This vegan tray bake is one of our favorite no-fuss healthy dinner. Loaded with vegetables and also includes chickpeas for more plant-based protein, it is SO flavorful and filled with a colorful mix of textures. Also features an amazing, but simple, garlic and herb vegan yogurt sauce. Completely dairy-free and gluten-free.
This vegan tray bake recipe couldn't be any easier. Once the veggies are chopped, then you pretty much just need to wait for everything to roast and caramelize in the oven. Everything -but the sauce- is cooked right on the pan!
This recipe showcases a yummy variety of Mediterranean vegetables such as red onion, colorful pepper, potatoes, garlic and cherry tomatoes. Also includes healthy chickpeas to add more protein and salty olives for flavor and healthy fats.
To top it all, the veggies are paired with a simple vegan garlic-lemon-fresh herb yogurt sauce. The roasted garlic cloves from the pan of veggies are blended within the vegan yogurt sauce, which gives it such a huge boost in flavor! It is truly one of my favorite side sauces I have made so far, we just cannot stop eating it.
When working on this recipe I had in mind a family-friendly easy meal, and it is exactly this. It does take some time to cook in the oven, but the hands-on prep is pretty minimal. I'll usually let the pan cool down for a few minutes, then drizzle the yogurt sauce right onto the veggies. It is kind of nice to bring the whole tray bake on the table, so everyone can serve themselves in a fun convivial way.
We LOVE this cozy recipe and I hope you do too!
What's to love about this recipe
- Great family meal and crowd pleaser
- Easy and versatile
- ULTRA flavorful
- One-pan meal and fuss-free
- Fully vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free
- Great for meal-prep
Ingredients you'll need
- Small potatoes: I used small red potatoes, but purple or regular white will work too. You can also use Yukon potatoes, only you will need to quarter them so they can cook through.
- Colorful peppers: choose orange or red peppers if possible, they are sweeter and will caramelize better than green.
- Red onion: or white onion.
- Cherry tomatoes: works better than large tomatoes for this recipe as they will hold their shape.
- Garlic cloves: you will need 6 cloves!
- Olives: any kind, I used a mix of green and kalamata olives. Use pitted.
- Chickpeas: I prefer chickpeas compared to other beans for this recipe as they don't turn mushy.
- Dried oregano: or your favorite dried herbs such as basil, parsley, Italian mix, dill, etc.
- Lemon: used in the yogurt sauce, but also to serve with the tray bake.
- Vegan yogurt: I used plain cashew yogurt from Forager. Use your favorite brand, such as almond or soy yogurt, as long as it is unsweetened and unflavored.
- Fresh herbs: I used basil and dill, but you can also use parsley, cilantro or mint. Use a mix of different herbs for more flavor.
How to make it
Pre-heat the oven to 400º and line a large tray bake or baking sheet with parchment paper.
Prepare the veggies
This is probably the longest step! Clean and chop all the veggies into bite size. Halve the potatoes and cherry tomatoes. You can also slice the olives, but I usually leave them whole.
Bake in the oven
Transfer the potatoes, peppers and onions on the baking sheet. Also, add the cloves of garlic whole and with their peels on. You don't have to do it, but I'll usually spray a small amount of oil over the veggies. Then, sprinkle some salt, ground black pepper and dried oregano over and toss using your hands.
Try to keep the garlic all together in the corner of the tray bake as you will have to pick them out later and they will be easier to find that way.
Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
Then, remove the cloves of garlic using tongs and set them aside. Then, toss the veggies around on the tray bake and add the olives, tomatoes and chickpeas. Bake for 10-15 more minutes.
Make the yogurt sauce
After the put veggies back in the oven, make the sauce. Transfer the yogurt to a bowl (I like to use a tall container, it is easier to blend that way, see the short video) and add the lemon juice and a generous pinch of salt. Then, when cool enough to handle, remove the peels on the cloves of garlic. Add them to the yogurt and then, blend the mixture until smooth using a hand held blender.
Chop the herbs by hand and stir them in the yogurt sauce (do not blend them in, the sauce is better with some texture). Taste and adjust the lemon and salt.
Serve by drizzling the yogurt sauce over the tray bake or keep it as a side sauce to serve on plates. Great served with rice, pita or naan bread.
Watch how to make it
Helpful tips
- The pepper will caramelized while cooking, giving you a texture similar to jarred roasted red peppers. If you want them to stay crispier, then add them later in the cooking process.
- This recipe can be done completely oil-free by roasting the vegetables without any added fat.
