A Thrifter in Disguise: May Meatless Monday Roundup

Meatless Meals for Families: Menu from May 2014

Check Out This Month's Plant-Based, Vegetarian Picks

Have you joined the Meatless Monday Movement yet? It's easier than you might think and a great way to stay healthy and support our natural environment.

This month, in addition to sharing my monthy roundup, I'm also excited to announce that I've joined the official Meatless Monday community as a MM Blogger on Board, where I'll be sharing all my monthly roundups. Be sure to check out the Meatless Monday website and Pinterest board for all sorts of fun MM ideas from lots of different bloggers. In the meantime, here's what my family enjoyed during our Meatless Mondays in May:

Meatless Monday May Roundup

May Week 1: These Quinoa Taco Bowls by Cathy of Lemon Tree Dwelling were a fun and easy way to start the week. Although she didn't use them in her recipe, I found little tortilla "bowls" at the grocery store, and they were a big hit with the kids. I filled each bowl with quinoa, then put all the other toppings in bowls on the table, letting everybody fill them up with the toppings they liked best. While cheese was easily the favorite topping of the kids, they were good sports about trying the other options, too. The whole idea of preparing the meal themselves was a great way to make Meatless Mondays a little more fun!

May Week 2: We grilled these Tofu Vegetable Kabobs with Peanut Sauce by What Would Cathy Eat this week, and I loved them! The sauce was easy to make and the grilling process was straight-forward and quick. Unfortunately, no one else was a fan of the tofu (we don't eat it a lot so the texture was new to them), but the taste of the peanut sauce was a huge hit... so next time I think I'll make the tofu version for me and maybe a chicken version for the others.

May Week 3: I happened to be particularly short on time this day, so I needed a quick and easy idea; we ended up using our Panini Maker to make Spinach & Sundried Tomato Paninis. We didn't follow a particular recipe, but simply filled sandwiched some whole grain bread with cheddar cheese, spinach, and sundried tomatoes and pressed them in the panini maker. I got a jar of sundried tomatoes from Trader Joes, and they were SO good--even my husband who doesn't usually care for them thought they were great! Paired with a green salad, these sandwiches made a super easy option for a warm spring evening.

May Week 4: I cooked up a dish this week: the Skinny Tex Mex Bean Quinoa Casserole by Olena of iFOODreal. I prepared it all ahead of time in the morning, so all I needed to do was pop it in the oven for dinner. I loved sauteeing the veggies in coconut oil, and adding the coconut milk to the casserole base was a great addition, too. The kids were all willing to give it a try, and although they balked at finishing all of their veggies, they left the table with full bellies. And I loved the fact that even though it was a casserole, it wasn't too heavy, plus, it was easy to serve by cutting it into little rectangles for everyone. Also, since it was a large dish, I was able to eat it for lunches over the next few days. I LOVED it!

Looking for more Meatless Monday Inspiration? Check out past roundups, too!