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These essential dairy free recipes prove that cutting out dairy doesn’t mean sacrificing flavor! From dinners to dairy free snacks, breakfasts, and dessert recipes, these dishes are so delicious that no one will miss the dairy: all tried and tested on my family!

Vegan Mac and Cheese
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How going dairy free transformed our kitchen

When he was 7 years old, my son was diagnosed with lactose intolerance. Turns out, it can be pretty common to develop a dairy intolerance later in life (which we didn’t realize!). At first, we mourned the favorites he might have to give up (pizza? ice cream?). But luckily, Alex and me are are two cookbook authors with extensive experience in vegan and dairy free recipes. So we embraced it as a chance to innovate, not give up on flavor!

Now we’ve discovered many fun ways to eat dairy free recipes that everyone enjoys. They aren’t just “good for dairy-free” but delicious dishes that happen to skip dairy! So whether you’re working with an intolerance or just looking to limit your of dairy, here’s a collection of our top dairy free recipes my son and our family love, including:

  • Dairy free dinner recipes
  • Fun dairy free snacks
  • Wholesome dairy free breakfasts
  • Delicious dairy free desserts

Essential dairy free ingredients

The key to incredible dairy-free cooking lies in understanding the way certain ingredients can provide dairy-like substitutions:

  • Coconut milk: Creates richness in curries, soups, and smoothies: even vegan ice cream!
  • Cashew cream: Perfect for pasta sauces, soups, and desserts
  • Nutritional yeast: Adds cheesy flavor to everything, especially vegan mac and cheese
  • Olive oil: Often better than butter
  • Oat milk: The best all-around milk substitute

These aren’t “special diet” recipes—they’re simply great recipes that happen to be dairy-free! Many come from cuisines that traditionally use little dairy; others use clever ingredient swaps. The best part: all of the recipes below have been tried and tested by my son!

Quick note before the recipes

We’ve also found some work-arounds for parties and treat days. My son always carries Lactaid with him and uses this for a pizza night or a very occasional ice cream.

We also keep dairy-free cheese in our fridge for homemade cheese pizza or when we make air fryer taquitos. We typically like the brands Miyokos or Daiya—but please let us know your favorites in the comments below!

Top dairy free dinner recipes

Dairy free snacks

Dairy free breakfast recipes

Dairy free dessert recipes

About the authors

Alex & Sonja

Hi there! We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser, authors of two cookbooks, busy parents, and a real life couple who cooks together. We founded the A Couple Cooks website in 2010 to share simple, seasonal recipes and the joy of cooking. We now offer thousands of original recipes, cooking tips, and meal planning ideas—all written and photographed by the two of us (and tested on our kids!).

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1 Comment

  1. Lyn says:

    Love these recipes!

    The best dairy free cheese I’ve found comes from ‘Nuts for Cheese’. I’m addicted to their Lemon Dill Cream Cheese, and love their Super Blue, Gouda, and Chipotle Cheddar Style cheeses.

    https://nutsforcheese.com/collections/dairy-free-products