15-Minute Vegetarian Meals

When you are looking for a quick meal, flat bread is perfect. You can find it in supermarkets and restaurants where it's used to make sandwiches. You can put anything on a flat bread including sauteed greens, canned or cooked dried beans, cheese or grains. Then bake it. One of my favorites is Indian naan bread, which I often see in plain, whole-wheat and flavored varieties including garlic and cilantro.

Another way to speed meal preparation is with pre-mixed, pre-washed salad greens including arugula and baby spinach. They even come in kits that include dressing and croutons.

But now there are also cut-and-washed cooking greens such as kale, collards and chard that can be tossed in a pan with aromatics such as ginger root and garlic. They are wonderful. You can also get mixed bags of cut turnips packed with collard greens.

Now put those flat breads and greens together in my recipe for Flat Bread With Sauteed Greens. Or try my other quick favorites:

Flat Bread With Sauteed Greens:
Place 1 flat bread of choice per person on a piece of aluminum foil or on a baking pan. (I like to use a perforated pizza pan for this.)
In a skillet over medium heat, heat a little olive oil.
Add 1 cup cut greens per person with minced ginger root and garlic, to taste.
You also can add 1-inch cubes of firm or extra-firm tofu, if you wish.
Saute about 5 minutes until greens are tender.
Season with salt and dried red pepper flakes, to taste.

After draining the cooked greens of excess pan juices, pile them on flat breads and top with low-fat shredded cheese, if you didn't add tofu. Bake in a 375-degree oven 10 minutes.

Black Bean and Cheese Quesadillas:
I can eat these every night. Use cans of pre-seasoned black beans or vegetarian refried beans made without lard. Spread them on flour tortillas and top with shredded low-fat cheese. If I have the time, I quickly saute strips of colorful bell peppers with sliced jalapenos to top the cheese before folding the tortillas in half over the fillings.

Place on a baking pan in a 375-degree oven until heated through or place in a grill pan or saute pan sprayed with oil and placed over medium heat to cook on both sides until the fillings are heated through and the cheese is melted.

Sesame-Seared Tofu and Edamame: Here's your chance to try gomasio seasoning. I use it to flavor the tofu in this saute. It's a condiment made from toasted unhulled tan or black sesame seeds mixed with salt. The mixture might also include bits of dried seaweed, chili peppers, lemon peel and other spices. It is available in natural food markets and gourmet stores. If you can't find it, you can substitute white sesame seeds.