19 vegan Italian meals for an authentic taste of Italy

Italian cuisine is famed throughout the world for its fresh flavours and traditional cooking techniques that Italians hold dear to their hearts.

Whilst pizza, pasta and gelato are the dishes we typically think of when we think of Italian food, this rich cuisine is so much more than these popular dishes.

Allow us to take you on a culinary journey through Italy to discover tasty vegan Italian recipes you can make at home that are completely meat-free and dairy-free.

1. Classic Vegan Lasagne

This is hands down the best vegan lasagne recipe you’ll ever make. With homemade vegan béchamel sauce and mozzarella cheese, it tastes just like the classic recipe.

2. Vegan Tiramisu

For an espresso-infused vegan dessert, this recipe uses aquafaba to create a delicious sweet treat.

3. Homemade Vegan Trofie Pasta with Pesto

Switch up your pasta with trofie, a thin, twisted pasta from Linguria in Italy and serve it with fresh vegan pesto.

4. Vegan Cannoli

With their crisp shells filled with a creamy filling, it’s no wonder why cannoli is such a popular Italian dessert! We’ve made our vegan cannoli using brandy snap shells and have filled them with a sweet creamy filling studded with freeze-dried raspberries and pistachios to give them even more flavour and texture.

5. Vegan Lemon Panna Cotta with Blackberry-Basil Coulis

This festive Italian dessert uses coconut milk to make this creamy dessert free from gelatine and entirely vegan. Served with a blackberry and basil coulis, the refreshing, summery flavours of this dessert are oh-so tempting.

6. Vegan Salted Almond Biscotti

This vegan version of biscotti studded with salted almonds and dipped in dark chocolate is just as delicious as the original and so easy to make! They are wonderful with a cup of coffee and keep for ages so make great Christmas gifts!

7. Vegan Gnocchi Recipe

Have a go at making your own gnocchi with this simple recipe. It’s so easy to make and perfect for a low-budget meal served with fresh and sundried tomatoes for an authentically Italian meal without meat.

8. Vegan Courgette, Mushroom & Truffle Oil Pizza

Swap out the dairy on your pizza for delicious courgettes, a drizzle of chilli oil and a handful of fresh wild rocket. The leftovers make a great lunch the next day!

9. Vegan Mocha Semifreddo

For those who love the rich, deep flavours of chocolate and coffee, there is no dessert more delicious than a semifreddo. With its creamy semi-frozen texture and punchy flavours, it’s a grown-up treat that looks as impressive as it tastes.

10. Vegan Romanesco Pizza with Cashew Cream, Salsa Verde and Pine Nuts

Topped with a cooling cashew cream, tangy salsa verde and pine nuts for added crunch, this plant-based pizza proves that you don’t need dairy to enjoy a truly delicious pizza.

11. Vegan Spinach and Cashew ‘Ricotta’ Rolls

Packed with Italian flavours, this ‘cheesy’ pasta dish is something just a little different.

12. Vegan Roasted Vegetable Calzone with Olives

Calzone originated in Naples, southern Italy in the 18th century, and is essentially a folded pizza filled with delicious fresh ingredients. We’ve stuffed this vegan version full of roasted vegetables and olives to ensure each bite is authentically Italian.

13. Vegan Roasted Vegetable Stromboli

Stomboli is a baked bread-based Italian dish that contains similar components to a pizza served in a different form. This vegan version of the classic Sicilian vegetable stromboli is packed with vegetables like spinach, red pepper, aubergine and courgette and is a delicious and easy way to get your 5-a-day.

14. Vegan Cannelloni with Spinach & Almond Ricotta

Cannelloni originated in Italy in the nineteenth century and soon became a popular dish idolised by the upper classes. So, if you’re feeling fancy, this vegan cannelloni recipe is the perfect dinner to make! We’ve filled it with spinach and almond ricotta so it tastes just like the original but is entirely dairy free.

15. Vegan Frittata with Potato, Spinach & Tomato

Traditionally am egg-based dish, this vegan version of the classic Italian recipe uses chickpea flour in place of eggs with kala namak and nutritional yeast to give it that traditional frittata flavour.

16. Vegan Green Vegetable Farinata

A farinata is a thin, unleavened pancake that originated in Italy and is popular in lots of locations along the Ligurian Sea coast. Unlike many of the vegan Italian recipes featured here, farniata is actually traditionally a vegan food as it’s made from chickpea flour. We’ve added plenty of greens to ours to give it a nutritious boost.

17. Vegan Orecchiette with Pesto, Broccoli and Kale

‘Orecchiette’ is an Italian word that means ‘little ears’, which is what this pasta resembles! This shell-shaped pasta is great for saucy dishes, like this tofu-based creamy pesto sauce recipe.

18. Vegan Neapolitan Pizza

If you’re looking for a truly authentic Italian pizza then look no further than this vegan Neapolitan pizza recipe.

True to Italian tradition, this vegan Neapolitan pizza dough is made up of very few ingredients, water, salt, yeast and flour. Top it with vegan mozzarella and fresh basil for a simple pizza that taste anything but!

19. Vegan Pink Grapefruit And Basil Sorbet

After indulging in all of these vegan Italian recipes, it’s time for a palate cleanser! We can’t think of a better way to round off an Italian feast than with a cooling scoop of sorbet. This fruity sorbet is made from grapefruit and basil so is wonderfully refreshing on a hot summer’s day.

Got a craving for carbs? You need one of the vegan pasta recipes.