After a long day teaching middle school, Maelie Knox just wants to eat something warm and satisfying—but fast. “I don’t want to be chopping for 40 minutes after grading papers,” she says. And as a longtime vegan, she also tries to keep her dinners low in fat, especially oils, without losing flavor.
At first, that balance was tricky. “A lot of vegan recipes lean on nuts, coconut milk, or added oils for richness,” Maelie says. But she knew that whole food–based meals could be just as delicious.
So she simplified. She began batch-cooking grains like quinoa and farro, roasting trays of vegetables in minimal oil, and keeping frozen edamame and peas on hand for quick protein. Soups became her go-to: lentil with cumin, sweet potato and ginger, or tomato basil with white beans. “You can pack so much flavor into a soup with herbs and spices,” she says.
Stir-fries with tamari, ginger, and lemon helped her reinvent leftover veggies. She’d toss everything in a non-stick pan, no oil needed, and serve it over brown rice or noodles.
The trick, she found, wasn’t to replicate restaurant-style richness—it was to celebrate freshness. “I’m not trying to impress anyone. I just want a meal that makes me feel good,” Maelie says.
Now, her evenings are easier. She’s fueled, not weighed down. And most importantly, she actually enjoys the process. “Healthy eating has to fit into your real life,” she says. “Not the other way around.”
