too many foods today are just "spiced" and have no taste other than the spices. Way too many cooks and prepared foods are over spiced to taste less ness. We've stopped buying several brands of the diet "TV" meals to take to work simply because all you can taste is the pepper and other spices.

Joe Starkey
Abilene, TX just so you know it's not hot I object to.

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I have had the opposite experience. We had a vegetarian resturant run by a Seventh Day Adventist woman. While the food was healthful, it was also bland and totally devoid of any spices. Every time I ate there, I kept thinking this would be so much better with the addition a few spices to add flavor. Many non-vegetarians turn their noses up to anything made with Tofu. They see it as being bland and taistless. Many of them got that impression from inexperienced cooks who neglected to use any spices. Most cultures around the world use lots of spices in their foods. The exception is Northern Europe and their decendants here in North America.

Wesley Vincent
Albuquerque, NM

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I'm not a vegetarian, but I do find a lot of vegetarian foods to be delicious because the lack of meat is often made up for by a lot of flavors and spices. I think it is safe to say that a lot of people end up overdoing the spice, and while I have never heard the phrase "hippie hot" I think it entirely appropriate. I love spicy food, but if the heat isn't in balance with the rest of the flavors then it's just hot, not good. A lot of the vegetarian/hippie people I have known were in their early to mid twenties, and their lack of cooking experience but appreciation of spice has made for some difficult to eat food. A vegetarian friend of mine used to invite people over for "stir fry," which was basically steamed carrots and brocolli that were slathered with some kind of blazing hot stir fry sauce that he kept on hand. Obviously there are plenty of hippies out there who are accomplished cooks, so I can see how the phrase "hippie hot" could rub some folks the wrong way.

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I have to agree. We have a bunch of vegetarian friends and they always, always, always make really spicy food.

When my husband and I were vege, though, I didn't heavily spice my foods. I don't know why some veges do.

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