by Robin Dodds

Suddenly, it’s cool to be a vegetarian (or a vegan). More people, looking beyond the old ”5-a-Day” vegetable and fruit guidelines, are trying to incorporate more meatless meals into their diets. And why not? It’s a healthy, inexpensive way to eat.

Maybe you want to cut costs (and cholesterol) and go meatless once or twice a week, but the word “tofu” gives you the cold sweats. You’re afraid you’re going to end up with some bland food facsimile. Don’t panic! Here are a few flavorful, nutrient-packed, completely vegetarian - vegan, even - recipes to get you started. The bulk of the protein in these recipes comes from beans rather than tofu, but I throw in some fake ground meat (either Smart Ground or Yves) or soyrizo, a soy-based chorizo sausage (any brand will do; Trader Joe’s makes a fine one.)

1. RED BEANS AND RICE

This first red beans and rice recipe is slightly modified from perhaps my all-time favorite cookbook, Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything.

1 ½ cup cooked rice
20 oz canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 clove minced garlic
2 bell peppers, stemmed, seeded and chopped
4 or 5 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 T. dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
½ tube soyrizo (optional)
2 cans coconut milk

Start rice; cook according to package directions.

In a large pan over medium heat, sauté onion, celery, garlic and peppers in 2 T. olive oil until softened, about 10 minutes. Add thyme, bay leaves, and 1 T. chili powder, or to taste. Add tomatoes, beans and soyrizo (if using, but I heartily recommend it) and coconut milk, turn the heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring, for 10 to 15 minutes. Eat greedily. Your mouth will thank you.

2. WEST INDIAN RED BEANS AND RICE

Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers: Fresh Ideas for the Weeknight Table offers a recipe for West Indian Red Beans and Coconut Rice. The big difference is that they cook the rice, rather than the beans, in coconut milk. One advantage to this recipe on a busy night is, it’s considerably streamlined. I am presenting the recipe to you as it reads in the cookbook. Between you and me, I am an “everything goes better with a half-tube of soyrizo” kind of person. It’s your call.

Rice:

1 ½ cup white or basmati rice
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 ½ cup water
¾ cup coconut milk

Beans:

1 ½ cup diced onions
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp red pepper flakes or 1 fresh chili, minced
salt
½ tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp allspice
1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (28 oz) red kidney beans, drained
chopped scallions and/or cilantro

Rinse and drain the rice. In a saucepan on medium-high heat, sauté the rice, turmeric, and salt in the oil for a minute or two, stirring constantly. Add the water and coconut milk, bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Simmer until the rice is tender and the liquid absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, in a saucepan on medium heat, sauté the onions in the oil for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes, sprinkle lightly with salt, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the thyme, allspice, tomatoes and beans, cover, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve the red beans on a bed of rice and top with scallions and/or cilantro.

3. PASTA E FAGIOLI

Because I am, at heart, a hack, it is hard for me to resist making a Dean Martin pun when talking about Pasta e Fagioli, also known as “pasta fazool.” But, look, there might be nothing more comforting than a good, hearty pasta dish – and one so easy, to boot. Easy? Pasta? Now, THAT’S amore. This recipe comes from my favorite veggie cookbook, Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

2 Tbsp olive oil
6 cloves (!) garlic, minced
2 lb Plum tomatoes, diced medium
¼ cup dry white wine (or vegetable broth)
½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp dried oregano
a few dashes fresh black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 can (6 oz) white beans, washed and drained
½ lb small tube pasta, like penette or tubetti, or even small shells

Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta and preheat another large pan over medium heat. Add the oil and garlic to the large pan and sauté for about 1 minute, until garlic is fragrant. Add the tomatoes, wine, thyme, oregano, black pepper, and salt. Bring to a boil, then lower to medium heat until the tomatoes are broken down and sauce is reduced and thickened, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, add pasta to the water and cook according to package directions. Once the sauce is thickened, simmer on low heat to keep warm. Drain pasta and set aside. When sauce is finished, add the beans and pasta and use a pasta spoon to mix. Serve when pasta and beans are heated through, about 3 minutes.

4.VEGETARIAN CHILI

Last but not least, this is an original recipe of mine that has evolved over the years. In our family, it’s proved to be a favorite of even the most die-hard meat lovers.

Either ½ tube soyrizo or ½ package taco and burrito Smart Ground
1 can black bean soup (La Preferida makes a good one)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1 large can Bush’s vegetarian baked beans
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 cup frozen whole-kernel corn
3 Tbsp chili powder (play with the spices; I like to add some cayenne, but the kids aren’t too happy with me when I do, so I just add tons of chili powder)

Put it all in a slow cooker. Cook for two hours on high or four on low. What could be easier?

Get more ideas for what to eat with Cozi Dinner Ideas.

Robin Dodds, the writer behind Cheap and Crunchy, is a wife and mother of four children-two daughters and two sons, ages 3 to 11. When she’s not mothering or working with words and music (sometimes all at the same time), she is figuring out how to keep her family afloat in the most frugal way possible.