Favourite Vegetarian Recipes for National Vegetarian Week

In honour of National Vegetarian Week I thought it would be fun to put together a collection of some of my favourite vegetarian recipes that I have on my blog. I won't lie, there is a lot of pasta but since I'm a pasta-holic it's to be expected I guess. I love eating vegetarian food and think it's good for everyone to have at least one or two nights a week enjoying a delicious meal without meat. I hope you like the collection as much as I do but I have realised that I definitely need to come up with some more vegetarian recipes that don't feature pasta!

From Top L-R: Tomato & Mozzarella Tart; Lemon Spaghetti; Mozzarella, Almond & Pomegranate Salad; Spicy Tomato & Mozzarella Gnocchi; Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles; Quinoa Salad; My Favourite Bruschetta; Hearty Italian Vegetable Soup: Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni; Tomato & Vodka Spaghetti; Flatbread Pizza; Mushroom Bruschetta with Cheat's Aioli; Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli; Penne Arrabiata; Zucchini & Lemon Spaghetti and Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Tomato & Mozzarella Tart

Lemon Spaghetti

Mozzarella, Almond & Pomegranate Salad

Spicy Tomato & Mozzarella Gnocchi

Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles

Quinoa Salad

My New Favourite Bruschetta

Hearty Italian Vegetable Soup

Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni

Tomato & Vodka Spaghetti

Flatbread Pizza

Mushroom Bruschetta with Cheat's Aioli

Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli

Penne Arrabiata

Zucchini & Lemon Spaghetti

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli

Tenderstem Broccoli, Broccolini and Broccolette - all names referring (as far as I can tell) to the same wonderful thin, long-stemmed variety of broccoli. It is one of my all time favourite vegetables and when it comes into season I am always so happy!

This is by far one of my favourite ways to enjoy it, as a quick and simple delicious pasta dish ideal for knocking up for a midweek meal that is filling but light at the same time. The amount of time needed to cook the broccoli will depend on how thin the stalks are but as a guide the latest bunch I had were almost pencil thin and therefore needed no more than 1 minute for the stalks and 30 seconds for the florets, but if they are a bit thicker the stalks might need up to 2 minutes.

Butternut Squash 'Mac' & Cheese

I love Butternut Squash and combined with a cheese sauce it makes for a fabulous variation of the classic pasta dish, Mac and Cheese. It adds a lovely richness to the dish and a real sweetness which kids especially love. I am very fortunate that Ben is a great eater and thankfully loves vegetables but if you have a child (or other family member!) that isn't so keen on veg then this is a great way to sneak it in to their meals.

I wouldn't normally add cream cheese to my Macaroni & Cheese and to be honest the first time I tried it was purely because I had a lot of cream cheese needing used up so I thought why not? It turned out that the tang of the cream cheese balanced the sweetness of the squash so well that I kept it as part of the permanent recipe. If you would rather not use cream cheese however, then simply replace with 85g or 3oz of your favourite cheese such as mozzarella or gruyere.

Italian Sausage Soup

My sister-in-law Kim passed this recipe on to me after she made it for her family and it disappeared in an instant! Once I tried it I wasn't surprised – it is amazing and the perfect mid-week meal. The original recipe was for a slow-cooker but I've adapted this one to make it on the stove top. You can make it either way – just whatever is most convenient for you. I've changed the original recipe a little bit just to make more broth as the pasta absorbs a lot and I can promise you, you will want plenty of this soup! A delicious slightly spicy broth, with juicy sausage meatballs, pasta and spinach – it really is a complete meal in a bowl that your family will thank you for and perfect after a long day Christmas shopping!

For the Meatballs:

1lb sausages of your choice (mild Italian work well but use what you can get)

50g/ ½ cup dried bread crumbs

15g/ ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

60ml/ ¼ cup milk

1 large egg

½ tsp Italian seasoning

small pinch of salt

Freshly ground black pepper

For the Soup:

2 litres/ 8 cups good quality chicken stock/broth

2 tbsp tomato puree/paste

1 fat clove of garlic, crushed

¼ – ½ tsp chilli flakes (optional)

85g/ ¾ cup small pasta shapes (I like Ditalini the best but use your favourite)

3 large handfuls of baby spinach leaves (if you prefer you can add more)

To serve:

Parmesan cheese, grated

Pre-heat the oven to 350F/ 180C and line a baking tray with tin foil (aluminium).

Start by making the meatballs by removing the sausage meat from the casing. Put into a bowl along with the rest of the meatball ingredients. Mix well so that everything is well combined then shape into small meatballs. I use my smallest ice cream scoop for this which makes it even quicker and easier to do and means that they are all the same size. Using my ice cream scoop I usually get 35-40 meatballs so aim for that. Bake the meatballs in the oven for 20 minutes until just browned.

