Quick & Easy Vegan Dinners

It’s no secret that I love to spend time in the kitchen, whipping up vegan recipes from around the world. For me, cooking is another creative outlet that allows me to stay healthy and fit, while forcing me to take a much needed break from my excessive daily screen regimen.

But some days I am just too busy with writing for clients, publishing my books, catching up with family back home in the U.S., and even just doing stuff for me. Days are long and days are busy, but that doesn’t mean I want to crack open a frozen pizza and call it a meal. But there is something in between vegan junk food and elaborate vegan dinners.

Right?

For me, yeah.

So today let’s take a look at a very simple vegan dinner that doesn’t require even an hour in the kitchen. What is this mythical vegan recipe, you ask?

Easy. Vegan falafel balls with a delicious barbecue sauce and one of my favorites…vegan garlic mashed potatoes!

Even the photos look as simple as this meal is to make, which means there is no reason to reach for takeout menus that probably don’t have enough vegan offerings to satisfy your hunger. Do it yourself.

It’s easy, I swear.

For the sauce: Sauté shallot and yellow bell pepper (or any color) until fragrant and cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes, maybe longer. Add in garlic and cook another 3 minutes. When the vegetables taste how you prefer them, start building the sauce. The sauce in the photo has mustard, barbecue sauce, tomato paste, cumin, smoky paprika and turmeric in it. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer until thick and creamy and yummy.

For the falafel balls: Bake them in the oven or let them simmer in the sauce. These are baked because I didn’t want them to fall apart in the sauce, but it’s your plate and your mouth, which makes it your choice! I don’t like to overdose on sauce so I prefer to drizzle it on top.

For the mashed potatoes: Boil the potatoes until tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and reserve some of the water. In the same pot you boiled the potatoes, add minced (or pressed) garlic to the hot pot and let it get nice and brown, but don’t burn it. I added water or almond milk by the teaspoon to keep the garlic from sticking, but any kind of fat will work too. Once the garlic is cooked, add milk and seasoning (basil, salt, pepper, garlic powder and turmeric) over low heat and let it cook a minute or two before you add the potatoes.

Mash the potatoes, using the reserved water if your potatoes are too thick. Don’t add it all at once, just by the tablespoon or else you’ll end up with loose mashed potatoes and nobody wants that. Do they?