Cooking vegan for some and non-vegan for others?

[erinee]

Can you share with me some EASY ideas for cooking when you are vegan and children/dh's are not?

For example, I would love to have chili right now, but dh won't eat beans or tomatos. Is there any easy way to make chili for a vegan and a non-vegan?

[inesperada]

We're in the same boat, Erin.

[greenjellysnakes]

How do you eat chilli without tomatoes?

[greenjellysnakes]

I should add, I hope to be back later with a more helpful answer to your question

This is what I do in my family.

I am aspiring to be vegan, DH is an omni, and I am trying to raise the children vegan, as best I can.

Most nights, I will cook a vegan meal for the whole family. I've made tofu quiche (which my DH really did like), I do veggie burgers / nuggets quite a bit, curries, soups, etc.

Usually once a week I will make a crock-pot meal for myself - vegan chili, curry or a stew. Then I freeze it in meal size portions for myself, so I can have it for dinner or lunch whenever I need something.

One or two nights a week, I will cook meat for my DH. I don't approve of it, of course, but he is a grown man and he is my DH, so I want to please him in this area. Usually I will roast an organic chicken - little prep, minimum touching and he can cut it up. The children are allowed to choose if they want the chicken or what I am having, which will be one of my freezer meals.

I guess this is all possible on the fact that my DH is open to trying new foods, though he can be quite picky. He's also not above cooking his own dinner or having a bowl of cereal if he doesn't like what I made or is still hungry.

My DH is omni and our DC and I are vegan.Another helpful hint is that I buy boneless,skinless and cook chicken in crockpot and pull the chicken apart,put in quart sized freezer bags and they are ready to come out for a caserolle.I make 3 casserolles.1 for DH,1for our 4 dc and 1 for me.Usually there are enough leftovers for lunch.I also do crockpot soups etc.I have 2 large crock pots that I use to cook 1 for DH and 1 for me and DC.I freeze leftovers and I use leftovers for lunch.I hope this helps.I know it can be difficult cooking for diferent knids of eaters.

[erinee]

Originally Posted by greenjellysnakes

How do you eat chilli without tomatoes?

It's not as good! I usually put ground beef in the crockpop with seasoning and some tomato sauce and macaroni. That's it. I don't like it much, but that's the only way dh will eat it. I usually add some stewed tomatoes and beans to mine after I scoop some out for dh, but if I'm not going to eat the ground beef, I'm not sure how to make it at all -- unless I make two separate pots of it.

[Firebird Rising]

Taco bar (soy crumbles for veggie meat or use beans, lettuce, onion, tomatoes for you and he can add ground beef, cheese and sour cream if he wants)
Baked Potato Bar (meatless chili beans, broccoli, margarine and baco-bits for you and he can add real bacon, cheese and sour cream if wanted)
Spaghetti (meatless marinara, sauteed onions and mushrooms, olives and pasta for you and he can add frozen meatballs, cheese and/or ground beef)

jen d

[erinee]

Oh, I love that idea of "bars"! I sort of did that the other night with tacos, and Zach loved having beans and corn in his taco instead of meat. Megan & dh had the ground meat, but Zach & I were really happy with ours. I didn't think about doing that with spaghetti and baked potatos! Very, very easy and delicious!