What's your favourite very simple veggie meal?

[sojourner]

Beans on Plate.

posh fucker

 

[gaijingirl]

ooh... I've got loads of fav simple veggie meals.

This one is one of those recipes that tastes so much more than the sum of its parts suggests - it's also really easy for me as I have sage growing on the balcony and always have the other ingredients in the cupboard - super cheap meal, excellent with crusty bread:

Tuscan beans with sage (serves 4)

1½ tbsp fresh sage, chopped
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1½ tbsp lemon juice
3 x 300g cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

- fry sage and garlic in the oil for 3-4 minutes, until garlic is golden
- add remaining ingredients and cook for about 10 minutes, until tomatoes have reduced
- season to taste, and serve hot or cold


This one I've been eating this week and is incredibly tasty but also incredibly filling and very cheap! I've posted it here before and a few Urbanites gave it a go and came back with glowing reports.

Ingredients

1 large butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 1cm pieces
2 red peppers, chopped into 1cm pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
60 grams pearl barley
1.5 pints of vegetable stock (preferably made from Marigold Bouillon powder)
3 tablespoons of tomato passata

Instructions

Roast the chopped BNS and red pepper in a hot oven for 20 minutes until soft. Remove from oven and put to one side. Fry chopped onion and garlic in frylite until soft. Stir in the pearl barley and roasted veggies for a couple of minutes. Then add stock and passata and leave to simmer for 25 minutes, until the barley is plump and soft, and the mixture is quite thick. Serve and enjoy! (really nice with crusty bread and butter - even better with veggy parmesan cheese)


I also love Tarka Dal and the vegetable and bean bake which I've posted up here a few times before.

 

[Strumpet]

What do I do with loads of celery now?

Add to home made veg./fruit juice! Only way I like it apart from dipped in tons of salt (bad ) or crammed full of cream cheese(kinda bad ) and as a soup...celery soup is delish!

 

[wtfftw]

I like the sound of that can you use frozen or tinned spinach and do you just chuck it all into a bowl together?

I reckon it's fresh. Probably also works with kale.

Mind you, I'm trying to remember how my mum did it as I'm psyching myself up to try. I did the whole pastryless quiche thing and it reminded me of this.

 

[Onket]

All this talk of c*lery has made me vomit.

 

[rich!]

Classy fella you, rich!

Bet you mop up the juice with your dreads too, eh?

Dreads and juice? That's only for my chili recipe, which has more ingredients.

(Go to 24-hour veg shop. Buy as much veg as you can carry. Then a half-dozen of those tins of cheap tomato, and of course you've been collecting chili of various types. The rest follows pretty naturally)

 

[mr steev]

Pesto Linguine with black olives and parmesan - toss cooked linguine in pesto, chuck on olives from a jar, grate parmesan over - also fucking lush, and I'm having it tonight!

Parmesan aint veggie.

I know it get's mentioned quite a bit, but I think people need to know. There are loads of 'vegetarian' recipes about with parmesan in them... it's very mis-leading, and can be quite embarassing if you're veggie and someone else has cooked for you.
A few months ago, a friend had a 'dinner party' and had gone to special lenghts to cook veggie... then towards the end of the meal she was explaining how she made it... I didn't have the heart to tell her, but am in someway gonna have to broach the subject if she cooks again (which I'm sure she will) But that's going to make her feal very awkward

 

[boozybirdie]

Parmesan aint veggie.

I know it get's mentioned quite a bit, but I think people need to know. There are loads of 'vegetarian' recipes about with parmesan in them... it's very mis-leading, and can be quite embarassing if you're veggie and someone else has cooked for you.
A few months ago, a friend had a 'dinner party' and had gone to special lenghts to cook veggie... then towards the end of the meal she was explaining how she made it... I didn't have the heart to tell her, but am in someway gonna have to broach the subject if she cooks again (which I'm sure she will) But that's going to make her feal very awkward

Why is it not veggie

 

[moose]

There are also a fair few veggie 'parmesan' substitutes about

 

[mr steev]

There are also a fair few veggie 'parmesan' substitutes about

Yes there are
Twineham Grange seems to be mostly recommended

Why is it not veggie

It's made with animal rennet.
Proper parmesan, Parmigiano Reggiano, comes from a certain region and is made in a certain way (it has to be to be called Parmigiano Reggiano) and this always uses animal rennet

 

[mr steev]

There are also a fair few veggie 'parmesan' substitutes about

I agree, but most people don't realise there are. And if a recipe calls for parmesan, that's what most people will use.

