Simmer onion and green pepper in 1/2 cup water for 10 minutes. Drain off water, then add tomato and pineapple, follow by the baked almonds and sauce. Cook for 5 minutes and serve over generous portions of brown rice. Serves 6.

The McDougall Plan, John A. McDougall, MD, and Mary A. McDougall, L.P.M., (Piscataway, NJ: New Century Publishers, 1983).

Red Beans and Rice

1 pound red beans
1 large yellow onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 or 2 large bay leaves
Black pepper, salt, and Tabasco to taste

Rinse and sort the beans. Soak them overnight in 8 to 10 cups of cold water—do not change the water. Bring the water to a soft boil. As the water heats, mince the garlic and chop the celery, and then sauté them. Add all with parsley (chopped), onion, bay leaves, and seasonings to beans. Cover and boil gently, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 hours. It will thicken as the water reduces. The last hour or so, you may wish to remove the lid. Serve over rice.

T. Carter Ross, "Creole Cooking with a Healthy Twist," Good Medicine, Spring 1993.

Tomato and Lentil Soup

1 large onion
2 15 ounce cans tomatoes or equivalent fresh ones, skinned
4 ounces red lentils
1 3/4 cup vegetable stock
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
Fresh basil leaves

Peel and finely chop the onion. Simmer the onion until just softened in a little water. Add the tomatoes and break them up slightly. Rinse the lentils, drain and add to the tomatoes.

Stir in the stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes until the lentils are tender. Remove from the heat, tear the basil leaves into small pieces and add to the soup. Blend until smooth. Return to the pan and heat through for a few minutes. Serve garnished with basil leaves, with fresh bread. Makes 4 1/2 cups.

Vegan Varieties, Sheffield Vegan Society, (Sheffield, UK; Sheffield Vegan Society, nd).

Moussaka

2 pounds eggplant
Filling:
2 cups TVP granules
2 onions
1 vegetable stock cube
1 15-ounce can peeled tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt and pepper
Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup flour
2 cups water

Soak the TVP with enough water to cover it for a couple of hours. Prepare the filling. Put TVP, tomatoes, onions, tomato paste, vegetable stock, salt and pepper, and oil in a saucepan, and cook for about 15 to 20minutes. If necessary, add some water. Normally it is not needed as the soaked TVP and the tomatoes have enough juice. If the TVP is cooked and has not absorbed all the water, strain it. (You can save the liquid and substitute for water in the sauce.)

While the filling is cooking, prepare the eggplants. Wash them and cut them into slices about 1/2-inch thick. Cook them in the oven (low heat) until very soft.

Prepare the sauce. In a small saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the flour. Add the water or juice from filling. Stir constantly over low heat until the sauce thickens. The sauce should be creamy but not lumpy.

In a large oven proof dish arrange half of the cooked egg-plants and cover them with half the filling. Add another layer of eggplants end the rest of the filling. At the end, pour the sauce evenly and cook in the oven at 425°F for about 1 hour or until the sauce is brown.