasting "like a mouthful of greasy hair"; she spit that mouthful out, and has now been completely meatless for ten years.

• DO READ LABELS!!! Especially important for vegans--milk and eggs have a funny way of showing up in the most unexpected places. Look out for animal product aliases, such as 'sodium caseinate' or 'casein'--that is, milk glue. Be aware of the animal ingredients that hide incognito behind terminology!

MEAT & DAIRY ALTERNATIVES

Soy milk is an excellent alternative to cow's; it has the high protein & calcium without the saturated fat & cholestrol; however, many people do not appreciate the distinctive taste of soy. Rice milk has a milder taste which many people prefer, but unfortunately does not offer soy's high protein & other benefits. Nut milks such as cashew & almond are tasty, but high in fat; even though it is monounsaturated (healthy) fat, the epidemic of fat-phobia in recent years makes this undesirable to many people.

White Wave Silk brand soy milk - especially the vanilla flavored - has a milder taste and is the most similar to cow's milk that i have found. It also does not curdle in hot beverages, as some soy milks do if they are used cold (though if your chosen brand does this you can simply heat it slightly before using).

Once you have gotten used to your new dietary habits and the meal preparation becomes more routine, you might consider making your own milks. You can make soy, rice, & nut milks, and the money you save making your own will be worth the extra effort. There are special appliances available for this purpose, which i don't personally consider necessary, but some people find helpful. I have included some milks in the recipe page; a blender is the only appliance you'll need.

To make heavy cream, adjust a nut milk recipe to use equal parts nuts & water. For buttermilk, mix 1 tsp. white vinegar into 1 cup soy milk.

EGGS - There are several alternatives for eggs, and they vary depending upon what they are needed for. See recipe page for scrambled egg & egg salad substitutes, and look for others in vegetarian cookbooks or online.

For Baking:

• Ener-G Egg Replacer - vegan product (commonly available at HF stores) made mostly of potato flour; good for recipes which only require 1 or 2 eggs - follow package directions
• 2 Tbsp corn starch = 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp arrowroot flour = 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp potato starch = 1 egg
• 1 heaping Tbsp soy powder + 2 Tbsp water = 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp soy milk powder + 1 Tbsp cornstarch + 2 Tbsps water = 1 egg
• 2 tsp. baking powder + 2 Tbsp. water = 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp. baking powder + 2 Tbsp. water + 1 Tbsp. oil = 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp ground flax seed + 3 Tbsp. water = 1 egg
  (seeds & water can be blended for 1 to 2 minutes, - OR -
  ground seeds simmered in water until desired consistency)
• 1/4 cup tofu, whipped = 1 egg (tofu is especially good
  for recipes which require alot of egg, like quiche)
• 1 Tbsp. plain agar powder (seaweed product, commonly carried at HF stores) = 1 egg white - dissolve agar in 1 Tbsp. water; whip; chill; whip again
• 1 banana = 1 egg in cakes (this will flavor the recipe slightly,
  so be sure banana is suitable to the recipe you are using)