Plant-Based Meal Ideas

Written by Iron Vegan

If you haven’t discovered already, plant-based meals are brimming with colour and full of flavour. When shopping and preparing your own meals, the key is to choose the most natural and fresh ingredients whenever possible to emphasize wholesome eating. Remember, plant-based eating never has to be boring or bland – see some ideas below to feed your imagination!

Breakfast

For the first meal of the day, it’s always a great idea to include a protein-rich food, as it’ll curb your appetite and help keep you feeling fuller for longer.

Loaded smoothie (like this one!)
Fresh whole fruit, handful of nuts and a protein shake
Chia pudding (chia seeds soaked in plant milk with, topped with fruit, nuts, and seeds)
Overnight oats with fruit, nuts + seeds
Sweet pancakes (like these Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes)
Coconut yogurt with granola and fruit
Savoury Herb Pancakes
Eggless veggie quiche (or our Morning Glory Mini Loaves)
Whole grain toast with mashed avocado and tomato

Lunch

Rice paper veggie wraps with spicy peanut dipping sauce
Falafel balls with roasted veggies + lemon tahini sauce in a whole wheat pita
Fully loaded salad: bed of greens loaded with fresh veggies (like pepper, carrot, cucumber, avocado, tomato, beet, etc.), topped with nuts (like crushed walnuts or pecans) and seeds (like sunflower and pumpkin) + homemade dressing
Jalapeno Biscuits
Black bean burger with steamed broccoli and sweet potato wedges
Bean salad with edamame, tomato, peppers, avocado, and garlic lime dressing

Dinner

Stir-fried veggies with balsamic-glazed tempeh and rice noodles
Buddha Bowl: endless combinations of greens (spring mix/spinach/kale), raw or roasted veggies, protein (beans/lentils/tofu/tempeh) and a grain (quinoa/brown rice) with toppings like nuts, seeds, and dressing
Vegan mac ‘n cheese
Ginger-garlic tofu with stir-fried veggies and quinoa
Chickpea and spinach curry with brown rice
Pulled BBQ jackfruit tacos with cabbage slaw
Sweet potato and peanut stew with chickpeas and kale

Homemade Dressings and Sauces

Because your dressings and sauces should be as healthy as the meal it is topping! To avoid unnecessary preservatives, refined sugars, and low-quality oils, you can easily whip up your own batch of dressing or sauce using nourishing ingredients. All you need is a base (like olive or hemp oil), an acid (like apple cider vinegar or lemon/lime juice), an ingredient to thicken (like avocado, mustard, tahini), spices and a little sweetness (if you like). Mix everything in a small blender and voila! Some examples below:

Maple Mustard Dressing: mustard, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, garlic, maple syrup, salt, and pepper
Lemon Tahini Sauce: fresh lemon juice, tahini (sesame paste), water, garlic, salt, and pepper
Thai Peanut Sauce (infused with protein): water, unflavoured protein powder, natural peanut butter, sesame oil, tamari sauce, lime juice, raw ginger, garlic & chili flakes.

Snacks

There are countless combinations of plant foods that can make up healthy and satisfying snacks – below are some tasty options!

Protein shake or smoothie
Protein bar 😉
Raw veggies and hummus
Apple and almond butter
Trail mix (nuts, seeds, dried fruit, unsweetened chocolate)
Wholesome homemade muffins/cookies
Dried seaweed snack
Edamame
Rice cakes with natural peanut butter
Roasted chickpeas
Energy Balls
Triple Chocolate Raw Brownies
Kale chips
Guacamole and black bean chips
Baked veggie chips

Desserts

Eating plant-based certainly does not mean that you can no longer indulge in your favourite desserts. To the contrary! As we’ve covered in a previous blog, there is a wide variety of alternatives when it comes to swapping out animal-based baking products, like milk, butter and eggs in your recipes. See below for a long list of mouth-watering (and wholesome to boot) treats. Bottom line: you can have your chocolate cake, and eat it too 😉