Veggie dinner ideas which dh (Total meat lover) will approve of?

[mamaLou13]

My dh thinks that every meal needs meat to be a 'proper meal' but i would gladly give meat a miss a couple of nights a week. I just need some inspiration as to what may sway him. We can also save abit of money as well.
Thanks

Try this book. I have personally witnessed a teenage boy enjoy recipes from it!

can you not just reduce the amount of meat within the meal. for example, bolognese or chilli con carne with less mince but more lentils/veg/beans.

Falafel or cauliflower & chickpea curry

vegetable lasagne?

beans and rice?

Oh - pasta with aubergines

How about a roasted vegetable pasta bake? Or mushroom risotto?

black bean chilli. DH and DS1 love it.

My dp is a 'carnivore' but will happily eat -

lasagne made with puy lentils

a variety of veggie curries (he especially likes dhal, chickpea curries and paneer)

quiche (I usually do red onion and gouda but there's lots of possibilities) with garlic roasted potatoes and salad

Thai vegetable curry and rice, with tofu or cashew nuts instead of meat or seafood

Pasta arabiatta

Veggie chilli made with a mixture of red lentils, puy lentils and beans

Watching with interest, the only veggie meal dp will eat is egg chips and beans

Black bean chilli is pretty much what I meant by beans and rice.

Delicious! Way better than chilli with meat.

Or this bean curry: Beans with tomato, coriander and coconut milk

We make it with black-eyed beans.

Get the River Cottage Veg Everyday book - its a veggie book that carnivores will love! Im not vegetarian but I cook loads from it.

We all adore mushroom risotto, macaroni cheese, and egg fried rice (which I usually do with left over chicken but its lovely with a few more veggies) theres a toad in the hole recipe where you use portabello mushrooms cut into big chunks instead of sausages or steak that is gorgeous (it was in my 50s cook book but its just a normal toad batter) you can get veggie gravy mix too. Home made veggie pasties are lovely too especially if spiced up with curry. Fried halloumi and cherry tomato pasta is nice too (its called squeaky cheese pasta in our house) spaghetti frittata is very good, bake potatoes have so many toppings you can try even baked beans and cheese is lovely.

I'm a total carnivore and realised with horror last night that I'd had a veggie day without realising it!

I had french onion soup for my lunch (ok that may have been made with meaty stock, I don't know, but there was no actual meat in it!) and then falafels with yogurt, salad etc in pittas. DCs all said the falafels were like meatballs without the meat.

I also second the idea of mushroom risotto, veg lasagne, curry etc where the meat is usually a bit hidden anyway so you don't notice its absence.

Also yes to baked potatoes - we usually offer a selection of beans, cheese or tuna/sweetcorn so if fish is allowed that would be a good one, but if not then perhaps another veggie filling to choose from.

I'm vegan, don't miss meat, husband will eat most of what I eat then do a couple of normal meat meals a week for himself and the kids (teenagers). I rarely make a fake meat meal but do make them spag bol using TVP mince and they love it, I just make the usual marinara sauce while pasta is cooking, and the mince is soaking, drain it and add it at the end. It looks like the real thing, tastes like it and I get away with it every time :)

I think the thing with meat eating blokes is that they can think that Veggie is abit flimsy and not proper food.

Two favourites here -

Cheese and Onion Pie - basically mash with cheese and onion mixed in, with pastry over the top. I serve it with beans and a dollop of brown sauce!

Linda McCartney Mozzerella burgers (best veggie ones I have had) with all the trimmings (bread/salad/chips)

Hope these help