Flexible Recipes

The recipes on this page are flexible as to ingredients and/or amounts. This is a good place to get ideas when you have nothing in the house to eat, or you forget a vital ingredient for a less flexible recipe, or when you just feel like being creative.

Bean Burritos
You can either make these burritos yourself or put the ingredients on the table and let everyone build their own.

Béchamel Sauce
This simple white sauce can be used plain, or as the base for herbs, cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, nuts, or other additions. It can easily be made vegan using the alternate ingredients listed.

Berry Cobbler
This is one of my favorite desserts of all time. It's also lovely with a cup of tea for breakfast or a mid-afternoon snack. You can use many different kinds of berries or even other fruits.

Berry Sauce
This sweet-tart sauce is wonderful on pancakes, French toast, and ice cream.

Berry Shake
A small serving of this fresh berry shake is delightful after a filling lunch.

Borscht
Beet borscht is a traditional cold vegetarian soup common in Russian, Ukrainian, and Jewish cooking.

Breakfast Burrito
There's no set recipe for breakfast burritos - you can stuff them with pretty much anything you like. This recipe is for a basic breakfast burrito that you can customize to suit your own tastes.

Buttermilk Coffee Cake
Recipe for a sweet and simple coffee cake with fruit and nuts.

Calzone
A calzone is a turnover or pocket made with pizza dough and filled with veggies, cheese, and pretty much anything else you put on pizza.

Chili
Here's a very easy vegetarian chili recipe - just open some cans, chop a few veggies, and leave it on the stove for a couple of hours.

Christmas Salad
This red, white, and green salad will help spread Christmas cheer.

Cole Slaw
Cole slaw, a perfect summer picnic salad, is traditionally made with mayonnaise. This cole slaw recipe includes several dressing variations.

Crêpes
Crêpes are thin pancakes that can be wrapped around just about anything to turn it into an elegant meal, or just folded and topped with something yummy. Try some of these fillings and toppings, or experiment to invent your own.

Crudités
A platter of crudités typically consists one or more types of raw vegetables served with one or more dips. These can be served as an appetizer, at a buffet, in place of a salad - the sky is the limit. Here are some ideas for interesting crudité platters.

Cucumber Salad
Simple and refreshing, cucumber salad is the epitome of summer. Different herbs can make it seem like a completely different salad, so don't be scared to experiment.

Flaxseed Recipes
Flaxseed is an excellent source of vegetarian nutrition - here are some easy and delicious ways to incorporate it into your diet.

Fresh Pea Soup
Use up the last of summer's fresh peas for this simple soup.

Fried Rice
Fried rice is an easy, versatile, and quick vegetarian recipe. In fact, the hardest part is remembering to make the rice at least several hours beforehand, so that it has time to chill.

Fruit Salad
There's nothing like a bowl of fresh, sweet fruit salad in the summer. No one really needs a recipe for fruit salad, but here are some ideas to get you started.

Gazpacho
This cold, raw soup is full of flavor.

Granola
This crunchy granola has enough protein and fiber to get you through the whole day!

Gravy
This simple, nut-based gravy recipe will satisfy your cravings at Thanksgiving or any other time of year.

Herb Dip
OK, so it's very fattening, but it's also very tasty. It's ok to treat yourself once in a while!

Hummus - Chick Pea Dip
An Eastern Mediterranean dip, very common in Greece and Lebanon as well as a number of other countries. A heavenly blend of chick peas, garlic...

Israeli Salad
A mixture of finely diced vegetables served with a tart dressing.

Kiss the Cook Tomato Sauce
This easy tomato sauce is great over vegetables, pasta, or pizza.

Lassi
Lassi is a sweet Indian drink made from yogurt - it's perfect for cooling your mouth while eating spicy food.

Maki Rolls
Maki rolls are a vegetarian relative of sushi. This recipe calls for cucumber and avocado, but you can experiment with other ingredients as well.

Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are the ultimate comfort food. They're quick and easy and the soft texture makes me feel like a kid. They're also a great base for all kinds of variations like vegan mashed potatoes and garlic mashed potatoes.

Mashed Potato Variations
As good as simple, plain mashed potatoes are, certain additions can make them even better. Here are some mashed potato variations - start with my mashed potato recipe and then add/substitute additional ingredients as below.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Looking for a tasty alternative to regular mashed potatoes? Try mashed sweet potatoes (aka yams).

Minestrone Soup
This classic Italian soup is always vegan, as long as you leave off the parmesan cheese.

Mixed Salad
There are probably millions of salad possibilities, even for what you might think of as a simple mixed salad. Here are some typical ingredients and a few popular variations.

Mock Beef Stroganoff
I just love this pasta dish: a creamy sauce with mushrooms and chunks of mock meat.

Mulled Wine
Warm, spicy mulled wine is a wonderful winter drink.

