I've met a very nice girl, and I offered to make her dinner. I have great culinary skills, but she's a vegetarian so I'm struggling a little bit with what to make. I guess pasta is an old standby, but I was going to try to do something that takes a little more care. Anyone have any suggestions???

I think you should ask her what she likes before you make her anything. Do you know if she is ovo/lacto or vegan because that will make a huge difference in what kinds of things you can make. Find out a little bit about what she likes to eat and then make that, only make the best she has ever had. Good luck!

I was in a similar situation a few weeks ago. My vegetarian friend was coming on a ski trip with my family where there isn't much access to food other than that which you bring.
Along with the salads and rice, we ended up making a lot of asian themed food such as eggroles(without the eggs), fried tofu, and vegetable based stirfrys.
Hope that helps some.

I'm mostly a meat-eater but zuccini caserole is very good! It's more of a side dish but can work great.

i have a couple of staples i like.. one is eggplant parmigiana (towers of fried eggplant with slices of steamed or grilled vegetables, tomato sauce and cheese between the layers of eggplant)

or the other one is a really nice dish where you buy a cob loaf, cut a hole in the top, dig out all the filler and layer in there grilled capsicum and other veggies you like separated by bits of cheese.

then pop the loaf into the oven and let the cheese melt through.

then, you can cut it up like a cake. its a bit messy but its delicious!

and you cant go past a big fresh leafy salad with a nice dressing as a side.

I don't envy you.. the idea of most vegetables grosses me out.

Although, I like the idea of eggplant parm or eggplant lasagna. Put enough breading/sauce/cheese on the eggplant so that you can fool yourself into thinking its really chicken.

Or you can just make chicken teriyaki, and tell her you've mastered the art of making tofu taste like meat.

Good luck.

Or you can just make chicken teriyaki, and tell her you've mastered the art of making tofu taste like meat.
:lol:

I have a bread machine, so I think I'm going to make some homemade bread, and chocolate chip cookies are a must as well....but I gotta say....I'm just excited to have a girl thats interested in me. It had been about two years since last I went on a real date!

I was also thinking about dolmas perhaps, and maybe squash or eggplant parm. Who knows?

I have good culinary skills. When I was a kid I wanted to be a chef so bad, so I'm much more advanced in the culinary arts than the Ramen-noodle crowd I'm surrounded by...its just the veggie thing that kinda throws me for a loop. I guess I'll just have to be creative.

Any more help would be greatly appreciated!

i have a few easy ones that are very good. if you want pm me with your e-mail and ill send them to you. two come to mind immediately that are delicious and relatively simple to make. my wife was impressed so hopefully you "very nice girl" will be too.

http://vegetarian.allrecipes.com/

http://www.vegkitchen.com/

These are two sites that have great vegetarian recipes. I'm not a vegetarian, but I've used some of these recipes before, just to try something different. You might find them usefull. :gl:

Well, I thought some vegetarians would chime in, because I'm really not experienced with this, but I guess we have no more vegetarians on the forum. Used to, I'm sure.

Okay, so you have bread, and you have eggplant parmesan, and chocolate chip cookies.

Vegetarians in Paradise (some recipes at the bottom) (http://www.vegparadise.com/vegetaria.html)

I know whenever I've had vegetarians over for dinner, I've always tried to include a good protein as the base of the meal, just as I would for nonvegetarians. Options are eggs (if she eats eggs) beans, or tofu. Accenting with nuts is always a good idea too (especially in rice and salads).

How about a baked omelet (eg broccoli or spinach and red pepper) or a vegetarian chili (black beans, kidney beans, corn, canned tomatoes) or grilled tofu? You probably remember from my rantings months ago that one of my favorite salads is barley bean salad (http://salad.allrecipes.com/az/KerrysBeanySalad.asp) Everyone that I've served it to seems to really like it. Hummus is a good appetizer too, or you can make falafels. (Fried in a bit of oil is almost as good as deep fried.)

I use a lot of TVP (soy granules) in my cooking. Mixed with ground beef, it blends right in, but I must admit I don't generally consume it on it's own. It goes good in lasagna and chili and shepherd's pie (http://www.hedonia.net/food/shepherds_pie.htm).

Check on whether she eats eggs before you make her chocolate chip cookies.

Happy cooking! :gl:

I once faced this dating dilemma shortly after university.

