20 Weeknight Meatless Pasta Dinner Ideas

20 Weeknight Meatless Pasta Dinner Ideas

These meatless pasta dinner ideas will give you lots of options, on weeknights, for a delicious Italian Dinner at Home!! SO, ditch the delivery, cook Yummy Pasta at home! Oh - and since all of these recipes are meatless, you can serve'em for a lite and healthy summer dinner or serve some grilled meat or tofu on side to add a serving of protein.

I always keep a recipe-list for reference to make quick and easy weeknight dinners. Today, I decided to share my reference list with you all. Not just a you, it is going to be my to-go post for serving meatless pasta dinner for my family!

I hope you like it as much as I do!

PS: For baked pasta, or pasta with sauces, you can prep most steps/sauce, a day ahead or on weekend,  and then cook dinner quickly in the evening!

Have a wonderful day and make some pasta for dinner tonight! -Savita

Pasta Salads: Restaurant-style sophistication in these veggie loaded summer pasta salad bowls make'em a crave-worthy weeknight meal. Serve grilled meat or tofu on side for serving of protein.

Vegan Orzo Pasta Salad with Arugula and Meyer Lemon Dressing

Sharing with you a lite and fit vegan orzo pasta and wild arugula salad dressed in a simple meyer lemon dressing!Meyer lemon is one of my favorite citrus and I love grabbing some whenever these are in season. Their sweet and sour taste is really unique, kinda combination of navel orange and lemon. No kiddi...

Summer Pasta Salad with Tomato, Feta and Orange Dressing

Sharing with you easy pasta salad recipe with sweet grape tomatoes, feta cheese in lite orange dressing. An easy side salad which you can ready in minutes. Among wide variety of pasta salads, cold salads with lite and lemony dressing are my favorite in summers. Other than serving pool side parties, chilled...

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad with Olives and Tomatoes

Summers scream for lite and healthy flavors and this orzo salad marks the start of eating lite at my home. This rice-shaped pasta is common in soups, but is also great for a variety of main courses or side dishes. My family loves orzo either ways. Perhaps, its our love for rice which makes this rice-shaped...

Pasta with Sauce: While you ready pasta sauce, just set pasta to boil, this will help you cutting a little more time off these already quick recipes.

Lemon-Herb Pasta Primavera

Pasta Primavera translates to "Spring Pasta" in English and that's what this pasta is all about - an easy pasta recipe, packed with veggies, for a filling vegetarian dinner. Lots and lots of colorful vegetables, fresh herbs, lemon, cream, and your favorite pasta in ONE bowl! A part of me call it "Pasta" an...

Whole Wheat Penne in Fresh Tomato Sauce

This hearty wheat pasta dish gets a boost from sweet and tangy tomatoes and creamy goat cheese sauce. Ripe cherry tomatoes get amazingly sweet and juicy when cooked. I paired it with creamy goat cheese and fresh basil. In-fact, salty capers were also a great addition to each bite. We are accustomed to use...

Ditalini Pasta in Tomato and Shallots Wine Sauce

Sharing with you very easy, delicious and yet very fine pasta recipe - ditalini pasta in tomato and onion wine sauce. This recipe saves me anytime my family demands pasta and I am out of marinara sauce and also not feeling like to cook much ;) All it demands is some fresh tomato and shallots and some good...

Pasta in Vodka Cream Sauce

Try step by step recipe for Pasta in Vodka Cream Sauce. Prepared with tomato, cream and vodka, this is an easy yet very delicious Pasta Sauce recipe. You can also make sauce ahead of time and refrigerate it for later use, add chicken or veggies for restaurant-style Pasta Dinner at home. Only 20 minutes Coo...

Pasta - Penne Rosa in Tomato-Cream Wine Sauce

Sharing with you 15 minutes, easy and delicious pasta recipe which will sure make a spot in your personal Italian Favorites cookbook - guaranteed. This is probably how I started making Italian food at home. We had lots of Penne Rosa in Noodles and Company in San Diego. Love their quality and taste of food...

Pasta with Basil and Pistachio Pesto

Who does not love nutty, rich, and aromatic taste of basil pesto? If you are new to pesto, Basil Pesto is a flavorful basil sauce (or paste), made with olive oil, basil, garlic, grated hard cheese, and pine nuts. A few simple ingredients to make a delicious basil pesto at home, in less than 5 minutes.Store...

Penne al Forno

You might have made or seen lots of baked (al Forno) pasta recipes but this one is very special recipe from my kitchen. My little secret is home made white sauce and no cheese topping. Creamy white sauce made with just flour, butter and milk makes this pasta so creamy and delicious. I usually layer some c...

