Vegetarian Meals - Stormville,NY

Black Bean Soup

I don't have an official recipe; I just throw it together, but this is basically what I do:

2 cans of black beans
2 cans of potatoes (or sometimes I cut up fresh potatoes - peeled)
frozen corn - as much as you like (I use a lot)
1 can of rotel
chicken or vegetable broth (add as much as you want depending on how soupy you want it)

Add all of this to a big pot, bring to a boil to heat it, and add seasonings. I use cumin, red pepper, black pepper, oregano, and salt. Let it simmer awhile. Then enjoy!

It's really great! If you're serving a large group, do 3 cans instead of 2, and 2 cans of rotel. It's so easy and quite tasty! You can change the seasonings to suit you, too. :)

this quinoa and black bean casserole from the sparkpeople website is always a hit for me!
:) khairete
S.

1 cup cooked quinoa
3 cups cooked black beans (or two
15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed)
2 large sweet potatoes, shredded
1 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese
1 tbsp ground cumin
Liberal pinches salt and pepper
2 eggs
1 cup salsa
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish

Serve this with steamed broccoli or wilted spinach and a dollop of light sour cream or plain Greek yogurt.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a 9” x 9” casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the quinoa, black beans, sweet potato, 1⁄2 cup of the cheese, and the cumin, salt, and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together the eggs and the salsa. Pour the salsa mixture over the quinoa-bean mixture, then pour everything into the prepared casserole dish.
3. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Garnish with the cilantro.

Serving size: 1 heaping cup

Bean and cheese burritos.

I think your son needs to help with some of the meals while he's home.
He can teach you a few of his fave dishes to add to your repertoire.
There's lot's of beans and rice recipes out there.

Homemade mac and cheese, pasta with marinara or alfredo sauce, rice/bean/cheese burritos, quiche or frittata with cheese and veges, vege chow mein or fried rice, pizza with anything but meat, grilled cheese sandwiches.
There are MANY ways to eat without meat, and you can always keep the meat to the side for those in the family who want it.

Beans & Greens (kale or chard, garlic, olive oil, white beans sauteed and served over pasta or with crusty bread)

Roasted root vegetables w/ couscous or quinoa

Black bean soup.

Pasta with pesto. Add nuts for a little extra protein.

Frittata with anything (potato, spinach, kale, feta, broccoli, etc).

Try epicurious - there are thousands or great recipes.

When I am short for menu ideas I like to take an imaginary walk around an international food court-

Italian-
eggplant parm, eggplant rolitini, pasta fasioul,

Indian-
dahl, vegg curry, muligatani soup, veg briyani

Mexican - you've got some great suggestions below for tacos, tortillas, quessadillas, enchiladas and soups, don't forget guac and salsa.

Chinese-
stir fry, jasmine rice, fried rice

Japanese-
mock sushi, veg tempura, veg teriyaki, miso soup.

Malasyian-
mango with seitan, steamed veg with yellow, green or red curry sauce,

Thai-
veg pad thai, veg pad key mao, curried vegetables in coconut milk.

south/ central american/ carribean -
empanadas, (i forget what they are called but those corn meal things steamed in corn husk or palm), mofongo, tostones, sweet plaintains.

african/ middle eastern
morrocan tangines, egyptian foul (made with fava beans), falafel, hummos, grilled veg, tabouli, spanikopitera.

european-
borscht

american/ southern -
succotash.

Best,
F. B.

I am sure you will come up with more to flesh out these categories and open up options for you both.

-Eggplant lasagna. You use thinly sliced eggplant in lieu of noodles, no
meat, cheese, sauce.
-Tortilla bake. You take a flour tortilla in a glass pie pan, spread warmed
Rosita refried beans, shredded cheese, repeat layer & again. Bake for
15 mins. You can top w/sour cream, diced tomatoes, onions, olives.
-Egg burritos (scrambled eggs, shredded cheese, flour tortillas)
-Lentils
-Bean soup, the kind you buy in a bag, steep in water overnight put in
crock pot & cook for 4hours.
-Bean burritos w/all the fixings.
-sauted veggies (onions, red & orange bell peppers, mushrooms) serve
over rice
-tuna fish sandwiches
-grilled salmon
-grilled tilapia fish
-stuffed bell peppers (stuff w/grilled onions, tiny chopped grilled mushrooms & cooked rice), bake
-risotto w/veggies or shrimp if he eats that
-roasted veggies (in oven w/olive oil)
-quesadillas
-Morning Star brand makes great veggie burgers, "fake" sausages etc.
-veggie burgers of any kind are a great replacement for hamburgers
-vegetable tian (sliced zucchini/tomato/potato slices in a casserole pan
over grilled onions then put grated gruerye cheese over it. Look up the
recipe on Barefoot Contessa)
-

Beans and rice
Quiche
Mustard greens and cornbread
Cheese sandwich with vegetable soup
Pasta with stir-fried vegetables
Breakfast for dinner - a fried egg atop a bowl of cheese grits

enchiladas with beans (various kinds) and cheese and vegetables like peppers/onions and even frozen corn. Meat eaters in the family can add cooked ground turkey or beef, shredded chicken etc. to theirs. When I wrap mine and secure with a toothpick, I stick 2 toothpicks in some to distinguish the vegetarian from the meat ones.

vegetarian chili

quinoa with beans, chickpeas, lentils

lentil soup

spaghetti squash - bake first, strip out the strings, serve like regular spaghetti

omelettes or frittatas (no-crust omelette, baked) with anything you want to get rid of. Frittatas can even use up leftover spaghetti & sauce.

Make your own pizzas - others in the family can add meat including sliced frozen meatballs or pepperoni.

Falafel - you can start with a mix if you want, and add extra ground chickpeas or chickpea flour plus water to stretch the recipe and reduce the salt content. This can be a side dish, or used on top of a salad, or put in a sub roll like a meatball sub with added lettuce, sub-type vegetables, and topped with tahini sauce.

Not sure why you are avoiding soy. It has phenomenal health benefits (including cancer prevention) especially if it's not processed in a way that disposes of the main nutrient. 99% of the people with soy "allergies" are actually reacting to the hexane or alcohol used for processing it, or are missing other nutrients from their diets that allow them to process it. Using whole bean, non-GMO soy is critical for health benefits. There are some huge myths out there on the internet about it being bad for men or a cause of some problems, and they've all be retracted by medical journals and dismissed by scientists. The key peptide in soy is actually the most heavily researched beneficial nutrient - I can give you the links to the Heart Association, Cancer Institute, and PubMed studies.

I love the term "kiddult" too! Perfect!

Quinoa Kale salad:

Mix with your favorite vinaigrette:
1 bunch kale - cut up
1-2 cups cooked salted quinoa
1 cucumber - deseeded and diced
1-2 fresh tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
2 tbs capers
1-2 carrots - diced or shredded w cheese grater

You'll need a lot of vinaigrette as kale and quinoa will soak up a lot. Add salt and pepper to taste. This salad often tastes best after it sets for an hour or so. Keeps well in fridge for a couple of days. Add feta cheese, if you like, in each individual bowl.

Check out the Moosewood cookbooks, especially Moosewood Cooks at Home. Lots of great, easy vegetarian recipes.
And please be sure to avoid meat products as well as meat itself- chicken/beef broth, lard, and gelatin are all non-vegetarian products (but you probably know that :) ).
Food from traditionally vegetarian cultures offers a wide range of options, so I heartily agree with Fanged Bunny!