Kale & Olive Oil Vegan Mashed Potatoes

This rustic vegan mashed potatoes recipe is made with olive oil, rosemary, garlic, scallions, and kale. A delicious, easy vegetarian holiday side dish!

Thanksgiving is next week, but I’ve been eating mashed potatoes for a while now because blogging life means eating holiday recipes early! I first made these vegan mashed potatoes for a family dinner a few weeks ago. While I was in the kitchen mashing stuff in a bowl, my brother-in-law came over and asked, “What’s in the mashed potatoes?” I said, “Potatoes…” and he said, “No, I mean, what’s the ‘potato’…is it cauliflower…is it parsnips?” He knows me so well. It dawned on me how rarely I make actual potatoes, but we’re changing that today. This Thanksgiving our potatoes are…

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Pomegranate Salad with Cider Dressing

This gorgeous pomegranate salad is perfect for the holiday season! Filled with a cornucopia of colorful produce, it's a fresh, festive side dish.

This pomegranate salad recipe is the perfect way to add a little color to any fall or winter meal. As we approach Thanksgiving, I feel like foods become more and more brown. I know – we all love cheesy, bready things, but if I’ve found one calling in life (er.. in blog-life), it’s to find and bring forth the colorful foods of every season. Here, I pack as many as I can into one stunning salad. This pomegranate salad has apples and squash, onions and greens, carrots and kohlrabi, and pomegranates, of course! We flipping love pomegranates. They add vibrancy…

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Pesto Havarti Macaroni

This creamy havarti macaroni recipe uses under 10 ingredients, so it's super easy to make. I add dollops of pesto and peas to brighten it up.

As I was planning what to post this fall, I realized that I’d never shared an easy stovetop macaroni recipe. Growing up, my sister and I devoured mac and cheese out of the box, and these days, I still enjoy good homemade macaroni on occasion. It was high time I shared a recipe here. Luckily for me, the Two Peas & Their Pod Cookbook just came out. I’ve been friends with Maria of Two Peas and Their Pod for years so I couldn’t be more excited for her book to arrive! It’s full of nourishing, easy-to-make recipes that are all family-friendly, plus…

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BBQ Jackfruit Sandwich

These BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches are the ultimate party food. They're easy to make ahead and have wonderful meaty texture and spicy/smoky flavor.

This BBQ jackfruit pulled pork recipe has been a long time coming. Over the last couple of years, I’ve gotten SO many requests for jackfruit recipes. It took me a little time to get this one just right, but here we are! These guys are meaty, juicy, smoky, a little spicy… and a total mess to eat, but isn’t that what saucy sandwiches are all about? If you’ve never cooked with jackfruit before, it’s a funny-looking fruit that most commonly grows in Africa, Asia, and South America. Though I’ve never had ripe jackfruit, it’s said to have a sweet flavor…

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Watermelon Tomato Salad

Hot days call for hot food, and this spicy watermelon tomato salad is the perfect grilling side! A punchy ginger dressing ties it all together.

I hope you have lots of tomatoes. Why? Because I have a really great watermelon tomato salad for you! This one is completely different from Tuesday’s tomato salad – it’s really quick and full of spicy/sweet/savory/tangy flavor. You may recognize the gingery tamari-lime dressing from the cookbook and also from these rice bowls. It’s so perfect here because the contrasting flavors really make the sweetness of the watermelon pop. This is the salad that I’ll be eating until summer is over because it’s just so delicious and refreshing. Watermelon Tomato Salad Ingredients And speaking of pop – this one is…

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Cherry Tomato Couscous Salad

This Israeli couscous salad recipe is packed with raw & roasted cherry tomatoes, feta, chickpeas & herbs. Perfect for a picnic or packing for lunch!

