The veg option of the Italian restaurant
When vegetarians go to the "normal" restaurants, classic, Italian, those of the tradition and without too many pretensions to understand each other, they often put their hands in their hair or smile in a resigned way.
Yes, because except in rare cases illuminated - which usually include refreshments in central and southern Italy - the situation, or rather the panorama that comes before your teeth is the following:
> In the Italian menu there is always a vegetarian first course, a pasta with tomato sauce, a risotto with vegetables, ravioli or meatless soups. Of course, very true and praiseworthy. But watch out for borage ravioli, they are not always meatless!
> The waiter, already terrified and visibly embarrassed about the question "and the seconds?" Answers without conviction "we can make a green salad with two tomatoes and a mozzarella" or "we have a well-stocked cheese board" (with honeys and jams when it goes well!).
> "I'll make you something special" . This is usually the option to be avoided like the plague: in fact, a dish can arrive with an unidentified mix of semi fried vegetables, stewed or boiled seeds, baked in the oven to gratin with a lava flow of melted cheese, salt or pepper. spice at random, to well hide the whole.
> And finally: "Are two grilled vegetables or a gardener okay?"
But we must not despair, to make a vegetarian happy it takes very little .
Here are some tips for restaurateurs, chefs or experts in the field who want to think a little bigger, while remaining simple and simple.
Menu to make vegetarians happy
If the restaurant were mine, what would I cook? Knowing how to present some veg friendly dishes on the menu supports a restaurant.
But there is no need to worry and ask the iridologist on duty what the ideal solution might be, such as astral connections or the latest fashion cereal to be discovered in the fashion magazine. The secret is simply in the combinations, here are some examples.
> Propose light and healthy appetizers, but at the same time original : carrot sticks with veg mayonnaise; marinated zucchini with salt, pepper, Castelmagno and lemon; skewers of aubergine rolls with mozzarella and cherry tomatoes; or vegetarian sauces, such as tuna sauce with chickpeas, taggiasche olives and parmesan, just to name a few.
> Among the first courses, bring up a risotto with lentils, rather than a wholemeal pasta with pesto, potatoes and green beans. A carbonara veg version with smoked tofu, next to the classic one.
A barley with beans. Or even a cereal salad (brown rice, millet, oats) and quinoa enriched with fresh seasonal vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, herbs, tomatoes, spring onions, courgettes, aubergines, etc.), legumes (such as chickpeas, broad beans or peas) or cubes of natural tofu sautéed together with vegetables. This could also be a fantastic single dish.
> As for the main courses, in addition to meat and fish, it would be nice to read a nice list of freshly prepared omelettes or omelettes, leaving out more elaborate vegetable pies.
Or have special salads available, the most desired summer dish: a beautiful base of fresh and seasonal salad leaves, tomatoes, radishes, carrots, beets, baby spinach or white cabbage; also enriching them with fruit, such as apples, and dried fruit, such as dried figs in small pieces; a small veg protein layer, which is not just hard-boiled egg or mozzarella, or about 100 grams of lentils, beans or other legumes or slices of natural tofu freshly sautéed with a little soy sauce; and finally a handful of mixed oily seeds (sesame, chia, flax, pumpkin, sunflower).
> Always bet on bread and whole grains, sometimes offering the luxury of being able to enjoy chickpea flour; use good seasonings, such as 100% Italian cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, always offer a slice of lemon (vitamin C helps to fix the iron!), also have apple or balsamic vinegar, in addition to the classics; leave the fruit salad to the natural - the strawberries with ten quintals of sugar leave them to the grandmothers, better little honey, lemon and mint! - could be other small attentions, turning points that would make a vegetarian really happy, but not only!
To laugh a little : "I don't eat meat, I'm vegetarian", from the movie "Everything is illuminated"; or "Ian is a vegetarian" from "My big fat Greek marriage".
Read also Sports and nutrition for a vegetarian >>
