A Month of Gluten Free Vegan Meals

Planning a Repeating Month of Vegan Meals Makes
Meal Planning a Breeze!

A while back I did a well-received post on menu planning for a year - then a bit later, I did a Month of Vegan Menus, which quickly became one of my most popular posts.

Although I am not Gluten free myself, I have many friends who are. And, one day it occurred to me that a huge percentage of my menus are naturally Gluten-Free as well as Vegan, and that many of you might enjoy having a Month of Gluten-Free Vegan Menus.

While I LOVE having a meal plan, I really DON'T enjoy the pressure of having to whip up a plan every Saturday - or every Monday - or whenever people do these things. I like to have it taken care of and handy - not hanging over my head every week.

Which is why I make a plan for four weeks that can be repeated over and over. It can be used four ways: 1) strictly go through the schedule, using the days in order 2) if you don't like so much structure, but still want to enjoy the benefits, shop for a week's menu, and use it to glance at on those nights when you don't know what to cook, knowing that you have what you need on hand, or 3) use it for planning bulk cooking menus, and simply grab the meal you want out of the freezer or fridge whenever you want it OR (my most recently discovered use) 4) Sit down with your family and let them choose the meals from your chart that they'd like to eat in the coming week! This is especially helpful when deciding what to serve to house guests : )

I find it pretty easy to keep groceries on hand to make most of these recipes without a special shopping trip. I keep most of the pantry ingredients on hand all of the time, then I simply need to shop for produce. Since none of the recipes use meat and dairy which must always be served fresh, many of these recipes can be prepared without running out to the grocery for those basics.

I find this menu format the easiest to use- it is a simple word processing document, so I can cut and paste things where I need them. If we eat out, or I want to try a different recipe one of the nights, no problem! I've seen all sorts of fancy, artistic menu planners, with color coding and "pieces" to move about to different nights, but to me nothing beats the simplicity and ease-of-use of a basic computer document.

I have a print-out of this menu hanging inside one of my kitchen cupboards - just open the door for a menu at a glance.

I typically serve a variety of things with meals that are not listed here - maybe salad, slaw, fruit, bread, a pickle & olive tray, and dips or spreads, but I don't list these things on my menu in addition to the entrée. I think of them as accessories!

I'm a huge fan of Rice - I really PREFER it as a bed under beans or stews. But, if you prefer Quinoa or another Gluten-Free Grain or even Potatoes - of course swaps are good wherever I say "Over Rice" : )

In addition to being Gluten Free & Vegan, all of these dishes are ultra-Frugal! : )

When making these recipes, be sure to use the Vegan & Gluten Free varieties of the ingredients mentioned. One commenter reminded me that not all Soy Sauces are Gluten Free - you have to buy one that is (Thanks, Katie @ Gift of Curiosity) .  Similarly, such ingredients as Worcestershire Sauce, Earth Balance or Margarine, and many other things might have a variety that fits your diet, and one that does not. Be sure that all ingredients conform to your way of eating.

Notice that the menu is full of links to take you to the recipes!

This is being shared on Gluten Free Fridays, Thrive at Home, Fun Fridays, Healthy Vegan Fridays, Free to Talk Fridays, Weekend Wonders, Bible Love Notes, Gluten Free and Allergy Free Wednesdays, Feeding Big, Making Your Home Sing Mondays, Clever Chicks, Modest Monday, What'd You Do This Weekend?, Menu Plan Monday, In and Out of the Kitchen, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Teaching What is Good, Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays, Teach Me Tuesdays, We Made That, Encourage One Another, Wildcrafting Wednesdays, Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, Penny Pinching Party, Wise Woman, Simple Lives Thursday, Hearts for Home, Bible Love Notes TGIF , Mums Make Lists 
Food on Friday 

Traffic Jam Weekend

Sunday	Greek Bean Soup ( Fasolia Yachni )	Chili-Topped Potatoes and Better than Coleslaw	Chinese Restaurant Food	Curried Chickpeas over Rice
Monday	Eggplant Stew over Rice	Greek Chickpea Stew ( Revythia )	Greek Style Black-Eyed Peas ( Louvia )	Fill Your Own Tortilla Night Vat O' Salsa and Corn Chips
Tuesday	Black Bean and Corn Salad and Corn Chips and Vat O' Salsa	Greek Green Beans ( Fasolakia Yachni )	Greek Okra & Tomato Stew ( Bamies Yachni )	Greek Stuffed Veggies ( Gemista )
Wednesday	Indian Chickpeas in Ginger Sauce over Rice	Indian Lemon Rice with Peas and Lemony Dal	Lentil Shepherd's Pie	Indian Spiced Blackeye Peas over Rice
Thursday	Mediterranean Chickpeas & Vegetables over Rice	Black-Eyed Pea Salad and Fattoush (without the bread)	Pad Thai, Simple Vegan	Peas & Artichokes Yachni
Friday	Tofu Creole With Better than Coleslaw	Sushi	Stuffed Eggplant	Szechuan Green Beans over Rice
Saturday	Greek Giant Beans ( Gigantes )	Lentil & Rice Salad with Hummus with Capers and your choice of dippers	Mix & Match Italian Rice Salad and Red Lentil Soup - Moroccan or Sephardic Styles	Moujendra ( Mejadra ) with Raw Veggies