Vegetarian Christmas Loaf

This is a very tasty treat for Christmas day that the whole family will enjoy, vegetarians or non-vegetarians.

The Loaf:
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 x 400g cans brown lentils
1 cup soft tofu
4 tablespoons whole meal flour
200g mixed nuts, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
6 tablespoons water
· Sauté onion in a little olive oil until soft and transparent
· Mash lentils
· Blend tofu with flour
· Mix together onion, lentils, tofu mix, nuts, herbs and soy sauce

The Stuffing:
1 onion, finely chopped
250g whole wheat breadcrumbs
6 sage leaves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons water
· Sauté onion in oil until soft and transparent
· Mix with the breadcrumbs and sage

The Topping:
200g whole wheat breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
· Mix all ingredients together

To Assemble:
· On a baking dish lined with baking paper place half of the lentil mixture and mould into a loaf shape
· Place the stuffing mixture on top and then the other half of the lentil mixture, molding the loaf so that the stuffing is totally encased
· Top with the topping mixture
· Bake in a moderate oven for approximately 45 minutes or until golden brown

Gayatri
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

Beetroot, Fennel and Lentil Salad

Ingredients:

3 medium beetroot (1.5 kg), trimmed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium fennel bulb (300g)
400g can brown lentils, rinsed and drained
100g wild rocket leaves
200g fetta cheese, sliced thinly

Dressing:

½ cup (125 ml) olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp white sugar
2 tsp finely chopped fresh fennel fronds

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 C
2. Combine beetroot in small baking dish with oil. Bake for an hour or until tender. When cool, peel beetroot and chop coarsely.
3. Finely chop enough of the fennel fronds to make 2 tsp for the dressing. Slice the fennel bulb thinly.
4. Combine dressing ingredients in screw-top jar; shake well.
5. Toss fennel, lentils and rocket in a large bowl with half the dressing. Add beetroot; toss gently. Top with fetta; drizzle with the remaining dressing.


Preparation time 30 minutes, cooking time 1 hour, serves 6.

Gayatri
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

Exotic Indian Vegetarian Cooking Class

Next Saturday the 29th November we will be hosting our popular bi-monthly vegetarian cooking class. This months theme is Exotic Indian and we will be demonstrating nine mouth-watering dishes including, Dosha, Korma Curry with paneer, Indian bread, Malpuras with yoghurt, Red lentil and Eggplant Daal, chutney, Bharats, and Festival Rice. We finish the demonstration off with a lovely buffet meal so that you can savour the delicious dishes that have been cooked during the demonstration.

This is the last cooking class for the year, so don’t miss out, book early to avoid disappointment as these classes book up quickly.

Where: Australian School of Meditation and Yoga, 23 Kurilpa St, West End
When: Saturday 29th November 2-6pm
Contact: 3895 8944 for bookings

Vegetarian Moroccan Cooking Class

Last month we held our Moroccan Delights Vegetarian Cooking class at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga West End. It was a great success attracting over 40 people. There were a few people who were disappointed because they couldn't make it along to the class so over the next few weeks I will be publishing the recipes from the class over the next few weeks. The recipes will include:

Beetroot, Fennel and Lentil Salad
Orange and Radish Salad
Spiced Rice
Pumpkin and Bean Tagine
Chickpea Patties
Mock Chicken with Lemon and Olives
Spinach Fatayer
Semolina Slice

Gayatri

Tea Master Buddhist Cafe

Tea Master is a tiny little café on Wickham Street Fortitude Valley. It has some really tasty dishes, especially the mock duck with noodles, the Laksha soup and dumplings. The meals are a great size and very reasonably priced. The only downside is that the café closes really early at night, isn’t open on Sundays and the café itself is very small, so if it is crowded you feel a little claustrophobic. You can sit outside though but I find it noisy and polluted as Wickam street is very busy 24/7. Great for a quick bite though.