While the meatballs are baking make the broth by combining the chicken stock, tomato puree, garlic and chilli flakes in a large pan. Bring to a boil then add the meatballs and cook at a gentle simmer for 10-15 minutes. Increase the heat a little so that it is boiling again and add the pasta. Cook for roughly 10 minutes or according to the time indicated on the packet of pasta, stirring from time to time. As soon as the pasta is ready remove the soup from the heat then add the spinach. Stir well then cover with a lid and leave to sit for 5 minutes to allow the pasta to swell a little more, the spinach to wilt and all the flavours to mingle and become even more delicious!

When ready to serve ladle into bowls and finish with a good sprinkling of parmesan.

*If you would rather make this in a slow-cooker make the meatballs as above then put the stock, tomato puree, garlic and chilli flakes into the slow-cooker/ crock-pot and then add the meatballs once they have been browned in the oven, and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Add the pasta and cook for a further 30 minutes. Once it is tender add the spinach and stir until it has wilted. Serve as above.

Witches Hair with Bugs {Spaghetti with Prawns}

Try not to be too grossed out by the name (or look!) of this dish as it is the perfect Halloween dish to get you in the mood for trick or treating or to quickly gobble down after! There is something about black spaghetti that just screams Halloween and so I just can't resist making it to mark the occasion. I love this dish as it takes no time to make – literally just as long as it takes for the pasta to cook – it tastes fantastic and has the perfect Halloween look to keep the children happy! Of course when Halloween has past this is still a fantastic meal which can be enjoyed minus the black spaghetti and with whole wheat or regular white spaghetti instead. We eat this dish a lot as it is the perfect quick and easy mid-week meal!

{Serves 4 easily doubled for a crowd}

400g black (squid ink) spaghetti

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 long red chilli, finely chopped (de-seed for a milder child friendly dish)

1lb prawns, cleaned*

Juice of ½ lemon

Sprinkling of fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Cook the pasta in a large pan of salted, boiling water for the time instructed on the packet. While the spaghetti is cooking heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a frying pan and gently cook the garlic and chilli until softened but not coloured. Add the prawns and toss well and cook until warmed through (or if using raw prawns until they have cooked properly). Squeeze over the lemon juice then take off the heat.

Drain the spaghetti reserving a tablespoon of the cooking water then add the spaghetti to the garlicky prawns. Add the reserved pasta water then mix well. Finish with the final tablespoon of olive oil to give a real 'glossy' look to the pasta then if using scatter over the parsley. Serve at once.

*For this particular dish I used small prawns since I thought they better resembled bugs(!) however ordinarily when I make this I use normal sized prawns. You can use either cooked or raw prawns for this dish, just make sure they have their shells off and have been cleaned. If you do use raw prawns they will require about 4 minutes to cook whereas the cooked prawns literally just need to be heated through.

**If you like you can miss out the prawns and have a super simple pasta supper of Garlic & Chilli Spaghetti – one of my favourites! 

Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni

A perfect Summer dish for using up some fresh basil pesto that you might have in your fridge desperate to be used! Light tasting and full of Summer flavours, this dish is sure to become a family favourite. Serve with some steamed seasonal greens or a nice crisp salad and once you have tried the original recipe why not mix things up a bit by using some Spicy Red Pesto or your favourite version of pesto. If you aren't a fan of Goats cheese you could try using Boursin, Ricotta or even cream cheese.

There are a few things to note about this recipe…. First of all regarding the tomato sauce, due to my husband's dislike to tomato chunks I always blend my tomatoes or use passata (sieved tomatoes). If you prefer a smooth sauce blend away otherwise keep the sauce chunky! Secondly, the lasagna sheets that I buy are quite large so I cut them in half – if yours are smaller don’t bother cutting them. Finally, I use a rectangular glass Pyrex dish to cook my cannelloni in – approximately 9” x 13 ½” – and it fits perfectly. If you don’t have a similar dish use what you do have – you can always cut the cannelloni to make them fit! This is real, fresh home cooking at its best.

Lemon Spaghetti

There are 3 things that I always have in my house.....Spaghetti, Parmesan and Lemons. For some reason lemons are my thing that I always seem to buy when I don't need them then end up with an entire bowlful, so this dish is the perfect way to use them up. It's also an ideal meal for warmer days when you still want something satisfying to eat but with all the light and fresh flavours of the season. Even better it takes no time to make so it really is the perfect mid-week meal to enjoy whilst sitting outside basking in the sun as it cools in the evening. This is real happy, sunshine food!

Classic Comforting Lasagne

When you are cooking for a crowd you can't beat a Classic Lasagne, layered with a rich and delicious ragu, velvety smooth bechamel sauce, tender pasta and of course plenty of oozing melted cheese. It might take a bit of time to make but the great thing about this dish is that you can easily make it ahead of time then just bake it when you are ready to. It also freezes well which is another bonus and if that's not enough, Lasagne is a fantastic family meal that is guaranteed to be a hit with even fussy eaters (trust me, I have a 2 year old!). There is a reason Lasagne is a classic recipe that people turn to over and over and it is definitely making more appearances in our house to keep everyone happy and satisfied!