Somebody asked me a few days ago how “one” could be a vegetarian and not be skinny.  She was quick to point out that she wasn’t talking about me, oh no, but wanted to know in general how somebody who lives off of vegetables can be anything BUT skinny?  I wasn’t insulted by her question, knowing full-well that I do have a few pounds to lose but it does bother me that I’m not thin and that I’ve carried around extra weight since my son was born.  I was lucky enough to lose what I’d gained during pregnancy (it didn’t hurt that my boy was 10 lbs, 2 oz.), but a couple of years later it started creeping back up, slowly but steadily and now here it sits.  Or rather, I sit on it.

When I first contemplated vegetarianism in my mid-twenties it was within the context of extending my commitment to animal welfare by not eating animals or wearing them.  The animal rights literature in which I immersed myself featured people dedicated to the cause and they were invariably thin. Most lived a strict vegan lifestyle and their children’s skin always appeared slightly transparent, almost with a tinge of blue.  In those days I wasn’t carrying around any extra weight so it wouldn’t have occurred to me, unlike my acquaintance, to use vegetarianism as a weight-loss tool.  I am happy to say that my motives were true then, but now I’m thinking, Why not use my vegetarianism as a weight-loss tool?

If you’ve been following my musings you know that I’ve been hoping to get myself back to a purer form of vegetarianism, even if I can’t get myself to commit to veganism again (but I always aspire to).  I eat eggs, yogurt, milk for my coffee and cheese.  Cheese.  Cheesy cheese. Ch-e-e-e-e-s-e. I could give up the eggs and yogurt, replace the milk in my coffee with the edible-oil-product they call Coffee-Mate, or just learn to drink it black.  But the cheese thing would be the most difficult.  Nevertheless, if I want to fulfill my goal, then cutting down on cheese would be a sure and easy way to get started.

So, that brings me to two weeks ago when my son and I decided to embark on a 5-pound weight-loss challenge (don’t tell him but my motivation to get him involved was not for weight loss – he’s 9 – but to get him to understand portion control of the ‘white’ food group, incidentally his favourite: rice, potatoes, pasta).  I’ve lost three pounds and of course I’m facing more than one 5-pound challenge but we’re taking a step at a time.  The flip side of this is that I’ve been cooking up a storm and it’s been a lot of fun.  Stay tuned for our progress.

………………………………………….

That being said T brought home some lovely cheeses to sample today (ahem).  They accompanied our home made split-pea soup tonight which is why I would struggle with giving up cheese.  We tried three new-for-us cheeses served with a thinly sliced baguette, home made tomato bruschetta, a lovely green olive bruschetta that T found at Nancy’s Cheese on Dupont St., spicy-pickled antipasto and Paesana ‘Pepperoncinis’, spicy and flavourful.  The first cheese was a Merlot Bellavitano Sartori which came with a rich dark Merlot rind.  It had the flavour of a two-year old cheddar but creamy with only the slightest hint of a berry aftertaste.  It was very nice.  We also sampled a Blackburn Mont Jacob that called to mind Oka but creamier, with just a hint of stinky feet (but in a good way as T noted).  Our favourite of the evening (also from Nancy’s) had to be the Avonlea Clothbound Cheddar Reserve from Cows, in P.E.I.  It was very rich and buttery, an unpasteurized 12 month old cheddar bound in cloth which enables the cheese to age and breath at the same time.  Even Kman enjoyed it and we were proud that he tried them all.  Ahhhhh…..