Goat Cheese and Mushroom Stroganoff

Recently a Stroganoff recipe inspired me so much, I decided to make it no matter what. Since I watched Mr. Alton Brown cook mushroom Stroganoff on a FoodNetwork show, I was waiting for groceries day to buy some portabella mushrooms to make creamy and tangy Mushroom Stroganoff. I cannot take credit for this...

Sesame Chili Garlic Noodles with Grilled Tofu

These Sesame Chili-Garlic Noodles are gluten free, meatless, spicy, garlicky, and umami! Perfect for weekday dinner or hearty lunch, they're are quick and easy, and made with simple Asian ingredients! Oh - and they are served with grilled tofu. Because it wouldn’t be a complete meal without some protein!I'...

Masala Pasta in Spiced Tikka Masala Sauce

Tikka Masala is most loved, easy to prepare and delicious tasting gravy in Indian Cuisine. Few days back, I made Lychee Paneer Tikka Masala and got lucky to have some masala gravy leftover. I saw this Masala Pasta in menu of an Indian Restaurant once, since then it was sparking my mind to try at home. Masa...

Sesame Chili Garlic Noodles with Grilled Tofu

These Sesame Chili-Garlic Noodles are gluten free, meatless, spicy, garlicky, and umami! Perfect for weekday dinner or hearty lunch, they're are quick and easy, and made with simple Asian ingredients! Oh - and they are served with grilled tofu. Because it wouldn’t be a complete meal without some protein!I'...

Cannellini Beans Ragu Fettuccine Pasta

On your next Italian night, upgrade the pasta - replace meat sauce with hearty and veggie protein rich cannellini beans ragu. Pair it with side veggie salad and orange punch for a dinner kids will devour.This bean ragu pasta sauce is hearty and so much packed with flavor that you will not miss the need of...

Israeli Couscous Salad with Crunchy Celery and Sweet Grapes

My great grandma always made hand-rolled wholewheat and semolina pasta (small noodles like pasta) at home. Whenever I eat Israeli Couscous, it reminds me of those delicious noddles. We often ate that pasta in dessert, simmered in milk, sugar and nuts low and slow. Super yummy!! Nothing can match that taste...

Pasta Fagioli

Pasta e fagioli or pasta fagioli, meaning "pasta and beans", is a traditional style vegetarian (meatless) Italian soup. Healthy and delicious, this soup is packed with goodness of vegetables and hearty tasty beans. Serve with a crisp salad and a hot italian garlic bread and you have a meal! You are going t...

A little Different Pasta Dinner: Did you know couscous is also a kind of pasta? For a change, serve udon noodles stir-fry or these variations of couscous for a delicious meatless pasta dinner!

Easy Stir Fry with Udon Noodles

Say "Hello" to caramelized, umami, chewy noodle stir-fry with Udon Noodles, veggies, tofu and amazingly delicious, made-from-scratch stir-fry sauce. Super easy to put together for weeknight dinner and tastes better than Asian takeout! Replace tofu with your favorite meat for a main dish, or make as a side...

Curried Israeli Couscous

I love pearl couscous and whenever I can find some rainbow couscous in the store, I love serving curried couscous with lots of vegetables for dinner.Israeli Couscous also known as Ptitim or Pearl Couscous are small, round, pasta-like granules made from semolina and wheat flour that is a wonderful staple in...

Moroccan Couscous Tfaya with Chickpeas and Cranberries

I am enjoying a bowl of, my version of, delicious couscous tfaya while writing this post. I made couscous with spiced chickpeas, caramelized onions, and cranberries yesterday, this preparation is similar to a famous Moroccan couscous dish called "couscous tfaya". One thing is certain even before I tell you...

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8 Responses

  1. Everything looks so so beautiful and inviting. Lovely Share, Savita!
  2. Just the right post for a vegetarian and a pasta lover like me!!! Thanks a ton for compiling this :)
    Gauri, thanks! I hope you like it when you try!
  3. Wow, loved the idea and the pasta recipe collection is just awesome, sure to try few...
  4. These look awesome, Savita! We often have leftovers of some sort hanging out in our fridge (side effect of being a food blogger), but I am totally bookmarking this post for days when we are all out of leftovers. Yum!
    David, thanks! You know what, blog-experiment leftovers are staple in my home too :) Do try these recipes, if you get a chance.
  5. Who doesn't like this..This is all time and anytime favorite dish of mine. Lovely collection:) Sesame garlic noodles...thats what i am gonna try
    Shweta, thanks, I hope you like it when you try!