byTaesha Butleron Nov 10, 2022 (updated Dec 29, 2022)
Are you feeling a bit more comfortable with the idea of veggies in your meals and ready to be a bit more daring? Get ready to open your palate to even more veggie-loaded food fun! This list includes recipes with some vegetables you may have less exposure to or might include veggies in a slightly more obvious way. No need to worry about boring salads though! Step 2 gives you MORE options and MORE flavors to choose from from breakfast through dessert. Grab your fork and spoon and get tasting!
What to learn more about The Veggie-Loaded Roadmap? Just enter your email here and I’ll send you this FREE resource to help you go from veggie-skeptic to veggie-lover in 3 easy steps!
How do I know if I should start at Step 2 in the Veggie-Loaded Roadmap
You might be at Step 2 if…..
you are ok with the idea of veggies in your food, but they aren’t yet your “go-to”.
you don’t mind seeing vegetables on your plate.
you are looking for recipes that make eating veggies more fun—while also expanding the variety and amount of vegetables throughout the day.
Feel like Step 2 isn’t right for you? Check out Step 1 recipes to see if that is a better fit for you!
Tips for transitioning through Step 2
Allow yourself to shift between step 1 and step 2 recipes seamlessly (and often!). This is about adding VARIETY rather than limiting yourself to recipes in certain steps.
No one step is better than another! You don’t reach some pinnacle of veggie-loaded perfection! Our palates and plates are all unique and change throughout the seasons and years.
You do NOT have to like all foods…or all foods in all the ways! Sometimes we like tomato soup but raw tomatoes aren’t our jam. So what?! Rather than gulping something down by force, use this process as a way to discover what you DO like and HOW you like to eat those foods.
Don’t force others onto your veggie-loaded journey. Allow your family to try foods in their own way in their own time. It’s easy to want to get our kids to eat more veggies and stress out when they turn their noses up at a food (or our cooking!). Remember—kids have different palates and are still getting used to new tastes and textures. Serve what you make (see next tip!) and let go of any expectations about it being eaten.
Sometimes it helps to serve the veggie-loaded foods on the same plate—but sometimes using separate plates can be a game-changer! Or, even consider serving your meal family style (with the serving bowls in the middle of the table) so that everyone can take what they want and skip what they don’t. It being on the table with them still exposes our loved ones to veggie-loaded foods (more important in the journey than you may think!) and giving our family choices EMPOWERS them to try new foods in the future. No meal battles required!
What if different people in my family are at different Veggie-Loaded Steps?
That is the beauty of The Veggie-Loaded Roadmap is that you can easily use recipes from different steps to make meals that the whole family will love. These Step 2 recipes will be delicious and enjoyed by people at Step 1, 2, and 3!
I often will make a Step 2 recipe as part of meal for my 10-year-old daughter and add a Step 3 to the meal for me and my husband. This not only allows my daughter to eat veggie-loaded food that she enjoys and is where she is at on her own veggie-loaded journey, but exposes her to Step 3 veggie recipes for when she is ready.
This Peanut Butter Banana Spinach Smoothie is creamy, satisfying, and perfectly sweet. Made with just five, good-for-you ingredients, it is the perfect easy breakfast to start your day.
Packed with flavor and good-for-you ingredients, these Morning Glory Muffins are a healthy and delicious way to start the day! Veggie-loaded and perfect for a snack or grab-and-go breakfast, these muffins have less sugar than other Morning Glory Muffin recipes, and instead use maple syrup or honey. They’re perfect for making ahead to make a busy day a little easier.
These Oatmeal Green Smoothie Muffins are so easy to make, perfectly sweet, and made with so many good-for-you ingredients! Great as a healthy breakfast or snack, these muffins are hearty thanks to ground oats, sweetened with banana and a little maple syrup or honey, and packed with 2 cups of spinach! With over a hundred 5-star ratings, these spinach banana muffins are a must-make!
Delicious and easy, this Creamy Blueberry Cauliflower Smoothie is going to be a new favorite. Made with just 7 ingredients, this vegan and dairy-free smoothie is the perfect way to get vegetables in at breakfast.
This Crustless Spinach Sweet Potato Quiche recipe is the perfect, easy vegetarian breakfast. With the combination of potatoes, spinach, onion and goat cheese, it is a delicious way to eat more veggies. Naturally gluten free and great for meal prep.
These healthy cranberry orange carrot muffins just taste like the holidays! Loaded with whole grains, the perfect amount of tang from cranberries balanced out by the sweetness of orange, carrot, and maple syrup or honey.
An easy and delicious recipe for healthy Pink Beet Pancakes. These fun pink pancakes are quickly mixed in your blender, are super kid-friendly, full of healthy beets, naturally sweetened and can easily be made gluten free.
This Veggie-Loaded Breakfast Cookie Recipe is made with grated carrots, zucchini, oats and studded with sweet blueberries. These cookies are easy, naturally sweetened, and perfect for dunking in coffee or for a breakfast on-the-go!
Instant Pot oatmeal is the perfect easy breakfast! This pressure cooker oatmeal is made with hearty steel cut oats and has the added boost of zucchini and carrots. Filling, sweet, warm flavors and veggies— the perfect healthy breakfast recipe.
This Pumpkin Chia Seed Pudding is the perfect simple healthy fall dessert! Mixed up in minutes before setting in your fridge and NO COOKING required, you will love how easy and delicious this simple dessert recipe is!
Made a stunning shade of pink by antioxidant-rich red fruits, like raspberries and strawberries, plus peeled and cooked beets, this beet smoothie recipe is quick to make, bright and refreshing! It’s an easy morning smoothie, and a terrific way to get veggies in before you start your day.
Jump into fall with this Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal. Easy to make, delicious and full of warm flavors. Easily gluten free and dairy-free, this is perfect to healthy breakfast or a great recipe to make as part of meal prep.
