How to vary a vegetarian diet?

I have just become a vegetarian, but I'm finding it very hard to think of vegetarian meals, especially when I'm making snacks at home to bring into college. I feel like I'm constantly eating the same things, like vegetable stir-fries and fruit. I'm not the best at cooking, but I'd be willing to have a go at a few dishes. Also, how do I get more protein into the diet? I'm afraid of losing weight, and I am already slightly underweight as it is...How to vary a vegetarian diet?
A perfect snack on the go is to use burrito shells or fajita shells. Add raw chopped up veggies and cheese (if you are not eating dairy there are non-dairy cheeses in the produce section of your grocery), and a little bit of dressing such as Ranch or Thousand Island. You can use cucumbers, tomatoes, zuchinni squash, celery, spanish onion, and even canned veggies such as mexican corn and black beans. Roll it up tight. I use clear plastic wrap to wrap around it, so you can just unwrap a little bit at a time to save the mess of trying to hold it. Take a container or sandwich bag with zipper of Salsa to add even more flavor.

Also, nuts (with or with out dried fruit) are important source of protein if you are eating vegetarian. Make a mixture of your favorite in a large container. You will save on the high costs of purchasing small pre-made bags at the grocery store. Then, separate the mixture into individual servings. Keep a bag with you to snack on during the day.
You need to get some good vegetarian cookbooks to make so you can have a balanced diet. Mollie katzen has some fantastic vegetarian cook books and she also had a resource page that you might want to have a look at. You could buy food like quorn and other fake meat products to see if that makes your life a little easier. I'm not sure if your vegan or what type of vegetarian you are but you might want to consider eating some fish for easy protein. Peanut butter sandwich is pretty easy to bring along to college and a some fruit or you could bring a tin of mixed beans and some crackers.How to vary a vegetarian diet?
Online recipes sites are your best friends. You can quickly look up recipes from a ton of different countries and go wild. Also, remember that you can always make substitutes for your old meat recipes, like chili-- use tempeh, or soy meat substitues, or mushrooms.



For snacks, you should keep baggies of nuts and seeds(walnut, almonds, pecans, sunflower, etc), and dried fruit(no sugar added). Dried plums, figs, raisons, apricots, apples. Nuts and dried fruits are a healthy source of proteins and "good" sugars for the student, and the nut fats will help you maintain your weight.
You might want to check out this link which has vegetarian cooking shows: www.suprememastertv.com/vegHow to vary a vegetarian diet?
Your problem isn't a veggie diet but something I like to call Repetitive Meal Syndrome. RMS is when people are soooo used to meat being the main star in a meal that they are completely confused when meat is removed from the diet. The cure for RMS? Just a rethinking is all you need.



Some common meals people eat are: pizza, lasagna, burgers, casseroles, pasta dishes and sandwiches. There is no reason you can't make these vegetarian or even vegan friendly...and you don't even need fancy meat replacements.



The meat replacements are a by-product of RMS...by that I mean that some people get so hung up on meat that even when they cut meat out they can't figure out how to put together a meal so they rely on meat replacements.



I'm surprised snacks are hard for you and that's why I think you're getting hung up on being vegetarian. Except for beef jerky, I can't think of a common snack that isn't vegetarian:

-protein and energy bars

-trail mix

-dried fruit

-fresh fruit

-mixed nuts

-yogurt and granola

-veggies and hummus

-chips

-pretzels

-pita chips and hummus

-tortilla chips and guacamole or bean dip

-cookies

-candy (except the ones that have gelatin...just check the label)

-pop tarts



You can see that not all the snacks up there are healthy and your inclusion of them depends on your personal preference. I was just giving ideas.





For meals? Try vegetarian versions of:

-chili

-lasagna

-pizza

-lentil soup

-veggie stew

-Indian curry

-Thai curry

-Pho soup

-vegetable sushi

-udon noodle soup

-fried rice

-casseroles

-shephard's pie

-tacos

-burritos

-nachos

-enchiladas

-pasta dishes

-cabbage rolls

-spring rolls

-summer rolls

-pot stickers

-tostadas

-sandwiches

-grilled sandwiches

-wraps

-grilled wraps

-BBQ vegetables

-pot pie

-tamales

-black bean soup

-falafel sandwiches



...and that's just some! As you can see, there's no shortage of meals to prepare.



I think you should check out my vegan food blog. Not only are there recipes, but you'll get to see daily menus I have to show you just how easy it is. It's not all glamorous or fancy, most of it is late-night or grab-and-go stuff. And it's inexpensive...I'm a college student, too :)

http://dailyveganeats.tumblr.com (recipes and daily menu postings)

http://twitter.com/dailyveganeats (by-the-meal tweets)







Protein? Milk, eggs and pretty much all plant food contains protein. Eat a well-rounded diet, you'll be fine.



Underweight? Eat more. A vegetarian diet isn't a magic weight loss method or anything.