Lemlin - Quick Vegetarian Pleasures: More than 175 Fast, Delicious, and Healty Meatless Recipes

Quick
VEGETARIAN
PLEASURES Jeanne Lemlin

Although my love of cooking has continued unabated, I now wish to create only dishes that can be assembled quickly. If a recipe looks like it might take more than thirty minutes of my time, I lose all interest. Quickness has gained a whole new appeal.Many people think of vegetarian cooking as being more time-consuming than traditional fare. In many cases it is. But I knew from developing a chapter on quick menus in Vegetarian Pleasures: A Menu Cookbook that, with a good dose of imagination, meatless cooking can be fast and easy. Without sacrificing quality for convenience, I have been able to wed my love of adventurous eating with speed in the kitchen.

An abundant use of fresh vegetables, grains, herbs, semi-exotic ingredients, and new items on the market still are the staples of my cooking, but I have learned to handle them with a quick hand.Some ready-made products have found their way into my repertoire, but none at the expense of flavor. For example, I searched for and found a commercial tomato sauce that I like, and I can spruce it up with red wine, herbs, and garlic if I desire. Salsa is another store-bought item that can vary greatly by brand, and I have found some exceptionally good ones that free me from concocting my own in the kitchen. And canned cooked beans have more often than not replaced freshly cooked dried beans in my meal planning, enabling me to incorporate more beans in my diet. Many canned beans contain a preservative their one drawback but I avoid preservatives in most other foods, so I allow myself this shortcut. Again, brands vary, so I have searched for and found a product with firm beans, and I always rinse them thoroughly before using them in a recipe.My idea of a quick recipe is one that takes less than thirty minutes to prepare, though it might demand additional cooking time.

If a soup has to simmer one hour on the stove, I overlook that time because I dont have to tend to the soup. Many recipes, such as Capellini with Tomato Pesto, take just ten minutes to prepare, and they taste as wonderful as many more-involved dishes. If the quality of ingredients is high, I have found, then elaborate preparations arent necessary for noteworthy results. (Incidentally, the length of recipe directions is not necessarily an indication of the time needed to prepare a dish. Detailed instructions are a reflection of my background as a cooking instructor and my desire to be precise rather than a measure of how involved a particular recipe is.)Although I am a vegetarian and convinced of the link between diet and health, I have always tried to maintain a relaxed stance toward meal planning. When meat is removed from our diets, we must find other sources such as beans, grains, dairy products, and soy foods to replace the lost protein and iron.

And it is not only essential to eat a lot of these important foods, but also to seek variety in our diets.But I dont believe in meticulously calculating nutritional needs and planning our meals according to these calculations. I think this approach to eating hampers pleasure at the table, and pleasure is what good eating is all about. Once eating is turned into a mathematics problem, then drudgery sets in. (Of course, there are people who, for extreme health reasons, must be very calculating about their diets. But these are special cases that require medical guidance.)I also maintain this approach to the amount of fat in my diet. It is very important to avoid the misconception that fat intake is not a concern for vegetarians because meat is missing from our diets and we therefore can consume all the dairy products we want.

We still must restrict our use of cream, milk, cheese, and eggs because of their unusually high fat content.Rather than try to meet a set of exact dietary guidelines, I prefer to alternate richer meals with lighter meals, making lighter dishes a more frequent part of my diet. I have found that whenever I take an extreme approach to eating, there is a backlash. If I eat very light meals for too long a period of time, I inevitably crave an ultrarich dessert as compensation (like those outrageously good Hagen-Dazs hot fudge sundaes served at our local drugstore!). So moderation is also a sensible approach to take with menu planning. If a particular entree appeals to you and it is on the rich side, choose a light accompaniment and dessert to maintain a balance.This relaxed yet thoughtful approach to diet might sound slack to some readers, but I am not encouraging negligence. (Protein complementarity means combining different nonmeat sources of protein in the same meal to make them complete, thereby enhancing their quality and accessibility. (Protein complementarity means combining different nonmeat sources of protein in the same meal to make them complete, thereby enhancing their quality and accessibility.

The foods that best complement each other are: grains and legumes; grains and dairy products; and seeds and legumes.) By keeping these basic principles in mind, I can balance my diet in an easygoing manner. Rather than make each meal a model of nutritional perfection, I can remember which foods I should includeand do so often but not always.We should be informed about nutrition, strive to eat sensibly, and be concerned about our health. But eating must not become a religion; thats no way to feed our souls. Instead, lets approach eating with a cautious but relaxed spirit. I hope these recipes enable you to prepare delectable food in a short time and inspire you to be adventurous. Above all, I hope they enhance your cooking pleasures, quick though they may be.

Chill, tossing pasta with a little oil beforehand. Use in stir-fried or skillet dishes; marinate as a salad; or sprinkle with a few tablespoons of water, cover with foil, and reheat in the oven. On weekends, make an extra-large pot of soup. Doubling a recipe doesnt mean double work. Undercook the soup, then spoon out a portion to serve later in the week or freeze a batch.