12 Quick, Easy Recipes for Delicious, Healthful Vegetable Dishes

Asparagus

• Pour olive oil on a large plate and roll the asparagus in the oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Grill the asparagus until slightly blackened. Turn once. (Note that on an outdoor grill the oil may cause a flare up, so keep an eye on it; if you have a gas grill you can turn the flame lower.)
• A simple alternative is to boil or steam asparagus just until they lose their crunch. Then drizzle some balsamic vinegar and olive oil over them. Add salt and grind pepper to taste.
• Another way to enjoy cooked asparagus is to wrap in prosciutto. Yum!
• Asparagus is also a welcome addition to a veggie dip platter. Buy the thin ones and cut off the ends and blanch them. Run under cold water afterwards to discontinue the cooking. My kids always loved to come home to veggies and dip. (see below for simple dip recipe)

TIP: As I wrote in my article Stock Your Kitchen to Reduce and Maintain Your Waistline, after you cut the stems of the asparagus in preparation for cooking, you can further cut the stems into little circles and they will cook up nicely, without the crunch.

Brussels Sprouts

• The article I mentioned above has a great recipe for caramelized Brussels sprouts. Here's another easy way to enjoy them:
• Wash and cut of ends of the Brussels sprouts, then blanch in boiling water for 5 minutes. Saute for another few minutes in heated olive oil. When done to your satisfaction, toss in the pan with balsamic vinegar and enjoy!

Broccoli

• An easy way to make broccoli soup is to cook the broccoli until soft then mix it in a blender with vegetable broth. Allow approximately 2 cups of broth for each head of broccoli. Serve with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt and that's it!
• My Italian neighbor showed me a one-dish meal of broccoli and pasta. Cook in a large pot of boiling water: 2 heads of broccoli, a box of rigatoni and 3 chopped garlic cloves. Pasta and broccoli should be ready at the same time. Drain and serve with olive oil or marinara and grated Parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste.

Green Beans

• Steam green beans until just soft and bright green. Meanwhile, saute a generous portion of sliced almonds in a pan coated with olive oil until the almonds are brown. Toss green beans in bowl with the almonds.

Root Vegetables

• Cut into ½-inch cubes equal amounts of any or all of the following: sweet potatoes, russet potatoes, parsnips, carrots, turnips, onions. Parboil all but the onions, which you caramelize in olive oil. Toss the parboiled vegetables in olive oil to get them nicely coated. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the onions. Roast for around a half hour in a heavy baking pan at 425 degrees, stirring occasionally until brown and tender.

Glazed Onions

• Glazed onions are great with meats, veggies or on pastry puffs. Cooks.com has a recipe using pearl onions, butter and sugar. I suggest also experimenting with olive oil and other types of onions.

Roasted Peppers

• Cut wide lengthwise strips of peppers, coat in olive oil and roast in a 450 oven for 20 minutes or thirty minutes, turning once. To hasten the blackening, you can turn on the broiler for a few seconds near the end, but be there to watch. Whenever I double task, I burn something.
• Serve plain or with goat cheese.

Simple Veggie Dip

• Mix one packet of Knorr's Vegetable Recipe Mix with 16 to 24 ounces of sour cream, plain yogurt or a combination. You can also substitute ½ cup of mayonnaise. Let the flavors blend in the fridge for a couple of hours or serve it right away, as I often do.

Vegetable Main Course

• Check out my recipe for lecho in my article "Easy, Warm Comfort Food Recipes for Chilly Nights," a Hungarian soupy dish made with peppers, tomatoes and onions, served with crusty bread and sausage.

I'd love to learn some of your favorite veggie recipes!

Check out some of my vegetarian* and other recipes:

FOUR 4-INGREDIENT ENTREES . . . QUICK, EASY, DELICIOUS & HEALTHFUL

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FUN, EASY, HEALTHFUL ENTERTAINING . . . WHEN GUESTS ARRIVE, PREPARATION BEGINS (Vegetarian)*

CREATE THIS FABULOUS FAMILY COOKBOOK & ENJOY THESE SIMPLE RECIPES

A QUICK, EASY, DELICIOUS, ONE-DISH, LOW-CAL MEAL WITH COUNTLESS VARIATIONS (Vegetarian)*

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE JEWISH TO MAKE GREAT CHICKEN SOUP

EASY, ECONOMICAL, CROWD-PLEASING PASTA (Vegetarian)*