Delicious Dishes for Meatless Mondays

Meatless Mondays have been gaining popularity over the last couple months. Why? Because skipping meat, even just once a week, has significant health and environmental benefits.

On the health side, eating less meat can limit cancer risk, reduce heart disease, fight diabetes, curb obesity and help you live longer. A recent study by Harvard University showed that replacing foods high in saturated fats (like meat) with foods high in polyunsaturated fat (like vegetable oils, nuts and seeds) reduces the risk of heart disease by 19%.

On the environmental front, eating less meat will reduce your carbon footprint, minimize water usage and help reduce fossil fuel dependence. For instance, it takes nearly 2,000 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef whereas a pound of wheat requires only 25 gallons.

We've found it easy to eat less meat when we search for vegetarian recipes with our favorite ingredients (like arugula and mushrooms) in our favorite dishes (like pizza and tacos). So, without further ado here are 3 tasty recipes for this Meatless Monday:

Gourmet Pizza: The Waldorf (Food52)
Quick tip: you can always buy fresh dough from your favorite pizzeria.
Ingredients: Bleu Cheese, Red Grapes, Walnuts, Olive Oil, Gala Apple, Cream, Celery, Thin Pizza Crust

Arugula and Ricotta Calzones (Epicurious)
Serve these with a little marinara sauce for dipping.
Ingredients: Egg, Garlic, Pizza Dough, Salt & Pepper, Olive Oil, Parmesan, Arugula, Ricotta

Mushroom, Rajas, and Corn Tacos (Cookstr)
Rajas are sliced poblano peppers, and they're delicious!
Ingredients: Corn, Garlic, Poblanos, Queso Fresco, Onion, Anaheim Chiles, Roma Tomatoes, Epazote Leaves, Creminis, Tortillas, Cilantro, Salsa


Now it's time to start cooking!

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