Welcome to VEGETARIAN WEEK.

Welcome to VEGETARIAN WEEK here at Running with Teaspoons!  I have an exciting menu of vegetarian lunches and dinners for every day this week!  I also be having vegetarian breakfasts and snacks, though I don't tend to blog about them.

After Pescatarain Week back in June, I didn't think I could ever go completely without meat for a week!  But, over the past few months, I've decided it's worth a try.  So I've done my best to pick recipes that feel complete and look filling without the meat.  In other words, I didn't want to cook something and feel like I just left out the chicken.  I'm pretty excited about the menu for the week, and I hope I've accomplished that!

To cook off Vegetarian Week, I made Mediterranean Bulgur and Lentils in my slow cooker!  Technically I made it Saturday and took it to a Break Fast with some friends, but I had leftovers for lunch today as well!  Since I have two gluten free friends, I replaced bulgur with short-grained Arborio rice.  I considered replacing the bulgur with quinoa, but I couldn't find any at my grocery store!  Anyway, like many slow cooker recipes, this was super simple.  I put the rice, lentils, corn, cumin, salt, and vegetable broth into the slow cooker and left it for a few hours.  Then, I added diced tomatoes and kalamata olives and cooked it for another 15 minutes or so.  Lastly, I substituted crumbled goat cheese for feta due to a food allergy in our friend group.  I think the cheese is really supposed to just be sprinkled on top, but it ended up melting into the dish - making it even better, in my opinion!

I realize it doesn't look all that appetizing, but I swear this stuff is DELICIOUS!  It got great review from my friends as well.  I am excited to have lots of leftovers - although they are definitely tempting me in the fridge as I write this!

Time to get tonight's dinner and tomorrow's lunch ready!