So I asked my mom. :D

Mom suggested a leek risotto dish, and boy did she steer me right.

The meal blew her away. It was a VERY good date. :cool:

Then she broke the news that she had a boyfriend, which wasn't cool to me. She wanted to dump him and start seeing me ("Curse you, leek risotto!").

I politely declined. :tu:

Ken

Way to go Lemonsong! I was a veg-head for over 10 years. Dolmas sound great! Hummus could be a great side with that! Sounds like you've got the situation under control.

Be sure to let us know what you made (we won't object if you want to share how the date went, too!) :p

I'll second the zucchini route. My mother-in-law makes a great stuffed zucchini. Good main dish, colorful, and it's actually pretty healthy the way she makes it. Look up some recipes.

Dude... you're a braver soul than I. I like my charred mammal flesh way too much...

-R

Dude... you're a braver soul than I. I like my charred mammal flesh way too much...


Agreed! She's lucky to have found a guy willing to look past her eating disorder. (or at least what i consider to be an eating disorder)

Agreed! She's lucky to have found a guy willing to lookpast her eating disorder. (or at least what i consider to be an eatingdisorder)

bwahaha... eating disorder.

My fiancee is a steak and potatoes girl. I wouldn't be able tohandle a vegetarian. She'd be too disgusted by the massquantities of meat I consume daily.

Agreed! She's lucky to have found a guy willing to look past her eating disorder. (or at least what i consider to be an eating disorder)

I'm down w/ her bein' veggie. Makes dates a lil cheaper I suppose ;)

I'm not a big meat eater myself. I grew up in a Kosher-style house until i was 12, so I hadn't eaten any pork products whatsoever until them. My first steak was my 16th birthday because I figured I hadn't had one before and that was the most expensive thing on the menu. I really like chicken and fish, but red meat and pork never did it for me...nowadays I like lean ham (antibiotic and nitrate free) and I really like steak now but I only have it once every couple months.

Soy-meatballs in coconut cream. My mom is used to making them often. Yum!!

Soy-meatballs in coconut cream. My mom is used to making them often. Yum!!

I used to work in an Israeli restaurant that specialized in falafel, so I've got some excellent falafel skills and considered that...just didn't want to do the frying involved. Being an Israeli, aaaaaa1, do you know of any baked falafel recipes?

At this poing I've decided to do a pesto pasta with artichoke and homemade garlic bread in my breadmachine..then perhaps iced cream for dessert.

I used to work in an Israeli restaurant that specialized in falafel, so I've got some excellent falafel skills and considered that...just didn't want to do the frying involved. Being an Israeli, aaaaaa1, do you know of any baked falafel recipes?

At this poing I've decided to do a pesto pasta with artichoke and homemade garlic bread in my breadmachine..then perhaps iced cream for dessert.

Well, I did a small web search and found this recipe in a cooking site. Hope the translations is spotless...

BAKED FALAFEL WITH RED ONION SALAD
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 cans (400g each) cooked chickpeas
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, ground
4 tablespoons coriander leaves, chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 large egg, scrambled
2 tablespoons peanut oil or other vegetable oil
1 red onion
1 handful of coriander and parsley leaves
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons lemon juice
150ml thick yogurt
50g cucumber, grated and drained
salt’n’pepa

Directions:
Put chickpeas, garlic, coriander seeds, coriander leaves and onion into food processor and mash until smooth.
Mix egg with salt and pepper and add to the batter.
Make balls the size of a walnut and put in a baking pan. Cool overnight.
Brush balls with oil and bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees C. for 20 minutes. Turn over once.
Chop the red onion and put in a bowl. Add coriander and parsley leaves.
Roast cumin leaves in a dry frying pan. Add to the bowl. Add lemon juice and wait for 10 minutes.
Separately, mix the yogurt with the cucumber, add salt and pepper.
When the falafel balls are ready, serve with the red onion salad and a large scoop of yogurt, possibly on top of thin pita bread.

Bad news:
She decided she didn't want to date me so I cancelled dinner for tomorrow night...but thanks to all of you who tried to help!

Hold on tightly, let go lightly.

Very sorry to hear that, I'm sure its her loss. Anyone who would go to the trouble that you have to plan a home cooked veggie meal for a first date...

Well hang in there.

Mugsy