Thanks all, just the inspiration I needed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Chickpeas in Indian curry.

What vegetables do you include besides onion?

Not the OP of this suggestion but you can add tomato. Though it's more of a complement. Chickpea curry isn't really vegetable laden.

Eggplant lasagna (no noodles)

Add good quality frozen veggies to whatever you're making.

Make soups, stews and casseroles for the week, so that your prep time averages to 1/2 hour per day.

Spinach & Lentils (Palak Dal - Indian) :
Cook 1.5 Cups of Split Red Lentils or Moong Dal on Stove top with 4 cups of water. Chop the Spinach (15-16 oz) and add it to the cooking lentils along with one sliced Jalapeno or Long Pepper. Add bit of Turmeric, Salt and little Chilli Powder. Take 1-1.5 teaspoons of butter in a pan and fry 3-4 cloves of garlic, 1-2 red chillies, 2-3 pinches of Mustard Seeds and 2-3 pinches of Cumin Seeds. If you have curry leaves, add a sprig to the oil. Transfer the fried seasoning ingredients to the Pot. Add some chopped corriander and after you switch off the stove, add lemon/lime juice to taste. You can eat it like a soup or serve with roti/toasted bread/cooked rice.

Sambar - (Mixed Vegetables + Lentils)

Buy some sambar powder (MTR brand) at an Indian grocery shop. Cook 1-2 cups of lentils with 4 cups of water in a big pot.
Cut Carrots, Onions, Zucchini, Tomatoes, Radish, Edmaame or Lima Beans etc into big chunks. (any vegetables which can hold shape will do). Add the vegetables when the lentils are almost cooked with 1-2 tea spoons of tamarind concentrate/paste, water, salt and 1-2 tea spoons of sambar powder. When vegetables are almost cooked, add 1-2 tea spoons of butter in a frying pan, fry all the seasoning ingredients mentioned above like Cumin, Mustard, Red Chillies, Garlic cloves, Turmeric and add it to the Cooked Lentil + Vegetable mixture. Switch-off the stove and eat after 1-2 hours. You can eat like Soup or serve with Rice.

warm salads (spinach and red onion, for instance) with bacon are another good one

Also not a vegetarian but eat mostly that way and usually do dinner in a half hour. Some ideas:
-whole wheat pizza with whatever veggies you have on hand sauteed up (peppers, spinach, onions, garlic - I've done slices of sweet potatoes, whatever is around)
-Frittatas
-black bean tacos - saute up some black beans with onions, spinach, tomatoes, etc.
-Pasta with lots of veggies. Can also be made more asian-inspired by sauteeing up the veggies before with soy sauce, ginger and garlic

pp here. also, i always keep bags of frozen veggies around (spinach, corn, peas, etc.) and fresh spinach and shredded carrots and I throw some into things like pasta sauce, soups, rice, cous cous in order to add more veggies to whatever meal I'm making.

six o'clock scramble has a great, easy and quick recipe for spinach and mushroom risotto. http://www.thescramble.com/family-dinner/vegetarian-main-dish-for-thanksgiving-baked-risotto-with-spinach-and-cremini-mushrooms/

Go Asian.


Stir fries are great -- just buy what vegetables are in season, some beef or chicken (try not to get too lean) and cook with soy sauce, rice wine, garlic, ginger and a little cornstarch.

Turkish vegetable stew is delicious -- you can also serve with bread or roast meat and it freezes well for reuse.

Also Thai curries work great -- again what vegetables you have and what mean -- about.com has a good set of Thai recipes I use often.

My BIL makes a really vegetable heavy lasagna. The whole dish takes more than an hour to make but you can freeze and reheat easily.

1 lb ground beef
onions & garlic
Up to 5 veggies (usually 1 cup each): peas, a pack of frozen spinach, zucchini, broccoli, mushrooms
one large can pasta sauce
one can tomatoes

Cook onions & garlic, brown beef & drain fat, add veggies and a can of tomatoes, cook for 20 minutes or until veggies are done.

Scoop extra liquid from pan into lasagna dish, put first layer of lasagna noodles. Scoop meat & veggie filling onto noodles. Cover with pasta sauce. Add another layers of noodles. Scoop more meat-veggies onto it. Add ricotta (optional). Top with pasta sauce and mozzarella.

Cook in oven for half and hour at 350. I usually make it on the weekend and freeze for the week.

Anonymous wrote:Vegetable heavy dishes tend not to be quick unless you have super knife skills. All that chopping takes time! I mainly cook these things but it's not fast. I am always amazed how much quicker it is to cook a piece of meat with a steamed veg side, but we don't enjoy those meals as much.

Agreed! I eat a mainly vegetable diet and I would save probably DAYS over the course of a year if I ate more meat.

Last night I made Tabbouleh, took forever!

Vegetable heavy dishes tend not to be quick unless you have super knife skills. All that chopping takes time! I mainly cook these things but it's not fast. I am always amazed how much quicker it is to cook a piece of meat with a steamed veg side, but we don't enjoy those meals as much.

If you like Indian food I loooove saag Paneer. You don't get much more veggoe than that. I use equal parts mustard greens and spinach and run ot all through the blender after it is cooked, bur before i add the paneer.

I eat primarily veggies with NO pasta, white rice or bread. I would not characterize eating a tasty plant bases diet quick and easy, unless flavor is not a high priority.

Spicy eggplant, an Indian dish. This recipe is the closest I can find to mine. I add diced green and red peppers. And use black mustard seeds that you heat in the skillet before adding everything else.And i use diced tomatoes.

http://www.nytimes.com/recipes/1014830/baingan-bharta.html