25 Lighter (Post Holiday) Recipes

We’re on the other side of Christmas (see you in 363 days, Best Day of the Year!) and if I had to guess, I’d say we’re all feeling a bit stuffed. It has been a solid month of seasonal indulgences, served up in the form of holiday parties, cookie exchanges, and Christmas drinks. There’s been panettone and pandoro, eggnog and hot chocolate, plus gingerbread, torrone, and peppermint bark. And then there’s the 24th and the 25th themselves: full-on feasts from start to finish, per your own family tradition (in my case: lasagne! roast beef! brownie pie!) There’s been lots of butter, cream, sugar, chocolate, and booze. Which is wonderful, of course. What’s the holiday season without a little end-of-the-year extravagance, all in the name of Christmas?

On the other hand: all good things must come to an end.

In Italian, there’s an excellent verb for what you all might be feeling the need to do now: smaltire (pronounced smawl-teer-ay). This means to take it easy, to detox, or put it plainly: to eat a much-needed salad. While P&B isn’t exactly known for being, erm, a beacon of clean eating, I have made a few recipes over the years that can you help you smaltire following the holiday season. Behold: 25 recipes that are veggie-centric and legume-forward, with grains, eggs, and lean proteins in the mix. You’ll find two light, cheese-free pasta dishes too (feel free to opt for whole wheat pasta). Read on!

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GRANOLA BARS

These homemade granola bars are packed with dates, oats, and almonds and tinged with salty peanut butter and honey. They are soft and chewy save the pleasant crunchiness from the almonds, and take only a few minutes to make, too. Click here for the recipe.

POTATO SPINACH FRITTATA

My favorite frittata is made with with two kinds of cheese (Parmesan for punch and fontina for flair) plus wholesome spinach and cubes of golden brown potatoes, making for a greens/carbs/protein sort of frittata. Click here for the recipe.

UOVA IN PURGATORIO

The star of this dish is the tomato sauce, a party of garlicky, spicy, and fragrant, with distinctly cozy undertones thanks to a pinch of rosemary. The eggs bubble and poach happily there, cooked until the whites are just set and the yolks are still soft. Click here for the recipe.

CARROT, CHICKPEA, TAHINI SALAD

Here’s a rare salad that is 150% craveable, a mix of different textures and flavors and colors: crisp carrots, lemon-y sesame dressing, crunchy roasted chickpeas, earthy pistachios, and bright, refreshing parsley. Click here for the recipe.

FENNEL, ORANGE, OLIVE SALAD

Here we have a harmonious mix of paper-thin fennel, sweet juicy oranges, buttery pine nuts, sharp red onion, and salty olives, all served over a bed of leafy greens and tossed with a splash of olive oil and sunny orange juice. Click here for the recipe.

SCAROLA E FAGIOLI

With only four ingredients, scarola e fagioli may not seem like much, but don’t underestimate it. Slow-cooked greens turn silky once they spend a bit of time sizzling in olive oil. They’re balanced nicely by creamy white beans and jolted awake with hot pepper and garlic. Serve with crusty bread. Click here for the recipe.

WINTER CAPONATA

This caponata can be made with either fennel or artichokes in place of the usual summer eggplant. It’s tangy from the vinegar but also a little dolce from the sugar and slowly cooked red onion. The pine nuts are crunchy, the olives briney, the capers punchy, and the raisins sweet. Click here for the recipe.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

A soup packed with vibrant squash and slowly cooked onions, their sweetness tempered with sage and parsley, plus a bit of aromatic garlic. Not to be underestimated here: the power of the cheese rind, which adds an extra nudge of flavor and depth to your soup (always, always, always save your cheese rinds!) Click here for the recipe.

ZUPPA DI LENTICCHIE E PATATE

An array of humble ingredients combine forces to create a mighty, cozy soup: one packed with velvety lentils, creamy potatoes, and the usual behind-the-scenes crew: carrot, celery, and onion. Top with lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Click here for the recipe.

PASTA E FAGIOLI

This take on pasta e fagioli calls for an even balance of creamy cranberry beans and tiny, toothsome ditalini, plus rosemary, garlic, and Parmesan for an extra dose of flavor. The use of canned beans instead of dried eliminates soaking the beans overnight and then cooking them for 90 minutes. Click here for the recipe.

