My husband and kids would tell you I’m a huge fan of meal planning. But as much as I love to make plans, they don’t always work out. Sometimes I’m just too tired to cook what I had planned, so we end up eating something boring. Other times, not all the recipes are hits with the family.

But last week, we had a successful week – so much so that I noted it as a week to remember (and repeat). I thought I’d share our week of dinners for anyone looking for inspiration.

You’ll probably notice this is a vegetarian meal plan. That’s because we are on our fourth week of a vegetarian diet (more to come on that topic!). You could easily add meat to most or all of these dinners, though, if you are not vegetarian.

Here’s a checklist of all the ingredients you’ll need to make these dinners.

These meals cost no more that $15 each, even when I doubled the recipe. I did have some staple ingredients on hand, but that’s still not bad for healthy dinners to serve eight people!

These recipes are easy to make, too. I said three hours in the title, but I’m not sure it even took that long. Some of them take a bit more time the first time you make them, but overall I was surprised at how quickly everything came together.

So without further ado, here is a week of delicious, healthy meals we’ve tested and loved. I’ve also included lists of the ingredients needed for each recipe. Bon appetit!

The Best Vegan Chili

This was probably my favorite of all the recipes. I’m a huge chili fan, and I was highly skeptical that a vegan chili could ever be satisfactory. I’ve tried a few versions that were tasty, but just didn’t quite have that chili “thing.”

This recipe from My Quiet Kitchen does.

The use of walnuts in this recipe seemed weird to my newbie-vegetarian sentiments, but they were exactly what was needed to give this chili a meaty flavor. No joke, it tasted real. We had this with cornbread and a side salad. It was a perfect first-day-of-fall meal. I not only forgot there was no meat, but also that I was in Florida and it was 90 degrees outside.

I used quinoa instead of bulgur and omitted the jalapenos, mushroom powder, and Maldon smoked sea salt that are in the original recipe, but only because I didn’t have them on hand. They would make this chili even better!

You’ll need:

• Walnuts
• Jalapenos
• Garlic
• Soy sauce
• Crushed tomatoes
• Vegetable stock
• Onions
• Chili powder
• Oregano
• Canned beans (I used pinto beans, black beans, and kidney beans)
• Bulgur or quinoa

Photo by Lori Rasmussen from My Quiet Kitchen

Pasta Con Broccoli

Growing up in St. Louis, one of our family’s favorite places to eat out for dinner was the Pasta House, and you could bet one of us would probably order Pasta Con Broccoli. I tried making it myself for the first time while living in Belgium 16 years ago, when I was pregnant with our first child and had a ravenous craving for it. Of course, there was no Pasta House to be found. Thank goodness for the Internet!

I tried this recipe from Small Town Woman recently and found it to be true to the original. I used three fresh Roma tomatoes instead of the tomato sauce because I was discovered at the last minute that I was out of tomato sauce. It wasn’t quite the same, but had a nice fresh flavor that everyone enjoyed.

This recipe also goes well when topped with grilled chicken or shrimp.

You’ll need:

• Shell pasta
• Broccoli (fresh is best)
• Fresh mushrooms
• Garlic
• Basil
• Heavy whipping cream
• Parmesan cheese
• Tomato sauce

Shakshuka

Shakshuka (a delicious meal of eggs poached in tomato sauce) is one of our favorite Lenten recipes – in fact, we always feel a little guilty when we eat it because it’s not exactly penitential. I’ve tried a lot of recipes through the years, but we enjoy this one from Downshiftology for its simplicity and deliciousness.

We’ve actually eaten this twice in the last week. Pictured below is the first time, when we had it with a side of rice drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and fresh parsley. The second night, we added in a delicious bean side salad made with chickpeas, red onion, feta cheese, cucumbers, and bells peppers, which made the meal even more glamorous.

My one suggestion if you’ve never made shakshuka before is to try not to overcook the eggs. It’s really easy to see if they’re cooked enough – just make sure you don’t see any transparent, globby egg white in the sauce, and you should be good.

This is also a pretty quick dinner to cook – I usually finish it in less than 30 minutes. This recipe is pictured in the headline photo.

You’ll need:

• Olive oil
• Onion
• Bell pepper
• Garlic or garlic powder
• Paprika
• Cumin
• Chili powder
• Canned whole peeled tomatoes
• Eggs
• Salt and pepper
• Fresh cilantro and parsley (I only used parsley and it was delicious)

Chipotle- Style Taco Bowls

I don’t have a recipe for this meal, but it’s a staple we come back to every week due to its versatility. We usually have these on Taco Tuesday, but sometimes we eat them twice per week.

Last week, we used the following ingredients for our taco bowls:

• Rice
• Avocados
• Mix of pinto and black beans
• Street corn or plain corn
• Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or your preference)
• Chopped kale and spinach
• Plain yogurt
• Salsa

I set all these toppings out on our countertop and let the kids make their own bowls, and that’s it! Super easy, and it’s one of the kids’ favorite meals. This one is also to add meat to if you don’t want to go without. We’ve made it with ground meat, pork carnitas, or grilled steak strips.

Chickpea Veggie Burgers

I’ve always been so intimidated by veggie burgers, and now that I’ve made them a few times I have no idea what seemed so scary. You literally put a bunch of vegetables in your blender, add some eggs and breadcrumbs, and pan fry them. So easy!

We’ve tried a few versions over the last month, including one good black bean version, but these chickpea veggie burgers were our favorite. My daughter made a Tzatziki-inspired sauce to drizzle over them, and we served them with a side of fresh mango and plums, as well as roasted Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, and asparagus. It was so delicious!

You’ll need:

• Panko breadcrumbs
• Red bell pepper
• Chickpeas (I used dry ones but you could use canned)
• Carrots
• Green onions
• Nutritional yeast (This gives them really nice flavor!)
• Basic spices (salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, parsley)
• Olive oil or preferred oil for frying

Simple, Affordable, Healthy!

Those three words sum up this dinner plan. These meals are easy to make, cost very little, and pack in a ton of nutrients. Let us know if you give any of them a try!