- If you don't have a hand held blender, then simply mash the garlic by hand using a fork (it will be very soft and creamy). You could also use a food processor.
Variations to the recipe
As you might imagine, this recipe is easy to customize with your favorite veggies or whatever you already have in the fridge. Other ideas include:
- Cauliflower
- Zucchini
- Butternut squash
- Sweet potatoes
- Green beans
If swapping the veggies, try to evaluate their cooking time so you avoid over or under cooking them. Add them mid-way throughout cooking the tray bake if necessary.
You could swap the chickpeas for white beans like cannelini or navy beans. Cubed tofu would also work well (add the tofu earlier than chickpeas in the cooking process so it can roast).
We ADORE this vegan tzatziki sauce, which would obviously work amazingly in place of the garlic yogurt sauce. If swapping the sauce, then simply omit the cloves of garlic all together. Other yummy sauces that would pair well include walnut basil pesto, tahini-free baba ganoush or avocado green goddess dressing.
Something else you can do is adding more spices to the yogurt sauce such as cumin, garam masala, curry powder or turmeric. Just taste along the way.
Serving suggestions
I usually drizzle the yogurt sauce over the vegan tray bake and we scoop onto the plate what we want. You can also keep the sauce on the table so everyone can drizzle over their individual portion too.
This recipe is amazing served with pita or naan bread. We love to use the bread as a scoop to get the veggies and sauce from the tray. Also perfect to serve over rice or quinoa.
This vegan tofu feta is so amazing and works well crumbled over this Mediterranean style vegan tray bake. Also try topping with pickled onions to add a nice tang and some more crunchiness to the veggies.
Another way to serve this recipe is to use the veggies/chickpeas as taco filling or to make a gyro style sandwich. In that case, I would probably swap the potatoes for more peppers.
Storage
Keep leftovers in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. I recommend to keep the sauce apart when storing in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave.
You can meal-prep this recipe ahead, cool down and divide in small microwave safe containers over cooked rice as well as dividing the sauce in individual portions. This can be a good recipe to make a few lunches/dinner ready-to-go during the weekend.
More easy vegan dinner ideas
- Vegan hamburger helper
- One-pot broccoli curry ramen
- Kale sesame noodles
- Turmeric fried rice
- Loaded vegan nachos
- Lentil walnut tacos
I hope you like this vegan tray bake as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!
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Vegan Mediterranean Tray Bake with Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1 lb small potatoes - halved
- 1 colored pepper - seeded and cut in large pieces
- 1 red onion - cut in large pieces
- 6-7 cloves garlic - whole and skins left on
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 15 cherry tomatoes - halved
- 15 oz canned chickpeas - rinsed and drained
- 20 olives - pitted
For the dressing (or serve with vegan tzatziki)
- 1 ½ cup vegan yogurt
- 1 ½-2 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup fresh herbs such as parsley, mint, basil or dill - chopped
To serve (optional, ideas only)
- cooked rice
- vegan naan or pita bread
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400º and line a baking sheet or tray bake with parchment paper.
- Add the potatoes, pepper, onion and garlic cloves (whole, with the skins on). Spray some oil (optional). Sprinkle the oregano, some salt and black pepper over and use your hands to stir.
- Bake in the oven for 30 min. Then, carefully remove the garlic cloves using tongs and set them aside. Stir the vegetables on the tray and also add the chickpeas, tomatoes and olives. Bake for 10-15 more minutes or until the tomatoes are starting to crack and the potatoes are browned.
- Once cool enough to handle, take the skins off the cloves of garlic using your fingers. Add to a bowl/jar alongside the yogurt, lemon juice and salt. Blend using an immersion blender (I like to use a tall skinny jar to facilitate the blending process, see video). Then, add the chopped fresh herbs and stir using a spoon (don't blend the herbs). Adjust the flavors to your taste.
- Once the veggies are done cooking, you can drizzle the herbed yogurt sauce over the vegetables right on the tray bake or serve as a side sauce on plate. Serve over rice with a side of naan or pita bread.
Video
Notes
- Storage: leftovers can be kept in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. Reheat leftovers using a microwave. Keep the sauce apart while storing.
- The pepper will caramelized while cooking, giving you a texture similar to jarred roasted red peppers. If you want them to stay crispier, then add them later in the cooking process.
- This recipe can be done completely oil-free by roasting the vegetables without any added fat.
- If you don't have a hand held blender, then simply mash the garlic by hand using a fork (it will be very soft and creamy). You could also use a food processor.
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