13 Best Vegan Meals for Kids All Parents Need to Know!

Are you looking for some vegan and plant-based recipes to get your kids eating healthier?  You found it!  Here, you’ll find the top 13 vegan meals for kids.

Whether you’re vegan all the time or just trying to incorporate more plant-based food into your kid’s diets you’ve come to the right place!

I went plant-based about 8 months ago and I am loving it!  As I go along I have tried many meals to get my kids and husband on board with me so I’m not making 2 meals like a short-order cook.  These are the tried and true meals we sit down and eat together with everyone happy and satisfied.

Eating a plant-based diet will have such a positive impact on you and your family.  Having more energy, saving money, less chance of chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, and more nutrients and lower cholesterol.  I learned about a high carb low fat plant-based diet from The Starch Solution by Dr. John MacDougall.  This book changed my life and I know you’ll love it too!  Click this link to buy it on amazon.

I hope you’ll try some of these recipes and comment below.  Kids and parents will love these healthy plant-based, vegan, and SOS-free (salt, sugar, oil) options.

This post is all about the 13 BEST vegan meals for kids.

Meals by Category

Breakfast

1.Sweet Potato Waffles

2. Banana Oat Pancakes

Ready in 20 minutes

Makes about 8 pancakes

Serves 2 (4 pancakes each)

You’ll Need:

4 bananas

2 cups oats

1 TBS vanilla

1/2 cup plant milk (add more one tablespoon at a time if your batter is too thick to pour)

2 TBS baking powder

You can also use blueberries, chopped nuts, or chocolate chips (my kids favorite) to top or cook into the pancakes

Instructions:

Preheat your non-stick griddle or frying pan at medium heat. Click here for an awesome non-stick griddle on Amazon

Add all ingredients into a high-speed blender and combine.  Once your griddle is hot, pour out pancake batter and add blueberries, nuts, or chocolate chips now if you’re using them. A little spray of cooking oil will not hurt your weight loss if you need it.  Go for it if you don’t have a non-stick surface to cook on.

 

3. Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal

My whole family has been IN LOVE with these frozen cherries from Trader Joe’s.  They’re so good!  I actually eat this cherry chocolate oatmeal on the daily as well!  If you put a few chocolate chips on anything my kids WILL eat it!  Try this and enjoy!

I ALWAYS use a banana to sweeten my oatmeal.  ALWAYS.  My kids love this recipe and yours will too!  This is a great vegan recipe for picky eaters too.  Who doesn’t like chocolate?  Kids don’t need to know about the banana or flax/chia seeds!  They just need to know they’re getting chocolate for breakfast!

Ready in 5 minutes

Makes 1 serving

You’ll Need:

1/3 cup of oatmeal per serving

1 banana

1/2 cup water

1 tsp cocoa powder

sprinkle cinnamon

1/4 frozen cherries (any fruit will do)

1/4 cup plant milk

1 TBS vegan chocolate chips – we use Enjoy Life at my house because of a nut allergy – they’re top 8 allergy free

1 TBS flax seed meal or chia seeds – a great way to get healthy fats into the kiddos!

Instructions:

Mash the banana in a bowl and add the water and oatmeal.  Microwave 2 minutes or pour 1/2 cup of boiling water over the oatmeal and stir.  Stir in cocoa powder, flax/chia seeds, and plant milk.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and top with blueberries and chocolate chips.

I let my kids do the whole thing now that they’re bigger 5 and 7.  Kids love to stir it all up at the end.  They’re more invested in eating it when they’ve made it themselves.  Enjoy!

Lunch

4. Mac and Cheese

Yes!  My kids are so into mac and cheese whether its plant based or not!  And to be totally honest so am I!  There are so many vegan mac and cheese recipes out there and believe me I’ve tried a bunch of stinkers!  People claim they have the the best vegan cheese sauce and they’re mostly pretty gross in my opinion.  If you feel the same way…try this last one before you give up hope.

