Over my time as a post-secondary student living away from home, I have had to learn many essential life skills, and the greatest of these skills has definitely been cooking. Living in a suite-style residence during my first year of university, I was forced to learn how to cook for myself from the get go. At that point I was definitely not creating any culinary masterpieces, and was quite honestly not a very good cook. But I was adamant on improving my cooking, and with much time and practice, I can truthfully say I have really sharpened my skills. Along the way, I have also compiled a repertoire of go-to recipes that I know do not disappoint. All these recipes are both simple and delicious, which are the two essential criteria for everything I cook. Below are three of my favourite of these recipes that I will be enjoyed by vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike!

Avocado Boats

I came across this recipe almost two years ago, on a night when I had very few ingredients in my kitchen and was desperately searching for something to make. It ended up being absolutely delicious and surprisingly quick to cook. I tend to make the first of the two recipes on the page (the spicy chickpeas variation) a lot more often, but both are equally simple. The chickpeas recipe also calls for a tahini sauce, but I’ve found it’s just as good with a dollop of plain greek yogurt. If you’re a fan of avocados and spicy food, these boats are definitely the recipe for you.  

Vegan Sloppy Joes

This recipe was my first attempt at cooking with lentils, and it was an absolute success! The lentils don’t really have a flavour so they pick up the sloppy joe flavours from the spices and seasoning really well. I also found the texture of the lentils was great for a sloppy joe (though of course this is me just assuming, as I’ve never eaten a real sloppy joe). Also, if you’re like me and don’t own Worcestershire sauce, which this recipe does call for, I’ve found that a good replacement for 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce is 1 tbsp of soy sauce, a dash of sugar, a few drops of lemon juice and a bit of hot sauce.

London Broil Tofu

I have made this recipe countless times because it is constantly requested by friends of mine. I’ve even been told by many of them that it does taste just like meat. Though the recipe does require a bit of waiting time as the tofu marinates, it is well worth that wait. I have been able to convert tofu haters with this recipe, so it really is a winner. Also, this is another recipe that calls for Worcestershire sauce, so the replacement I mentioned above can definitely be used here as well.

Happy cooking!