Robin Robertson

In my house, it’s not Thanksgiving without a stuffed seitan roast in the center of the table.  But there are lots of other great ideas for a main dish that also goes well with all the classic T’day side dishes.  Here are some suggestions:

A Vegan Loaf:  use your favorite vegan meatloaf recipes (such as the Comfort Loaf in Vegan on the Cheap or the Mom-Style Vegan Meatloaf in Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker). To give them a more Thanksgiving flavor, add some ground thyme and sage or your favorite poultry seasoning blend.  Then serve with your favorite gravy.

Instead of shaping your loaf into a loaf, press the mixture into a couple large squash halves (my FAVORITE winter squash is kabocha squash).  That’s what I did in the photo above.  The loaf-filling contains white beans, tvp, chestnuts, Brazil nuts, and oats, for a hearty protein-rich main dish.  It’s pictured with cranberry sauce and some cored apple slices that I sauteed in cranberry juice. (they can be fun to serve filled with a little cranberry sauce — easy, but good.)

Another easy option is to buy a package of Matchmeat (chicken-style) and roll it out flat (after thawing).  You can then spread any kind of stuffing you like (show here with a spinach-mushroom stuffing), roll it up, and bake.  I wrapped it in a piece of yuba before baking.  I chose not to brown it in a skillet in oil first, but if I were serving it for company, I would do so because it would turn a deeper brown color on the outside. It was still crispy and delicious this way, though.

Other great main dishes that are easy to make ahead are a Shepherd’s pie or a pot pie. If traditional dishes aren’t your thing, lasagna is a great make-ahead dish for a crowd.  It travels well, too.  If your oven is going to be busy with other foods, you can even make your lasagna in a slow cooker:

Tune in again tomorrow when I will announce the TWO winners from my consecutive Party Vegan Giveaways.  And if you haven’t entered both of them yet, you need to do it — Party Vegan isn’t just about parties — it is filled with lots of great everyday recipes too, to help you eat deliciously vegan throughout the year.

On a day when many people eat more than their share of food at one sitting, serving an appetizer before Thanksgiving dinner may seem like a bit much.  The only times I serve a Thanksgiving appetizer are when I’ve got a crowd coming over and I knew a few of them would be arriving a little later than others.  In such a case, it’s nice to put a little something out for the early arrivals to nibble on with drinks while you finish getting dinner ready.  A tasty appetizer before dinner is also a great way to put those omnivore guests at ease — the first bite of a stuffed mushroom or vegan cheese ball will prove to them that they won’t starve!

The top photo (photo by Andrea Weaver) shows my Moroccan Spiced Pumpkin Hummus from Quick-Fix Vegan. The traidtional pumpkin imbued with nontraditional (for Thanksgiving) flavors hits all the right notes.  Other great options are the Warm and Creamy Artichoke-Spinach Dip or the Savory Mediterranean Cheesecake below (photo by Debbie Cowherd) from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker:

If you’re short of time, you can simply put out a bowl of nuts, or maybe a plate of these easy peppadews stuffed with tapenade — you can buy peppadews at a supermarket salad bar and use ready-made tapenade to save time. If you can’t find peppadews, you can stuff cherry tomatoes instead or just serve the tapenade with crackers or raw veggies.

BONUS COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY:  Thanks to the generosity of my publisher, I’m giving away a SECOND copy of Party Vegan this week!  To enter this second giveaway, answer the following question in a comment at the end of this post:

QUESTION: If you were a vegan attending dinner at a non-vegan home for Thanksgiving, and they asked how they could accomodate you, what would you say? (For example, use vegetable broth in the stuffing, or make extra sweet potatoes?)   Or,  if a non-vegan host WANTED to make a special vegan dish for you, what would you suggest?

Enter NOW — this giveaway ends at the same time as the other one: midnight tomorrow!  Winners of both giveaways will be announced on Saturday.  You can enter both giveaways — and you can enter them both TWICE — just by telling others about these giveaways and then leaving an additional comment telling me about it.

