Here’s what vegan dinners we’re making this week in the Plant Power Couple kitchen! We’e also included meal prep and serving advice for each meal. Putting a delicious plant-based dinner on the table doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Let us help!

Come back weekly for new vegan dinner ideas, or sign up for our email list to get these plans emailed to you every Sunday!

---

Week 38: Comfort Food to Welcome Fall

We’re finally entering “turn off the AC” weather here in Philly this week, and I feel like I can finally exhale.

I’m sitting here writing this email early on a Sunday morning with the cool fall breeze blowing through my front windows thinking…We did it! We must have summoned our collective powers with last week’s fall-inspired meal plan and brought on some cozy fall weather. 🍂😉

So, let’s keep it going with this week’s meal plan full of recipes that feel like a warm hug and an invitation to slow down, be present, and enjoy the changing seasons.

And side note: If you’re looking to add even more fall coziness to your life this year, we put together a list of our top must-make vegan fall recipes including breakfasts, dinners, snacks, appetizers, everything! Consider it your vegan fall bucket list. We’ve already checked at least 4 of these recipes off the list! How many have you?!

Here’s What’s for Dinner This Week:

Monday:

🧀 Smoky Sweet Potato Mac and Cheese

A nice, easy fall comfort food to start your week! I’ll be honest: I’m super picky about sweet potato recipes. Usually, I only like things that are balanced by a whole lot of savory, cheesy, umami flavor…and this recipe DELIVERS. Delightful served on its own or with some pan-fried soy curl chick’n!

Prep Ahead Option:

• Feel free to blend the sauce ahead of time, so you just have to cook the pasta and stir it all together on Monday!
• This + several other recipes this week will use our homemade vegan chicken bouillon powder, so if you don’t already have a batch made, make it now! It is worth every second of the 5 minutes it takes to throw together…trust me on that!

Tuesday:

🥦 Vegan Chicken Rice & Broccoli Casserole

One of my FAVORITE casseroles of fall! The rice cooks up in the oven in a thick, savory gravy with soy curl chicken and broccoli throughout. It’s a go-to healthy comfort food in our house. The key here is to make sure you use Instant rice, so it cooks up perfectly with almost no effort on your part.

Prep Ahead Option:

• It’s always helpful to make the vegan condensed cream of chicken a day or two ahead of time here! Then Tuesday dinner is just mindless assembly.

Wednesday:

🍄 Tikka Masala Lasagna

This is an ooooold recipe on the blog that we revisit at least once every fall! Lasagna noodles layered with curried walnut-mushroom meat, pumpkin-cashew ricotta, and a masala-inspired blender sauce. When T was teaching, I once sent a batch of this in, and it got RAVE reviews from all the high schoolers which kind of blew my mind because you know they’re telling you the boldfaced truth about liking your food! 😂

Prep Ahead Option:

• Feel free to prepare or all the components of this recipe (the meat, ricotta, and/or sauce) ahead of time if you’re strapped for time on Wednesday. They’ll keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days!

Thursday:

🥘 Slow-Cooker Fall Veggie Stew

If you are a stew fan like T, this is going to be a new favorite. Root veggies in a thick, savory broth with a hint of fall spices thanks to some seasonal pumpkin beer. Perfect for the rainy weather coming for Philly this week! Serve with a thick slice of crusty bread and maybe a pumpkin beer. (The recipe uses one already, so it does make sense to have one for yourself! 😉)

Prep Ahead Option:

• This recipe is pretty hands-off but does involve a fair bit of chopping, so you can do that 12–24 hours ahead of time if you’d like and store the chopped veggies in airtight containers until you’re ready to use them.

Friday:

🍽️ Diner-Style TVP Meatloaf

The ultimate comfort food! I just made this last week, and it always feels like a warm hug kinda meal. We worked on perfecting this meatloaf for years so it would be perfectly meaty and sliceable and NOT like other sad, mushy versions we’ve had in the past. This one ticks all the boxes, and leftovers make amazing sandwiches over the weekend! Serve with buttery vegan mashed potatoes and perhaps some spicy green beans if you need to get a vegetable in. 😉

Prep Ahead Option:

• This recipe takes a good 60 minutes in the oven (WORTH it!), so if you need a little extra time on Friday, feel free to make the meatloaf mix and press it into your meatloaf pan 12–24 hours ahead of time. Then, just store it in the fridge (covered) until ready to bake! I’ll usually take the meatloaf out for 15–30 minutes to sit on the counter before baking just to bring it to room temp, but I think you could get away with not doing that if it slips your mind!

One Last Thing 💚

I hope you get at least one of those first real fall evenings this week with the windows open, cozy dinner on the table, and absolutely no AC required.

See you again next week!