"The Flexitarian Table: Inspired, Flexible Meals for Vegetarians, Meat Lovers, and Everyone in Between" by Peter Berley with Zoe Singer (Houghton Mifflin, $30)

Recently, sneaky moms have written popular cookbooks where they hide vegetables for kids by grounding them up in muffins or stowing them away in macaroni and cheese. I'd like to suggest Peter Berley's "The Flexitarian Table" as such an idea for adults.

Berley, an award-winning New York City chef specializing in vegan food after helming famed Angelica Kitchen and writing "The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen," gives two methods for many meals in "The Flexitarian Table." Everyone in a family will be pleased. Mom may be chomping lamb skewers, while her vegetarian daughter delights in tempeh kebabs. Both are grilled simultaneously after being prepared with the same sauce and seasonings.

Your sneaky side could come into play by making the two-skewer serving one each of lamb and tempeh — or mixing and matching the two worthy proteins on a single skewer. Serve it to a non-vegetarian who's been promising for ages to "eat better." Like the kids in those other cookbooks, your target may end up smiling and complimenting you; sauces and seasonings mask anything they thought they wouldn't like about Berley's meal stars. Berley uses tempeh (high-protein, no-cholesterol soybean cakes sold in many supermarkets next to tofu, which is another lead player in the book), seitan (a grain known as "wheat meat"), beans, seaweed and every imaginable vegetable.

Even Berley's excellent condiments provide a wealth of opportunities for sneaking glowing health into your own or a loved one's diet. His simple Tahini Sauce, for instance, is built on a foundation of sesame seeds, often cited as one of the most nutritious foods on earth. Spoon it over even the meatiest dishes to give an easy boost.

SESAME TAHINI SAUCE

3/4 cup tahini (see Note)

5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)

1 garlic clove, mashed with 3/4 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

3/4 cup water

Yields about 1 3/4 cups.

In a bowl, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, garlic paste and cayenne. Beat in water until smooth. Transfer to small bowl. The sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance; cover in refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Note: Berley writes: "Tahini, Middle Eastern sesame paste, is sold in jars in Middle Eastern and natural food stores and many supermarkets. It should be stirred well before using, as it separates easily. Once opened, tahini keeps best in the refrigerator. If you've had your tahini for a while, taste it to make sure it's fresh, without any bitter aftertaste."

FRIED TEMPEH/SMOKED WHITEFISH AND APPLES

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

8 ounces tempeh, sliced crosswise into 8 pieces (see Note 1)

1 1/2 cups dry white wine

1 teaspoon sweet Spanish smoked paprika (see Note 2)

3/4 teaspoon smoked sea salt, regular sea salt or kosher salt (see Note 2)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 cups thinly sliced onions

1/2 cup diced peeled carrot

1/2 cup diced celery

1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and diced

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

2 cups sauerkraut, rinsed and drained (see Note 3)

1 whole smoked whitefish (or 1 pound kippers), sliced crosswise into 3-inch chunks

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or dill

Yields 4 servings (2 servings with tempeh; 2 servings with whitefish).

To prepare tempeh: In medium skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add tempeh; cook 2 minutes on each side. Add 1/2 cup of wine, paprika and salt; bring to boil. Simmer until the wine has been absorbed, 5 to 7 minutes. Carefully remove from heat.

To prepare sauerkraut: Divide butter between two medium saucepans; melt over medium heat. Add half onions, carrot, celery, apple and caraway seeds to each pan. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Divide remaining wine between pans, bring to boil; cook until it has reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Stir half sauerkraut and 1/4 cup water into each pan; simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.

Lay tempeh over vegetables in one pan and fish over vegetables in the other. Cover pans; simmer for 5 to 7 minutes. Add half of parsley or dill to each pan and simmer for another minute.

Note 1: Tempeh is high-protein, low-fat, no-cholesterol soybean cakes found near tofu in the aisles of many supermarkets and natural food markets.

Note 2: Berley writes: "Smoked paprika and smoked sea salt give the tempeh a great smokiness, but just one of these ingredients would do the trick. They are available in gourmet markets and both are online at www.zingermans.com. Several varieties of smoked sea salt are available from www.maineseasalt.com."

Note 3: Berley notes that jarred sauerkraut from natural food stores is usually tasty and has great texture. He suggests looking for sauerkraut that is made with only cabbage, salt and water — no vinegar or preservatives.

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." She also writes the Creators News Service "After Work Gourmet" column. To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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