Wondering what to make for dinner? You’re in the right place! Below, you’ll find easy dinner ideas to satisfy any craving. Think tacos, pasta, and more!
Do you ever have nights when you just don’t know what to make for dinner? When you run through a mental list of easy dinner ideas, but nothing sounds good? If you do, you’re in the right place. Below, you’ll find 60 healthy dinner recipes that are perfect for busy weeknights. Each one is quick and easy to make, but it still packs a punch of flavor.
Think roasted veggie tacos with a creamy, zesty sauce. Imagine luxurious baked feta and a comforting pasta ready in under 30 minutes. You’ll find all that and more among the easy dinner ideas below. I hope you enjoy looking through them! And the next time you’re craving something healthy, delicious, and quick, and I hope you try one. Fingers crossed it makes it into your regular rotation. 🙂
Popular Dinner Recipes
Minestrone Soup
This classic soup is one of the most popular recipes on Love & Lemons, and for good reason! Filled with pasta, beans, and flavorful veggies, it’s a meal in a bowl.
Sesame Soba Noodles
In this simple recipe, a bright, nutty dressing coats gooey soba noodles and crisp veggies. It’s healthy, delicious, and ready in 20 minutes!
Broccoli Cheddar Soup
This creamy, cheesy soup might be Jack’s favorite food. It’s one of our go-to easy dinner recipes throughout the fall and winter!
Easy Black Bean Burger
These smoky, spicy patties are ready in 30 minutes! Serve them with a slather of chipotle sauce and your favorite burger fixings.
Shakshuka
Shakshuka is a traditional breakfast throughout North Africa and the Middle East, but it’s just as good for dinner. Serve it with pita or crusty bread for scooping up the flavorful tomato and red pepper sauce.
Best Lentil Soup
French green lentils fill this nourishing soup with fiber and plant-based protein.
Veggie Frittata
Of all the easy dinner ideas out there, a frittata might be the one I rely on most. It’s simple, fast, and amazingly flexible. Try one of the 5 variations in my recipe, or toss in whatever veggies you have on hand.
Perfect Baked Potato
Load up a baked potato with your favorite fixings for an easy, healthy meal! I like mine with cashew sour cream, plant-based bacon, and fresh chives.
Vegetarian Lasagna
With layers of tender noodles, tangy marinara sauce, creamy ricotta, and roasted veggies, this lasagna is the ultimate comfort food. Assemble it ahead of time for an easy weeknight dinner!
Tortellini Soup
Chewy, cheesy tortellini and aromatic vegetables make this soup a satisfying dinner. Attention parents: kids love it!
Healthy One-Pan Meals
Sheet Pan Gnocchi
This sheet pan dinner is the best recipe for busy weeknights. The gnocchi roasts alongside fresh veggies and tangy feta cheese. No boiling required! It’s ready in 30 minutes, and cleanup is a breeze.
Chana Masala
This fragrant chickpea curry is simple to make with pantry ingredients. Serve it over rice with cilantro and yogurt on top.
Easy Coconut Curry
This easy veggie curry is one of my favorite healthy dinner ideas! It tastes even better on the second day than it does on the first, so it’s a great recipe to prep ahead for quick meals throughout the week.
Cauliflower Fried Rice
Blitz together your own cauliflower rice if you have the time, but if not, the store-bought kind will work here too.
Baked Feta
Don’t expect to have leftovers of this hearty one-pot meal. The combination of melty feta, saucy chickpeas, and tender kale is SO delicious. In our house, it disappears in minutes!
Mexican-Inspired Dinner Ideas
Easy Enchiladas
These spinach, black bean, and cheese enchiladas are a HUGE family favorite! We love them with fresh garnishes like avocado and jalapeños.
Mushroom Tacos
These tacos are a delicious, simple meal! Warm corn tortillas surround meaty, juicy mushrooms, pickled onions, and a zesty avocado salsa.
Quesadilla Recipe
Dinner ideas don’t get quicker than this! You can make these satisfying veggie, black bean, and cheese quesadillas in under 15 minutes.
Vegan Tacos
Love all things sweet and spicy? These tacos are the easy dinner for you! A refreshing mango salsa accents the meaty jackfruit filling.
