You’ll love making these amazing vegan summer recipes for all your parties and cookouts. I’ve got all the grilled main dishes, easy sides, and no-bake desserts to make this the best summer yet!

I love summer, but I hate bringing the extra heat into my house when it’s hot outside! These vegan summer recipes are perfect for family dinners, pool parties, cookouts, and all your summer potlucks!

Grilling is one of my favourite things about summer cooking. Everything just tastes better with a little smoke, even grilled fruit ! Most of our dinners are a combination of a grilled dish, a simple but flavourful summer salad, and a fresh fruit dessert. This recipe roundup is a combination of all three!

22 Delicious Vegan Summer Recipes

Whether you need vegan grilled recipes, simple summer salads and side dishes, or decadent no-bake desserts, I’ve got all the recipes you’ll need for the whole season.

Strawberry Panzanella Salad with Balsamic Glaze

Use your fresh strawberries with this savoury summer recipe! It’s made with just 6 main ingredients and is perfect for lunch or dinner.

Easy Grilled Pineapples

If you’ve never had caramelised pineapples, you’re in for a treat! They’re even sweeter and juicier than fresh pineapple with no added sugars or ingredients.

Black Bean and Quinoa Burgers with Strawberry BBQ Sauce (Vegan + GF)

These quinoa and black bean burgers will transform the way you look at veggie burgers, I swear. No need for ketchup — this strawberry BBQ sauce is also so tangy and delicious with a little sweetness.

No Bake Brownie Energy Bites

Love brownies but don’t wanna turn on the oven? These no-bake gluten-free brownie energy bites are made with only 5 ingredients and are a perfect quick healthy breakfast or snack!

Vegan Pasta Salad

It’s just not a cookout without pasta salad. This simple recipe is tossed in a homemade Italian vinaigrette

Grilled Peach, Basil and Vegan “Goat” Cheese Pizza

Grilled peaches are my favourite summertime fruit, and this pizza topped with basil and vegan goat cheese is a crowd pleaser! Don’t forget the tangy balsamic drizzle too.

3-Ingredient Frozen Yogurt Granola Cups

Summer snacks should be absolutely delicious! These 3-ingredient Frozen Yogurt Granola Cups are so incredibly easy to make. They’re great for healthy meal prep and pool day snacks.

Vegan Strawberry Coconut No-Churn Ice Cream

One of my favourite parts about summer is the endless amounts of homemade ice cream. This no-churn ice cream is deliciously creamy and only takes 4 ingredients!

3-Ingredient Easy Watermelon Granita

This Watermelon Granita is the easiest dessert you’ll ever make! It’s only 3 ingredients, completely healthy and tastes unbelievably delicious.

Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

I love this simple and delicious Mediterranean Chickpea Salad! It’s loaded with fresh, crisp veggies and ready in just 15 minutes. Your guests will love it!

Vegan Yogurt Parfait Breakfast Popsicles

Who says you can’t have popsicles for breakfast? These Vegan Yogurt Parfait Breakfast Popsicles are perfect on-the-go, or a quick and easy summer treat to cool you down. Great for kids, too!

Grilled Mexican Street Corn

This Grilled Mexican Street Corn is grilled to smoky perfection and smothered in a delicious and creamy vegan mayonnaise blend and Lime Crema. It’s the best summer side dish!

Rainbow Fruit Salad with Maple Lime Dressing

Dress up your summer fruit salad with this bright and sweet maple lime dressing! I make a batch and eat it all week for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. Filled with strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, kiwis, and pineapple, too!

Strawberry Jalapeño Salsa

Change up your chips and dip this year with yummy strawberries and spicy jalapeños! This strawberry salsa only takes 10 minutes to make and is a total crowd pleaser for pool parties.

Vegan Pulled “Pork” Mushroom Sandwiches

You’ve had jackfruit sandwiches, but I love these mushroom sandwiches because they take way less effort to prep! They’re hearty, packed with umami flavour, and so easy to make. I use oyster mushrooms for the best pulled “pork” texture.

Grilled Peaches with Coconut Ice Cream

Grilled Peaches with Coconut Ice Cream is the perfect summer treat! The peaches are juicy, smoky and sweet and the homemade ice cream on top is perfect to cool down after a day in the sun.

