Summer farm share encourages a vegetarian lifestyle, which makes it easier to follow than any other time of year. My husband and I have been Flexitarians for most of our time living on a farm share. Which means that we focus on healthy fresh ingredients, eating mostly fruits and vegetables but do consume some meat and fish. I never considered becoming completely Vegetarian. Why? I can’t imagine life without eggs or dairy. I also crave the full feeling I get from a more protein-rich diet, so this isn’t an easy decision for me.
But, this summer I just didn’t feel well. We had been consuming a lot more beef and pork than normal. I had become bored with chicken and turkey. My Fibromyalgia was giving me fits and I had become allergic to my go-to medication for it. I needed to try something different.
I firmly believe in the healing properties of food, so we had already incorporated many changes when Mr. Carnivore was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. It still wasn’t enough for me. I started watching numerous documentaries on the healing aspects of a plant-based diet. I became convinced it might be the answer.
Several weeks ago, I started my journey as an Ovo-Lacto Vegetarian. That means that I still eat dairy and eggs but have elected to give up beef, pork and poultry. I wasn’t willing to also give up fish, so it’s still part of my diet once or twice a week. It hasn’t been a perfect transition. I also can’t honestly say that this is a permanent lifestyle change. Because it’s easy to be mostly Vegetarian when the vegetables and fruits are plentiful and fresh. I’m not sure what will happen this winter.
The last few weeks of our bounty from our farm buying club…
Week 5 includes our favorites – squash and cucumbers along with those scrumptious red potatoes. Plenty of fruit rounds out the share.
Week 6 is colorful with the tomatoes, squash and radishes. Lots of greens and some fruit as well. We added the eggs for more protein.
Week 7 excites with the green beans and some tomatoes. We added Greek yogurt and cereal to round out our diet.
Week 8 brought us peaches and patty pan squash which are favorites. I added some fresh made Salami for Mr. Carnivore and pasta for me.
Week 9 is the complete package that encourages a vegetarian lifestyle. We gave away our eggplant to a friend. We’ve had enough of the purple porpoise as I have nicknamed it. LOL Still thoroughly enjoying the peaches and apples.
The results so far?
Most days I have less pain and feel better than I have in a long time. One of the reasons is that it’s much easier to eat healthy at restaurants when you’re focusing on vegetarian options. We eat out a lot when we’re traveling and this summer has been full of travel. I still consider myself a Flexitarian because I’m not an Ovo-Lacto Vegetarian due to any pro or con activism. I don’t shun others who choose to eat meat, but I do find that it is becoming harder and harder for me to cook it or look at it in its uncooked form. I’m not sure why that is exactly, maybe I’m becoming more of an activist than I admit at the moment.
All I know is that summer is pure joy as a Vegetarian. Food tastes especially good when it’s fresh from the farm. As you can see from the photos of this summer’s share, our bounty has been blessed. There has been no lack of inspiration to keep me on my path. I’m not sure how well I’ll do when winter comes, but summer vegetarianism has been zestful!
