We asked five vegetarians to recommend their favorite meatless recipes. They picked their brains and gave us these wholesome and tasty dishes, filled with whole grains, vegetables, and other delicious ingredients. Make them tonight to up your veggie intake and boost your health!
Light and Tasty Quinoa
Ingredients:
1 cup diced onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp cumin
1 cup quinoa
2 cans diced tomatoes, drained, juice reserved
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 can no-salt black beans
1 can corn
1 T lime juice
2 T chopped cilantro
Prepare:Sauté onion, cumin, garlic, and pepper flakes about 3-5 minutes. Add quinoa, reserved tomato juice, and broth. Cover and cook until the quinoa is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed—about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, black beans, corn, and lime juice. Stir until heated through, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro. Serves 4
NUTRITION (per serving) 269 cal, 13 g pro, 55 g carb, 9 g fiber, 2.5 g fat, 0.5 g sat fat, 826 mg sodium
From Vegan in 30 Days: Get Healthy. Save the World by Sarah Taylor. Reprinted courtesy of Taylor Presentations, Inc.
Don't miss our new Meatless Mondays blog with weekly vegetarian recipes!
Tomato and Roasted Eggplant Stew with Chickpeas
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 large eggplants (3 pounds)
1 bulb garlic
2 red bell peppers, stems and seeds removed
1 white onion, sliced into thin half-moons
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
2 tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
Several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed, or 1
1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
Tips:You are going to need two large, rimmed baking sheets to get the job done and baking parchment to make sure that you don't ruin the baking sheets—unless they're already ruined and you don't care!
If you don't have a pastry brush for applying the oil, a spray bottle of olive oil with work, too. Otherwise just drizzle it on.
Arrange two oven racks so that one is in the upper third and the other is in the lower third. You're probably not going to be able to fit both of your pans on one rack. If you are, we hate that you've got a bigger oven than we do!
Prepare:Preheat the oven to 450°F.Quarter the eggplant lengthwise and slice across into 3/4-inch slices.Line two rimmed baking sheets with baking parchment and brush the parchment with the olive oil. Lay the eggplant slices on the baking sheets and brush or spray the tops with olive oil. Leave a little room on one pan for the peppers. Brush the outsides of the peppers with olive oil and place them, cut side down, on the pan.Remove the papery skins from the garlic bulb (as much skin as will come off easily). Place the garlic on one of the pans as well.Place the pans in the oven and roast for 25 minutes.
Remove the pans from the oven. Place the red pepper in a paper or plastic bag and close up the bag (so that the pepper skins steam off). Flip the eggplant pieces and brush a little oil on any pieces that look dry (they should be fairly browned, albeit unevenly).Return the eggplant to the oven for an additional 15 minutes and remove the garlic, setting it aside to cool. The garlic should have been in for 40 minutes, but if you did the eggplant flipping with lightning speed, give the garlic a few more minutes to bake.
On the stovetop, preheat a soup pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions in 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned. The eggplant should be ready while the onion is browning, so remove the eggplant from the oven and set aside (if you are running out of counter space, use tongs to transfer the eggplant to a bowl).Add the garlic to the onions and sauté for 2 more minutes. Add the white wine and herbs and cook for about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, tearing up each tomato with your hands before adding to the pot, and add the remaining tomato juice from the can.Add the eggplant to the pot and mix well. Don't be afraid of crushing the eggplant; in fact it's good if it gets a little crushed.Remove the peppers from the bag and peel away the skin. If for some reason the skin won't peel, don't sweat it. Chop the peppers into bite-size pieces and add to the soup pot along with the chickpeas. Lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
To prepare the garlic, wet your hands (to avoid sticking) and squeeze each roasted garlic clove into the soup pot. Mix well, turn off the heat, and let the stew sit for as long as you can stand to let the flavors to develop. Serves 6
NUTRITION (per serving) 291 cal, 8 g pro, 42 g carb, 13 g fiber, 10.5 g fat, 1.5 g sat fat, 850 mg sodium
From Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Reprinted courtesy of Da Capo Lifelong Books.
Buddha Bowl
Buddha Bowls are fast food for the conscious eater. Use any combo of slightly steamed, sautéed, or finely chopped raw veggies on top of a gluten-free grain (millet, quinoa, brown rice, what have you). Add an avocado to up the yum factor.
Ingredients:
1-2 cups of brown rice (you'll have extra)
1/2 head broccoli
1 cup chickpeas
1/2 purple onion, diced
1 grated carrot
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup ground flaxseeds
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1 avocado
1/2 cup diced oil-cured olives
Sea salt or Bragg's to taste (olives are salty so go easy)
1 tablespoon olive oil or flax oil (optional)
Dash of cayenne
Prepare:Cook the brown rice first. Use a 2:1 ratio of water to rice in the cooking process. If you're using raw veggies, finely chop them and toss them with the rice while it's still hot. This cooks them a bit, but you don't lose nutrients. Season and dress to taste. Serves 2-3
NUTRITION (per serving) 636 cal, 20 g pro, 89 g carb, 16 g fiber, 23.5 g fat, 2 g sat fat, 707 mg sodium
From Crazy Sexy Diet: Eat Your Veggies, Ignite Your Spark, and Live Like You Mean It by Kris Carr. Reprinted courtesy of Skirt!.
Sloppy Joes
Sloppy Joe sandwiches are well named—they're very, very messy. When was the last time you got to lick your fingers and slurp up the drippings off the plate? These are especially delicious with a side of steamed spinach and potato wedges.
Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
16 ounces frozen vegetarian meat crumbles
1/2 cup water
8 ounces tomato paste
1 teaspoon tamari
1 teaspoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
4 whole grain buns
1 onion, sliced into thin rounds (optional)
Sliced dill pickles
Prepare:Sauté the onion on high heat in a nonstick skillet for 3 minutes, until just translucent. Add the veggie meat crumbles and 1/4 cup of water to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes, until warmed through. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the remaining water and stir until thoroughly mixed, using more water as necessary to make a thick sauce. Stir in the tamari, Worcestershire, and sugar. Place a generous amount of filling into each bun. Top with sliced onion and pickles. Serves 4
NUTRITION (per serving) 473 cal, 32 g pro, 70 g carb, 8 g fiber, 8 g fat, 0 g sat fat, 1,016 mg sodium
From The Engine 2 Diet by Rip Esselstyn. Reprinted courtesy of Wellness Central.
Sweet Potato Fries
We love sweet potato fries. Nothing could be easier. We leave the skin on for maximum nutrients and flavor. Sweet potatoes with their golden orange color are a rich and vibrant source of beta-carotene—hence the bold, carrot-like color.
Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes with skins on, scrubbed and sliced into strips
Prepare:Preheat oven to 450º. Place the potato slices on a sprayed baking sheet and cover with aluminum foil. Cook for 30-40 minutes, turning once. Remove the foil after 20 minutes to allow the slices to brown.The thinner your slices, the faster they cook. They're most delicious when lightly brown—but take care not to burn them.
NUTRITION (per serving) 110 cal, 2 g pro, 26 g carb, 4 g fiber, 0 g fat, 0 g sat fat, 11 mg sodium
From The Engine 2 Diet by Rip Esselstyn. Reprinted courtesy of Wellness Central.