Good Luck!

As a vegan, I usually don’t think of vegetables in terms of “side” dishes — they’re DINNER!  Whatever you want to call them, nothing says Thanksgiving like a table filled with mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, roasted vegetables, and cranberry sauce.  In yesterday’s post, I shared the link to my deconstructed green bean casserole, as well as the link to my vegan.com menu where you can find recipes for various sides.

Personally, I love to serve a bowl of assorted roasted vegetables on Thanksgiving.  The variety of autumn colors and sheer bounty of beautiful vegetables is visually stunning — and it tastes great, too!

For a fun presentation, you can serve roasted vegetables in a large squash like I did one year (see above photo).  I usually roast vegetables with just a little olive oil and salt and pepper to let their natural flavor come through. You can, of course, add your favorite herbs or serve them with a sauce like I did with these Roasted Vegetables with Lemon-Cannelini Sauce:

If you’re going to be short on oven space, consider making some of your sides in a slow cooker.  Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker has recipes for lots of great side dishes such as Braised Brussels Sprouts and Chestnuts, Creamy Creamed Corn, Green Bean Casserole Revisited, Granny Apple Sweet Potatoes, Scalloped Potatoes, and these Maple Glazed Root Vegetables (photo by Sabrina Butkera):

I especially like to make mashed potatoes in the slow cooker because it eliminates the last minute stovetop boiling and mashing.  Plus, the potatoes keep well on the “Keep Warm” setting while you get the rest of dinner on the table. (Hint: the slow cooker works great for stuffing too — it keeps it nice and moist.) This is the Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives (photo by Vegan Aide) from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker:

Here’s the recipe:

Garlic-Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives

Mashed potatoes are easy to make in the slow cooker, and convenient too, since you can cook and serve them in the same container. They also hold well on the Keep Warm setting if they finish cooking before the rest of the meal. The addition of sour cream and chives adds an extra flavor boost, but you can omit them (as well as the garlic) for more basic mashers. This recipe is from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson © 2012.

Slow Cooker Size: 4- to 5-quart
Cook Time: 3 to 4 hours on High
{gluten-free}

3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 pounds Yukon Gold or russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks (about 6 cups)
2 cups water or vegetable broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegan butter, plus more if needed (optional)
1/2 cup vegan sour cream
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives or 1 tablespoon dried
1/4 cup plain unsweetened nondairy milk, heated (optional)

1. Combine the garlic and potatoes in the slow cooker. Add enough of the water or broth to just cover the potatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste. (If using water, you’ll need to add about 1 teaspoon of salt.) Cover and cook on High until the potatoes are soft, 3 to 4 hours.
2. Carefully remove the insert of the slow cooker and drain the potatoes, then return the potatoes to the slow cooker. Add the vegan butter, if using, and the sour cream and mash the potatoes right in the slow cooker. Stir in the chives, then taste and adjust the seasonings, if needed. Add more vegan butter, sour cream, or a little warm nondairy milk, if needed for desired consistency. Serve hot.
Serves 4

***

Don’t forget to tune in tonight for the VegNews Twitter Chat where I will be answering your Thanksgiving questions (I’m (@GlobalVegan) on Twitter.) Also on the panel will be Allyson Kramer (@manifestvegan), Hannah Kaminsky (@BitterSweet), Nava Atlas (@navaatlas2), and Ayinde Howell (@AYINDE).

AND….there’s still time to enter the Party Vegan Giveaway by leaving a comment at the end of Monday’s post.

When it comes to planning a vegan Thanksgiving menu, there are a few different schools of thought.  One is to make a meal as close to the traditional table using vegan ingredients.  For example, the menu could include a centerpiece of your own stuffed seitan roast, or perhaps a Tofurky, Field Roast, or Gardein roast.

