Inspiration for vegetarian recipes needed please!

[CocktailQueen]

DD (13) is vegetarian. Have used up all my veggie ideas and looking for new inspiration! I cook vegetarian meals for everyone most nights, but ideas for some that can I can make half veggie but add meat to the other half would be good too.

She doesn't like aubergines, leeks, goat's cheese...

Ahem. The 13 year old in question should be doing this research, and indeed doing the cooking a lot of the time.

Does she like quorn?

Ha ha, cexu, that is exactly what i told her when she wanted to become vegetarian.

She does do some, and she does cook for herself sometimes, but I wanted to help her and support her in this, and I'd also rather she concentrated on working at school at the moment and cooked at weekends, not cooking every eve.

No - prefer not to use quorn. It's a synthetic mould!

Prefer to stick to unprocessed foods where possible.

We are vegetarian and we have concluded that Indian is the best way forward. Youtube for Indian vegetarian and the variety is mind boggling. We never have to repeat dishes for at least 10 days.

Quorn is Horrible horrible thing.

Thanks, prisoners - have googled. Some great ideas there!

What about stir fries with loads of veg and noodles or rice, you can cook meat separately and add later for the carnivores.

Roast veg hot pot type meals with the meat in a separate tray?
Soups, curries, salads.
I quite like shoving a variety of veg/cheese/meat/salad on the table and we create our own meal. Saves waste and everyone can choose what they put in their wrap/ on their plate.

That's alright then. When I went veggie at a similar age my mum agreed to cook one family meal a week that was all veggie for everyone, and two a week which I could adapt a portion of to be veggie, and the other 4 days would be up to me. I made big batches of things at the weekend so that I didn't have to cook for myself of a school night. It was OK.

Chilli con&non Carne works well for being adapted (and gets more veg into the diets of the meat eaters too). Fry up chopped onion, grated carrot, grated courgette (two of each of these if cooking for a family) with crushed garlic. When starting to caramelise add seasoning: coriander leaf, smoked paprika, chilli powder, generous spoon of cocoa powder. Sauté in the spices for a bit then add tinned tomatoes, black beans and kidney beans. Let that simmer for a bit and meanwhile in a separate pan brown some beef mince for the con carne version. When the mince is browned add in the veg&bean mix, keeping back enough for the veggie version. For the veggie version add in 100g (ready-to-eat weight not dry weight) per person of either black beluga lentils or puy lentils (merchant gourmet do good ready-to eat sachets, or you can buy tins, much easier than soaking from dry!). In both versions the mix should be simmered for a bit to let the flavours percolate, adding a little water if necessary and a slosh of olive oil for roundness of flavour. Serve with rice or jacket potatoes or in taco shells

Ooh, cexu, your mum is more hardline than I am :) Thanks for the suggestions. Added to list!

And are you still vegetarian?

Thanks, Wow - I do a lot of snacky type teas where people can choose their own sandwich/wrap/taco fillings :)

Pasta with anchovies and capers
Moroccan-chickpea cakes
Falafels and Pittas
Italian bean casserole
Lentil and spinach dahl
North African chickpea stew
Pinto bean chilli

Plus, stuffed peppers/mushrooms
Spicy bean and cheese Quesadilla
Falafels and Pittas
Gnocchi with tomato and spinach sauce
Macoroni cheese
Roasted med veg with mozerella puff pastry tart
Broccoli and Stilton quiche
Halloumi and garlic mushroom skewers

Oh, thank you Monday! A great selection

and are you still vegetarian

Yes but more through habit than conviction now so I cheat a bit on things like cheese that was made with rennet. And a "don't ask don't tell" attitude to the possibility of gelatine in the chocolate desert at a restaurant.

How about doing:

Vegi stir fry but in a separate pan (or oven bake) cook the meat/fish component (this would also work in Thai, Malay, Vietnamese food).

Make a vegi curry and then bake tandoori chicken in the oven

Make a lentil and spinach ragu sauce, split into two and add cooked mince meat into one.