21 Healthy Winter Recipes for When You Need a Break From Holiday Indulgences

Here’s a little insight into how my mind works: Summer is the season of fresh produce, a rainbow of veggies on every plate, and salads eaten on repeat. Winter? A mix of beautifully beige (stay with me), cozy, and comfort-heavy foods. In the latter case, as we’re trying to keep warm in less-than-ideal temperatures, packing in as many vitamins and functional ingredients as possible isn’t top of mind. But, I have good news: having the best of both worlds is possible, and these healthy winter recipes prove exactly that.

It’s that funny time of year too, when everyone’s split between wanting to indulge and being aware that the season of making New Year’s resolutions is right around the corner. I’d be the first to tell you to keep the Christmas cookies coming. But I’m also learning to embrace a new sense of balance, one that focuses on mindfully enjoying all the sugary sweets while making sure to nourish my body with healthy winter recipes (i.e., the supportive foods it craves).

21 Healthy Winter Recipes for When You Need a Reset

With that approach in mind, I’ve rounded up our favorite healthy winter recipes that’ll take you from breakfast to dinner with plenty of energy and strength to help you get through this sprint of a season. I’ll see you in 2024, feeling our best.

Breakfast

Get Figgy With It Smoothie

Why We Love It: Smoothies are often thought of as a summertime staple. And while that’s certainly the case, a few simple tweaks can make it one of your go-to healthy winter recipes. This fig smoothie blends seasonal fruit with satiating fats (tahini and flaxseed) and anti-inflammatory spices to keep you going strong.

Hero Ingredient: Fresh ginger not only gives your smoothie a bit of zip, but it also supports a strong immune system. (Key for these dark winter days!)

Pumpkin Overnight Oats

Why We Love It: When my schedule is packed and there’s just not enough time in the day, overnight oats are a saving grace. Simply stir together a few cozy ingredients (pumpkin puree, oats, chia seeds, and all the warming flavors) and you have the easiest breakfast. Ever.

Hero Ingredient: Cinnamon keeps things sweet and spicy.

Chai Spice Buckwheat Granola

Why We Love It: Perhaps you’ve been misled and believe that chai belongs in beverages only. Thankfully, this granola is here to convince you otherwise. A blend of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and cloves come together for a wintertime breakfast or snack that’s sure to warm you up.

Hero Ingredient: I’ll never say no to a healthy serving of maple syrup—and this recipe delivers. Whether it’s on pancakes, swirled into my morning yogurt bowl, or mixed into this satisfyingly sweet granola, you can never go wrong.

Vegan Nutty Banana Muffins

Why We Love It: Banana muffins are a classic morning staple. This recipe lightens things up with a vegan twist that leans on tahini—and yes, the bananas themselves—to give these treats a fluffy and moist texture. These make the best on-the-go breakfast. (And are perfect when you’ve mysteriously run out of eggs… again.)

Hero Ingredient: I love a good crumble topping. A sprinkle of sesame seeds gives these muffins a nice, nutty crunch.

Almond Butter Green Smoothie

Why We Love It: I know, I know—green smoothies are notorious for tasting overly healthy. But this simple, yet standout blend of banana, cauliflower, spinach, nut butter, and the milk of your choosing lends a beyond creamy texture. (And a flavor that’ll have you believing you’re enjoying an AM milkshake.) New year, new totally-addicting breakfast.

Hero Ingredient: Don’t knock the cauliflower. It’s what gives this smoothie its ice cream-like scoop.

One-Bowl Morning Glory Muffins

Why We Love It: There’s a reason these muffins went viral the second we posted them. They’re paradoxical in just about every way—somehow being both fluffy and dense as well as crunchy and moist. If you’ve always loved the classic combo of shredded carrots and coconut, these are a must-make.

Hero Ingredient: The applesauce keeps these muffins moist for days.

Soups

Big Green Immunity-Boosting Vegetable Soup

Why We Love It: If you love a good green smoothie (see above) and want to keep the deliciousness going into your day, make this soup, stat. Camille makes it every Sunday to work a healthy serving of asparagus, broccoli, spinach, and more goodness into her week.

Hero Ingredient: Soaked cashews are every plant-based eater’s secret weapon. They give this soup tons of satisfying heft.

Turmeric Chicken Soup

Why We Love It: IYKYK: we work turmeric into just about all of our healthy winter recipes. Why? It’s an inflammation-fighting powerhouse. And the golden-hued spice gives this soup tons of flavor. Alongside broth, chicken, garlic, and ginger, it’s sure to brighten up any dreary January day.

Hero Ingredient: As with all soups, it’s the toppings that seal the deal on their deliciousness. Here, we love cilantro, lime wedges, a sprinkle of red chili flakes, and sliced avocado.

Vegan Butternut Squash Soup

Why We Love It: We get it: when the start of a new year comes around, it can be tempting to jump on just about any detox or cleanse your fave celeb or influencer claims to be doing. Instead, take this soup as an invitation to cook up all the deliciousness while still putting whole foods front and center. Camille calls it the ultimate reset, minus the juice cleanse. It packs so many nutrient-dense ingredients (butternut squash, carrots, turmeric, ginger, garlic, and more) while also being a beyond-creamy vehicle for your favorite bread—grain-free or otherwise.

Hero Ingredient: Full-fat coconut milk makes this soup ultra-satisfying.

Vegetarian Chickpea Stew

Why We Love It: While I’m not one for hyperbole, I could legitimately eat this soup for every single meal (breakfast included). There’s a time and a place for creamy soups, but I love the bite and texture of the rainbow of ingredients this stew packs in. Cauliflower, carrots, turmeric, ginger—need I go on? That’s right, this one-pot stew is perfection.

