Quick & Easy Plant based Snacks and Meals
Quick & Easy Plant based Snacks and Meals. Thinking of eating more plant based foods? Vegan curious? Think it’s going to be too hard to switch?
People today are busy and want things quick and easy. The good news is there are many quick & easy vegan snacks and meals that are good for you, easy to make and taste fantastic! You don’t have to have a lot of time or be a great cook to eat healthy vegan food.
Many people ask me, “What do you eat?” My answer is always, “I eat pretty much what you do, just different ingredients.”
In this blog, my plan is to give you a few ideas of quick & easy vegan snacks and meals you could eat or make for breakfast, lunch, dinner and for snacks. Foods that are not much different than what you are eating now, all you have to do is swap out a few ingredients.
Trust me. It’s not as hard to move toward a vegan lifestyle as you might think.
Curious? Want to know more….check out this blog to find out….I double dare you!!!!
Quick & Easy Plant based Snacks and Meals
Everyone needs some quick and easy snacks and meals, vegan or not. Adding more plant based items to your diet has gotta be good for you. No denying that! I’ve got a whole blog full of wonderful, quick, nutritious plant based food ideas that will make your life a whole lot easier. Have fun, try something new!
This blog addresses some ideas in four areas:
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Dinner
- Snacks
For each area I am going to give you 5-10 ideas of what you can do to veganize what you are probably already eating, it’s easy and so good for you too!
Quick & Easy Plant based Breakfasts
Avocado Toast
Take your favourite bread and toast it. Butter with vegan friendly butter (I like Earth Balance and Becel Vegan Butters). Next I take a ripe avocado, peel it and cover my toast with the yummy goodness. I like to top it off with a few red onion slices, salt and pepper (optional).
Toast with baked vegan cheese and tomatoes.
Take your favourite bread and lightly toast it. Top with vegan cheese (Daiya Cheese is awesome, comes in shreds or slices), add a couple slices of tomato on top and pop it back in the toaster oven on broil, till the cheese melts. Yum!
Chia seeds soaked in vegan friendly milk with fruit.
The night before (if you remember) soak about 4 T of chia seeds in your favourite non-dairy milk (I like soy and almond milk best) overnight. They will be kind of jell like in the morning. Stir up the jell – like chia and add in extra milk and slices of your favourite fruit. We take this camping and travelling too. So easy and good for you.
Smoothies
With these babies, the sky is the limit! You can get as creative as you want and basically use up whatever veggies and fruit you have on hand. If you think you need more protein add in a scoop of Vega Protein Powder. We make these every morning, or should I say my husband makes them every morning. What a wonderful way to start the day. My hubby Brent says he feels energized as soon as he drinks his. We usually add in banana, some type of greens (spinach or kale…believe me you won’t taste it), pineapple, melon, apples, blueberries, carrots, corn, peas, beets. Sometimes we add a bit of ice if we don’t have any frozen fruit or veggies, just to make it a bit colder. You can also add dates, mint, ginger, avocados….really anything goes.
Tofu scramble
This is just like scrambled eggs, just substitute medium tofu for the eggs. Start out with sauteing a few chopped onions, add in some
peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes, kale, spinach (your choice), cook it up and add a little vegan friendly cheese at the last minute and cook a bit more. Voila, add some toast and you are set for a wonderful meal.
Pancakes
Who doesn’t like pancakes in the morning? I have an awesome flax pancake recipe on the blog, here’s the recipe. You can also buy
vegan friendly pancake mix and substitute a chia or flax egg for the eggs as requested in the directions. For a chia or flax egg (grind up either chia or flax seeds in your coffee grinder) take 1 T of either, add 3 T of water, let sit for ten minutes and you have an egg substitute.
Excellent!
Quick & Easy Plant based Lunches
Soups
Any bought vegan friendly or homemade soup is an excellent lunch. Add a bit of salad if you are extra hungry or some bread with humus. Read the labels carefully if you are buying your soup. They sneak in a lot of dairy in soup.
Salads
My salads are like a full on meal. I add in my favourite veggies (lettuce, kale, spinach, cabbage, onion, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, corn) and then I top it off with avocado slices (everything tastes better with avocado), raw seeds (pumpkin, sunflower), raw cashews, raisins or cranberry raisins. You can add chickpeas, black beans, kale chips (my new favourite), really anything you want. I top it all off with my favourite dressing and what a feast you have. Lately I make a super quick dressing out of Veganaise, Balsamic vinegar and a tiny bit of vegan friendly milk. Add together and stir till mixed. Love it!
Sandwiches
Grilled cheese and tomato and/or vegan friendly sliced meats. For this I take my favourite vegan bread and put a little Vegenaise on each slice, next I add my vegan friendly cheese, tomatoes, red onions and vegan friendly meat slices (optional). Lightly butter the outside of your bread and grill on a medium hot fry pan. Turn when the first side is brown and brown the second side. Serve with Ketchup and Coleslaw (you can buy a bag from the store or make your own).
Easy home- made vegan salad dressing
This is my favourite quick dressing. I make a little dressing with Veganaise, Toffuti Sour Cream and Nut Milk, mixed up and then I add some spice (Cucumber from Watkins is perfect) or you could add in dill. Another version, probably the one I use the most is mix up the Veganaise with Balsamic Vinegar and add a little Nut Milk as thinner.
My second favourite home made dressing can be whipped up in a blender in about 5 minutes and you’ll have enough for a week or so. I love one of my recipes (its our go to salad dressing). I call it Heaven in a Jar. Check out this super delicious recipe here.
Mini pizza – take a pita pocket, ketchup for sauce, add on a few veggies, some vegan friendly cheese. Pop in the toaster oven or oven and cook for a few minutes, put on broil for the last couple minutes to melt the cheese. Finish with a beautiful apple.
