Cheap vegetarian recipes? Welcome to the world of Veggienomics

Welcome to the world of Veggienomics!

This month, we’re publishing a new kind of vegetarian cookbook from Nicola Graimes. Discover a world of exciting vegetarian recipes that won’t cost the earth. Find ways to cut down on the cost of your weekly shop without compromising on quality, or on taste.

The ‘veggienomics’ principles for cheap, vegetarian cooking

 
Be storecupboard savvy and create exciting dishes from those everyday staples – beans, pulses, rice and pasta.

Homegrow and forage to add fresh, seasonal ingredients or shop seasonally at the local market to create meals that are in time with the seasons, and keep costs down.

Be freezer friendly and buy and cook in bulk so that you always have quick meals to feed the family when time and energy are short.

Love your leftovers by transforming them into delicious new dishes.
 
We are all increasingly aware of the price of food and the environmental cost and inefficiencies of producing meat on a large scale, which is why cooking vegetarian – whether 100 per cent or the occasional meal – makes both economic and environmental sense.

Most of us don’t have much time to spend shopping or cooking on a daily basis, so Veggienomics helps you to plan ahead (making the most of what you’ve got is crucial when you’re on a budget), with advice on shopping, stocking the storecupboard, making the most of your freezer, using up leftovers, menu planning, growing your own fresh produce and even foraging for free.

Not your ordinary salad – Tandoori Halloumi with Coconut and Pineapple

Veggienomics takes a back-to-basics approach to vegetarian cooking, with recipes for making your own stock, spice mix, soft cheese, yogurt, preserves, pickles and syrups, as well as sprouting your own beans. These aren’t just fun and easy to do, but they also make economic sense – these foods can be pricey to buy. Some figures suggest that in the West we throw away as much as a third of the food we buy – which is why it makes sense to make the most of the food we have by using the freezer, and cooking with leftovers (even just a crust of bread, cheese rind or some surplus cooked veg).

Roasted Mushrooms with Couscous Crust

Geared to our busy lives and varying culinary demands, each chapter in the book includes vegetarian recipes and suggestions for snacks, lunches and dinners. There are also suggestions for matching recipes if you are cooking a whole meal. Where a recipe uses a slightly more unusual ingredient, an alternative is given in case you can’t find it. I also like to use the same ingredient in a few recipes so you aren’t left with a bottle of something languishing in the cupboard.
 

Embrace the Veggienomics lifestyle with tips on growing your own fresh produce and foraging. This book isn’t about living off the land a la The Good Life – rather it is intended to give you a taste of what’s feasible from a small plot, or by discovering your local environment. Don’t be a slave to the supermarkets – just following a couple of simple guidelines and you’ll be able to save money and have a closer understanding of nature (as well as having some delicious seasonal ingredients!)

 
So if you want to cut down on the amount of meat you eat on a weekly basis (or even cut it out of your diet altogether), and watch what you spend on your weekly shop, try the inspiring recipes in Veggienomics that won’t cost the earth.
 

Veggienomics by Nicola Graimes is available now with free UK postage

Order the book here