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Why Oh Why?


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When I write a message, below the box I write in, there is a box which says 'Email me replies to this post' and it's ticked. So I delete the tick if I don't want to get an email everyone someone else posts a message on that topic.   Usually this means I don't get the emails.  This time I do!  Including my post complaining about it!

As I was writing this message, the tick kept appearing and disappearing - I've never noticed that before.  But anyway, I untick the box after writing a message.

In fact, I posted this message and when I clicked on 'edit' the box was ticked again, even tho I had unticked it...  twice, as I noticed a typo and went in to change it.

 

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You have posted several times to the thread and unless you "unclick" the notification on each of your posts, you will receive notifications of replies.

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The stupidity of the woman Jill met is extraordinary for there's absolutely no excuse for her not being able to eat well at home, especially in summer when the local markets are crammed with a wonderful assortment of vegetables.  And, as others rightly point out, even the smallest grocers stocks rice, dried pasta, etc.  However, depending upon where precisely she lives, eating out might be more of a challenge.  I recently went to stay with old friends in the Lot.  Eating at home was fine but whenever we ate out in local restaurants in the evening, I found myself stuck with either omelette or, if I was lucky, roast chicken.  You see, I don't like duck and you see an awful lot of it in the south west.
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[quote user="Meg "][quote user="Jill"]An English woman spoke to me in a supermarket in the Dordogne today.  She said they had retired to France and bought a house here, to which they moved 4 days ago.  She said they are vegetarian and speak no French and all they had eaten in the last 4 days was cheese, cheese and more cheese.  She was clearly fed up of cheese!  I suggested they might cook something with chick peas.  I'm not vegetarian, but I could certainly think of plenty of vegetarian things to eat that don't involve cheese or Quorn.  They said the only cooking they had done was to heat up a tin of vegetable soup.  I didn't think to ask her whether they had ever visited France previously or whether they knew anything about French cuisine.  We just can't understand why anyone in their circumstances would move to France.  I mean, if they had visited France, then surely they should know what to expect foodwise (although I expect that given time they will find food for vegetarians - if they can learn some French).  But then, surely, as vegetarians, they should know something about vegetarian cuisine and be able to sort themselves out foodwise regardless.  I find it difficult to believe that anyone could move to France and know so little.  They might as well have moved to the Moon.  I realise all people have different reasons for wanting to move to France and I certainly have many reasons for wanting to have a home in France - even though it will probably never happen.  But even though I have spent a lot of time in France, with French families, in gites and camping, I do feel there is still a lot more research to be done.  I daresay I will come in for some flac from people who have moved to France knowing nothing about France, but - oh well, we were just astonished.[/quote]

Poor woman!!! She only arrived 4 days ago (maybe she doesn't even have a kitchen) and is now the subject of a 'brits in france' debate!!  We moved over here after never holidaying here and with very limited language, and it took a few weeks to find our feet and work out what to buy, from where and what it was called in french etc, but who cares, it was our choice to do it that way. Research is all well and good, but for some folks they rather just say let's just do it, and dive in at the deep end, otherwise they never get any further than research and talking about it. Depends on your circumstances/character etc, doesn't make one right and one wrong. Some sink some swim, that's life. Good on anyone prepared to take the odd risk in life to achieve their goals.

Wonder if she's reading this?! Can't be many British retired ladies in the dordogne, that were talking to a lady in a supermarket yesterday, and who only moved over 4 days ago...........[Www]

Either that or she was after a free meal from you Jill!

[:)]
[/quote]

I think that if she had ever read this forum, she would have known that France is not geared up for vegetarians who don't know how to cook vegetarian food from raw ingredients.  The woman was clearly ignorant of French food and Vegetarian cooking of all nationalities, otherwise she would have known the problems she would be presented with.  France does seem to have a lot of ready made food these days, but still not much for vegetarians - and I suspect that the vegetable soup she had contained meat stock, in any case.  Ready-made veggie food is restrictive anyway.  As someone who eats all meat - including horse, rabbit etc, I still cook a fair amount of vegetarian food.  I have no problem finding something to cook for vegetarian guests without relying on cheese - the last vegetarian who ate chez nous was lactose intolerant.

This woman was above retirement age with her daughter in her 30's and it's a bit sad that it was clear that neither of them knew how to cook vegetarian food from basic ingredients such as - vegetables!!!!! Plus the help of cheese, eggs, pulses, nuts etc for protein.  I just hope they haven't died of starvation or cheese excess in the meantime.

