Cheap and Healthy Dinner Recipes

Instead of ceramic bowls, use a hollowed-out pepper to cradle a healthful veggie, grain and cheese filling. Serve warm to eat with a fork and knife, and make ahead to serve chilled as a hand-held pepper “taco.”

Colourful, healthy and hearty, this gorgeous pumpkin and pancetta pasta is the perfect base for leftover roasted squash.

Inexpensive meals can be a lot of fun, and these baked zucchini bites prove that they can also be healthy.

An ultra-healthy stew is just what the doctor ordered come cold and flu season. Flush your system of the bad by putting in a world of good with this stew brimming with celery, onions, garlic, butternut squash and kale.

Beans and toast is a popular cheap eat, but chili packed with beans, served on rice and topped with cheese makes for a much tastier bite.

This satisfying American-Italian dish boasts a medley of roast chicken, potatoes, herbs, garlic and artichoke hearts.

Rejoice! Vegan lasagna is a thing, and it’s darn tasty, too. Extra-firm tofu is the protein-packed “cheese” stand-in, melting between layers of pasta and loads of healthy vegetables. Vegan or otherwise, this recipe is sure to entice and satisfy any diner.

Pork chops are extremely lean, so they do need help in the flavour and texture department. Giada ticks both boxes with an umami Parmesan coating. A simple side salad is all you need to finish the plate.

Roasted sweet potatoes are stuffed with black beans, fresh tomatoes, cumin and green onions and re-baked for a full and complete vegetarian meal.

A delicious twist on beans and toast, chickpeas are stewed in tomato paste, piled onto a crusty crostini and topped with a perfectly poached egg. Cayenne pepper and paprika add a touch of smokiness and heat to the chickpeas, while the runny egg yolk glosses over the dish when you dig into it.

Make a big batch of this spicy pork and beans dish to serve for dinner and freeze the rest for another time-crunched weeknight.

This is the perfect meal to make when you’re ready to clean out the fridge. Use up any vegetables you have on hand, and give them a quick toss in a hot wok. If desire, add tofu, cooked chicken or beef to the veggies, and serve with steamed brown rice.

This zesty Southwestern-style chicken and quinoa dish will bring some serious flavour and brightness to your dinner table.

There are endless options for using leftover grilled chicken, but this healthy take on fajitas is bound to become a dinnertime staple in no time.

Take advantage of root vegetable season and make this seasoned beef and vegetable pie, topped with a healthier mash of cheesy potatoes and squash.

Instead of a nutritionally-stripped white rice and ground pork, Giada has created a vegetarian version of “cabbage” rolls with iron-rich lentils, mineral-packed brown rice and tangy goat cheese. Vibrant dark leafy green wrappers hold everything in place.

This high-protein, low-carb dinner can be made with any ground meat, or with tempeh for the meatless crowd. Made into smaller portions, these lettuce wraps make a crowd-pleasing dinner.

Lentils contain more fibre than nearly any other bean or legume, making them a satisfying, healthy option to keep on hand in both vegan and omnivorous kitchens. Quick-cooking and simple to prepare, make lentil stew your new weeknight go-to for a meatless main (just skip the cheese topping).

These scrumptious vegetarian wraps are packed with protein and good-for-you fats in the form of hummus, tahini and olive oil. Add that to the salad greens, artichoke hearts and roasted red peppers loaded into every bite and you have a meal guaranteed to keep you feeling sharp.