Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas (Meatless Meals)
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Whether you enjoy occasional meatless meals or follow a vegetarian diet, these easy dinner ideas (meatless meals) make busy weeknights less stressful. Easy dinner ideas are a must for a busy life.
Easy dinner ideas are a lifesaver and with these meatless meals, you’ll never miss the meat!
Why go meatless? There are so many reasons to make meatless meals. Meat can be hard on your health, so going meatless at least a few times a week gives your heart a boost. Adding more fruits and vegetables into your diet in place of meat will help you live better.
Consuming meat places a bigger burden on the environment. Making meatless meals helps to lower your carbon footprint and burden on the planet too. Lots of people do meatless Mondays or one night of the week they make meatless meals. Having a meatless dinner can still be satisfying.
For more about the impact of meatless Monday and what it can do for the planet, click here.
Right now, meat is hard to come by and it’s expensive! So using less meat makes even more sense.
Easy meatless meals
This spaghetti squash meatless meal is amazing. You’ll never miss the meat OR the bread in this one. You can bake the squash the day before and put this meal together in a few minutes. Then toss it in the oven for a few while you get the kids started on their homework.
I LOVE spaghetti squash and this versatile dinner idea is amazing. Here is an awesome recipe for stuffed spaghetti squash. They make a great easy dinner for family.
Meatless dinner ideas-Stuffed spaghetti squash
Stuffed spaghetti squash-broccoli and cheese
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash
- 1 c shredded cheddar cheese plus extra to top it
- 2 T olive oil
- 1 chopped onion
- 1 clove crushed garlic
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 c raw broccoli, chopped
- 1/2 tsp thyme
Instructions
- Cut spaghetti squash in half and scrape out seeds.
- Place cut side down on a baking sheet and bake at 400 for 40 minutes or until a fork can poke it easily.
- While your squash is baking, make the filling.
- Place oil and onion in skillet and cook on low until translucent.
- Add garlic, red pepper, salt, thyme and broccoli.
- Stir and cook until broccoli just turns bright green. Don’t cook it until it’s tender because it will cook longer in the oven.
- Mix in cheddar cheese.
- Scrape the strings of squash out of the shell with a fork and place in skillet.
- Mix all ingredients together and place them back in the squash shell.
- Top with more cheese.
- Bake in a 350 oven until cheese is melted, bubbly and slightly browned.
Don’t forget to check out this stuffed spaghetti squash lasagna for another meatless meal with spaghetti squash. It’s so good! And this creamy spinach stuffed spaghetti squash is a winner as well with an alfredo-style flair.
How to tell if spaghetti squash is ripe
You can tell if your squash is good and ripe if it is a golden yellow color. As they ripen, their peels harden, so if you can’t penetrate the skin with your fingernail it’s ripe.
How can I cook a spaghetti squash or other winter squash without cutting my hand off? Here’s a new tip I learned. Just toss it in the oven whole. Bake it at 400 for at least 30 minutes or until done. Pull it out of the oven and easily slice it in half, then scoop out the seeds. If you didn’t cook it all the way so you could season it while it cooks, add your seasoning and toss it back in until it’s all the way cooked. Such a big help. Hard squashes are so hard to cut!
Meatless meals for kids
Here are some great kid-pleasing meatless meals for the family:
This taco soup recipe is world-famous around here. My kids still talk about it when I see them out and they’ve been gone from daycare for 10 years. Your kids will love it and you will too. My daughter is 27 and it’s still her most requested home meal.
Also check out this butternut squash mac and cheese that’s meatless as well. It’s a real kid-pleaser.
For more meatless ideas for the pickiest eaters, click here.
Quick meatless meals
We don’t always have a ton of time to get dinner together, but this list of super quick meatless meals will have you winning dinner time.
Here is some easy Mexican food you can have on the table in 15 minutes.
Quick and Easy Quinoa Tostadas
Cheesy Vegetarian Enchiladas Cheesy, super flavorful, spicy meatless enchiladas.
Crock Pot Lasagna Fix it and forget it crockpot dinner of rich, delicious lasagna. Healthy ingredients and still a kid-pleaser.
Kale Sweet Potato White Bean Skillet Easy go-to one-pot meal that’s filled with nutrition.
Walnut Bolognese Spaghetti Vegan and gluten-free spaghetti sauce that never lets you miss the meat.
This vegetable lasagna with zucchini noodles will blow your family away, and you’ll never miss the meat! It’s even nightshade-free!
Easy meatless dinners
Instant Pot Pinto Beans-No Soak Whip up some pinto beans in the instant pot without even having to soak them. Flavorful, hearty, and healthy! I hope these meatless dinner ideas help inspire you for dinner tonight or every night.
There’s nothing better than healthy, easy dinners for your family!
Many recipes that will help you make an easy dinner for your family in no time are available in my new e-book: “Zero to Hero Nutrition: How to Actually Get Kids to Eat Healthy Food“
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