The side dishes might include family favorites such as mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce,  gravy, extra stuffing, and maybe even a green bean casserole.  A variation on the traditional theme would be to serve a stuffed squash or some kind of loaf as the centerpiece, instead of a roast.  A third option is to make your own tradition with a non-classic meal such as lasagna or maybe a Moroccan bisteeya.

Whatever you decide to make, it will be easier (and more fun for you) if you plan ahead and make as many things in advance as possible. Then you can relax and enjoy your meal with family and friends.

At my house we enjoy the flavors of traditional dishes, even down to a veganized green bean casserole, reminiscent of the kind Jon’s family had every year when he was growing up, or you can try my recipe for Deconstructed Green Bean Casserole.

The following are three of my holiday menus.  The first menu is one I shared on Vegan.com (photograph at top).  You can find all the recipes for this menu by going to this link and clicking on each menu item:

— Menu #1 —

Seitan en Croute
Madeira Sauce
Rum-Spiked Sweet Potatoes with Pomegranate Pecans
Triple Cranberry Relish
Roasted Asparagus
Garlic Smashers
Stuffed Winter Squash (optional main dish)
Ginger-Dusted Pumpkin Cheezecake

The following two menus are from Party Vegan where you can find all the recipes:

— Menu #2 —

Chestnut Bisque
Buttercup Squash Stuffed with Wild Rice, Shiitakes, and Caramelized Leeks
Pan Gravy
Roasted Autumn Vegetables
Cranberry-Apple Relish
Pecan-Pumpkin Pie

— Menu #3 —

Mixed Greens with Caramelized Walnuts and Balsamic Pear Vinaigrette
Porcini-Stuffed Seitan with Wild Mushroom Sauce
Herb-Mashed Potatoes
Wilted Baby Spinach with Dried Cranberries
Spiced Two-Apple Tart with Cider Crème

I’ll delve into more options and provide additional recipes and tips in upcoming posts.  In the meantime, be sure to enter the Party Vegan Giveaway by leaving a comment in the previous post.

ANNOUNCEMENT: For more Thanksgiving tips, tune into the VegNews Twitter Chat tomorrow (Wednesday, November 14) @ 6pm PT/9pm ET where I will be answering your questions (I’m (@GlobalVegan) on Twitter.) Also on the panel will be Allyson Kramer (@manifestvegan), Hannah Kaminsky (@BitterSweet), Nava Atlas (@navaatlas2), and Ayinde Howell (@AYINDE).

With this crazy weather, it’s hard to remember what time of year it is. Just a couple weeks ago it was freezing rain and windy and this past weekend, it was so warm, we enjoyed lunch outside. Can Thanksgiving really be next Thursday?

During the holidays, I get lots of e-mails, especially from new vegans, asking for advice.  So from now until the end of the year, I’m going to post some of my favorite holiday menus, tips, and recipes to help you get through the season deliciously stress-free. Let’s begin with my favorite cranberry sauce made with lime marmalade, pictured above.

To launch my Holiday Hotline, I’m also giving away a copy of my holiday (and everyday) cookbook, Party Vegan.  Filled with menus and recipes for everything from casual get-togethers, to potluck dishes, to holiday dinners, Party Vegan is filled with advice for all kinds of entertaining, gleaned from my years of experience as a caterer.

To win a copy of Party Vegan, just leave a comment at the end of this post.  Your comment can be anything from your favorite holiday food, to a question you’d like to see answered in an upcoming post.  You can even leave your own tip for stress-free holidays!

Enter now – the giveaway closes on Friday night 11/16 at midnight.  A winner will be chosen at random and announced on Saturday morning.  Good luck!

P.S. Even if you already own Party Vegan, you should still enter this giveaway.  If you win, that second copy will make a great gift!

P.P.S. FOR A SECOND CHANCE TO WIN:  Link to this giveaway on Twitter or Facebook and then leave a second comment telling me you did so.