Hero Ingredient: A tablespoon of tomato paste gives this stew a lovely richness.

Mains

Chicken Burger Lettuce Wraps

Why We Love It: With my vegetarian days well behind me, I’m keen to get a healthy serving of animal-based protein into my week. These chicken burgers—jazzed up with garlic, cilantro, mint, curry powder, and lime—make an easy mid-week dinner. And if you’re feeling the buns, go for it! But if you’re grain-free, lettuce wraps make a crunchy and crisp alternative.

Hero Ingredient: Curry powder gives your burgers a warm, spicy taste.

Hummus, Greens, & Avo Bowl

Why We Love It: The variety of greens this bowl offers is truly remarkable. It balances fiber, protein, and fat to perfection and includes nutrient-packed goodness with eggs, sunflower seeds, and hummus. If the mid-afternoon hangries regularly set in at 3 p.m., try adding this bowl to your lunchtime rotation.

Hero Ingredient: Will our love for avocados ever die? Nope—and for good reason. When people say “mouthfeel,” they’re talking about avocados. Creamy and downright dreamy (not to mention wildly nutrient-dense), this fruit is not only delicious but a surefire way to get nearly everything your body needs all in one go.

Black Lentil Salad With Roasted Vegetables & Goat Cheese

Why We Love It: While I love a good green salad in a pinch, I’m also here for recipes that iterate on the expected formula. With lentils, roasted veg, and plenty of creamy goat cheese, this unique salad makes for a light, but satisfying meal.

Hero Ingredient: Roasting veggies helps bring out their natural sweetness. Here, the carrots and Brussels sprouts benefit from a drizzle of honey.

Squash Farro Salad With Apple, Goat Cheese, & Pecans

Why We Love It: As Camille writes, “This dish is a celebration of texture, taste, and nourishment.” Truer words were never said. With delicata squash, nutty farro, creamy goat cheese, crunchy pecans, and a flavor-packed vinaigrette, you’ll be happy to count this among your go-to healthy winter recipes.

Hero Ingredient: Goat cheese offers a tangy, soft bite that plays well with the other ingredients.

Caramelized Onion and Spinach Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Why We Love It: Gone are the days of less-than-great portobello mushrooms. Vegetarians and meat-eaters alike will happily dig into this five-ingredient dish. With the functional, powerhouse ingredient front and center—and a blend of cheeses, spinach, and breadcrumbs to top—everyone will be leaving the table happy and satisfied.

Hero Ingredient: The breadcrumbs crisp up in the oven, giving your mushrooms a nice added crunch.

Vegan Flatbread With Roasted Carrot And Red Pepper Hummus

Why We Love It: We all need a quick, easy, and healthy meal in our back pocket in a pinch during the holidays. When you’re tired of indulgence upon indulgence, this vegan flatbread is a first-choice pick. Follow the recipe for this beyond-delish hummus or pick one up at the store. From there, it’s a simple matter of layering the hummus with veggies of your choice on top of a warmed flatbread. You’re welcome.

Hero Ingredient: Go with any flatbread here—but personally, I dream of freshly-warmed naan.

Vegan Cauliflower Mac & Cheese

Why We Love It: There’s nothing not to love about this warming comfort meal. Mac and cheese is a classic that I’ll be happy to serve myself seconds of any time of the year, but the combo of cheese and carbs is my inevitable ticket to sleepy town. With cauliflower, nutritional yeast, and almond milk to mimic this dish’s creaminess, you still get the flavor you want without feeling weighed down by all the dairy.

Hero Ingredient: A tablespoon of salty, umami-rich white miso added to the sauce will make you want to dive in spoon-first (even before the macaroni is mixed in).

Drinks & Desserts

Adaptogenic Hot Chocolate

Why We Love It: I’m the odd sort of person who looks forward to the moment when the temps dip below 50 degrees and it feels appropriate to wrap my hands around a warm mug of cocoa. If you wait until the weather’s a bit more conducive to your hot chocolate habit, that’s fine, but please promise me your first cup will be filled with this relaxing take on the classic. Thanks to the mix of maca and cacao, this superfood-filled recipe is grounding and meditative—and the perfect way to wind down.

Hero Ingredient: A scoop of anti-inflammatory collagen powder gives this drink a little body and heft while simultaneously supporting your gut, skin, hair, and nail health.

Healthy Oatmeal Cookies with Coconut, Raisins, and Dark Chocolate

Why We Love It: I’m an oatmeal cookie fiend, and thank goodness Camille developed this healthier spin. It cuts back on the sugar and flour while filling each bite with raisins, dark chocolate, walnuts, and coconut flakes. I like them even better than the classic oatmeal cookies.

Hero Ingredient: Flaky salt is essential for the best cookies of your life.

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Brownies

Why We Love It: I like my brownies fudgy—and this recipe delivers. A few simple swaps not only make these brownies a delight for eaters of all stripes, but I find that the blend of alt flours and swapping in flax eggs help these brownies achieve a dense and moist bite. Get ready to lick the bowl.

Hero Ingredient: We’re going for all the flavor we can get, so be sure to pick the best cocoa powder you can find. These are our faves.

Gluten-Free, Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Why We Love It: With a slice of carrot cake in front of me, no one is safe. But… I also know that to make it taste really good, most recipes call for tons of sugar. Thankfully, these cupcakes found a way around that obstacle by subbing in applesauce and maple syrup for the extra sugar. The result is a cupcake that’s just sweet enough without making your teeth tingle.

Hero Ingredient: This recipe goes all in with the cinnamon—and they’re all the better because of it.

This article was last updated on December 14, 2022.