Cookbook Helps Busy Students, Vegetarians

In her new cookbook, “Student’s Vegetarian Cookbook” (Prima Publishing), Carole Raymond provides her Top 10 List of “no time to cook” meals for busy college students:

Spaghetti: Boil a pot of noodles. Open a jar of pasta sauce. Heat the pasta sauce in a saucepan with a handful of frozen mixed vegetables. Pour the pasta sauce over the noodles and serve.

Vegetarian soup: Use frozen peas and leftover cooked pasta or rice to turn a paper cup of packaged soup into a hearty meal.

Salad: Pre-washed greens and bottled dressing are a quick salad fix.

Chili: Open a can of vegetarian chili; add frozen corn. Heat and serve, sprinkled with fresh cilantro.

Tacos: Warm a tortilla on a heated, dry skillet. Add canned vegetarian refried beans, lettuce, tomato and salsa. Fold and eat.

Pizza: Spread a ready-made frozen pizza crust with canned pizza sauce. Top the sauce with a jar of marinated artichoke hearts, thin onion slices, olives and bell pepper rings. Scatter feta and mozzarella cheeses on top; bake according to pizza crust directions.

Barbecued potato “taco”: Cut 2 red potatoes into -inch cubes. Put them into a microwave-safe dish with 1 tablespoon water. Cover. Cook on high (100 percent power) in a microwave oven for about 6 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Remove the lid; spoon on several tablespoons of prepared barbecue or pasta sauce. Cover, cook on high for 30 seconds. Remove from oven, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Baked potato: Turn a baked potato into a “taco” by topping it with canned beans, salsa and grated cheese.

Rice pilaf: Open a jar of salad dressing and drizzle it over cooked rice sprinkled with seasoned tofu.

Burgers: Buy a box of frozen veggie burgers. Layer a bun with fresh tomatoes, lettuce and sliced onions. Add your favorite condiments and enjoy a virtual burger instead of a hamburger.