Prep Time 1 Hour

Makes 8 Servings

You’ll Need:

1 cup precooked butternut squash – slice in half long ways and bake for about an hour at 425 – scoop out once fork tender

1/2 cup raw cashwes soaked in boiling water for 1 hr or 1/2 cup white beans

1 TBS white miso

1/2 cup nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp mustard

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 1/2 TBS lemon juice

1 TBS corn starch or tapioca flour

1 can coconut milk

16 ounces pasta – I like elbows for this recipe to keep it classic

Instructions:

Add all cheese sauce ingredients to a high speed blender (click here for the best cheap/fancy blender on amazon). Cook pasta according to directions and drain.  While pasta is hot, use about 1 cup of the cheese sauce and mix.  Continue to add 1/2 cup of cheese sauce at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Enjoy!

 

5. Peanut Butter and Jelly – Sunbutter and Jelly

Obviously, I know!  But it’s a classic and my kids will eat this every day if I let them!

5 Minutes Prep Time

Serves 1

You’ll Need:

2 slices bread – We use Ezekiel sprouted grain to get the most nutrition out of this meal

or

1 Whole Wheat Tortilla – Kids love roll ups too!

2 TBS Seed/Nut Butter – We use SunButter in our house because of a nut allergy

2 TBS Jelly/Jam – Try to find one without added sugar

Instructions:

Spread nut/seed butter and jelly on the bread or tortilla and voila!  Serve with fresh veggies or fruit.  You’ll probably want one too!

Cut off the crust or cut it to fun shapes for the kiddos!  That always helps!

6. No Tuna Salad

My kids and I love love love Tuna and Egg Salads but now that I’m plant-based and I’m trying to incorporate more plant-based meals in for my whole family, I have found this amazing alternative.  Plus you don’t smell like fish or an egg after you eat it.  This is an awesome, cheap, healthy idea for work and school.  This travels well and will have everyone at your school or office jealous of your lunch!

Prep Time 10 Minutes

Serves 4

You’ll Need:

1 can chickpeas

2 TBS mayo

1 TBS mustard

1 TBS sweet relish

1 tsp lemon juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:

Rinse the chickpeas and put into a bowl.  Mash with a fork until there are no more whole chick peas left.  Add the mayo, mustard, relish and lemon juice and mix.  Enjoy on bread, with crackers (my favorite), or scoop it up with carrots, celery and cucumber slices to keep the caloric density down.

Enjoy!

 

7. Hummus Wraps

Hummus is a thing in our house.  The kids are into it and so is my husband.  Below you will find the BEST OIL FREE HUMMUS RECIPE IN THE WORLD!!

Prep Time 15 Minutes

Serves 6

You’ll Need:

There is nothing better than homemade hummus.  This recipe is my absolute favorite!

You’ll Need:

1 can chickpeas

1/2 cup of the aquafaba liquid from the can of chickpeas (when you drain the chickpeas save the liquid!)

3 TBS tahini

Juice of 1/2 lemon (or more depending on how you like it)

1 TBS minced garlic (garlic powder works just as well)

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

Ezekiel bread or Whole Wheat Tortillas

Fresh Veggies – Spinich, Cucumber, Cabbage, Shredded Carrots, Picked Onions (link to the best recipe!), Avocado, etc.

Instructions:

Blend all ingredients to a blender and blend for 3 minutes.  This length of time makes it nice and fluffy!

Spread a generous amount on your bread or tortilla and top with your favorite veggies.  My favorite is spinich, shredded carrots, cucumber slices, and avocado.

Enjoy!

Dinner

8. Tacos

Who doesn’t love tacos?  Check out out to make them vegan without anyone noticing!  You could use fake meat but I find that beans solves that problem for us.  If you do want to make one of the fake meats just make it like you would normal taco meat.  I use salsa, cumin, and chili powder instead of the store bough spice packet which is laden with salt and other chemicals we don’t want to consume.

Prep Time 10 Minutes

Serves 6

You’ll Need:

1 can black beans or 1 can of refried beans

1/2 head of red cabbage shredded

1 cup frozen corn defrosted

Cheese Sauce from Above

1 cup sliced olives

1 cup cucumbers shopped

Hard or Soft Taco Shells – The least ingredients the better!  Corn is usually healthier than wheat also.

1 cup uncooked rice

1 lime

Bunch of Cilantro (optional) I know some people hate the stuff

Instructions:

Prepare 1 cup of white or brown rice according to the package.  Heat black beans and corn so they’re warm.  Chop vegetables to the desired size.  Prepare taco shells according to the package if you’re using hard taco shells.  Serve.  There’s not too much prep in this one because you’re not cooking the meat!

