My top 24 winter vegetarian dinner recipes with winter produce like carrots, potatoes, & winter greens, for budget-friendly, sustainable meals. These are meals I turn to again and again.
Winter Vegetarian Dinner Recipes
To help get you started with feel-good food for the new year, or any time during the winter, I’m sharing my top winter vegetarian dinner recipes. By this I mean my top recipes, not the ones that are most popular with search engines – these are the meals I turn to most often year after year.
These rely on cold-weather produce like carrots, potatoes, and winter greens, for budget-friendly and sustainable meals. Most are great for meal prepping and to have as leftovers so you can get more than one meal out of cooking once. Every recipe includes storage instructions in the post.
I hope this can inspire you if you’re on a journey toward more seasonal cooking, or are shifting to a more plant-based diet, or just need a few ideas for weeknight dinners this winter. These recipes are easily adaptable and can all be ready in less than an hour from start to finish.
I first published this collection in 2019. It’s been updated to reflect new recipes that have been added to Occasionally Eggs and to make it easier to navigate and more helpful to readers.
I don’t use affiliate links. Any links you see here are to other recipes or related information, not paid links.
These are speedier recipes, ready in about half an hour, so you don’t need to dedicate a lot of time to cooking a wholesome meal after work. That means pasta, yes, but also some other quick options that just need a bit of preparation in advance, like cooking a grain the weekend before, or putting lentils on to soak before you leave in the morning. I’m a big fan of doing things like that when I do have the time and then freezing portions so that when I’m rushed, something is already prepped in advance and in the freezer. It’s a nice way to treat your future self kindly.
Lemon Broccoli Pasta
A very easy and quick one-pot dinner, this broccoli pasta has a light lemon sauce and the broccoli is cooked with the pasta water.
A simple 15 minute Moroccan carrot salad with quinoa and chickpeas for busy days. Healthy, vegan, and ideal for packed lunches or a quick dinner. Dates, lemon, and parsley round out this filling salad.
These vegetarian quinoa patties are loaded with wintery greens like chard, spinach, or kale. Gluten free, dairy free, and very easy, these are a great quick dinner option.
This easy roasted carrot salad is mixed with lentils, greens, & topped with a creamy dairy-free tahini dressing for an easy weeknight dinner great all year.
This vegan lentil bolognese is made with speedy red lentils and can be made in about 30 minutes start to finish. It's a great go-to sauce for a weeknight dinner, with lots of fibre and plant based protein.
There’s not much nicer than a big bowl of soup or a cosy stew on a cold winter evening, and vegetarian versions are no exception. These are hearty meals in a bowl, with plenty of beans, lentils, root vegetables, and pasta being used – not too much broth here. A biscuit or some bread is always a good idea.
Vegan Chili
A hearty, satisfying meal, this vegan chili is packed with meaty mushrooms, pinto beans, and smoky spices. It's simple to make and delicious.
This budget friendly, healthy vegan lentil and potato stew is full of comfort food goodness and seasonal ingredients, like carrots, greens, & winter herbs.
Vegan chickpea noodle soup with bright accents of parsley and lemon to lighten up this otherwise winter soup. With plenty of vegetables and whole grain pasta for a vegetarian spin on the classic.
Vegan red lentil soup with carrots, lentils, and a tomato base. This simple soup is a weeknight staple and can be made with common pantry items like canned tomatoes, frozen spinach, and dried red lentils. It takes about half an hour from start to finish and freezes well.
Deliciously creamy, flavoured with mustard and white wine sauce, this mushroom stroganoff is a vegetarian version of the classic. Serve with pasta, rice, or mashed potatoes.
This vegan shepherd's pie is a modern, plant based version of the classic – a rich mushroom and lentil base, topped with creamy mashed potato and pumpkin. Total cold weather comfort food.
A roasted vegetable pie, made extra easy with (vegan) puff pastry is a great holiday main dish! With pumpkin, cauliflower, and parsnip, it's a seasonal dish that can be made any day of the week.
This Moroccan-spiced roasted vegetable salad is packed with cold weather comfort foods, like butternut squash, apples, and pomegranate. Vegan, gluten free, and very easy, this is a great weeknight meal.
If you make any of these Winter Vegetarian Meals or any other winter recipes on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.
About Alexandra Daum
Alexandra Daum is a professional recipe developer, food photographer, and cookbook author. She started sharing carefully tested vegetarian recipes in 2014 and has since published hundreds of recipes with seasonal ingredients and whole grains as the focus. Her work has been featured on CTV, in House & Home and Chatelaine, on popular websites like Buzzfeed and Best Health, and in countless other publications.
Thanks for sharing such a great collection!