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From halloumi to nachos, here are 6 tasty vegetarian dinner ideas you can meal prep at home.

Looking for easy weeknight veggie dinner recipes you can cook at home?

Us too, so we asked Accredited Practising Dietitians Anna-Jane Debenham and Alexandra Parker from The Biting Truth to share six of their tastiest vegetarian dinner recipes you’ll actually look forward to eating. Enjoy!

Watch: How to make an easy mason jar salad that will last all week. Post continues below.

Video by Mamamia

1. Halloumi & Corn Fritters.

 

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Serves: Makes 10 fritters.

Prep time: 15 minutes.

Cook time: 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 2 zucchinis
  • 1 carrot
  • ½ cup corn kernels
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • ¾ cup wholemeal self-raising flour
  • ½ cup halloumi, grated
  • 2 spring onions, finely sliced
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp lemon rind
  • Salt and pepper, to season
  • Extra virgin olive oil

Yoghurt dipping sauce:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup plain Greek yoghurt
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • Pepper, to season

Directions:

  1. Grate zucchinis and carrot into a sieve and leave to rest for 10 minutes. Then squeeze extra moisture in batches with your hands and place in a clean bowl. Or wrap in a cheesecloth and wring out. This is an important step to avoid soggy fritters.
  2. Mix all the fritter ingredients in a large mixing bowl until well combined. If mixture is too wet and not holding together – add more flour.
  3. Heat oil in a fry pan on medium heat. Make sure oil is hot. Place a tablespoon or so of the fritter mixture in the pan and flatten with the back of a spatula. Repeat with the remaining mixture, cooking in batches. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, until golden and crisp.
  4. Transfer to plate lined with baking paper.
  5. To make the dipping sauce, heat a fry pan with 1 tbsp oil and saute 1 garlic clove. Add garlic to yoghurt with the juice a lemon and stir to combine. Season with pepper.
  6. Serve the fritters with the dipping sauce and a salad.

Notes: Serving these fritters with yoghurt helps to boost the protein content! You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days or in the freezer for up to a month.

2.Vegetarian Cheesy Black Bean Nachos.

 

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Serves: 4-6 people.

Prep time: 10 minutes.

Cook time: 20 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ brown onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp ground pepper
  • 1 x 400g canned black beans, rinsed, drained
  • ½ cup vegetable stock, salt reduced
  • 1 bag lightly or unsalted tortilla chips
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 2 tomatoes, diced
  • Greek yoghurt, to serve
  • Jalapeños, sliced, to serve
  • Pepper, to season

Guacamole:

  • 1 avocado
  • 1 tbsp jalapeños
  • ¼ bunch fresh coriander
  • 1 garlic clove
  • ½ lime, juiced
  • Salt & pepper, to season

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
  2. Heat oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, cumin, Worcestershire sauce and pepper and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Add beans and stock. Simmer for 7 to 8 minutes
  3. Transfer bean mixture to a food processor and blitz for 30 seconds or until roughly pureed.
  4. Layer corn chips over a lined baking tray. Drizzle bean mixture over the chips and sprinkle with cheese. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.
  5. Meanwhile, to make the guacamole, combine ingredients in a food processor and blitz until smooth.
  6. Drizzle guacamole over corn chips. Top with diced tomato, a few dollops of Greek yoghurt, jalapeños and fresh coriander. Season with pepper and serve immediately while warm!

3. Mushroom & Chickpea Sausage Rolls.

 

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Serves: Makes 20-25.

Prep time: 20 minutes.

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Cook time: 25 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 brown onion, diced
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 carrot, finely chopped
  • 250g button mushrooms, finely sliced
  • 425g can of chickpeas, rinsed
  • ½ tsp cumin, ground
  • ¼ cup parsley, chopped
  • 2 eggs, whisked
  • ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 80g feta
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • 2 sheets puff pastry, thawed
  • Sesame seeds, to decorate
  • Salt & pepper, to season

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 200°C and line a large tray with baking paper. Remove pastry sheets from the freezer to thaw.
  2. Heat oil in a pan, add onion and sauté for 3 minutes. Add garlic, carrot, mushrooms and sauté for 4-5 minutes. Set aside.
  3. In a food processor, combine chickpeas, cumin, parsley and sautéed vegetables and process until finely chopped. Transfer to a large bowl.
  4. Add the breadcrumbs, feta and Dijon mustard and half of the whisked eggs (save remaining half to top the rolls) to the chickpea mixture and mix well to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. Cut a sheet of pastry in half lengthways to create a rectangle. Add the chickpea mixture along the long edge and use your hands to form it into a sausage shape. (Check out our Youtube video to see how we do this!)
  6. Brush the edges with egg and roll the pastry over the filling as firmly as possible without stretching the pastry until you have a roll shape. Use a fork to seal the edges.
  7. Brush top of roll with whisked egg and top with sesame seeds. Use a knife to cut the roll into 5 small pieces. Transfer to tray and repeat with remaining mixture and pastry.
  8. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with tomato sauce or chutney.

