Momicillin is pleased to introduce visiting writer: sweatpantsmom. If you like what you read, find more from her at www.sweatpantsmom.com 

So here’s the thing – I could never relate to those parents that complained about not getting their kids to eat, because my daughters, 11 and 13, will eat just about anything. And it’s always been that way - even when they were babies I remember friends and relatives coming over and it would almost be like a game. “Hey, let’s see if they’ll eat THIS,” they’d say, and then proceed to drop pieces of liver, or anchovies or cigarette butts onto my kids’ plates (Okay, I just made up the part about the cigarette butts, but you get the picture.)

But all that smugness could only last so long, because six months ago my oldest daughter decided to become a vegetarian and it’s thrown me for a loop. I’ve become one of those parents that has to fret and fuss over dinner for my kids and I can just hear all of my friends snickering under their breaths. Now my world is one of dual-meals, and careful label-reading and hesitation at adding bacon to everything. In other words, a living hell.

But thank goodness for the line of  Yves Meatless products – now my teen vegetarian, who still sometimes misses the taste and texture of meat, can enjoy some of our favorite dishes along with us. For tacos, I’ll prepare their Meatless Ground and season it alongside the ground beef or ground turkey that I’m preparing for me, my husband and my younger daughter. I’ll grill a couple of their Italian Veggie Sausages at the same time I’m grilling apple chicken sausages for the rest of the family, or use their Meatless Canadian Bacon in my eggs benedict. However, I’m still working on the part where I make her wash all the extra pans and utensils that are required for all the additional preparations – these vegetarians are really crafty when it comes to getting out of doing chores.

I have to confess that as inconvenient as it is, my daughter’s switch to a meat-free diet has made the rest of the family eat healthier as well. We’re eating a lot less meat, and when we do I make sure to have plenty of vegetables or vegetarian side dishes that my daughter can fill up on.  (For parents of younger kids, these meatless products are also a great way to get more protein into your toddler/preschooler’s diet. Just remember the hot dogs and sausages need to be cut into small pieces to avoid choking.) There have been a couple of times when we’ve all had the Meatless Ground tacos, and just last week when I was too tired to make a trip to the market, I talked the family into having Tofu Dogs for a Saturday night cookout. Ah, but some habits die hard – I admit I had mine wrapped in bacon.