You can find Tea Master at shop 14/115 Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley 07-32570038

Gayatri
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

Pu Kwon – Vegetarian Restaurant

Our second favourite Buddhist restaurant in Brisbane is Pu Kwon. It is situated at 2796 Logan Road, Underwood, which is quite a central location for much of Brisbane. Pu Kwon is more of restaurant than a café. There is a huge menu which makes things more difficult because you’ll want to try everything, but it is great if you want to take your non-veg family members along. They definitely won’t feel like they are missing out on anything with dishes on the menu like lemon chicken, roast duck in Peking sauce and sweet and sour pork, just to name a few. Our family favourite entrees are radish cakes, radish puffs, chicken drumsticks and wonton soup. For mains, try the lemon chicken (pictured), fried eel in Peking sauce, taro fish, roast duck and sizzling pepper chicken. We have asked them to leave out MSG, and they will as much as possible, but a lot of the sauces used already have MSG added, so they can’t guarantee that the meals are all MSG free. You can call Pu Kwon on 3219 8984, they are opened for lunch and dinner every day except for Monday as they are closed that day.

Gayatri

Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

Buddhist Restaurants – Kuan Yin Tea House

I love Buddhist food and so does my family and although we have tried most of the Buddhist cafes and restaurants around Brisbane, our favourite is definitely the Kuan Yin Tea House at 198 Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley right opposite dragon gates in the China Town mall. I suppose the reason that we all like it so much is that the food is so fresh. The owners actually cook all the food themselves from scratch and it is MSG free. The menu is quite extensive but not overwhelming and even though we have tried most of the dishes we always go back to our favourites. The salt and pepper mock fish is my all time favourite main course with sticky rice timbale, toona wrap, battered sweet potato with plum seasoning as my choice of entrees. My son loves the Sweet and sour mock pork, fried dumplings and the Taiwanese fried mock chicken. My husband is easy and likes it all, but his favourite is the dumpling soup and the pepper and salt mock oysters.

We usually find that the total price for a very filling meal is approx. $15 per head, so it certainly is value for money. You’ll need to check the opening times because being a café it is not open very late at night and I know for a fact that it is closed on Tuesdays to give them a much needed break. If you want to contact the Kuan Yin Tea House you can call them on 32524557.

Gayatri
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

How Mock Meat Came to be!

Long ago in China there was an emperor who was unnecessarily harsh, even to his own people. Some of his advisors were Buddhist monks who understood the connection between a person’s diet and their mental and physical health. They wanted the emperor to become vegetarian to help him become a more peaceful person, but they didn’t dare suggest that to him. Instead they designed a cuisine where they were able to recreate any meat dish using vegetarian ingredients. From roast duck to seafood, all the dishes were realistic in taste, appearance and texture. The emperor went on eating all his favourite dishes, never guessing that they were vegetable based. The story goes that over time his temper cooled and he became a much more peaceful person, benefitting himself and his subjects!

Gayatri
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga

Vegetarian Moroccan Delights

Today the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga West End is holding its bi-monthly vegetarian cooking class. The theme this month is Moroccan Delights. We will be demonstrating 8 delicious, mouthwatering recipes:

Beetroot, Fennel and Lentil Salad
Orange & Radish Salad
Spiced Rice
Pumpkin and Bean Tagine
Moroccan Chickpea PattiesMoroccan
Mock Chicken with Lemon and Olives
Moroccan Spinach Fatayer
Semolina Slice (Basboosa, Namoura or Harisi)

After the demonstration, we will be serving out the dishes buffet style, so you can taste the wonderful spices that these Moroccan dishes have to offer.

2-6pm
Australian School of Meditation and Yoga
23 Kurilpa Street
West End
3895 8944
gauranga@optusnet.com.au

Gayatri
Instructor
Australian School of Meditation

Coconut Sticky Rice with Adzuki Beans

2 cups of glutinous rice, soaked for at least 1 hour in cold water
1-1/4 cups coconut milk
1-1/4 cups water
4 T sugar – either raw or dark brown
½ cup cooked Adzuki beans
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Pinch of salt

1/3 cup of shredded coconut – dry toasted till golden brown
extra coconut milk for serving + a little more sugar

Either small individual serving bowls, or a small tray. Line the tray or bowls with plastic ‘glad’ wrap.

• Drain the water from the soaking rice
• Place rice, water, coconut milk, sugar and salt into a pot
• Bring to a boil, and then simmer for about 8 minutes till all the liquid is absorbed into the rice
• Stir constantly while cooking.

