Robertson - One-dish vegan : more than 150 soul-satisfying recipes for easy and delicious one-bowl and one-plate dinners

To all those who work to make this a kinder, gentler world

The Harvard Common Press
www.harvardcommonpress.com

Copyright 2013 by Robin Robertson

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Robertson, Robin (Robin G.)

One-dish vegan : more than 150 soul-satisfying recipes for easy and delicious one-bowl and one-plate
dinners / Robin Robertson.
pages cm
Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-55832-812-9 (alk. paper)

1. Vegan cooking. 2. One-dish meals. I. Title.

TX837.R62495 2013
641.5'636dc23

2013001297

eISBN 978-1-558-32813-6
v1.0913

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Front cover photograph by Danny Lerner; back cover photograph by Lori Maffei

Cover recipes, front: Brown Rice and White Beans with Shiitakes and Spinach ()

At the top of my list of people to thank are some of the best recipe testers a cookbook author could ever hope for. My gratitude goes to Barbara Bryan, Jonathan and Nancy Shanes, Lea Jacobson, Liz Wyman, Lori Maffei, Lyndsay Orwig, Melissa Chapman, Jessica Eiss, and Vegan Aide. Their dedication to testing every recipe and giving me helpful feedback along the way made my job a pleasure. I cant thank them enough.

Many thanks to the terrific team at The Harvard Common Press, especially Bruce Shaw, Dan Rosenberg, Adam Salomone, Virginia Downes, Pat Jalbert-Levine, Valerie Cimino, and Karen Wise, for their part in making this book a reality, as well as my longtime agent, Stacey Glick of Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

I am also grateful, as always, to my husband, Jon, and our passel of cats, for their unconditional love and support, and for keeping me smiling.

We all know those certain special recipes that we return to again and again, particularly the satisfying one-dish family favorites that make us feel good all over. These are the recipes that are so flavorful that they taste like youve spent all day in the kitchen. Thats what One-Dish Vegan is abouta comprehensive collection of vegan favorites filled with nourishing and delicious recipes for every season and every occasion.

One-dish meals are my favorite way to cook. Not only are they easy to make for weeknight dinners, but theyre also ideal for serving company because they allow me to prepare meals in advance and then serve them from a clean kitchen. Another benefit that I especially appreciate on days when Im too busy to cook is being able to prepare weeknight meals ahead to be reheated later.

One-Dish Vegan is an extensive revision of One-Dish Vegetarian Meals, which was a collection of favorite recipes drawn from some of my earlier books, namely Rice & Spice, Pasta for All Seasons, and The Vegetarian Chili Cookbook, along with many all-new recipes. While a number of the recipes in that previous book were already vegan, many included some dairy options. However, this new volume, One-Dish Vegan, now contains 100 percent vegan recipes. More than that, it is also new and improved in several other exciting ways, including:

• recipes that use less oil
• many recipes that are low in fat
• more recipes made with whole grains
• handy notations for gluten-free and soy-free dishes
• dozens of all-new recipes

Also included in this book is a clarification of the parameters of a one-dish meal as found in these recipes (see page ). After One-Dish Vegetarian Meals was published, I discovered that people have varying interpretations of what constitutes a one-dish meal. I want to be clear that a one-dish meal doesnt necessarily mean one-pot preparation. Sometimes one-dish recipes require more than one pot or pan for advance prep, the components of which are then combined in a single pot, pan, or casserole in which the final dish is cooked and served.

One-Dish Vegan is filled with more than 150 great-tasting recipes that complement our busy lifestyles and our desire to eat healthful and great-tasting food without a lot of fuss. The dishes are economical, simple to prepare, and a pleasure to eat. Theyre also versatile and work equally well for simple weeknight dinners or for casual entertaining. Many of the dishes can be made ahead and popped into the oven to heat just before mealtime, and theyre great for feeding a crowd. They also lend themselves to easy transporting, making them ideal for potluck gatherings. These recipes for hearty comfort-food meals include satisfying soups, stews, and chili; lightning-quick stir-fries and sauts; comforting casseroles, lasagna, and baked stuffed vegetables; and pages of tempting pasta dishes and main-dish salads.

The globally inspired recipes in One-Dish Vegan offer tremendous variety and sophisticated flavors that will please vegans and omnivores alike, with choices such as Louisiana Red Beans and Rice, Three-Bean Quinoa Chili, Thai Peanut Bowl with Tofu and Asparagus, One-Pot Cheesy Mac, Frittata Puttanesca, Greek Gyro Salad, and many more.

Many of the recipes in this book have long been personal favorites of my family and friends. It is my hope that they will soon become your favorites as well.

Before digging into the recipes, Id like to share a few thoughts about the concept of this book and clarify what a one-dish meal means to me. I also want to offer some insights about the types of ingredients youll be using to create these recipes and provide some professional cooking tips that will help you prepare delicious and satisfying meals with ease and confidence.

One-Dish Wonders

We all want to eat healthy, well-balanced meals, but we dont always have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen. Thats why one-dish recipes can be especially appealingthe cooking methods are straightforward and simplified, and often the recipes can be assembled ahead of time, making for easy cleanup and less stress at mealtime.

Id like to begin by answering this question: Does one-dish mean one-pot?

My answer to that is: oftentimes, yes it does, but not always. Let me explain. To me, a one-dish dinner is a meal that comes to the table in a single serving vessel. Sometimes that can mean it is prepared and served in the same pan or pot. Other times, two or more of the components of the meal are prepared separately and then combined before being served.

Here, then, are the guidelines Ive used to distinguish the various types of one-dish-meal recipes that are contained in this book:

• Recipes in which all of the meal componentsvegetables, grain, and proteinare cooked and served in one pot, skillet, or other vessel as a complete meal (such as hearty soups, stews, or stir-fries that contain a balance of vegetables, protein, and complex carbohydrates).
• Recipes in which the entire meal arrives at the table in a single pot, skillet, bowl, or dish, but which are not entirely prepared in that single vessel (such as cooking a separate sauce or sauting a vegetable or other ingredient to add to the one-dish recipe). This category includes baked casseroles, where several components may be prepared separately and then combined into a single baking dish to bake and serve.