I am vegetarian and have been since I was 9. I chose to be vegetarian because in 5th grade we did a big research project in school. I chose chickens. During this time I did lots of research and discovered that most hens raised for meat or used to provide eggs were really treated poorly, by my standards. I didn’t think it was ok so I stopped supporting it by not eating it. My family followed.

Mushroom StroganoffMy husband and I love beef Stroganoff. It’s one of the first recipes I ever learned. What I love about Stroganoff, you can make it cheap or fancy, from Ramen noodles, canned corned beef and Campbell’s soup to top sirloin, wild mushrooms, and fresh, homemade noodles. Either way, it tastes absolutely delicious [...]

Delicious Vegan Tomato “Meat” Sauce and Giant MushroomsWe’re out of meat again, out of flour, out of cheese, out of butter, almost out of oil. My husband came home with some HUGE wild parasol mushrooms. I mean HUGE! 6 inch diameter caps. NOTE: only pick wild mushrooms if you know what you’re [...]

Things To Eat When You Miss MeatI’m not a vegetarian, but I have lived on a mostly vegetarian diet a few times in the past for various reasons. When you’re used to eating meat, and a lot of it, it’s hard to go “cold turkey” (pardon the pun). Before I left the US, [...]

Mom’s Fried PotatoesMom’s Fried Potatoes
I remember many meals that consisted of just these.  Or we would have a “poor man’s supper” with fried potatoes, beans, cornbread, and hot dogs.
My mom herself got the “poor man’s supper” from an old friend of hers.  They had a big family, and they went through some hard times.  But [...]

Mushroom and Potato SoupA couple years ago in Germany, I saw a delicious-looking can of potato and wild mushroom soup.  It looked delicious, but I didn’t want to pay so much for a little can like that (I had to feed 8 people).  So I came up with my own version.  I think it tastes [...]

Mom’s Potato SoupMom’s Potato Soup
This is my mom’s basic homemade potato soup.  Plain, but really tasty, especially with Ritz crackers and Colby-jack or cheddar cheese.  hehe.  You can easily make it veg, just use oil and rice or soy milk, vegan cheese, etc.
1 Tbs. Butter (feel free to sub. margarine or oil)
Couple cloves of garlic, [...]

Mashed Potatoes, Plain and FancyOne of my favorite potato recipes in mashed potatoes.  Comforting, frugal, easy, no-fail, and oh, so delicious.  Plus, they’re easy to dress up and make something special from.
Basic Mashed Potatoes:
Potatoes (about 3-5 small, 2 to 4 medium, or 1 or 2 large potatoes for each person, depending on if youre using [...]

50 Things To Do With 50 Pounds Of PotatoesI recently bought a 25 kilo bag of potatoes in France for about 3 Euros. That’s about 50 pounds for about $4.50 US. Really, really cheap (yay, Leader Price!)
So now I have 50 pounds of potatoes, and not a lot of other stuff (it’s been a rough [...]

20 Things to Love About FranceWe’ve been living in France for a couple months now, and it’s been lovely.  These are a few of my favorite things:
1.Emmaus is a great second-hand store.  The prices are comparable to a thrift store in the States, and for Europe that is just amazing.  And when you buy there, [...]