Sweet Red Bean Pancakes

You need:

Puff pastry

Red bean paste

To make the paste:

(makes 1 cup) –

The paste can be rolled into balls and coated in toasted coconut or served with sticky rice or ice cream etc.

1 cup dried adzuki beans

A pinch of sea salt

½ cup rice syrup / 1/3 cup palm sugar

1 tsp orange zest

2 drops vanilla essence

• Sort through the beans discarding any stones
• Soak overnight to shorten the cooking time
• Drain and add fresh water to cover the beans
• Cook for 30-45 minutes or until soft
• Drain and puree in a food processor, adding the salt and syrup or sugar
• Heat a frypan and sauté the puree for a few minutes, allowing most of the liquid to evaporate
• Add the orange zest and vanilla
• Then refrigerate.

To assemble the tart:

• Take one sheet of puff pastry and spread 0.5 cm layer of red bean paste on it.
• Place another sheet on top.
• Repeat with another two sheets of pastry, until paste is used up.
• Cut into triangles or diamonds and bake at 180 deg. for 20 minutes until golden brown.

From A Buddhist Feast held at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga West End

Buddha’s 5 Treasure Fried Rice

Serves 4-6:

1.5 cups basmati rice
Half purple cabbage finely chopped
1.5 large carrots, grated
Fresh shallots thinly sliced
Fried shallots
2 table spoons Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce)
6 table spoons soy sauce (light or dark to your taste)
3 cloves garlic
1 can of Mock duck, chopped and lightly fried in peanut oil before hand
peanut oil

· Boil Basmati til it is almost cooked. Remove from heat, drain and rinse. Set to one side. This is done instead of the reduced boiling method as rice needs to have seperate grains for fried rice.
· Chop mock duck into small cubes and lightly fry in peanut oil. Set aside and blot with paper towel to remove excess oil.
· place salty soy sauce, sweet soy, peanut oil and garlic in teflon coated wok. Fry at medium heat. Add cabbage, carrot, mock duck and fresh shallots and stir fry vigorously at medium to high heat.
· When carrot loses it's colour just a little (about 1 minute into stir frying) add cooked rice. Reduce heat to avoid sticking or burning to medium heat and stir fry, taking care to get the soy sauce through the rice evenly.
· You'll notice that the green of the shallots, the orange of the carrots and the purple of the cabbage will give it a wonderful colour.
· When rice has been frying and evenly stired through for about 2 minutes, add fried shallots and mix evenly, reduce heat to medium to low heat to avoid burning or drying out.
· Note: Basmati is a natural long grain rice that is low in GI and very easy to cook because it cooks relatively fast in comparison to other rices.

From A Buddhist Feast held at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga West End.

Mock Fish in Black Bean Sauce

500g mock fish in bite-sized pieces
cornflour to dust mock fish
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1cm piece ginger root, slivered
pinch dried chilli flakes
100g sliced green beans
100g cauliflower pieces
100g sliced carrots
100g baby corn spears
100g straw mushrooms
100g mung bean sprouts
(Note – use vegetables to your taste preference, adding to approximately 2 cups total volume)
¼ cup black bean sauce
1 tablespoon Sesame oil
2 green onions, sliced

• Roll the mock fish pieces in cornflour to coat them.
• Heat the peanut oil in a hot wok or fry pan and sauté the fish pieces, stirring for a couple of minutes to brown them a little. Remove.
• Place the ginger in the wok with the chilli flakes and heat for one minute.
• Add the green beans, cauliflower and carrots and stir-fry about five minutes, until nearly cooked, but still firm. Add a little water if they seem too dry.
• Add the corn spears, mushrooms and mung bean sprouts. Stir through to heat all.
• Pour the black bean sauce over the vegetables in the wok and heat till bubbling.
• Add the sesame oil and the green onions and then remove from heat to serve immediately.

