Meat! Just kidding. Your question really is difficult to answer. It depends on the type of Vegetarian you are. Lacto-Ovo avoid meat, fish and poultry. Ovo avoid meat, fish, poultry and milk products Lacto avoid meat, fish eggs and poultry Vegans avoid anything of animal origin. The best plan is to eat a lot of green leaf vegetables like spinach and turnip greens. If you aren't Ovo, have milk, cheese and yogurt. If you are Ovo then you might try supplementing your calcium intake with calcium fortified tofu. For protein make sure you eat lots of peas, peanuts, beans, nuts and such. There are a lot of informative sites on the Internet that will help you with your diet and recipes. Below are a few as examples: http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/6468/homevege.html http://www.ivillage.co.uk/dietandfitness/nutrition/vegetarian/qas/0,9582,252_156530,00.html http://www.free-gourmet-recipes.com/hvegetarian.shtml

The main things you need to concern yourself with are your protein and iron intake. Neither is difficult to get in a veggy diet, but you do have to think about it a bit more than a meat eater. If you eat meat subsitutes such as quorn you're off to a head start as its high protein, low fat. However I know many vegetarians are like me and of the opinion that if they wanted to eat something that looked and tasted like meat, they'd just eat meat! You're probably aware of our best protein options, nuts, beans, pulses, tofu etc - mushrooms also contain protein and are a great option if you like them as there are so many types available now (oyster mushrooms are delicious). Try not to rely on dairy foods, they're high protein but also high fat, and therefore not a suitable direct meat replacement, despite what whoever decides on the vegetarian options in restaurants might think! Eat plenty of green leafy veg such as spinach and watercress for calcium. Try to serve your protein alongside a wholegrain, as the amino acids found in wholegrains will make up any deficiency in your veg protein, and will also add fibre. An exception is quinoa- which is a veritable wondergrain consisting of a complete protein as well as a complex carbohydrate- and is very versatile and easy to cook. Iron is found in many pulses, and is also in dark green veg, such as broccolli, spinach and watercress, so eat plenty of those. If like me you don't eat a lot of dairy foods you may want to consider a vitamin B12 supplement (also found in Brewer's Yeast and Yeast Extract spreads if you're brave enough!) as this is only found in animal based foods. Some good balanced meal ideas that even get cooked by lazy people like me are: - cashew nut stir fry (with whatever veg you have handy) served with boiled brown rice (you can add eggs if you eat them) - stir fried tofu with beansprouts, mange tout and soba noodles. Sprinkle sunflower seeds on top. - chickpea, spinach, tomato and potato stew served with wholemeal pitta bread - couscous (preferably wholegrain) or quinoa served with grilled haloomi cheese, mixed veg and hazlenuts with a salsa sauce. - mixed bean and pumpkin or squash soup with wholegrain or rye bread - tomato, mushroom and watercress sauce with brown spaghetti - bolognese made with puy lentils instead of mince and served with pasta or inside lasagne (idea can also double up as a base for shepherd's pie style dishes) This is a good one if you have to feed a committed meat eater as it has a good "meaty" texture. - vegetable chilli "non carne" made with kidney beans and served with brown rice or as a baked potato filling. - tomato, spinach and red lentil soup, or leek and potato soup with brown lentils. - homemade bean and seed burgers served with roast potato wedges and green salad - broccolli and cannelini bean four cheese bake -large grilled mushrooms served as "burgers" inside wholemeal baps with herbs and olive oil and served with salad - mixed leaf salad with added mixed beans (from a can is fine), pumpkin seeds and bread croutons. Dress with a little olive oil or balsamic vinegar. -chickpea curry with pleny of green veg, served with brown basmati rice. You should be getting the idea by now so have fun and experiment, its really not that difficult once you get used to the idea of trying to have wholegrains, protein and veg in each meal. If you're lacking one of the three add a side order such as bread, salad or baked beans (provided you get the sugar and salt free ones they're actually not that bad for you). Remember that although many vegetarians will harp on about how much healthier a veggy diet is than a meat eating one, this is not automatically true. You could live off chips, cakes and chocolate and no meat at all and you'd be a ridiculously unhealthy vegetarian- you still need to bear in mind those golden rules of avoiding excess saturated fat, sugar and salt- limit your intake of goodies such as sweets, cakes, crisps and all the usual junk food suspects. Also, if you're a vegetarian for moral reasons ensure that your cheese is suitable for vegetarians and your eggs are free range, check products for gelatine and if you drink, run a check on your wine and beer- some uses animal products- (if you need to check www.isitveggie.com lists the suitability of many of the products from the most popular brand names and supermarkets). If its for health reasons avoid vegetarian supermarket ready meals at all costs- they're generally so full of salt, preservatives and hidden fats you may as well just eat the bacon sandwich and be done with it (If its for taste reasons avoid them too- they're revolting!) - as with any diet, home cooked food prepared with fresh ingredients contains far more nutrients than the stuff that comes in a packet ready for the microwave.