What Can I Serve for Vegetarians and Vegans at Thanksgiving?
As more people choose to go vegetarian or simply reduce the meat in their diets for health and ethical reasons, the question of what to serve at Thanksgiving dinner becomes bigger than ever before. Instead of simply debating between Mom’s recipe versus Aunt Ruth’s for the turkey, the entire staple entrée is tossed aside. If you have vegetarians coming to dinner or just want to take the non-traditional route, here are some must haves for your Thanksgiving table:
* Vegan Pot Pie: Served steaming hot with tons of veggies, a flaky crust, and chewy tempeh or seitan. Mealsmatter.org
* Butternut Squash and Apple Soup: the rich sweetness of butternut squash plus the natural tartness of apples, pureed with cinnamon and nutmeg. Simplyrecipes.com
* Soybeans: they are packed with protein, fiber and omega-3 Fatty Acid. Also rich in bone building calcium, zinc, magnesium, iron and isoflavones. You do want to choose the minimally processed soy for healthy, all-natural and energizing foods.
* Autumn Harvest Casserole: pumpkin seeds, golden potatoes, cracked pepper, and portabello mushroom soup combine to make a savory casserole. Vegcooking.com
* Walnut Apple Stuffing: Baked separately from any bird, this recipe will have your guests asking for more. Vegkitchen.com
* Red Cabbage with Cranberries: Bright in color and full of sweet and sour flavor! Theveggietable.com
* Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Coconut Milk: A unique take on mashed potatoes and chock full of Vitamin A to boot! Vegetarian.about.com
And of course, what’s Thanksgiving dinner without dessert? The Pumpkin Patch “Cheesecake” is one definitely worth giving thanks over! Find it on vegcooking.com.
Happy Holidays!
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Check out this uplifting and inspiring video on why people choose vegan : http://veganvideo.org /
Also see Gary Yourofsky: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagt5L9wXGo
Great recipe ideas, thanks.
There are many wonderful vegetarian "side dishes" that can be enjoyed by everyone. It is frustrating for vegetarians and vegans who go to family gatherings, prepared to just get along and share the dishes that are vegetarian, only to find that someone has cooked the stuffing inside the bird, plopped slices of ham on top of the melons, poured chicken broth in the mashed potatoes, and filled the yams with marshmallows (full of cow hooves and entrails).
Sharing a meal can mean just that -- preparing the meat for those who eat meat, but remembering that not every dish must contain animal parts, so that those who do not wish to eat meat can be a part of the family and share in the festivities. Live and let live, you know?
Maybe a whole 4 ounces of what goes on the plate on Thanksgiving is meat .
If you have a prima donna in the family, doing the princess and the pea thing, this is a great time of year to teach them what millions of years of evolution taught the rest of us: If you don't want to include meat as part of your diet , you can jolly well go hungry.