Paper Palate

My family’s not vegetarian. In fact, my husband and daughter are just this side of partaking in the Caveman Diet. I like to incorporate (okay, sneak) as many vegetarian meals as they’ll tolerate into our diets, but since this isn’t my regular mode of cooking, I find myself stumped once I’ve made the cheese enchiladas, veggie lasagna, black bean burgers, and spaghetti with marinara and Parmesan cheese.

In How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food, the 1000-page addition to the New York Times food columnist’s “How to Cook Everything” book series, ignorance is no excuse for not cooking meatless. Far more than just a book of recipes, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian presents kitchen basics all cooks need to know, along with guides to vegetarian meal planning that work for cooks who want to incorporate the occasional vegetarian meal into their rotation, or the new vegetarian cook who’s trying to find a diet that goes beyond frozen faux chicken nuggets and Ding-Dongs. There’s a strong focus on adding protein sources to vegetarian meals without relying on textured vegetable protein. Instead, look for lots of recipes using a huge variety of beans, soybeans, tempeh, grains, eggs, and dairy products. I love this approach, since I’m not a fan of factory-produced anything in my foods, be it soy or meat.

Bittman introduces a lot of ingredients that might not be familiar to non-vegetarians (seitan and tempeh, for example) and explains the scientific and nutritional profiles of unusual ingredients. He also is a master of variety, throwing in sidebars like “11 Great Seasonings for Applesauce,” “6 Simple Additions to Cooked Beans,” “7 Ways to Flavor Fresh Cheese,” and “39 Dishes That Can be Stir-Fried with Asian Noodles.” These asides provide an easy way to mix and match recipes in the book.

The same day I got How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, I acquired a surprisingly large amount of fresh arugula, which seemed like a good starting point. This dish, which comes across as a wonderfully updated version of southern grits and greens, can be used as a one-dish meal, but I used it as a side dish with a roast chicken to appease the Carnivores. Variations of the recipe include a version with escarole instead of arugula, another with white beans, which might go over well with the protein-cravers at my house, and a super-hearty version smothered in tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella.

Grits Gratin with Arugula and Garlic

Makes 4 to 6 servings

From How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food (How to Cook Everything)

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus oil for the pan
• 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 4 cups arugula leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons balsamic or sherry vinegar
• 1 recipe Polenta (page 543), made with grits and molded according to Grilled or Fried Polenta recipe*
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a shallow 2-quart gratin dish or oblong baking pan with a little olive oil.
2. Put 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is soft, plump, and starting to color, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the arugula. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss gently once or twice, and spread the leaves onto the bottom of the prepared dish. Drizzle with the vinegar.
3. Turn the grits out of the pan and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices; sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Carefully spread them out on top of the arugula, overlapping them a little if necessary. Drizzle with the remaining oil and sprinkle with the cheese. Bake until the topping is golden and bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve, topped with lots of black pepper.

*Polenta, made with grits and molded

4 servings

• 1/2 cup milk, preferably whole
• Salt
• 1 cup stone-ground grits
• Freshly ground course black pepper

1. Combine the milk with two cups of water and a large pinch of salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring just about to a boil, then add the grits in a steady stream, whisking all the while to prevent lumps from forming. Turn the heat down to low and simmer, whisking frequently, until thick, 10 or 15 minutes, to a consistency approaching thick oatmeal. Season with black pepper.
2. Pour the cooked grits out onto a board or into a loaf pan. (I used a shallow oval plate.)
3. Let cool for at least 10 minutes (it can really sit there all day), then cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices.