My go-to favourite vegetarian dinners

A lot of people ask me what are my standard weekly no-fuss go-to dinners are, so I thought I’d round ’em all up for ya in a post. It’s super-easy for me to turn to one (or all!) of these in busy weeks when it’s 4.37pm and I haven’t figured out dinner (rare for me, I think about any and every dinner weeks in advance and at least all day) yet. If I’m uninspired and hungry, or want something quick and easy, these are what I trot out on the reg.

My go-to favourite vegetarian dinners

Soups

Listen, no kid around here is going to eat a soup, although we did once have success with pumpkin. I make it very regularly, though, all sorts of flavours, at least once a week in winter. I eat the leftovers for lunches.

Our favourites are the aforementioned pumpkin, the above thick, hearty, chunky, and utterly de-fricken-licious corn chowder, and minestrone with some good garlic bread.

Pasta

Let’s face it, pasta is my life. We have it weekly, in all kinds of guises. Our regulars are spinach and ricotta stuffed shells, a tomato pasta bake topped with thick, rich bechamel and baked like a simpler version of lasagne, ricotta gnocchi with pesto, an antipasto pasta, and a bolognese-type sauce with spaghetti.

My favourite sauce is a simple sugo, or a roasted tomato sauce using canned tomatoes (try it – it really changes it up a bit!)

Fritters, patties, and burgers

On a bun, alongside potato or sweet potato fries, with a side salad, with roasted or steamed veg… they’re in there, and they’re constant.

We love quinoa patties (these ones are lemon and oregano, and these ones are roast veggie) or “meatballs“, zucchini fritters, latkes, or burgers with a mushroom or eggplant stepping in for the burger bit. This is a great veggie burger patty recipe, as is this black bean one. We also sometimes just eat the frozen ones – the Quorn quarter pounder and the Linda McCartney mozzarella quarter pounder are favourites.

Risotto

Always risotto, risotto always. We go for mushroom, goat cheese + roasted tomato, roast pumpkin, or basically whatever we’ve got in the fridge.

Pizza

Every Friday, mates! Usually a margarita for the girls, and whatever we feel like on ours, but it has to contain olives and pineapple (hush now). Our wholemeal base recipe is here, otherwise Jamie Oliver + River Cottage bread dough recipes are used.

I get a bit excited when it’s spinach alfredo pizza time because I will step over my own mother to get to this alfredo sauce.

I also wonder wtf I was thinking when I declared every Friday pizza night with homemade pizzas. Because really, once happy hour starts, I rarely want to get up and roll shit out.

Fiesta fun

Tuesday is usually taco night, or some kind of Mexican wannabe meal. The basis is quite often these spicy black beans, or otherwise this chipotle lentil situation. It’s often burritos, quesadillas, or even our ultimate favourite, this Mexican Lasagne, which is basically a burrito casserole aka heaven out the oven. Get in, on, and around it!

So if you’re ever visiting VMHQ at dinnertime, this is likely what you’ll find. And wine. And probably dessert, depending on how sprightly I feel in the kitchen. You’re welcome any time 😉