Omelette
Omelettes (or omelets) are quick, easy, and very versatile. They're great at any time of the day, especially breakfast or brunch. Following these instructions to the letter will leave you with a very light, fluffy omelette that will melt in your mouth.

Orange Salad
Both versions of this easy-to-prepare salad are wonderfully refreshing in the summertime.

Orange Sorbet
Light, refreshing, and 100% vegan. Can be made with lemons or berries too.

Paella
A Spanish dish traditionally made with meat and shellfish. This flexible veggie version is simpler, but no less delicious.

Pancakes + Waffles
Pancakes and waffles are, for me, the ideal breakfast. They're quick and easy, and customizable to everyone's individual taste. Also see my pages on pancake/waffle mix and pancake/waffle ideas.

Panzanella
Panzanella is a bread and vegetable salad from Tuscany. It's a pretty flexible recipe, as long as you have the two most important ingredients: very ripe tomatoes and day-old, good country bread.

Peanut Sauce
This peanut sauce recipe is quick, simple, and unbelievably delicious.

Pissaladière
Pissaladière is an onion pizza or onion tart from Provence. Traditionally made with anchovies, this vegetarian pissaladière is spiced up with tapenade instead.

Pizza
Making homemade pizza is one of the best and most creative ways of proving that meat is not a necessary part of a human's diet. Also see my pages on pizza dough and toppings.

Pot Pie
This pot pie recipe is better than the TV dinner version for two reasons: it's vegetarian and it's prepared and baked, rather than frozen and microwaved. It's also quick and flexible, so give it a try.

Primavera Sauce
Pasta Primavera is the perfect springtime dish, filled with fresh vegetables.

Quesadillas
Quesadillas - toasted tortillas filled with melted cheese - are quick, easy, and a favorite of kids.

Quinoa
Quinoa, a seed that is used like a grain, is a complete protein, has more calcium than milk, and is both delicious and easy to prepare.

Quinoa Salad
Quinoa is quick and easy to prepare, and it adds a subtle but wonderful flavor to vegetables.

Ratatouille
The perfect recipe to enjoy fresh summer vegetables and herbs; it can be served half a dozen different ways.

Rice Pudding
Sweet and rich, this easy rice pudding recipe can be made with white or brown rice, whether dry or leftover from dinner.

Rice Salad
This is a very simple but lovely dish. Kids will especially like making their own salad by picking their favorite items.

Roasted Vegetables
Roasting vegetables brings out all kinds of flavor and depth. This recipe is just a guide - feel free to add/subtract/subsitute any of the vegetables.

Scrambled Tofu
Although scrambled tofu doesn't taste quite like scrambled eggs, it's easy to make and can take any of the additions and toppings you'd would put in an omelette.

Shepherd's Pie
This vegetarian shepherd's pie recipe is a simple yet delicious lambless version of the real thing.

Slushy
Summer is a perfect time for you to make your own slushies - you know, those icy drinks that make you feel like you're drinking flavored snow.

Sparkling Juice
When you feel like having something a little more special than plain old juice, try this sparkling juice recipe.

Smoothie
Cool and refreshing, smoothies are a delicious and nutritious way to quench your thirst and even satisfy a minor hunger.

Stir-Fry
If you're looking for an easy way to make up a healthy meal out of leftover vegetables, a vegetarian stir-fry is the way to go.

Stuffed Peppers
Serve these bell peppers stuffed with tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and couscous alongside green salad for a simple, filling meal.

Tostadas
Tostadas are kind of like the Mexican equivalent of pizza, with beans, cheese, and guacamole piled on top of a tortilla crust.

Vegetable Curry
Curry is one of those dishes that can be made with just about any combination of vegetables - use this vegetable curry recipe as a guide.

Vegetable Gratin
I don't know anyone who doesn't love gratins - there's something about the cheese/bread crumb layer on top that appeals to just about everyone. If this sounds like you, try this tasty way to use up some leftover vegetables.

Vegetable Salad
This salad is colorful, tasty, and a good way to use up some leftover vegetables.

Vegetable Soup
Vegetable soup is one of those things that don't really need a recipe - you can customize the ingredients to your heart's content. This recipe is really just a set of guidelines to give you some ideas about what to include.

Vegetable Stock
Vegetable stock can be used to replace the meat stock or water in just about any recipe. It adds a hint of flavor and extra nutrition to soups, risotto, and more.

Vegetarian Antipasto
Antipasto, which means "before food" in Italian, is a salad-like appetizer consisting of various fresh and pickled vegetables, cheeses, and rolled or sliced meats. For vegetarian antipasto, you can either subsitute mock meat products or leave them out altogether.

Veggie Sandwich
Whether you're on the run or just don't feel like cooking something, a vegetarian sandwich is just the thing: quick, easy, and as healthy as you care to make it.

Vinaigrette
This classic dressing is great on just about any kind of salad.

If you have a favorite recipe that you would like to share please do so on the forum!

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