A lackluster plate is one bite away from a lackluster day. Enter five plates that feed you in exactly the way you need, whether you’ve been eating the same bowl of oatmeal since March or your kids (and you) need a lunchtime shakeup. Every plate is just a starting point — get inspired by even more recipes, tips and swaps to add new flavors, new techniques and plenty of vibrant fruits and veggies to your day. Go ahead, pick your plate!
1. The “Breakfast for Dinner Is a Lifestyle” Plate
Dinner for dinner is great, but breakfast for dinner feels like you’re pulling a fast one on a “real” meal. And it isn’t all pancakes — breakfast can be nourishing, a veritable buffet of protein, vitamins and antioxidants. Try these recipes and ideas for breakfast-inspired plate fillers to round out your day.
Put it in a tortilla
A warm tortilla is a pillowy catch-all for a rainbow of salsas, chopped cilantro, fresh mango and sliced radishes. Use a spinach tortilla and bits of pancetta for your own take on Green Eggs & Ham. Or bulk your taco out with diced, roasted sweet potato.
Mini frittatas
Eggs are far too versatile for morning time to have all the fun. These little muffin cups are made for stuffing with any and every veggie, like chopped sweet peppers, asparagus tips, cooked and diced beets, and sliced cherry tomatoes.
Everything on toast
Bet you a bunch of kale that there’s nothing you can’t put on toast. Start with good bread and add a base: nut butter or try a creamy dairy like ricotta. The key to toppings is a mix of colors and flavors, like salty, crunchy nuts with tart, juicy berries.
Step up your citrus
Make more out of winter’s juiciest. Peel blood oranges, grapefruits and navels, and slice them into thin rounds. Then add some textural contrast: creamy avocado slices, thinly shaved fennel (plus fronds), salty cheese.
2. The “Ran Out of Kids Lunch Ideas in April” Snack Board
“What’s for lunch?” Answer that familiar chorus with a snack board to end all snack boards no kid can resist. Make a batch of the dips and cut the vegetables on Sunday night so you’re ready whenever the crowds get hungry. Might need extra — you’re going to want to get in on this. Try these board-building recipes and ideas to get started.
Hummus gets brighter
Beet hummus could be a hard sell for kids with a less adventurous palate, but the eye-popping color just might get them. Swirl in a scoop of yogurt at the last minute for a tie-dye effect, and they won’t be able to resist — and it will mellow out the flavor.
Banana “splits”
Why make a peanut butter and banana sandwich when you could make the reverse? It creates a whimsical canvas for more fruit, nuts and maybe a chocolate chip or two. Just-barely ripe bananas work best for structural and edible integrity.
Green pea “guacamole”
The more excuse to dip, dunk and swirl, the better. This bright take on guacamole, with a sweeter edge, is especially ready to party when sprinkled with with veggie “confetti” — grated carrots and red cabbage sprinkled on top.
Even more ideas:
Top Greek yogurt with freeze-dried fruit “fairy dust”: Smash freeze-fried raspberries or strawberries on a cutting board with a rolling pin. Spread on or dip with graham crackers.
Don’t forget the dippers and crunchers: blue corn chips, Persian cucumber spears, multicolored carrots, celery sticks and animal crackers.
3. The “I Need to Fuel My Optimism” Plate
When you need a pick-me-up, your lunch or dinner probably needs one, too. Color might boost your mood, brighten your day and put some pep in your step. Build your plate with these recipes and ideas for the go, go, go good stuff.
Fajitas, but make it vegan
Meat-eaters and plant fanatics alike will line up for these creamy, crunchy, colorful Vegan Fajitas with Guacamole and Cashew Sour “Cream.” The secret: a spicy faux “meat” made with walnuts.
Chicken takes a trip
Chicken will forever be a dinner staple for good reason. It’s quick and it’s versatile, easily adapting to a world of different flavors. Start in Peru with this beauty, spiced up with sweet paprika and cumin and swimming in sweet onions and roasted peppers.
Stuffed sweet potatoes
Prick a potato all over and bake it at 425°F for 40–50 minutes. Then split it open and start piling in the good stuff. Need toppings ideas? How about something Mediterranean inspired: chickpeas, chopped parsley, paprika, chopped cherry tomatoes, a drizzle of tahini and a squeeze of lemon juice? Add sautéed ground turkey if you want some meat.
4. The “Greens But Not Salad, Please” Plate
If January had a spirit food, it would be greens. Raw, chopped and tossed with dressing isn’t the only way to enjoy our cruciferous friends. Try these non-salad ways to get more greens onto your plate.
Grilled Cheese & Greens
Have your greens and cheese them, too. This toasty sandwich welcomes other veggies with open arms: Try roasted red pepper and tomatoes.
Beans ‘n’ Greens
The king of all pantry meals. Any can of beans, check. Any bunch of greens, check. Shaved parmesan, capers, feta, pickled shallots, pole-caught oil-packed tuna, veggie crumbles, soft herbs, roasted red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes ... your fridge, your call.
Coconut Milk–Braised Greens
Sturdier greens like kale and collards take on a silky, creamy texture when cooked down low and slow. This coconutty version brings an even creamier concoction to the table.
5. The “Lunch Can’t Always Be PB&J” Plate
Making lunch easy and, more importantly, interesting, relies on a simple formula: Take a handful of ingredients and combine them, then combine them in different way the next day. And the next day and the day after that. Put your storage container set and a Sunday evening to good use and roast a few kinds of root veggies, sauté ground turkey or sear off some tofu and cook a couple varieties of grains. Add the fresh stuff day of: sliced avocado, herbs.
Here are three combos we love:
Sweet Potato Noodle Bowl with Halibut
Though you can’t cook the fish ahead, it does quick in a flash, so it’s totally doable for lunch. But everything else, including spiralizing the sweet potato noodles (or use store bought) can be made in advance.
Turkey, Chard & Sweet Potato Grain Bowl
Fluffy quinoa provides a hearty base here, but even better is the fact that it can be swapped out for any grain you like — farro, barley, wild rice, you name it.
Mediterranean Grain Bowl
A surefire way to un-boring your bowl: fresh herbs and tons of them. Don’t be afraid to mix and match, either, like the combo of fresh dill and fresh mint in this filling chickpea-quinoa bowl.
