5 Ingredients or Fewer

Mashed potatoes are generally comforting, but this version gives your taste buds a wake-up call. Serve with Sautéed Tempeh Cutlets (page 146) and a tossed salad.

This tasty Irish classic features potatoes and cabbage browned in a skillet and is embellished with lots of scallions. For a simply delicious meal, serve this with veggie burgers and a tossed salad.

Simplicity is at its best in this hearty egg dish. It’s perfect for a cold-weather brunch (see the menu) or as a light dinner dish, served with fresh bread, salad, and orange sections.

This is a perfect accompaniment to Shake-and-Bake Tofu (page 138), since they both bake at 425°. This needs more time in the oven, so start it first. Complete the meal with a simple salad or coleslaw.

A basic tossed salad is transformed into a crunchy sandwich by wrapping it up. This makes a great side dish for grain, bean, pasta, and soy entrées.

Here’s a deceptively rich-tasting version of scalloped potatoes. It gives you the benefits of soy, minus the bother of making a flour-thickened white sauce.

Here’s a superb use for leftovers of Instant Tofu and Mixed Vegetable Stir-Fry. Or do it the other way around: Make the stir-fry especially for these wraps and serve the remainder over rice or noodles the next day.

If you like leeks, you’re sure to enjoy this dressed-up version of hash browns. Use firm-textured potatoes, such as red-skinned or Yukon gold, rather than mealy ones, for best results. Serve with sautéed soy “sausage,” allowing 2 links per serving, and a salad of mixed baby greens with tomatoes and carrots.

Here’s an enjoyable way to serve a modified version of eggplant Parmigiana that’s lighter than the more customary eggplant hero sandwich.

Soft goat cheese is a splendid spread for wraps, with a special affinity for red peppers.

Look for tomatillo salsa shelved near the standard tomato-based salsas. It’s a nice change of pace for serving with tortilla specialties.

Refried beans to the rescue once again—this time in a room-temperature wrap that’s a delight to serve to lunchtime company or pack into a brown-bag lunch or picnic.

Spinach and mushrooms are nicely flavored with sharp cheddar in these delectable wraps.

A lighter tortilla dish, this is good served with a hearty grain pilaf or a bean dish.

I opted to make these only as soft tacos, as the filling is a bit too sensuous (a polite word for “messy”) for quesadillas. This is definitely a knife-and-fork dish.

The combination of sweet potatoes, chilies, and cheese is downright sensuous. Serve with Summer Squash and Corn Sauté (page 209) and a simple tossed salad.

This would be an ideal meal to make of leftover mashed potatoes, but that’s one leftover I rarely seem to have on hand. If you find yourself with some, these tasty burritos can be made in a flash. Serve with Beer-Stewed Pinto Beans (page 116) and a bountiful salad.

Here are those handy refried beans again, in a different guise. They help hold this tortilla specialty together.

In another super-easy, nearly instant tortilla recipe, chewy baked tofu stands in for chicken. You may not find this wonderful product in the supermarket; look for it in natural foods stores.

I always keep a can or two of refried beans in the pantry and flour tortillas in the freezer for those nights when I am on the verge of reaching for a take-out menu. Even if you are bone-weary by dinnertime, these two ingredients are the ticket to nearly effortless yet highly satisfying meals such as this one and the following burritos.