Meatless Meals the Whole Family will Love
It’s about time for some quick meatless meals for my family. If you have been to the grocery store lately you can’t help but notice that prices are on the rise and quantities are getting smaller. This is particularly true at the meat counter. One way that you can help to keep your grocery costs in line is to serve your family meatless meals once or twice per week. Here are some meatless meals that the whole family will love, and they might not even miss the meat!
Vegetable Soup
Vegetable soup is an easy meatless meal that you can put your own spin on depending on the spices that you use. Want it spicy? Add some red pepper flakes. Want it to taste Italian? Add some basil and oregano to your soup pot. Vegetable soup is also a great way to use up any vegetable leftovers you may have in the fridge or freezer.
Pasta and Sauce
Pasta is an inexpensive and filling meal that doesn’t have to include meat as an ingredient. If you want to make the dish look and feel more substantial add broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, beans, or tofu to your dish. Throw in some bell peppers for color, and some healthy vitamins too. Have some bread and a salad on the side and you have a healthy, filling, meatless meal the whole family will love.
Fried Rice
Fried rice is tasty, filling, and very adaptable so that even the pickiest of young eaters will enjoy it. Another great way to use up any vegetables you have hanging out in your refrigerator or freezer. If you don’t have any leftover veggies in the fridge, frozen peas, carrots, and broccoli make great additions to fried rice along with some scrambled eggs for protein.
Vegetable or Cheese Pizza
Pizza doesn’t have to be covered with meat and pepperoni to be delicious! There are so many different cheese and vegetable combinations that you can try for an excellent meatless meal that the kids are sure to love too. Consider making English muffin individual pizzas so that each member of the family can top them with their favorite vegetable and cheese combinations.
Breakfast for Dinner
You may think of bacon when you hear the word breakfast but having breakfast for dinner doesn’t mean that you have to include it with the meal. Eggs, muffins, pancakes, grits, fruit, and biscuits, are all delicious breakfast foods that can be just as well suited for dinner. You might even find that you enjoy breakfast for dinner more than breakfast for breakfast because you aren’t rushing to get out of the door.
Vegetarian Burritos
Vegetarian burritos are an excellent meatless meal that the whole family will enjoy. Instead of filling your burritos with chicken or other meat, fill them with beans, rice, and your favorite vegetables instead. There are so many different delicious combinations of food that you can fill your burritos with and you can even set up a burrito buffet. Refried beans, black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro, corn, avocado, and sauteed mushrooms all make tasty burrito combinations. Top with your favorite cheese, salsa, and sour cream, and enjoy! If you don’t have any tortillas for burritos you could also make a taco bowl with some corn or tortilla chips topped with your favorite burrito toppings.
Allowing each family member, especially the kids, to create their own meatless meal (like the pizzas or burritos) may help to cut down on any of the “where is the meat” questions around the dinner table. Do you serve meatless meals to your family for dinner? If so, what are some of your favorite meatless meals that the whole family enjoys sitting down together with?