Sweet and Sour Vegetarian Chicken

1 tablespoons oil

1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger

1 cup water chestnuts, chopped

1 green capsicum, diced

1 cucumber diced

1 carrot, diced

1 440g can pineapple with syrup

¼ cup tomato sauce

½ cup sugar

½ cup vinegar

¼ cup soy sauce

Massell Stock cube

2 tablespoons arrowroot mixed with ½ cup water

1 pkt Vegetarian Chicken nuggets, oven fried

· Fry the ginger in the oil

· Add all the vegetables and can of pineapple with syrup

· Add tomato sauce, sugar, vinegar and soy sauce to the vegetables

· Bring to the boil and then simmer until vegetables are tender

· Place chicken pieces into the vegetables and sauce

· Add the arrowroot mixed with water and simmer until thickened

Nine Jewel Buddhist Hot Pot (Lo Han Jai)

1 packet fresh shitake mushrooms (approximately 8-10 whole mushrooms) or you can buy dried – use 8-10 whole soaked for 30 minutes in hot water.

½ packet oyster mushrooms

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 small can sliced bamboo shoots – drained

1 can sliced water chestnuts – drained

1 carrot – julienned

1 bunch (3) bok choi

2 massel chicken-like stock cubes dissolved in 3 cups hot water

1 cake thin noodles – rice or mung

1 large 750g block regular firm tofu – deep fried in peanut oil

16 snow peas – strings removed – julienned

2 cups fresh bean sprouts

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablspoons arrowroot or cornflour, mixed well with 4-5 tablespoons cold water

· Remove stems from shitake mushrooms and cut the stems finely

· In a wok, stir-fry mushrooms, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, carrot in peanut oil on high for 4 minutes.

· Add stock and bean threads. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.

· Add tofu, snow peas, bean sprouts, bok choy and soy sauce. Cover and simmer for 2 minutes. Stir in arrowroot or cornflour mixture and continue to cook until sauce thickens.

· Serve hot

Stir Fried Noodles with peanuts and sweetcorn

Ingredients

• 125g dried thin rice noodles
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• 250g sweetcorn
• 250g pointed cabbage, finely sliced
• 1 small red pepper, deseeded and finely sliced
• 2 ½ tablespoons shoyu or tamari sauce
• 60ml light coconut milk
• 100g roasted, unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
• 4 spring onions, finely sliced
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• Coriander sprigs, to garnish

Method

1. Put the rice noodles in a bowl of boiling water, cover and leave to stand for 5 minutes for them to soften. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large non-stick sauté pan over a high heat until piping hot. Add the garlic, ginger and curry paste and stir fry for 2-3 minutes until the spices become fragrant.

3. Add the sweetcorn, cabbage and red pepper and stir fry for about 5 minutes or until the cabbage has started to soften and wilt.

4. Add the shoyu or tamari sauce and coconut milk. Stir to mix, then toss in the rice noodles and stir-fry until the noodles have warmed through.

5. Turn off the heat and gently stir in the peanuts, coriander leaves, spring onions and lime juice. Garnish with coriander sprigs.

Buddha's Roast Duck

3 sheets dried yuba (beancurd skin)
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
2 T. Vegetarian oyster sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
oil for shallow-frying

• Soak the yuba sheets (handle carefully) in warm water for 5-10 minutes, then pat them dry and cut them in half, lengthways

• Mix the soy sauce, kecap manis, oyster sauce and sesame oil together.

• Brush the first sheet of yuba with the soy sauce mixture, cover with another piece of yuba and brush-- repeat until all of the yuba sheets are used.

• Fold the short side in, once, and then once again, so that it is folded in thirds, and flatten lightly. Then fold it in half.

• Place in a steamer and steam over boiling water for 10 minutes until tender.

• Heat oil about 1/4-1/2" deep over high heat in a large, heavy skillet. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, carefully add the yuba rolls, standing back to avoid splattering, and fry until golden-brown. This will take only a short time.

• Turn over and fry the other side. It will probably puff up.
Remove from the pan with tongs and drain on absorbent paper.

Vietnamese Style Spring Rolls

Ingredients
• 50g bean thread vermicelli noodles
• 50g black fungus
• 2 pieces of pre-fried tofu
• 4 carrots grated
• 1 taro grated
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 onion
• 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• pinch of pepper
• 1 pack of rice paper wrappers (50 piece)
• 1 onion
• oil, for cooking
• iceberg lettuce, mint leaves and sweet chilli sauce, to serve (optional)

Method
1. Place noodles into a small heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water. Stand for 10 minutes. Drain. Roughly chop.