These savory Veggie-Loaded Pizza Muffins are easy to make at home in a muffin tin, quick to reheat, and a healthy idea for kids lunch boxes! The pizza muffins are made with white whole wheat flour, and packed with spinach, grated carrots and zucchini for a boost of vegetables in every bite!
This Healthy Tuna Salad is delicious, easy and offers up the perfect amount of crunch from added veggies! Made from simple ingredients, this delicious salad is great over greens, on a sandwich or simply on its own. The perfect no-cook, easy, healthy lunch recipe!
This Healthy Broccoli Cheddar Soup is creamy, and full of delicious, flavorful veggies! This recipe comes together in just one pot and is a warm, comforting vegetarian and gluten free dinner recipe.
This Spinach Mac and Cheese is a great way to get veggies into a classic family favorite! Easy to make with frozen or fresh spinach, perfectly cheesy, and done in about 15 minutes!
This Healthy Stuffed Pepper Soup is the perfect easy dinner to curl up with at the end of the day. Delicious, hearty, and full of vegetables! The perfect healthy dinner recipe for weeknights!
This black bean sweet potato quesadilla recipe is easy to make, loaded with flavor, and is full of healthy ingredients. Vegetarian and easily gluten free, this is a simple veggie meal that is always a crowd pleaser!
This Mushroom Lentil Pasta is the perfect easy dinner to cook up in no time! Hearty, vegetarian/vegan, flavorful and super budget friendly. Healthy comfort food at its finest and the perfect family dinner recipe.
These veggie quesadillas are loaded with spinach, lentils, carrot and lots of cheese! Not only are they quick, they are loaded with flavor, veggies and protein, and are also super adaptable and the perfect healthy meal for lunch or dinner!
Easy and delicious, this Baked Spinach Artichoke Pasta is a flavorful dinner that is packed with spinach, canned artichoke hearts, your favorite pasta, and protein from cottage cheese. Vegetarian and easily gluten free.
This easy chicken broccoli rice casserole is going to be a new favorite healthy family dinner recipe. Flavorful, full of healthy ingredients and a complete meal all in on dish! Easily dairy-free and gluten free.
Flavorful, juicy and full of veggies, these mini meatloaves are a great twist on a classic family dinner recipe. Easy to make, perfectly portioned out, and cooking up faster than traditional meatloaf recipes. Gluten free.
This Baked Pasta with Eggplant is an easy, family-friendly pasta casserole dish with added veggies. It's vegetarian and can easily be made gluten free and dairy-free.
This Healthier Tater Tot Casserole is full of ground turkey, delicious homemade sauce, and easy frozen veggies! This recipe comes together easily and is a hearty, comforting dinner recipe.
These Veggie-Loaded Turkey Tacos are an easy and delicious dinner the whole family will love! A great way to get more vegetables into a meal, this healthy dinner recipe is quick to make, flavorful and done in under 30 minutes.
Packed with vegetables, flavor and plant based protein, this vegetarian quinoa black bean casserole is the perfect easy healthy dinner recipe. Gluten free and easily vegan, this healthy casserole will become a new family staple.
This veggie-loaded turkey lasagna is delicious, lighter on the cheese, and loaded with all kinds of vegetables. The perfect healthy dinner to feed your family!
This simple 15-minute Vegetarian Pesto Pasta Salad is full of fresh flavor and incredibly easy to make at home with a small-shaped pasta. Cooked pasta is tossed with chopped spinach and basil, cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, and homemade or jarred pesto sauce. Serve cold, and enjoy!
This recipe for easy vegetarian fried rice is loaded with healthy veggies, tons of flavor, and is on the table in about 20 minutes! This is the perfect healthy, easy, veggie-loaded side to any dinner!
Making your own delicious homemade applesauce is so easy! With just a few ingredients, this recipe is kid-friendly and packed with added veggies. Easy, wholesome and so tasty . They whole family is going to love this healthy recipe!
This Carrot Cake Bread is easy to make, perfectly moist, and loaded with those warm classic carrot cake flavors. Made with whole grains, lower in sugar, naturally sweetened, and made extra special with optional addition of raisins and walnuts. Its the perfect healthier sweet treat.
Chocolate Avocado Mousse is an easy, healthy dessert recipe that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth! Whipped up in minutes with just a handful of ingredients in your blender, this rich pudding is vegan, Paleo and lovely!
This Sweet PotatoPeanut Butter Ball recipe is a healthier twist on a classic holiday treat. Made with just a few simple and easy-to-find ingredients, they taste so much like a “buckeye cookie."
These Watermelon Popsicles are made with just 3 good-for-you ingredients and are extra refreshing with the addition of cucumber! Prepared in minutes with no added sugar, these healthy popsicles are vegan, Paleo, and the perfect cold treat for kids and adults.
CarrotOatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars are the ultimate veggie-loaded snack or lunch box goodie. Mixed all in one bowl and made from oats, flax, a cup of grated carrots, and naturally sweetened with applesauce and maple syrup. Made extra delicious with some chocolate chips, these healthy oatmeal bars will be a new favorite snack!
Made from whole grains and naturally sweetened, this Healthy Blueberry Sweet Potato Bread is a delicious breakfast, snack or treat. Mixed together in one bowl and into the oven it goes, this recipe will be a new family favorite!
These fudgy gluten free brownies and not only chocolatey, easy, and delicious, but are loaded with a secret healthy ingredient: beets! Healthy, simple to make, and perfect healthy treat to feed your sweet tooth. And they are vegan too boot!
These Healthy Gluten Free Brownies (with zucchini) are so fudgy, chocolatey and delicious that no one will ever suspect that they’re healthy! Vegan and flourless with Paleo option!