Who really wants to cook when it’s hot and humid outside? Not me! When the dog days of Summer roll around all I want are quick & easy meals I can make in a snap. So here are few of my favorites – three delicious vegetarian meals to make in under 10 minutes! I love making hearty cool salads and pastas but let’s face it, those can get boring and repetitive. We can all boil pasta and add marinara sauce but using interesting simmering sauces and spices can make a meal much more memorable.
Vegetarian Meal: Spicy Chipotle Kale Salad
Kale is one of my favorite greens. I especially love it in soups or sauteed in garlic in the cooler months but during Summer, I want a hearty, crunchy and filling salad. I made this spicy chipotle kale salad with one of my new favorite garnishing sauces by Terrapin Ridge Farms. Their spicy chipotle sauce is tangy, mildly spicy and delicious drizzled on eggs, over avocado toast, tacos, protein of choice and this salad. The flavor isn’t quite as smokey or spicy as you’d expect from a chipotle pepper but the garlic and mustard come through nicely. It’s a quick vegetarian meal you can throw together in under 10 minutes – with chopping takes the most time. Here’s what I did:
- In a small bowl, add 1/4 cup of the Spicy Chipotle sauce, 1 tbsp of olive oil, 1-2 tbsp of white vinegar to taste and stir briskly. This will help thin out the sauce and give it more of a punch.
- In a bowl, add chopped kale, chopped mixed nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios & peanuts), sliced red onions, dried cranberries, croutons, drizzle with dressing and a squeeze of lime.
- Make it a Meal – add a diced Hass avocado
Vegetarian Meal: Vindaloo Peas & Parathas
I’ve been using Patak’s simmering sauces and pastes for years. The brand has a broad variety of products and sauces such as masalas, chutneys and vindaloos with varying heat levels. I grew up living near Indian communities throughout New Jersey and loved having easily accessible Indian restaurants and food markets. It was great that I could try and learn about different products but I always kept going back for Patak’s. They’re great for making flavorful one pot dishes that are satisfying and quick like these Vindaloo peas. All you have to do is heat and serve with a side of rice or paratha (layered dough flatbread), naan, (leavened oven-baked bread) or rice.
I do have to say that I was disappointed with the heat level on this one. The flavors are amazing but “extra hot” text on the label may be a typo. I’ve had vindaloo at Indian restaurants in the past that made my scalp sweat but this hardly had any heat – maybe a 1 or 2 out of 5. I of course, had to add my own chile peppers for extra spice. Here’s what I did:
- Simmer a can of pigeon peas with about half the jar of Vindaloo Simmering Sauce, about 6 ounces, for 4 minutes. This will also be great with chickpeas if you want to substitute for the peas.
- For the parathas, I grabbed Mirch Masala frozen parathas. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a fry pan and heat up parathas as directed on package.
- Want it extra spicy? Add in chopped pepper of choice while peas are cooking.
- Make it a Meal – have it with a side of salad or roasted vegetables
I get my favorite paratha from the frozen food section at my local Indian market. I’m no expert on parathas but they’re like a savory, lightly layered crepes made from wheat flour. They’re great for dipping into sauces and sopping up all the vindaloo peas. Do not worry if you can’t find parathas in your area, you can check online or substitute with flour tortillas, or naan bread.
Vegetarian Meal: Buffalo Cauliflower Bites
These Buffalo Cauliflower bites may not be a meal on it’s own but may be if you eat enough! I’ve eaten plenty of buffalo hot wings with a side of carrots, beer and called it a night – that may work here too. The carrot sticks & celery will help cool off the heat as well. I was surprised by how good these turned out. I’ve been giving up meat and just thought these wouldn’t stack up to my longtime bar favorites but I was pleasantly surprised. The key here is to get a great sauce and this hot wing sauce from Rippin Red is just the thing.
I picked up Rippin’ Red Custom Crafted Wing sauce at a hot sauce festival a year or two ago. It was still sealed and unopened, which is what usually happens as I try to get through the dozens of bottles of hot sauce I have. No, I’m not a collector but getting through all of them takes a while! 🙂 It’s just a little obsession I have. I was a bit worried about the shelf life because this wing sauce doesn’t have any preservatives. All I kept thinking was lord, please don’t let me die! ha! I’m sure the vinegar preserves it naturally because the flavor was still fresh and all was good in my world.
This sauce has a good amount of heat and dose of Parmesan cheese for a very unique, cheesy, spicy and tangy flavor. Made with minimal ingredients like cayenne peppers, habanero powder and vinegar, it’s well balanced and doesn’t have that strong vinegar taste which lets the peppers shine. On a scale of 1 to 5 on heat, it’s around a 3.5 and perfect for gobbling up these cauliflower bites. Here’s what I did:
- Wash and cut the cauliflower into florets. Pat dry with a towel
- In a bowl, season a cup of flour with an Adobo seasoning or create your own seasoning. Stir with a fork.
- Dredge cauliflower in the flour, toss around and make sure florets are covered well.
- On Medium heat, melt 4-6 tbsp of butter in saute pan and brown the cauliflower. Make sure to turn cauliflower so they’re browned on all sides, about 5 minutes.
- Pour in half bottle of Rippin’ Reds Wing sauce, stir and cover. Simmer for 4 minutes until cauliflower is tender, remove from heat and serve.
- Make it a Meal – serve with carrot sticks or celery or top a bowl of rice.
So here you have three delicious vegetarian options you can make this Summer. Spicy, simple, healthy and you’ll have more time enjoying the things you really love this Summer! Which of these will you make?