It's becoming a bit of a pet hate of mine at the mo

 

[Sedgley Warrior]

It's made with animal rennet.

Oops

 

[Dolly Dimple]

*bookmarks thread*

I like this one:
Steam a load of spinach. Melt some dolcelatte (or gorgonzola if you're feeling flush) into a small tub of double cream over a low heat. Stir in the steamed spinach and serve over gnocchi. Lervly.

 

[sojourner]

*bookmarks thread*

I like this one:
Steam a load of spinach. Melt some dolcelatte (or gorgonzola if you're feeling flush) into a small tub of double cream over a low heat. Stir in the steamed spinach and serve over gnocchi. Lervly.

Anything involving spinach, with cream, is going to be goooood

 

[sojourner]

Parmesan aint veggie.

I know it get's mentioned quite a bit, but I think people need to know. There are loads of 'vegetarian' recipes about with parmesan in them... it's very mis-leading, and can be quite embarassing if you're veggie and someone else has cooked for you.
A few months ago, a friend had a 'dinner party' and had gone to special lenghts to cook veggie... then towards the end of the meal she was explaining how she made it... I didn't have the heart to tell her, but am in someway gonna have to broach the subject if she cooks again (which I'm sure she will) But that's going to make her feal very awkward

Well, apols to all the veggies for my ignorance

I have quite a few veggie mates, and have managed to fuck it up on several occasions, just not thinking it through thoroughly

 

[gaijingirl]

The majority of foreign cheeses (dolcelatte and gorgonzola included) are unlikely to be veggie. If you visit a good cheese suppliers if will become apparent quite quickly that it becomes much more difficult to have a good veggie cheese selection than one might imagine.

Twineham Grange parmesan "style" cheese is easily the best parmesan subtsitute. Apart from that, it tends to be freeze dried types of veggie/vegan alternative which bear little resemblance to the real thing.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

mushrooms, pasta, cream, garlic, salt, pepper

* set some pasta boiling (if it's the dried, takes 10 minutes type)

fry off some mushrooms with some fresh crushed garlic (or some dried, if you keep some on standby for when you're out of fresh), add a sprinkle of salt, lots of freshly ground black pepper.

* OR, set some pasta boiling in a pan of pre-boiled water (if it's the fresh, takes three minutes type)

turn down the heat, add a pot of double cream to the mushrooms, stir

when pasta's cooked, stir through your creamy garlicky mushroom sauce

best served with a green salad

(and made with fresh pasta, fresh garlic, but dried will do)

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

ingredients: 2-3 leeks, risotto rice, salt, pepper, veg stock (optional: some dried or fresh thyme, parmesan cheese, green salad)

chop leeks, add seasoning, fry off till golden

add risotto rice, fry for a couple of minutes

add a bit of veg stock, stir till absorbed, add more veg stock, stir till absorbed

add rest of stock, simmer on very low heat till stock all absorbed and rice cooked

optional: add some dried herbs, e.g. thyme

preferably served with green salad and freshly shaved parmesan and more freshly ground black pepper

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

cheat's variation on theme of cauliflower cheese:

turn oven on to pre-heat

ingredients: cauli *and* broccoli (so it doesn't look too beige, and broccoli's good for you anyway, and I like it, so there ), a large pot of four cheese sauce from the fresh pasta fridge in the supermarket, some grated cheese, salt and pepper to taste (and maybe a sprinkle of ground nutmeg)

pre-boil kettle, add to pan of broccoli and cauliflower cut into florets, boil for five minutes (don't overcook)

drain water and put cauli and broccoli into ovenproof dish

pour over pot of cheese sauce, (stir it in a bit), grate a bit of cheese over the top, put in the oven till golden brown.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

...Oh and a lot of pricy ingredients I've seen which i wouldn't bother using when throwing a quick meal for one together

Improvise!

Leave out the pricey things, or substitute with more reasonably priced alternatives, e.g. if a mushroom risotto calls for shitake or other expensive/exotic mushrooms, just buy a punnet of tesco value/asda saver price button mushrooms and use them instead!