2. Place dried fungus in a small heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water. Stand for 10 minutes. Drain.

3. Fry onions for a couple of minutes. Add tofu, salt, pepper, sugar & soy sauce and continue to fry for another two minutes. Add the remainder ingredients, dried fungus, carrot, taro, noodles and fry for another minute or so. Turn off heat.

4. Line a tray with a damp tea towel. Place 2 tablespoonfuls of the mixture along edge of wrapper closest to you. Fold in sides. Roll up to enclose filling. Brush edge with flour mixture. Press to seal. Place onto tray. Repeat with remaining rice paper wrappers. This should make 50 spring rolls.

5. Preheat oven to 160C. Pour oil into a wok to half-fill it. Heat over medium-high heat until hot. Cook spring rolls, in batches, for 5 minutes or until light golden. Remove to a wire rack. Keep warm in oven.

Vegetarian Dumpling Soup

5 cups water
3/4 cube of Massel mock chicken stock
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce)
Small knob of finely grated ginger
8 Vegetarian Dumplings
shallots thinly sliced
1 bunch Bock Choy
A few drops of sesame seed oil

Boil water with stock cube
Add soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, grated ginger and shallots
Add Dumplings then turn to a simmer for 15 mins
Add Bock Choy 2 mins before the Dumplings are cooked
Add the sesame seed oil at the end

The Australian School of Meditation & Yoga West End - A Buddhist Feast

Last month we held a wonderful vegetarian Buddhist feast at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga West End. We had over 40 people attend, so it definitely proved to be a very popular class. One of the reasons so many people came is because they are looking to find out more about meat substitutes. Not a lot of people are aware of the many and varied soy products available from Asian supermarkets. This is a very easy and tasty way to substitute the meat in your diet. The substitutes are suitable for vegans and are sometimes so realistic that people aren’t sure if they are actually real. They are extremely high in protein too. I’ll be posting some of the vegetarian recipes demonstrated at the class over the coming days including:

Vegetarian dumpling soup

Mock Fish in black bean sauce

Sweet and sour mock chicken

Buddha’s nine jewel hot pot

Buddha's Roast duck

Fried noodles with peanuts and sweet corn

Spring rolls

Seven treasure fried rice

Thai style coconut sticky rice

Red bean pancake

Find more great vegetarian recipes at

www.asm.org.au/lifestyle/recipes

Where do I start?

So you want to be a vegetarian, but where do you start? The first thing to understand that it’s no big deal! It’s not like you are going to become a skinny, unhealthy human specimen. Millions of people from all over the world are vegetarian and some cultures have been vegetarians for thousands of years. Look at India for example, where vegetarianism is still prevalent in their society even today. If you are dining at a restaurant there, you will be asked if you are veg or non-veg, which goes to show that a vast majority of the population are still vegetarian. The Indian population isn’t exactly emaciated, some of them are even a little on the voluptuous side and their health definitely benefits from a meat-free diet. Stokes, heart attacks and bowel cancer is much less common in India than in the western world where meat is consumed in huge proportions.

Many Asian countries have also followed a vegetarian diet for centuries. There are literally millions of Buddhists in the world today who are vegetarians and they are shining examples of the wonderful health benefits that vegetarianism brings. When you look at that lovely, round, glowing Buddhist faces, you see a healthy vitality and skin to die for that remains youthful well into old age.

So we only need to look at some prominent examples of vegetarians from around the world to see that they have been living happily and healthily without meat for a long, long time. To access some great vegetarian recipes check out the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga website at www.asm.org.au

Gayatri

What about calcium, B12 and Zinc?

Here are three more questions that are very commonly asked by people ready to make the change to a vegetarian lifestyle.

Where will I get my Calcium?

This is not a worry at all on a lacto-vegetarian diet as good sources are found in dairy products, tofu processed with calcium sulfate, and in green leafy vegetables.

Where will I get my B12?

Vitamin B12 is only required in very small proportions and is stored in the body for years. The only type of vegetarian who will need to supplement their diet with a B12 supplement are vegans, who do not consume any animal product at all including dairy products. As for lacto-vegetarians, good sources of B12 are found in dairy products. Only 1-2 glasses of milk will supply the body with more than enough B12.

