Vegetable Stock

This is a basic staple in most vegetarian dishes, and is SO easy to make. It works much better than cubed bullion.

Ingredients

1 large bag of baby carrots (about 4 cups)
2 stalks of celery,chopped (that's stalks, not ribs. basically, use one standard bag of celery)
1-2 yellow onions, diced.
water

Directions

Add the vegetables to a large stock pot and fill 3/4 full with water. Boil until stock reaches a rich green-yellow tint - until water is reduced by about 1/2. Remove vegetables and store stock. It will refrigerate for about a week or freeze for months.

You can throw in any other veggies you have lying around and they'll add more flavor. I particularly like stems from asparagus and broccoli. I also find my favorite way to cook this is in a pot with a pasta insert. The veggies go in there and I can just pull out the pasta strainer when they're done.

I also do not salt my stock because I prefer to salt the dishes in which I use it. You can, of course, salt to taste.

Vegetarian Paella

This traditional Spanish rice dish is easy if you don't mind chopping vegetables, and tastes fantastic. I listed my favorite vegetables here, but the point of paella is that it is flexible. You can put in basically anything you want and it will work.

Ingredients

2 T olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, diced
5 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 red pepper, chopped
2 c. brown rice (uncooked)
4 c. vegetable stock
1/2 c. dry white wine
1 c. fresh green beans
1 c. peas (fresh or frozen)
1 c. corn (fresh, canned, or frozen)
1 c. chopped vegetarian sausage (Boca Italian Sausages actually work really well in this recipe - I would use 4 of them)
2 cups tomatoes (fresh, peeled Roma tomatoes or canned tomatoes drained of juice)
2 t. paprika
1 t. saffron (saffron adds the distinctive paella taste, but is expensive. tarragon works as a substitute, but be careful about how much you use so it doesn't overwhelm the dish)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In paella pan or large skillet, heat the oil and saute the onions, garlic, and pepper until the onions are translucent. Add the rice and mix with the vegetables. Add wine, and stir. After about 20 seconds, add 1 cup of stock. Simmer on medium heat until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Add the rest of the ingredients, stir well to mix, cover, and cook on medium heat for 30-40 minutes.

Serves 4-5 as a large, single dish meal.