response 1 of 24:

Oct 28 19:52 UTC 1997

One big distinction is between vegetarians and vegans.  Vegans are scrupulous
about not using any animal products in their food, to the point that honey
is disallowed because it is taken from bees.  

response 3 of 24:

Oct 29 17:49 UTC 1997

Fruit, vegetables, grains.  You can actually eat a very healthy diet
without any meat or dairy (or eggs) products.  Sweetners and oils can come
from plants, so except for the lack of meat and dairy items, your menus
look like everyone elses.  And many vegans are also careful to eat
whole-grains and relatively unprocessed fruits and vegetables.  

Traditionally a vegetarian could use dairy products and eggs (ovo-lacto
vegetarian).  In the early 80s many people who were cutting out red meat
(beef, pork) from their diets started to call themselves vegetarians too.
So their is currently some confusion because people who eat fish and
chicken call themselves vegetarians.  
.

response 5 of 24:

Oct 31 17:02 UTC 1997

"What vegetarians can or cannot eat" is a personal definition.  People are
vegetarians for different reasons.  The most common are: 1) ethical,
2)personal health 3) ecological/political.

If your friend is an ethical vegetarian, she is most likely making her food
choices based on "not harming animals".  Some religions encourage
vegetarianism (Seventh Day Adventists and Buddhists, I think), other people
make a personal decision to respect animal life.  

If your friend is a vegetarian for personal health reasons, then she is most
likely making her food choices based on animal fats being present in the food
(since they are usually less healthy for you than plant oils).  This is the
decision rule people are usually applying when they eat fish (or chicken) and
still call themselves vegetarians.  She may also be trying to eat more grains
and other complex carbohydrates as her source of protein.  

If your friend is a vegetarian for ecological/political reasons, then she is
most likely making her food choices based on the long-term and global impact
of our Western, meat oriented diet, and is trying to lessen the demand for
the resource intensive meat.  

So what she can eat depends on her personal reasons for becoming a
vegetarian;  how tired she is that day of digging through high fat, high
meat, high drug, high chemical food that we normally find on restaurant
and cafeteria menus;  and how hungry she is. 

The easiest thing to do is to ask her where she would like to eat. ;-).  
As far as "typical" well, if she still eats fish and chicken you might see
that on her plate.  If she still eats eggs, she might have those.  If she
still uses dairy products, there's all kinds of things she might eat.  And
if she is a vegan, it's hard to say.  Might be a salad, might be a sandwich,
might be a 3 course dinner.  Vegetarians are no more "typical" than any other
human.  

response 7 of 24:

Nov 1 00:54 UTC 1997

A "typical" vegetarian meal might include whole grains (bread, rice, 
cereal, pasta, etc.), legumes (refried beans, split peas, tofu, soymilk, 
hummus, etc.) vegetables, and or fruits.

Actually, vegetarians tend to have much more varied diets than meat 
eaters do.  They have the whole range of the plant world 9and perhaps 
dairy) to choose from and most of them really love to cook and prepare 
interesting meals.  Most vegetarians I know, though, get sick and tired 
of a bowl of lettuce and tomato as their only choices in a "homestyle" 
or fasty food restaurant.

response 9 of 24:

Nov 6 17:43 UTC 1997

Typical vegetarian toppings: cheese, onions, mushrooms, peppers, hot peppers.
If she is vegan: Forget the cheese.  Veges listed are fine.
Generally: No hamburger, pepperoni, ham, sausage, anchovies.  
 

response 11 of 24:

Nov 9 05:50 UTC 1997

Most chocolate does not have milk in it.  You are probably thinking of milk
chocolate candy bars.  I'll have to check for sure on the vegan choco chips,
but I think it's probably only cocoa butter and lecithin, and something like
hydrogenated vegetable oil.

response 13 of 24:

Nov 14 03:03 UTC 1997

Nope, turkey isn't vegetarian -- and any number of things may be on the 
table for thanksgiving.  One of my family favorites is "savory pie".  
It's a rich vegetable and cheese pie, sort of like a cross between a 
quiche and an omelet or souffle.

Another very popular dish is mushroom, rice, and nut loaf.  Very 
filling, very hearty and satisfying.

response 15 of 24:

Nov 19 08:58 UTC 1997

Both are egg based -- so a vegan wouldn't be interested.

A quiche is eggs, butter, milk, and vegetables.  A quiche is similar, but has
no crust.

response 17 of 24:

Nov 20 17:15 UTC 1997

Yeah, but in my experience they taste OK.  Not company food -- but fine for
a "I need food *now*!" snack.

response 19 of 24:

Nov 22 08:55 UTC 1997

<grin>  Well, I'm a picky eater -- but when hypoglycemia strikes, you're
right.  Anything!

response 21 of 24:

Jul 19 04:37 UTC 1998

I don't find myself to be a picky eater...ask any of my ex girlfriends...

response 23 of 24:

May 5 17:26 UTC 2003

well it's been a while since someone posted..why?