Black Bean Avocado and Corn Salad

This Black Bean Avocado and Corn Salad is the easiest salad you’ll ever make! It takes 15 minutes, is loaded with a variety of delicious flavours and is so versatile as a dip, salsa or salad.

Watermelon Mint Popsicles (3 Ingredients)

These Watermelon Mint Popsicles are deliciously refreshing, sweet and made with only three ingredients! These Popsicles were SO easy to make that it’s almost embarrassing to share such an easy recipe, but they were even easier to devour.

15-Minute Quinoa Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing

This Asian-inspired Quinoa Salad is loaded with so much flavour! It’s a colourful vegan meal perfect for a light lunch or dinner. I love this sesame ginger dressing so much I put it on everything.

Loaded Vegan Potato Salad with Coconut Bacon

You’ll never believe this loaded potato salad is vegan — including the bacon! It’s creamy, has amazing texture and is topped with divine homemade coconut bacon.

Quinoa Stone Fruit Salad

This quinoa and stone fruit salad is a beautiful summer salad loaded with peaches and plums. It’s all drizzled with a maple lime dressing for a bright and light fruity treat!

Watermelon Feta Salad with Balsamic Reduction

This watermelon and feta salad is a summer classic! Watermelon and vegan feta cheese are a match made in heaven. Add the balsamic reduction, and it’s a knockout recipe you’ll make all summer long.

Whether you’re a grill master or throwing your first pool party, I’ve got some tips and tricks to make the best vegan summer recipes ever:

• Preheat your grill . Whenever you’re grilling, you want to start with a warm grill — just like you start with a warm oven! Even if your grill doesn’t have a special preheat option, let it run 10 to 15 minutes before you want to use it.
• Make it in advance. So many salad and dessert recipes can be made a day early. In fact, many pasta salads and summer salads have even better flavour the second day. Make your pool party prep easier by making your ice cream, popsicles, and veggie burger patties the night before.
• Get a grill basket. If you love grilled vegetables but hate watching them fall into the flames, try a metal grill basket. You get all that charred flavour without risking a lost veggie!
• Use fruit in everything. I use fruit in so many recipes from savoury to sweet all summer long! If you’re new to savoury fruit recipes, start with some simple grilled peaches and you’ll be converted forever!

If you like your pasta dishes packed with veggies, this pasta primavera recipe is for you. Roasted vegetables make this version extra delicious, but let’s not forget about that garlicky vegan cheese sauce!

Pasta primavera is a dish all about celebrating fresh seasonal vegetables—their rainbow of colours and variety of flavours and textures. Basically, it’s what happens when you go to the farmers market and fill your bag to the brim! Classic primavera typically has you sauté the vegetables, but my version roasts them which makes them even more delicious.

Why You’ll Love This Pasta Primavera Recipe

• It’s vegan . Traditionally, pasta primavera contains cheese and heavy cream, but this recipe is a plant-based alternative that doesn’t skimp on flavour.
• Easy to make . While roasting takes more time than sautéing the vegetables, I love that it’s a hands-off cooking method. I prep the veggies for roasting, then while they’re in the oven, I work on the rest of the recipe. (If you love roasted vegetables, try my balsamic roasted vegetables too.)
• Satisfying . A typically serving of pasta with only sauce leaves me feeling hungry for more—it’s not much food! Bulking it up with lots of vegetables makes a pasta dinner so much more filling.

Notes on Ingredients

Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.

For the Roasted Veggies:

• Red onion – This sweetens and mellows during the roasting process.
• Bell pepper – I use red and orange peppers, but you can substitute one of these for a yellow pepper.
• Summer squash – One zucchini or yellow squash.
• Asparagus – A small bunch is perfect.
• Cherry tomatoes – Grape tomatoes would also work.
• Broccoli florets – You can swap in cauliflower if you prefer.
• Carrots – This is a great recipe to try out some colourful heirloom varieties.
• Olive oil
• Salt and ground black pepper

For the Pasta and Sauce:

• Salt
• Bowtie pasta – You can use another shape if you’d like.
• Olive oil
• Vegan butter – I like to use my homemade vegan butter .
• Garlic
• Lemon juice – This brightens things up and cuts the richness a bit.
• Frozen peas
• Red pepper flakes – Add more or less, depending on your preferences.
• Nutritional yeast – This makes our vegan pasta primavera cheesy.
• Fresh parsley

How to Make Pasta Primavera

• Prepare. Preheat the oven to 415ºF and line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Season the veggies. Toss all of the vegetables with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
• Roast. Divide the vegetables onto the prepared baking sheets and roast for 20-25 minutes, or until they’re tender.

