Skip to main content
DinnerThe Weekday VegetariansVegetarian

The Weekday Vegetarians

By March 11, 2021January 3rd, 20229 Comments

I could not be more excited to introduce you to The Weekday Vegetarians. Can you believe how happy and gorgeous she is?

Before I started writing this book, it’s not an exaggeration to say that a piece of animal protein anchored our dinner plates at least five out of seven nights a week. Back then, when I was trying to decide what to make for dinner, I’d think to myself, We have chicken, lets make some breaded cutlets or We have ground turkey, let’s make turkey chili. Even though I had known for a while that reducing our meat intake was one of the most impactful ways we could personally combat climate change, I suddenly found the conversation was getting too loud to ignore anymore, especially at my own dinner table, with my own children. Plus, I was getting older! I wanted to eat better, I wanted to do better, I wanted to feel better — about my health and about my choices.

This book is about how I challenged my family to flip the formula. What if we limited our meat intake to the weekends? What if we became Weekday Vegetarians? Honestly, when I pitched the book, I wasn’t 100% sure I could do it. So so many of the iconic recipes at my table (not to mention in my books and on my blog) were meat-based. But I’m convinced that the it was the forgiving formula — five nights on, two nights off — that helped my family stay committed. In fact, it was so successful that plant-based eating started creeping into weekend meals and restaurant orders, eventually, so much so that we could legit call it a Lifestyle. Do we have a long way to go? Of course we do. But it feels good to have taken one very large step in the right direction.

I’m not going to lie: The deliciousness of the dinners we discovered along the way helped a lot, too. There are of 100 of them in the book including an entire section devoted to what I call “Hooks,” i.e. that one moment on the plate that gets everyone at the table genuinely excited about dinner. Think: A honey-crusted cornbread to serve with a three-bean chili; or spicy peanut sauce to drizzle over steamed kale or crispy tofu; or pickled onions to put on top of literally anything, especially the veggie burger which I am obsessed with and eat once a week.

And do I even need to say it? The food is easy! Fast! Fresh! Healthy! All the things a weekday cook depends on not just to survive dinner, but to love it, too….

Trust me when I say you will be hearing SO much more about this, but for now I wanted to let you know that The Weekday Vegetarians is available from all your favorite retailers. You can also subscribe to my newsletter and follow #theweekdayvegetarians on instagram for real-time updates.

9 Comments

  • Avatar ashley says:

    So excited!!! It’s been fun following this journey on your blog & insta, and now we get to see the finished product of the book. Can’t wait to get my copy. 🙂

  • Avatar Jennie says:

    First time commenter and want you to know this speaks to me SO MUCH. I love a hamburger more than anything, but one of my goals for the year was to master 7 delicious vegetarian dinners for all the reasons you give. I will be buying this book.

  • Avatar Keshet says:

    I’m a vegetarian who has been reading and loving your blog for years and years (always sending recipes to my husband, an omnivore) — but who hasn’t been able to eat most of your recipes. Needless to say, super excited to order this and so happy to get to enjoy not just your endearing and funny writing, but your food!

    • Avatar Joan says:

      My teen son gifted The Weekday Vegetarians to me last year. Interesting choice, as he loves meat. I’ve been enjoying your book, having made several recipes. It’s been helpful with using our CSA this summer. Tonight was the best so far: Andy’s Sunday Enchiladas with red enchilada sauce, made on a weeknight just like you said it could. I used home cooked pinto beans (made ahead and frozen for a moment such as this one) and made the sauce. Truly mmm and very satisfying. Thank you! PS: I *really* don’t like beans but try to use them because health. This recipe works for me.

  • Avatar Jaime says:

    Just placed a pre-order with my local indie.

  • Avatar Ellen says:

    I often audition cookbooks by checking them out at the local library first. I remember when I checked your first cookbook out, I realized that there weren’t many recipes that would work for our family (because we try to mostly cook and eat vegetarian food). So…I’m pleased that you now have a vegetarian cookbook coming out!

  • Avatar F says:

    Pre-ordered! I went through my local bookstore instead of these links. I cannot wait until August 31! I’ve been ready to go weekday vegetarian for a while, but it’s going to take some delicious recipes to convert my family, who has outlawed beans, mushrooms, and tofu!

  • Avatar Donna wolfe says:

    I preordered 2 of these. When will I get them?

  • Avatar Janet says:

    I just bought your book and tried – and loved – the zucchini pizza. I was interested to learn that Parmesan isn’t considered vegetarian; but did you know that Worcestershire sauce also isn’t vegetarian as it contains anchovies?

Leave a Reply

What is 12 + 4 ?
Please leave these two fields as-is:
IMPORTANT! To be able to proceed, you need to solve the following simple math (so we know that you are a human) :-)