One night at dinner, back when the girls were in high school, Ivy announced that she was going to go vegetarian.
"I'm not," Kendra said.
"Okay, but I'm not cooking separate meals," I said.
Kendra's boyfriend, who was eating with us, stayed out of it.
I cook at least half vegetarian anyway so the difference wasn't huge. The problem was this. Ivy has always had rich, protein oriented tastes. She was born a pound bigger and an inch longer than Kendra. She began eating solid food the day she was old enough. Kendra had no interest in food as a baby, especially anything with meat. I nursed her for over a year. It was what she thrived on.
Ivy was buff and athletic. Kendra was petite. She liked fruits and vegetables Ivy liked hot dogs and macaroni and cheese. In fact, Kendra is currently a vegetarian and Ivy isn't. It's the natural order of things. These are their bodies.
Anyway, I insisted that Ivy had to add some vegetables to her repertoire so she added squash. Broccoli and carrots were already acceptable. I wasn't going to let her live on rice and beans while competing in sports.
Restaurants that don't cater to vegetarians get called on to offer vegetarian options for parties. These dishes are usually something that can be done with little preparation with the ingredients on hand. So when we went to a rehearsal dinner with a pre-planned menu, they had a separate dish for Ivy, not doubt thrown together. She loved it.
So it became part of our home menu. Super easy.
Heat spaghetti sauce (whatever you usually use) in a sauce pan. When steamy but not bubbling, whisk in some cream.
Saute chopped zucchini, thinly sliced carrots and broccoli in olive oil with thyme, oregano and basil. Ivy's not an onion/garlic fan and I recreated the dish for her, but I suspect it had onions the first time, I blanch the broccoli first, in the same pot I'm going to throw the spaghetti in.
Turn off the saute pan and add the sauce to the hot pan. Serve over spaghetti or linguine. Garnish with parmesan (optional).
Ivy wanted to watch me make this because she wants to do it at home. Good first apartment dish. I didn't quite remember, but it all came back as I was doing it. We also had an artichoke, one of her favorite foods. I melted butter with lemon juice and tarragon for dipping.
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