Enjoy!

9. Spaghetti and Mushroom-balls

We are some pasta lovers!   With an Italian husband and his big Itialian family we are always presented with giant bowls of meat gravy.  Meatballs, braciole, neck bones, and ribs.  Although delicious, this does not fit in with what our new lifestyle is.  After many attempts at meatless meatballs, this is finally the one that is soo good my kids ask for these balls over the traditional meatballs.  Mom win!

 

Prep Time 45 Minutes

Serves 5

You’ll Need:

1 container of white button mushrooms

1 cup of seasoned breadcrumbs (make sure they’re vegan)

1 flax egg (2 TBS ground flax seed and 4 TBS warm water mixed together)

3 TBS vegan Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup plant milk – make sure its plain and not vanilla – I like West Soy the best

1 TBS fresh chopped parsley

2 TBS fresh garlic (for 3 or 4 if you’re like us and get enough)

1/4 cup finely minced onion

1 jar marinara – We love Raos but it does have a lot of fat in it

1 pound whole-wheat pasta

Instructions:

Boil water for pasta. Heat frying pan over medium heat with 2 TBS water.  Water saute onion, garlic, and mushrooms until soft.  Add to a large bowl with breadcrumb, flax egg, Worcestershire, and plant milk.  Mix together and form into golf ball sized balls.  I like to air fry my balls but baking is just as good.  Airy fry at 450 for 10 minutes until they’re crispy on the outside. Add pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package.  Heat marinara in the firing pan you used for the mushrooms until it is simmering.  Add mushroom balls to the sauce.  I usually do only 1/2 half of them because my kids like them dry the weirdos!

Enjoy!

 

10. Fried Rice

Chinese food lovers? Look no further!

Prep Time 30 Minutes

Serves 6

You’ll Need:

2 cups cooked white or brown rice

1/2 cups shredded carrots

1/2 edamame

1/4 cup minced garlic

1/4 cup minced onion

1/2 mushrooms – if your kids will eat them

1/2 cup frozen corn

1/2/ cup frozen peas

3 TBS soy sauce or tamari

1 TBS sesame seads

1 TBS sesame oil

Instructions:

In a frying pan oil saute onion and garlic.  Add the rice and soy sauce.  Keep string and adding water so nothing sticks.  Add the veggies and heat until heated through.  Add the sesame seeds and oil at the end before serving.

This is also great with some tofu if your kids will eat it.  I take a block of extra firm and cube it, then brush it with teryaki sauce, and airy fry it at 450 for about 15 minutes until it’s crispy.

11. Mashed Potatoes

Everyone loves mashed potatoes!  Serve with veggies or tofu.  Everyone will be thrilled!

Prep 30 Minutes

Serves 6

You’ll Need:

3 LBS potatoes – I like yellow or red potatoes for mashed

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1/2 – 1 cup plain plant milk

1 TBS garlic powder

1 TBS onion salt or onion powder

Instructions:

Boil or steam potatoes until they’re fork tender.  Mash with milk, vegetable broth, and spices.  Serve!

 

Snacks

13. Energy Balls

Your kids absolutely love these and you will love when they eat them!  A great source of healthy calories and nutrition for them.  Like most of my recipes, you can use what you have on hand and make easy substitutions.  Some other add-ins are granola toppings, coconut, craisins, chopped nuts (if you can eat them).

You’ll Need:

1 cup oats (I use quick oats)

1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips (I use enjoy life because they’re nut free)

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup ground flax seeds

1/2 cup Sunbutter (you could also use peanut butter or any other nut/seed butter)

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Unfortunately, the best way I have found to mix this, is with my hands.  Putting your kids to work to do the dirty work is also an excellent options.  They’ll be more invested in eating them too when they’re ready.  Roll into bite-sized balls and put on to a baking sheet to freeze.  If the balls are crumbling in your hands and not sticking together, add more syrup.  Put balls in the freezer to harden for about 2 – 3 hours.  Keep them frozen or you can keep them in the fridge or room – temp. It’s up to you.  Enjoy!

 

Dessert

14. Banana Bread

My kids LOVE this banana bread and you will too!  How else can we justify eating cake for breakfast?!

Ultimate Banana Bread Recipe – Click Here!

This post was all about the 13 Best vegan meals for kids.

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