Avocado Sweet Potato Tacos
Roasted sweet potatoes, black beans, and a zesty yogurt sauce fill these weeknight-friendly tacos. Add a flourish of pickled onions to take them over the top!
Vegan Burrito
Stuffed with Spanish rice, black beans, peppers, and guacamole, these vegan burritos are just as tasty as any filled with meat or cheese.
Simple, Dinner-Worthy Soups
Dumpling Soup
Keep a bag of frozen potstickers on hand so that you can make this quick and easy soup on weeknights. It’s super flavorful, fresh, and fun—the best homemade solution for a takeout craving.
Black Bean Soup
This spicy soup is great on its own, but a few toppings—think Greek yogurt, avocado, and pickled onions—will take it to a whole new level.
Instant Pot Lentil Soup
Once you add the ingredients to the Instant Pot, this healthy veggie soup practically cooks itself.
Quick and Easy Chili Recipes
Easy Vegetarian Chili
Chipotles in adobo sauce add tangy, smoky flavor to this hearty weeknight chili.
White Bean Soup
My plant-based spin on white chicken chili! Blended white beans give it a wonderful creamy texture, and fresh lime juice and diced green chiles add zingy, zesty flavor.
Instant Pot Chili
This set-it-and-forget-it recipe is a lifesaver on a busy weeknight. You just have to sauté the onions and bell pepper—the Instant Pot takes care of the rest!
Healthy Grain Bowl Dinner Ideas
Best Buddha Bowl
This healthy grain bowl is flexible—feel free to swap in whatever veggies you have on hand!
Burrito Bowl
Guaranteed to give Chipotle a run for its money.
Mango Ginger Rice Bowl
This simple bowl is so light and refreshing! I love how the sweet mango and pickled ginger play off the earthy vegetables and savory tamari dressing.
Veggie Power Bowl
I like to make this bowl with a base of forbidden rice. It has a lovely nutty flavor that tastes delicious with the sesame ginger dressing here.
Mediterranean Quinoa Bowl
This no-fuss dinner is light and refreshing. Tomatoes, cucumbers, roasted chickpeas, and avocado top a bed of hearty quinoa. A tangy yogurt sauce ties it all together!
Easy Pasta Dinner Ideas
Stuffed Shells
Filled with a bright, creamy mixture of ricotta, lemon zest, and fresh spinach, these stuffed shells are pure comfort.
Zucchini Pasta
2 pounds of grated zucchini cook down into a light, silky sauce for this zesty weeknight pasta.
Pasta Primavera
This colorful veggie pasta is a cinch to make on the stovetop. Ready in just 30 minutes!
Fettuccine Alfredo
This pasta tastes rich and decadent, but it’s actually lighter than you might guess. I blend cooked cauliflower into the sauce to create a creamy, velvety texture without any cream.
Easy Baked Ziti
If you want to sneak some extra veggies onto your family’s plates, this recipe is a great way to do it. There’s an entire pound of spinach hiding among the pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese!
Spaghetti Aglio e Olio
My fresh take on the Italian classic. I add a big bunch of kale and—of course—lots of lemon.
Mushroom Pasta
If you ask Jack for his favorite dinner ideas, this mushroom pasta will be near the top of the list. It’s PACKED with meaty mushrooms. White wine, garlic, and Parmesan add rich, savory depth of flavor.
Easy Pesto Pasta
Whip up this weeknight pasta with store-bought or homemade pesto.
Homemade Mac and Cheese
If our kiddo had his way, we’d eat this baked mac and cheese for dinner every night. Serve it with a side of peas or roasted broccoli.
Vegan Mac and Cheese
A hit with kids and adults alike, this plant-based riff on mac and cheese is the perfect family meal. It’s creamy, tangy, and unbelievably “cheesy!”
Creamy Vegan Pasta
Blended white beans add plant-based protein to this pasta’s creamy sauce.
Stuffed Veggies
Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
You won’t miss the ground beef in these vegetarian stuffed peppers! Filled with rice, corn, and black beans, they’re hearty and flavorful without any meat.
Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Filled with cherry tomatoes, breadcrumbs, and herbs, these zucchini boats are a perfect fresh meal for late summer or early fall.
Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
In my opinion, stuffed sweet potatoes are one of the BEST healthy dinner ideas! They’re cozy, customizable, and easy to make. To streamline the process, prep the filling while the sweet potatoes bake.
Stuffed Acorn Squash
While the squash is in the oven, cook the filling on the stove. It’s a hearty, flavorful blend of sautéed mushrooms, tempeh, walnuts, and fresh herbs that tastes fantastic with the sweet, creamy squash.
Healthy Sandwich Recipes to Make for Dinner
Grilled Cheese
This toasty sandwich is the perfect partner for a bowl of tomato soup.
Caprese Sandwich
This recipe is one of our go-to easy dinners in the summertime, when fresh tomatoes are at their peak.
Banh Mi Sandwich
Heads up: you’ll need to make the pickles for this recipe a day or two in advance. Once you make them, though, this delicious tofu sandwich comes together in no time!
Chickpea Salad Sandwich
This recipe is one of my go-to easy dinner ideas in the spring, when I often have crisp veggies like radishes and cucumbers on hand in the fridge. It’s my vegan version of a pan bagnat, made with a briny chickpea salad, fresh basil, olives, and blanched green beans.
Portobello Mushroom Burger
Tamari and balsamic vinegar add rich, tangy flavor to these meaty grilled mushroom caps.
Healthy Dinner Recipes for Pizza Night
Favorite Veggie Pizza
Skip delivery, and make homemade pizza instead! This classic veggie pizza is one of my favorites. I top it with tomato sauce, mozzarella, peppers, onions, and artichokes.
Best Vegan Pizza
Who says you need cheese to make a delicious pizza? I top this one with a luscious cashew cream sauce and flavorful veggies like tomatoes, jalapeños, broccoli, and corn.
Margherita Pizza
This classic pizza is an easy, kid-friendly dinner! Round out the meal by serving a Caesar salad or simple green salad on the side.
More Easy Dinner Ideas
Bok Choy Stir Fry
It’s impossible to talk about easy dinner ideas without mentioning stir fry! This one is heavy on the veggies, made with a colorful medley of broccoli, bok choy, carrots, and shiitake mushrooms.
Sweet Potato Hash
This satisfying, healthy meal cooks up in a single skillet in under 30 minutes. Spice it up with dashes of your favorite hot sauce!
Okonomiyaki
These savory Japanese pancakes come together with a few basic ingredients: eggs, cabbage, panko, and scallions. Devour them with toppings like mayo, pickled ginger, sesame seeds, and sliced nori!
Crispy Sesame Tofu
These savory, sesame-crusted tofu steaks crisp up beautifully in the air fryer or oven. Serve them with steamed veggies and cilantro lime rice for a healthy meal that’s better than takeout!
Peanut Noodles
These quick peanut noodles have been one of my go-to easy dinner ideas since college. They’re budget-friendly and fast, but still fresh and flavorful.
60 Easy Dinner Ideas
Serves 6 to 8
This baked ziti is one of our favorite easy dinner ideas!
- 4 cups (32 ounces) marinara sauce
- 2 cups (16 ounces) ricotta cheese
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt, more for the pasta water
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound ziti pasta
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 1 pound fresh spinach
- 1½ cups smoked mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup grated pecorino or Parmesan cheese
Prevent your screen from going dark
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Preheat the oven to 425°F. Spread ½ cup marinara in the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish.
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In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, garlic, lemon zest, oregano, red pepper flakes, ½ teaspoon salt, and several grinds of fresh pepper.
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In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain.
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Return the pot back to the stove. Over low heat, drizzle the bottom of the pot with a little olive oil and add the spinach. Toss and sauté 1 to 2 minutes until just wilted, working in batches if necessary. Turn off the heat, remove the spinach from the pot, and gently squeeze out some of the excess water. Coarsely chop it and set aside.
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Add the pasta back to the pot along with the remaining marinara, most of the chopped spinach, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, and more fresh pepper and toss until combined.
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Add half the pasta to the baking dish, top with dollops of the ricotta, the remaining spinach, and scoop the remaining pasta on top. Top with the mozzarella and pecorino cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and bake until the cheese is browned, 16 to 22 minutes.
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Garnish with fresh basil or parsley and serve hot.