PASTA E CECI

This pasta e ceci calls for canned chickpeas instead of dried ones (no lengthy soaking required!) half of which are pureed along with the other soup ingredients, resulting in a thicker, smoother textured pasta e ceci. It’s supremely cozy. Click here for the recipe.

ROASTED TOMATO BASIL SOUP

Winter tomatoes are turned super flavorful with some slow roasting, plus lots of basil, garlic, and lots of simmering on the stove. It is filling and satisfying, not to mention cozy and perfect for cold Winter days. It’s perfect with a grilled cheese on the side. Click here for the recipe.

ZUCCHINI BASIL SOUP

Zucchini gives the soup body and texture and a mild, delicate flavor, the perfect backdrop for fiery hot pepper, spicy garlic, earthy basil, and a pinch of winter-y nutmeg. A drizzle of olive oil, a dollop of yogurt, and a little Parmesan tie it all together. Click here for the recipe.

MINI MEATBALL SOUP

This Mini Meatball Soup offers good things like spinach and carrots and celery and broth, accompanied by delicate ditalini and the most delightfully miniature and supremely flavorful of all the meatballs that ever were. Click here for the recipe.

tomato lentil swiss chard soup

This Tomato Lentil Soup with Swiss Chard is filling and flavorful and downright nurturing, a wholesome, virtuous mix of lentils and greens balanced by a bit of pancetta to keeps things (mildly) indulgent, ideal with a flurry of freshly grated cheese. Click here for the recipe.

PASTA, BEANS, GREENS SOUP

This soup has creamy, flavorful borlotti, notes of aromatic rosemary and sage, lots of virtuous-yet-tasty spinach, sweet carrots, and a dash of pasta (because it's me we're talking about) to round things out. Click here for the recipe.

EASIEST VEGGIE BURGERS

The white beans offer the ever-sought after protein vegetarians seek, as well as giving a sturdy texture to the burger. Thanks to eggs and breadcrumbs, these do not fall apart during cooking -- a common pitfall of the homemade veggie burger. Click here for the recipe.

POLPETTE DI RICOTTA

These ricotta polpette are cozy, comforting, and filling, packed with Parmesan and basil, fluffy and dumpling-like, simmered in a deeply flavorful tomato sauce! Bonus: these are a suitable main for all your non-meat eating friends, and not lacking in the slightest. Click here for the recipe.

ONE PAN FARRO WITH TOMATOES

This marvelous, enchanted one-pan farro asks very little of you. It requires a little quick slicing of just three ingredients, which are then thrown in to a pan with the remaining ones, the whole thing then left to cook for half an hour, after which you'll have a perfect one-pot dinner. Click here for the recipe.

LEMON, ALMOND, BASIL PESTO

This cheese-free pesto is intensely sunshine-y, and lemon-y, balanced by a bunch of floral basil and mild, nutty almonds. A dash of starchy pasta water is whisked in to ensure that the pesto is smooth and creamy. Click here for the recipe.

PENNE ALL’ARRABBIATA

A few dried chili (peperoncini) and garlic cloves waltz through a bit of olive oil (leaving it better than they found it) before going on to make for a very spicy tomato sauce. Serve over penne pasta — no cheese needed. Click here for the recipe.

LENTIL SHEPHERD’S PIE

Here’s a vegan take on Shepherd’s Pie — the mashed potato topping is light and fluffy rather than rich and smooth, the perfect foil to the hearty filling within, packed with wholesome lentils, meaty mushrooms, and sweet carrots and peas. Click here for the recipe.

chickpea spinach curry

This tomato sauce is infused with ginger, garlic, and coriander, with a pleasant, peppery kick from the chili powder. The mild chickpeas readily take on the many flavors of our rich, complex sauce, and mingle merrily with the spinach, which melts gracefully into the mix. Click here for the recipe.

SALMON WITH MUSTARD GLAZE

This dish is extremely simple to make – just a matter of stirring together the glaze ingredients and baking the salmon in the oven – and comes together in a matter of minutes. Serve with spinach and potatoes. Click here for the recipe.

POLPETTE IN BIANCO

The lemon-y pan sauce here keeps the meatballs juicy and tender: use it to baste your polpette, mop it up with a piece of bread, or use a swirl of mashed potatoes as your vehicle to ensure not one drop goes to waste. Click here for the recipe.