Whenever I’m styling (and eating) something as herb-heavy as this Israeli couscous salad, I start to wonder if a year-round indoor herb garden is possible. I love having a ton of fresh herbs right outside my door, and I’m really going to miss them when they’re gone. They’re so delicious in summer recipes like this couscous salad, and they’re oh so PRETTY. I often get asked about my food photography/styling tips and my best tip is always: Whatever dish you have, smother it in herbs! Aside from lots of fresh thyme and basil, this couscous salad recipe is all about…

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Guacamole Beyond Burgers w/ Spicy Sweet Potato Wedges

Easy grillable plant-based burgers with easy guacamole and spicy grilled sweet potato wedges. Great for summer cookouts! Vegan.

When I first tried to become vegetarian (many years ago), the concept was so new to me that I didn’t really know what to eat. My go-to easy “meals” were those tiny cardboard-flavored frozen veggie burgers. I’d eat them for dinner and I’d bring them to cookouts… they tasted terrible and everyone around me thought I was a little crazy. It wasn’t long until I quit frozen veggie burgers altogether. A few weeks ago, we gave the Beyond Burger a whirl and wow(!), have plant-based burgers come a long way! First off, you’ll actually find them in the meat case…

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Avocado Summer Rolls

These fresh vegetable summer rolls make a fantastic healthy snack or light meal. Serve with creamy vegan coconut basil sauce for dipping!

All of the fresh herbs that we have growing on our little deck inspired this recipe for summer rolls. We have a ton of basil and some very fragrant Thai basil, among other plants like Thai chiles, tomatoes, peppers, and even figs. We’re very proud of our little plant escape, and when I say “we” I mean that I’m very proud that Jack has been lovingly watering everything up to twice a day to keep it all going. This might be the longest that we’ve actually kept plants alive. Dipping Sauce for Summer Rolls Since I know many of you…

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Asian Slaw

This Asian slaw recipe is filled with crunchy veggies, fresh herbs, and a creamy sesame dressing. It's a delicious side dish or meal prep lunch!

This Asian slaw recipe is a fresh twist on coleslaw, featuring some of my favorite Asian flavors. It starts with a base of crunchy cabbage, then I toss in charred peppers, green onions, and herbs like Thai basil and cilantro for unexpected depth. Toasted seeds add crunch, a sliced peach adds sweetness, and a creamy sesame miso dressing ties the whole thing together. This Asian slaw would be a perfect side dish for your next summer BBQ or cookout (get ready for everyone to ask for the recipe!). I also love it as a meal prep lunch. The hearty cabbage…

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Sweet Corn & Arugula Panzanella

This Sweet Corn & Arugula Panzanella is a great vegetarian grilling side. Omit the cheese to make it vegan, or add a few chickpeas and some extra greens to make it a meal!

Tell me, what’s your favorite summer salad? If you said panzanella, you’re at the right place. If you didn’t say panzanella, that’s ok too, because I think you’ll be converted after you try this one! 🙂 It’s the ultimate summer salad to make with a bounty of fresh tomatoes. Or in this case, if you have a few tomatoes and a bounty of fresh sweet corn. Panzanella may be an Italian bread salad, but the special part about this panzanella is that it’s not entirely about the bread. I think bread salads can often get a bit too bread-y, which…

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Cucumber Gazpacho

Spice up your summer with this easy cucumber gazpacho! Made with tomatillos, cucumber, jalapeño & cilantro, it's a cool, refreshing soup.

I love gazpacho. If it’s on a restaurant menu, I’m ordering it, and once summer rolls around, I make it at home as much as I can. To date, I’ve made gazpacho recipes out of watermelon, tomatoes (raw and roasted), corn, green apples, zucchini, and even carrots. I think it’s fun to experiment with different types of fruits and vegetables to find out if they can blend up into delicious cold soups. So why did it take me so long to think about tomatillos and cucumber?! I get giddy about tomatillo salsa, so the obvious next step was to throw…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Welcome to Love & Lemons!

I'm Jeanine Donofrio, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author and recipe developer. I share fresh, delicious vegetarian recipes that celebrate seasonal ingredients and flavors.

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