Fermented soy products, for example tempeh and miso may contain some B12, but due to different processing techniques, it is an unreliable source of B12.

Where will I get my Zinc?

This is not a problem for someone on a healthy vegetarian diet. Good sources of zinc are found in nuts and seeds, wholegrains, lentils, chickpeas, whole milk and yoghurt.

If you have more questions regarding nutrition on a vegetarian diet, don’t hesitate to contact me or you may like to come along to one of our popular vegetarian cooking classes held at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga For information and dates check out our comprehensive website at www.asm.org.au

Gayatri

Will I get enough Iron?

Will I get enough Iron? This is another much asked question when it comes to making the change to a vegetarian lifestyle.

As one of the cooks at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga, I often get asked this question. I have been a vegetarian for well over 30 years and the only time I have every suffered from low iron levels is when I hemorrhaged after child birth and after surgery. Even during my pregnancy, my iron levels were high for a pregnant woman

Iron is found in many vegetarian foods. Good sources of iron are found in bananas, raisins, whole grains, parsley, plums, blackstrap molasses, green leafy vegetables, legumes, prunes, dried fruit, beetroot, sunflower seeds, pepitas and sea vegetables.

Some foods interfere with iron absorption and it is recommended to avoid them altogether. These are cocoa, chocolate, tea, coffee, beer and smoking.

It is good to take plenty of vitamin C, which aids the absorption of iron. Foods high in vitamin C are citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruits, also in strawberries, kiwifruit, watermelon, blackcurrants, papaya, tomatoes, spinach, chickpeas, pinto beans, blackeyed peas, red peppers, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. However, all fruits and vegetables contain varying amounts of vitamin C so it certainly is no concern on a healthy vegetarian diet.

Gayatri

Instructor Australian school of meditation and yoga

How do I get my Protein?

One of the most frequently asked questions at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga Vegetarian Cooking Classes is “Am I going to get enough protein?”

This is easy to answer as all foods for the exception of fruits, fats and alcohol provide protein in varying degrees. I am sure that very few people live on a diet of only fruits, fats and alcohol. The highest source of protein for vegetarians comes from dairy products, legumes, breads, cereals, nuts, tofu and soy products. I once read an article written by a doctor in the U.S. which said that he had never come across a person in a western country who lacked protein, but it was a daily occurrence for him to treat patients who consumed too much protein.

The secret to a healthy vegetarian diet is to get a wide variety of whole foods. Make sure that you eat a good selection of vegetables, whole grain breads, nuts, cereals and of course legumes. There are so many delicious lentil dishes to choose from. Moroccan, Indian and African to name but a few, but probably one of the most popular ways to consume legumes is in the form of tofu. Tofu comes in so many varieties, soft, firm, regular soft, regular firm, fried, puffed, silken, nuggets, seasoned, the list goes on and on and on. Tofu is a great substitute for meat in many dishes and is a delicious, rich source of protein. You can find some great legume and tofu recipes at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga website asm.org.au

Gayatri

Australian School of Meditation and Yoga - Becoming a Vegetarian

At the Australian School of Meditation & Yoga, Brisbane, we offer a large variety of very popular classes as a community service. They include yoga, meditation, relaxation, stretch and relax, relaxation, as well as spiritual gatherings and chanting evenings, but probably our most popular classes of all are our vegetarian cooking classes which are held 6 times throughout the year. At these classes we teach at least 7-8 healthy, simple, delicious recipes and offer a wealth of information on healthy living and vegetarianism. These vegetarian cooking classes are conducted by volunteer staff, from Australian School of Meditation and Yoga, who are all seasoned vegetarians, and these classes attract people for all sorts of reasons. They may be looking to make the change to vegetarianism or they have a family member who has chosen to follow a meatless diet. Some people come for some new healthy recipes to add to their weekly menu and others come to enjoy the infamous buffet that is served out after the demonstration. Whatever the reason, everyone who attends is sure to leave with some great ideas for vegetarian dishes and numerous tips on becoming a vegetarian and living a healthy, balanced lifestyle.

Gayatri
Instructor at the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga