ISO quick healthy vegetarian meals for weekdays

[twowhat?]

We're not vegetarian but I LOVE a good vegetarian meal. sunshineandme posted this recipe here long ago and it has been a total staple here - I LOVE it:

http://windsorpeak.com/vbulletin/sho...hlight=troufed

A bit of prep time with dicing, but you could do it the night before and then it only takes 20 min to cook. I use the jar of diced garlic to save time. I LOVE this with a fried egg (over easy) on top! It's filling and DH and I have eaten it as a main dish for dinner.

I also LOVE vegetarian chili and it's so easy. I just take:
Can of stewed whole tomato (I break it up as I cook)
Can of chickpeas
Can of white northern beans
Can of pinto beans
Can of kidney beans
Diced green bell pepper (2)
a couple of diced carrots
whole coriander seeds
whole mustard seeds
garlic
cumin
paprika

Start with EVOO in a pot, add garlic, a sprinkle of whole coriander and mustard seed and cumin and heat until the seads/garlic/spices are toasty (not too long!). Then add the carrots and bell pepper and stir for a bit, then add the cans of everything - beans, tomato, liquid and all! Heat to a simmer and then add paprika to taste/color and salt to taste (you may not need much depending on if you bought low sodium cans of the beans). Simmer until carrots are tender. Spoon into bowls, put a dollop of sour cream on top, and sprinkle with cilantro. Some diced avocado would be delish too! You can add rice for leftovers, or add a nice crusty bread of your choice. I LOVE this in the fall/winter and the leftovers taste even better It's also not spicy so it could be kid-friendly.

[123LuckyMom]

I need to reference my cookbook for my favorite bean recipe. It's kidney beans, chick peas, and string beans, and the string beans add freshness. A favorite in my house, though, is eggplant Parmesan with whole wheat pasta and salad. We also use portobello mushrooms a lot. Portobello mushrooms with goat cheese, basil, and pine nuts is a huge fave as are portobello burgers. In many cases, you can substitute portobellos for meat in recipes. We're not vegetarian, but we eat meatless meals fairly often. Bean and cheese quesadillas are a go-to forgot-to-plan meal in my house, and everyone loves them!

[infomama]

I love this vegetarian chili. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/e...ipe/index.html

My mods...
I used about a tsp of oil. I don't think it's even needed though.
Omitted the seeded Serrano peppers
I used canned corn (summer crisp, my fav)
Omitted the hot cayenne
I used a 28 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes, sort of drained.
I use parsley instead of cilantro
Skipped the rice and sour cream.
Instead if making a batch of his essence I added some smoked paprika, garlic powder, oregano and thyme at the end. This really brings the chili to a new level....before I added these I wasn't sure I loved it but after....SO delicious!

[Pepper]

Do your kids like Indian, Korean, or Ethiopian foods? Those cuisines have a lot of veggie options and they hold up well. i'll make a few batches of vegetable side dishes on the weekend, and maybe one protein, and then serve them during the week with an additional protein (we eat meat but you could do tofu, or a fried egg option). I can give you some recipes if you're interested.

[JustMe]

Do your kids like Indian, Korean, or Ethiopian foods? Those cuisines have a lot of veggie options and they hold up well. i'll make a few batches of vegetable side dishes on the weekend, and maybe one protein, and then serve them during the week with an additional protein (we eat meat but you could do tofu, or a fried egg option). I can give you some recipes if you're interested.

Oh yes, they do and I love them! Please post recipes!

[Pepper]

OK, for Korean, I have a few cookbooks but I also love Aeri's Kitchen website. She has lots of recipes for vegetable side dishes (the panchan that you get at a Korean restaurant) as well as soups, stews (the Korean kind of stew which is more like a soup to me).

To make bibimbap, you can prep the components ahead and keep them in the fridge. You can use any combination of veggie dishes that you like; I'd suggest making
spinach namul (http://aeriskitchen.com/2009/06/spin...geumchi-namul/) and Korean radish namul (http://aeriskitchen.com/2009/10/kore...7932;-munamul/). Also shred some carrot, lettuce, and/or cucumber. Get some fresh shiitake, baby bella, or portobello mushrooms and slice them thin, then saute in a skillet with a little sesame oil and a pinch of salt. Then all you need to do is cook some rice and fry up an egg to have dinner.

I love tofu jeon (http://aeriskitchen.com/2011/11/tofu-jeon/), which are savory pancakes make with tofu. They freeze well & can be heated up in the toaster oven.

Other recipes of hers that I've liked are
potato and vegetable bokkeum http://aeriskitchen.com/2011/11/tofu-jeon/
eggplant namul http://aeriskitchen.com/2011/07/eggplant-namul/
Napa cabbage soybean paste guk http://aeriskitchen.com/2011/04/napa...ean-paste-guk/
soybean sprout muchim http://aeriskitchen.com/2010/02/bean...gnamul-muchim/
garlic chive & cucumber muchim http://aeriskitchen.com/2009/03/garl...chu-oi-muchim/
tofu buchim http://aeriskitchen.com/2008/11/kore...8512;침/

Ethiopian: I am sooo lucky to have a great Ethiopian restuarant in my neighborhood, and a convenience store that sells injera!
We loved this potato and cabbage stew http://theberberediaries.wordpress.c...e-tikil-gomen/
Lentil stew http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipe...G0q4Rz5blop.32
collards http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipe...L73ep4TSfOP.32
split peas http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2012...ee-kik-alicha/

For Indian, I mostly cook from the India& Pakistan chapter in "Complete Asian Cookbook," by Charmaine Solomon. Your library should have a copy, it's a classic. I love her recipes for saag, eggplant, spicy fried spinach, daal, plain savory potatoes (though I usually add cauliflower to it as well). I'm running out of steam so I'll look to see if some of those recipes are already online tomorrow night :-)

Random recipe: this chickpea and spinach recipe from Smitten Kitchen: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/...and-chickpeas/

[twowhat?]

GAAAH I really REALLY want some bibimbap NOW.

[JustMe]

Wow, Pepper! Thanks so much!