• Boil the pasta. Cook the pasta in salted water until it’s al dente.
• Make the sauce. Heat the olive oil and vegan butter in a skillet set over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it’s fragrant, then add the lemon juice, frozen peas, and red pepper flakes.
• Put it all together. Stir the pasta and nutritional yeast into the skillet. Add a little pasta water if needed to create a creamy sauce. Fold in the roasted veggies and garnish with parsley.

Tips for Success

• Salt the pasta water . Adding salt to the boiling water before cooking your pasta seasons it from the inside out. It makes any pasta dish even tastier!
• Don’t forget to save the water . Reserving some of the starchy pasta water is a great trick for thickening and binding sauces.
• Give the vegetables space . Spread the vegetables out onto the sheet pan so there’s room for air to circulate between them. This ensures that they roast and caramelize rather than steaming in the oven.

Serving Suggestions

• Add vegan Parm . I love this cashew Parmesan cheese for sprinkling over pasta dishes like this one!
• Serve it with garlic bread . This roasted garlic bread is a favourite, but this garlic and rosemary focaccia bread would also be fabulous with pasta primavera.
• Pair it with a side salad . Round out the meal with a simple salad on the side.
• Add some protein . White beans or chickpeas are easy additions, or try this vegan chicken .

How to Store Leftovers

Transfer leftover pasta primavera to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Reheat it in a skillet over medium-low heat with a splash of water or broth, or in the microwave.

Can I Freeze This Recipe?

Technically speaking, you can freeze this recipe, but do be aware that the vegetables may lose their texture when thawed and reheated and the pasta is likely to be a bit mushy. If you’re okay with this, store it in an airtight container for up to 2 months and thaw in the fridge before reheating.

More Vegan Pasta Dishes

• Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
• Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta
• Vegan Spaghetti and Meatballs
• Miso Butter Pasta
• Hummus Pasta

Ingredients

For the roasted veggies:

• 1 red onion , roughly chopped
• 1 red bell pepper , roughly chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper , roughly chopped
• 1 medium zucchini or yellow squash , thinly sliced
• 1 small bunch asparagus , cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes , 248 grams
• 1 cup broccoli florets , chopped, 91 grams
• 2 carrots , sliced into very thin rounds
• ¼ cup olive oil , 59 ml
• 2 teaspoons salt , 12 grams
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper , 2 grams

For the pasta and the sauce:

• 1 teaspoon salt , 6 grams
• 12 ounces bowtie pasta , 340 grams
• 2 tablespoons olive oil , 30 ml
• 4 tablespoons vegan butter , 56 grams
• 3 cloves garlic , minced
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice , 30 ml
• 1 cup frozen peas , 144 grams
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes , 1 gram
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast , 15 grams
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley , 15 grams

Instructions

• Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 415°F.
• In a large mixing bowl, toss together the onion, red bell pepper, orange bell pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, broccoli florets, and carrots with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Make sure the veggies are well coated in olive oil and seasonings.
• Scatter the veggies over the prepared baking sheets and roast for 20-25 minutes or until tender.
• While the veggies are roasting, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and then the pasta. Cook the pasta to the package’s instructions until al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of pasta water. Set aside.
• While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil and vegan butter over medium heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the lemon juice, frozen peas, and red pepper flakes. Saute for 1 minute.
• Stir the pasta into the sauce. Add the nutritional yeast and stir until it melts into the sauce. Add a little pasta water to help the process along if needed. Stir in the roasted veggies.
• Serve warm garnished with chopped fresh parsley.

Notes