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Two British vegetarians I know, who came to France for a fortnight holiday, ate nothing but baguette, emmenthal and raw tomatoes for every single meal. It seemed to be the only French food they knew, and could trust. That was in self-catering accommodation, too, so they could have cooked.[blink]
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I am told that the manufacture of cheese requires renet (I think that's what it's called) from cows' stomachs to be added to the milk.

You can find "Vegetarian Cheese" at most UK supermarkets but I don't know about in France. 

Depends how strictly vegetarian they are.  Eating enough first class proteins is a problem but, even more problematic is eating enough Vitamin B6 (or is it 12?)  Apologise for my dreadful memory.  Used to know all this kind of stuff when I first met my husband who doesn't eat meat but does eat ordinary cheese and some fish.

As he's now survived into his seventies, I am confident that I have neither hastened his death nor diminished his health by the food I have fed him through the years!

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

I am told that the manufacture of cheese requires renet (I think that's what it's called) from cows' stomachs to be added to the milk.

You can find "Vegetarian Cheese" at most UK supermarkets but I don't know about in France. 

Depends how strictly vegetarian they are.  Eating enough first class proteins is a problem but, even more problematic is eating enough Vitamin B6 (or is it 12?)  Apologise for my dreadful memory.  Used to know all this kind of stuff when I first met my husband who doesn't eat meat but does eat ordinary cheese and some fish.

As he's now survived into his seventies, I am confident that I have neither hastened his death nor diminished his health by the food I have fed him through the years!

[/quote]

Yes Sweet 17, rennet is the stuff that is used to make cheese. There is not much call for vegetarian cheese (i.e., rennet-free) in France, since there are so few vegetarians. Your husband should have no problem whatsoever, especially since he eats cheese and some fish - you don't say if he eats eggs as well - which are a complete food!

If you are vegetarian and you eat some dairy products and eggs, unless you eat an unbalanced diet, or unless your digestive system is impaired, you should not incur any deficiencies - except that many vegetarian women will be anaemic at some point in their lives, and will then have to take iron supplements (especially after childbirth) and up their intake of greens and lentils. It also happens that some vegetarians tend to eat too much carbohydrates, sweets and cakes, and not enough protein.

It is for vegans that it gets a little tricky, and when vit B12 deficiency might become one of the problems. Especially if you switch to a vegan diet as an adult,  your body will not be so efficient at extracting maximum nourishment from foods that require a little extra work for it. I believe that many young women in the UK particularly, who decide they will not eat meat or any animal products, are more at risk of becoming deficient in important nutrients like iron, calcium, and protein. A number of them are flirting with eating disorders by becoming whimsical in their food intake, and eat very imbalanced diets;  their protein intake might be extremely low - not a good thing for young bodies, and a way to court disaster. For a vegan diet to work, it has to include a lot of nuts, pulses - including soya, like tofu and tempeh and miso - sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sea vegetables for B12, or Marmite (which has B12 added).

The protein in meat is usable instantly by the body, without it having to work for it, so it is an easy solution. Of course,  poor people of many cultures throughout the world have a very limited intake of animal product, and they will derive their protein intake from items such as chickpea flour, yogourt, maize flour, peanuts, fish pickles, coconut, and shrimp sauce for instance

Here in the West, there is no reason for a vegetarian diet to be "bad" for anyone, except for those people whose body just cannot process vegetable protein adequately, then it is not optimal. But a balanced vegetarian diet has a lot going for it: more fibre (good) and  less animal fat (good). Plus all the numerous ethical aspects: knowing that you do not support battery farming and bad animal husbandry, knowing that the food you eat has not mobilised large agricultural areas that could have been used more efficiently to feed more people, etc...For some people, it is a conscious lifestyle choice. 

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Added to the fact that she doesn't speak any French - there used to be near us a lady from Birmingham and her family who had bought a hotel. When we spoke to her one day she confessed that none of the family spoke French and didn't see the need as they were going to aim the hotel at the British market.

When we asked her how she was going to deal with suppliers and services she said she would get by and use the British where she could.

The last we heard she had been fleeced by a so-called British workman big-time and had sold up as it was not working.

It is now run by a French family and it is a success, catering for the French and British.

So even without the veggie bit, as we all say, you must try and learn the language.

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