Notes: You can mix up this recipe using other types of legumes (e.g. lentils) and other vegetables.

4. Pulse Pasta Nourish Bowl.

 

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Serves: 2 people (double to make leftovers).

Prep time: 10 minutes.

Cook time: 10 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup uncooked San Remo pulse pasta⁠
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil⁠
  • 1/4 green or purple cabbage, finely shredded
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed⁠
  • 1 carrot, diced finely⁠
  • 1/2 punnet cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/2 x 400g canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/4 small red onion, finely diced⁠
  • 1/4 bunch coriander, finely chopped
  • 30g feta, crumbled

Dressing:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil⁠
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced

Additional extras:

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  • 1 tbsp roasted almonds, roughly chopped (to serve)⁠

Directions:

  1. Cook pulse pasta according to packet instructions.⁠
  2. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the shredded cabbage, garlic and carrot and cook for 4-5 minutes, until lightly sautéed. Option to add a dash of balsamic vinegar while sauteing.
  3. To assemble the bowl, divide pasta between bowls, top with chickpeas, tomatoes, red onion, sautéed cabbage and carrots. Add coriander,
  4. almonds and crumble feta over the top. Season with salt and pepper and enjoy!

5. Halloumi & Dukkah Veggie Bowl.

 

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Serves: 2 people (double to make leftovers).

Prep time: 15 minutes.

Cook time: 30 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 1 small sweet potato, cut into 2cm chunks
  • 1 red onion, cut into wedges
  • 1 zucchini, cut into half moons
  • 1 carrot, sliced
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tbsp dukkah
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • Small handful roasted almonds, roughly chopped
  • 120g halloumi, cut into 1 cm thick slices
  • 3 cups lettuce leaves

Sauce:

  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ cup plain Greek yoghurt
  • 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
  • Salt and pepper, to season

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C fan and line a baking tray with baking paper.
  2. Place the sweet potato, onion, zucchini and carrot on the lined baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and dukkah and roast in oven for 30 minutes.
  3. To make the sauce, heat a medium frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil and garlic and cook until fragrant. Transfer to a small bowl. Add yoghurt and vinegar and whisk to combine. Season to taste.
  4. When the veggies have 5 minutes cook time remaining, heat a drizzle of olive oil in fry pan. Cook the halloumi for 2 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
  5. Divide the lettuce between bowls, add roasted veggies and top with halloumi. Drizzle with sauce and sprinkle with roasted almonds.

6. Spiced Cauliflower Salad.

 

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Serves: 4 people (double to make leftovers).

Prep time: 15 minutes.

Cook time: 30 minutes.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cauliflower head
  • 1 sweet potato, medium
  • 1 tablespoon Moroccan spice blend (substitute: turmeric)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 80g almonds
  • 3 handfuls of rocket
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Yoghurt dressing:

  • 1/3 cup natural yoghurt
  • 1 clove garlic, roasted, crushed
  • 3 tablespoons lemon
  • Pinch of salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Line an oven tray with baking paper.
  2. Cut the cauliflower into small florets. Peel and cut the sweet potato into 1 cm cubes. Add to a large bowl.
  3. Add olive oil, Moroccan spice mix and cinnamon to cauliflower and sweet potato mixture. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  4. Transfer the cauliflower and sweet potato onto the prepared tray. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes or until the sweet potato is tender and the cauliflower is golden and slightly charred on the edges. To roast the almonds, place almonds on a lined baking tray and pop in oven for approximately 10 minutes.
  5. To make the dressing stir together the yoghurt, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper. Adjust the consistency with a little warm water or extra virgin olive oil.
  6. In a large bowl combine the rocket, roasted almonds cauliflower and sweet potato and drizzle over with dressing and then season with salt and pepper.

To find out more about The Biting Truth and get a bunch of other great recipes, visit thebitingtruth.com or follow The Biting Truth on Instagram at @thebitingtruth. You can read more about how to make the switch to eating a Flexitarian diet here, and learn more about The Biting Truth’s Flexitarian Challenge here. Feature image: Supplied/The Biting Truth.

Which meal prep recipes will you be making? Let us know in the comments.