 

[nightowl]

welsh eggs (serves 3-4)

gently cook about four or five leeks in a knob of butter in a saucepan for a couple of minutes

add half a pint of veggie stock and simmer for ten minutes or so until the leeks have softened

put three tablespoons of plain flour, two of dried milk power and three or four of water in a cup and mix together until it forms a paste. add this to the leek mixture, season well, bring to the boil and cook for a few more minutes.

while all this is going on boil and shell four eggs, cut them in half and put on top of slices of wholemeal toast.

pour the leek mixture on top when ready

 

[sonik]

i thought he asked for simple

toast.


beans on toast if you're trying to impress a chick.

Class

 

[nightowl]

for cheap and quick veggie meals get one of those student veggie cookbook type things. they only cost a few quid. i use it all the time

 

[Onket]

The majority of foreign cheeses (dolcelatte and gorgonzola included) are unlikely to be veggie. If you visit a good cheese suppliers if will become apparent quite quickly that it becomes much more difficult to have a good veggie cheese selection than one might imagine.

Twineham Grange parmesan "style" cheese is easily the best parmesan subtsitute. Apart from that, it tends to be freeze dried types of veggie/vegan alternative which bear little resemblance to the real thing.

I thought only vegetarian cheese was vegetarian, I presumed all others were still made with animal rennet. Maybe it's changed?

<e2a> http://www.cheese.com/vegetarian.asp

 

[dada]

diced avocado +
diced tomatoes +
sliced onion +
diced tofu cheese +
lettuces +
sprinkle black pepper +
tabasco sauce! +
olive oil +
only tiny drops of sesame oil +
veggie french dressing +
little lemon juice
=
one fantastic veggie salad!

 

[Maggot]

*bookmarks thread*

I like this one:
Steam a load of spinach. Melt some dolcelatte (or gorgonzola if you're feeling flush) into a small tub of double cream over a low heat. Stir in the steamed spinach and serve over gnocchi. Lervly.

Won't the tub of cream melt?

 

[subversplat]

I thought only vegetarian cheese was vegetarian, I presumed all others were still made with animal rennet. Maybe it's changed?

<e2a> http://www.cheese.com/vegetarian.asp

Most British cheeses are vegetarian now, and it's only the strict ancient recipe ones that are cunts about it. Synthetic rennet is cheaper I think, as so many cheeses use it.

Just look for the "Suitable for Vegetarians" bit. It might be tiny and on the back hidden under the barcode, but most companies at least go to the bother of letting you know nowadays.

 

[gaijingirl]

I thought only vegetarian cheese was vegetarian, I presumed all others were still made with animal rennet. Maybe it's changed?

<e2a> http://www.cheese.com/vegetarian.asp

Yes.. I think that's what I was saying in my post - I certainly wasn't saying that non-vegetarian cheese is vegetarian!! So we agree.

But not all cheese have rennet in them. Some cheeses don't specifically need to be "vegetarianised" iykwim... some just are veggy. Hard cheese very rarely are, but some soft cheese are ok. For example, Parmesan - in order to have the name "parmesan" must contain animal rennet. Most, if not all, Italian hard cheeses are the same. The link you put shows cheeses that are naturally vegetarian - not ones that have been specially made vegetarian! In general European (not UK) cheeses are much stricter about using animal rennet.

I think actually we're on the same page here.

 

[Onket]

Yeah, cheers you two. I actually dunno why I quoted you gaijingirl! I wasn't trying to argue, I guess I was just trying to link in with the veg cheese thread within a thread (or something).

Subversplat- it being cheaper would make it the method of choice I guess!

 

[Maggot]

This one I've been eating this week and is incredibly tasty but also incredibly filling and very cheap! I've posted it here before and a few Urbanites gave it a go and came back with glowing reports.

Ingredients

1 large butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 1cm pieces
2 red peppers, chopped into 1cm pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
60 grams pearl barley
1.5 pints of vegetable stock (preferably made from Marigold Bouillon powder)
3 tablespoons of tomato passata

Instructions

Roast the chopped BNS and red pepper in a hot oven for 20 minutes until soft. Remove from oven and put to one side. Fry chopped onion and garlic in frylite until soft. Stir in the pearl barley and roasted veggies for a couple of minutes. Then add stock and passata and leave to simmer for 25 minutes, until the barley is plump and soft, and the mixture is quite thick. Serve and enjoy! (really nice with crusty bread and butter - even better with veggy parmesan cheese)


I also love Tarka Dal and the vegetable and bean bake which I've posted up here a few times before.

Was thinking of making this, but have no idea what frylite is. Will extra virgin olive oil do?