Sandwiches
My favourite sandwich is toasted bread, spread with Vegan Friendly Cream Cheese (I like Toffutii), add on fresh tomatoes, avocado slices, onion, lettuce and if you want vegan friendly meat slices or my favourite Portobello mushroom bacon.
Wraps
Wraps are my husband’s favourite meal. He has one a day for sure. With a wrap, the sky is the limit….you can put in anything that you love to eat…leftovers, veggies, vegan friendly cheese, beans, corn, peas, chickpeas, humus, avocado.
My all-time favourite wrap filling is so easy to make. I make a bowl of the filling and it will keep in the fridge for several days. I make up a bowl of black beans, chopped onions, corn and cooked frozen peas. I mix it all up and put it in the fridge…also great for camping. Then I mix up some vegan sour cream with a little bit of Chipotle Chilli Powder and let that sit for a few minutes. I put a thin layer of vegan cream cheese on the wrap, then I add on a thin layer of the spiced sour cream, my filling (beans, corn mixture), then I add in some avocado (of course), salsa and wrap it all up. Delicious!
Quick & Easy Plant-based Dinners
Mac and Cheese
Who loves mac and cheese? I do, says almost the whole world. This childhood favourite, remains a favourite for many of us as we move through our lives, it just never gets old. I’ve got 4 different recipes for vegan mac and cheese, all cruelty free and delicious. Check them out here
Tacos
I love tacos and burritos, so fast and great ingredients that are easily customized for each person. Grab some taco shells and warm up in the oven. I like the kind that stand on their own! Prep a bunch of ingredients such as vegan ground round or vegan sausage, vegan cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, sauteed mushrooms, sauteed or raw peppers, salsa, re-fried beans. Really there is no right way to make a taco. Warm up the hot stuff, chop up the veggies. Put everything in bowls and everyone can make their own taco, just the way they like it. So fun to make, great for parties too!
Spaghetti
My father was Italian and we had spaghetti every Sunday! To this day, I love pasta! You can make your own sauce or buy a jar of your favourite sauce. Any type of pasta will do, regular, gluten free, spiralized veggies. You pick. Add in some vegan ground round or lentils to the sauce for added protein. Your imagination is the only thing holding you back.
Vegan Meat with Potatoes and Veggies
There are so many wonderful types of vegan fake meat on the market now. Gardien has you covered and they have really figured out the fake meat. The Beyond Burger, Fieldhouse, so many brands out there or make your own. Across the country there are a number of vegan butcher shops, see what they have to offer. Add in some potatoes and your favourite veggies and you’ve got a meal everyone will love.
Stir Fry
My husband is the king of stirfry. Every time he makes one, its a bit different depending on the veggies we have on hand. Add some peanut butter to the sauce and coconut milk or nut milk and you have a delicious meal. Serve with potatoes, rice, pasta, all wonderful options.
Burgers and Veggie Dogs
Who loves a hot dog or a burger? There are so many wonderful brands of plantbased burgers, hot dogs or sausages to fry or BBQ. Or you can make your own! A great bun, some fixings and condiments and you have a meal the whole family will love.
Pizza
We love pizza in our house. Grab your favourite toppings, buy a crust or make your own. Pita pockets or Naan bread make wonderful crusts or make a gluten free cauliflower crust – delicious. Recipe on my blog, the best ever!
Add on some vegan cheese sheds, your favourite toppings, onions, spinich, mushrooms, tomatoes, artichokes, olives, asparagus, peppers, vegan friendly coldcuts, pineapple, pinenuts….the list is endless. Anything really goes on a pizza.
Two great recipes on the blog, check them out here and here!
Quick & Easy Plant-based Snacks and Desserts
Popcorn
Well let me tell you about popcorn! Its my weakness, I love eating a huge bowl of popcorn on a regular basis. I like to use my hot air popper and then I add in my own vegan butter (melted) and top with Nutritional Yeast Flakes and Spike (an herb spice mix). Totally awesome!
Muffins
You can make them sweet, you can make them savoury. High fiber, lots of super ingredients like flax, chia, seeds, fruit. If you keep them a bit more on the nutritious side, you will never feel bad about eating a muffin when you are hungry and in a hurry. Pop some in the freezer too, ready to go when you are short on time..
Trail Mix
I love to make up my own trail mix for a quick snack and one that I can take with me when I travel for work, just in case I do not have the most favourable food selection. You can add any and all of your favourite nuts (I add in some raw nuts, some salted), seeds, raisins, chocolate chips, dried fruit. Really whatever you enjoy. We love to take trail mix when we head out kayaking or going for a long hike. Easily portable and high energy snack.
Nachos with Cheese
Who doesn’t love a big plate of nachos with cheese? Use some of your homemade cheese sauce (recipe) add on your favourite toppings, onions, peppers, olives, vegan cheese and put it in a hot oven to melt the cheese and warm up the toppings. Serve with salsa and vegan sour cream on the side.
Fruit Salad
You can never go wrong with fruit or a fruit salad. Choose your favourite seasonal fruit, chop it up, put it in the fridge. It will be good for 2-3 days, when you need a sweet treat.
Ice cream
Remember how much I love popcorn? Well my other weakness is ice cream. When I was a kid (one of eight), I always got accused of eating all the ice cream. Well I’m sure I didn’t eat it all and I definitely had more than my fair share. Today I am no different. I love all of the wonderful vegan friendly ice cream on the market. Coconut Bliss is my personal favourite!
So that’s it! I hope that you can see the sky is the limit when you are vegan. We can and do eat everything everyone else eats….we just use different ingredients!
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