rivenwanderer: (Default)
rivenwanderer ([personal profile] rivenwanderer) wrote in [community profile] omnomnom2010-10-19 07:48 pm

Help me broaden my cooking horizons!

My housemate and I work together to make dinner for the whole house (6 people) once a week. We have a farm share at my house, so on Monday (the day before we cook), we look in the fridge and see what veggies are around, and decide what to make.

So far, we've come up with a few basic staples. These are:
-quiche
-lasagna
-pasta with sautéed vegetables and cheese
-stir-fry with tofu and noodles
-soup
-quesadillas with sautéed vegetables

Since we only cook once a week, it's not too bad to have a limited range of things, and we're getting pretty efficient with them (which is good, since it means I don't have to leave work as early). But I'd like a little more variety, so: what are some other good dishes that can be adapted for whatever vegetables one happens to have around?

Oh, also--this is a vegetarian kitchen, so no meat!
amalnahurriyeh: XF: Monica Reyes, looking surprised (as always). (reyes)

[personal profile] amalnahurriyeh 2010-10-20 03:48 am (UTC)(link)
So I pretty much make rice and beans twice a week, and then probably eat microwaved leftovers for lunch another two days a week. My MO is pretty simple but variable: cumin, garlic, chili powder in olive oil, then add cooked beans, then add frozen green beans, salt if the beans aren't salted, then add cooked rice, then eat. Lots of possible variations: tomatoes in with the seasonings at the beginning, kale or any other green in there, another veg for the green beans (they are my wife's favorite so we always have them in the house), etc, etc. And you can vary up the spicing as you like--I also make a version with celery seed and thyme and sage instead, and it is delicious also.

My go-to lunch at the moment is lentils with "what's in the fridge," wherein I sautee vegetables in olive oil, most importantly onion or another allium, until carmelized, and then dump in cooked lentils, and then deglaze the hot pan with balsamic vinegar, and maybe add some cheese if I have it. I'm certain there's a way to regularize that into something for a family meal; cool it and serve it over salad greens, maybe?