Easy & Tasty Vegan Meals for Kids

Easy & Tasty Vegan Meals for Kids

Isn’t it every parents dream to get their kids to eat more vegetables?! Or to at least enjoy healthier meals and snack options. It’s not always easy, but healthy vegan food doesn’t need to be boring for kids, it can actually be really enjoyable and fun!

This isn’t an article suggesting that you should raise your children with a vegan diet, this is simply a few great suggestions to help you entice veggies onto your children’s plates that will be received with a smile.

Sushi

Homemade Sushi is a favorite with kids. You can use traditional sushi rice, brown rice, quinoa or make a raw rice with either cauliflower, daikon, parsnip or pine nuts.

Your fillings can include tempeh or tofu (marinated or flavored ones are great), sun dried tomatoes, fresh herbs such as basil or coriander, marinated mushrooms, capsicum, grilled zucchini, avocado, fresh sprouts, sesame seeds and grated beetroot or sauerkraut.

Try making extra for school lunches too! Sushi is easy, adaptable and great for kids—-colorful, healthy and fun with fingers or chopsticks.

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Wraps

Wraps are an easy way to get lots of salad and veggies in without the plate looking like a salad! Use wholegrain, spelt or gluten free wraps and fill them up with fresh greens, grated carrot and beetroot, cherry tomatoes, grilled veggies, homemade hummus, pesto, or nut cheese, and some marinated tempeh or tofu.

Wraps are also versatile and great for school lunches. To make a raw version, simply substitute the wrap for collard leaves and fill as above!

Couscous and Roasted Vegetables

This is another great staple meal for families, especially in the cooler months. You can switch the grain to polenta, quinoa, buckwheat or millet. Use any veggies that are tasty roasted such as pumpkin, sweet potato, eggplant, capsicum, zucchini, parsnip, mushrooms and scatter them with fresh rosemary and spices such as sweet paprika or cumin while they roast. Try adding fresh sprouts and a drizzle of tahini and balsamic vinegar.

The smell alone of this dish cooking is enough to excite a child’s taste buds!

Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls

These are great in the summertime and fun for everyone to make together. The fillings can be cooked or raw- try stir-frying veggies, cubed tofu, cabbage, spring onion, carrot, celery and bok choy with ginger, garlic, chili , tamari and sesame oil.

You can roll up this veggie filling with rice noodles and fresh mint for traditional rice paper rolls. For the raw version I often make a pate with almonds, sunflower seeds, ginger, tamari, zucchini, coriander and dulse. I use this to fill large collard leaves and add fresh grated carrot, beetroot, herbs and a drizzle of tahini. Both versions make great picnic staples too!

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Soups

Soup is a popular dinner come wintertime; seasonal veggies and fresh herbs create lots of beloved favorite soups, as do lentils, beans and barley. A simple pumpkin and sweet corn soup or a rich and hearty tomato and lentil soup is lovely served with fresh gluten-free bread.

In the summertime, raw soups are a lovely addition to the menu with recipes such as raw gazpacho, creamy carrot, avocado and ginger or a fresh and zesty tomato and basil soup.

Pumpkin-Soup

Quinoa and Tempeh Salad

Quinoa and tempeh salad is one dish I have made for myself hundreds of times and never tire of! There is something about it that just nourishes and soothes me. And for growing kids, it’s a great protein hit.

Try adding cherry tomatoes, fresh herbs, pecans, cubed capsicum and olives. In the summer add mango or grapes or mint for a fresh kick. In the winter, I like to add cranberries and squash. It is adaptable, quick and tasty, an easy dish to take to a dinner, and one that you can use leftovers with to make sushi or for stuffing and roasting capsicums!

Sweet Potato and Adzuki Bean Burgers

You can serve these in traditional burger style on spelt buns with all the trimmings (I like to add guacamole or pesto and lots of fresh salad). Or, serve the patties on top of a fresh salad or on a plate with mashed sweet potato and grilled asparagus.

For the patties themselves try a mix of adzuki beans (you can use organic canned ones), sweet potato, basil, cumin, corn, gluten-free breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast and tamari. Just wiz them up in a food processor and grill them as you please.

If you happen to have a dehydrator at home, you can make raw veggie burgers with walnuts, sunflower seeds, sun dried tomatoes, carrot, zucchini, fresh herbs, spices and some flax meal to hold them together. Serve them on a lettuce leaf piled high with salad, sun dried tomato ketchup and cashew mayo.

Mexican Tacos

These are a take on the traditional taco. For a healthy, tasty and quick raw option try making the tacos in cos lettuce leaf shells with walnut mince, spicy salsa, creamy guacamole and a cashew sour cream.

The walnut mince is simply walnuts, cumin, coriander, chili and tamari broken down and combined in the food processor, and the cashew sour cream is soaked cashews, a dash of salt, apple cider vinegar, lemon and enough water to give it a smooth and creamy consistency. The salsa and guacamole you can make to your own liking!

Alternatively stick to a healthy bean version with lots of tomatoes, coriander and cumin!

vegan-tacos

Zucchini Noodle Pasta

This is another raw option, or you can use buckwheat, soba, udon or green tea noodles. For the raw version, simply spiralize the zucchini to form long noodles and mix with a sun-dried tomato, olive and basil sauce or creamy cashew sauce.

With the cooked noodles, you can make a Thai-inspired dish with lime, ginger, chili, sesame oil and tamari. Add fresh veggies, bean sprouts, peanuts and coriander for a delicious Pad Thai. Or, cook and then blanch the noodles to make a noodle salad, adding fresh veggies, herbs, corn, green beans, sesame seeds, balsamic vinegar and coconut oil.

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These dishes are all very versatile and you can work with whatever you have on hand and whatever is fresh and in season.

Most importantly, be creative and share the experience of food together. Take the kids to farmers markets or begin to grow a simple garden. When kids learn more about where their food is coming from, they’ll be better equipped to make good decisions regarding food as they get older.

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