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A Very Vegan Holiday Menu

Vegan Thanksgiving Holiday Menu

It’s hard to believe that Christmas is less than 10 days away! Have you started planning your menu yet? My Thanksgiving and Christmas menus tend to be similar, and I have a habit of sticking to the same tried and true recipes year after year. You can go never go wrong with your favorites, especially if it’s a well loved recipe.

Here’s what I whipped up for Thanksgiving this year, and more likely than not, we’ll make some of these again for Christmas. What’s on your dinner table this holiday season?

Vegan Homemade Seitan Roast with Miso Gravy

Homemade Seitan Roast
One of my favorite foodie highlights of the year was learning how to make a killer seitan roast. I learned the basics from here, but you can get creative once you have the process down. We’ve various combinations of boiling, steaming, and roasting, but prefer the steam, then roast technique. Our seitan was seasoned with fennel seeds, minced garlic, crusted red pepper, then rubbed with dried herbs and olive oil.

Creamy Miso Gravy
Stumbling across this miso gravy recipe last year was life changing. I’m a mushroom fan and love a good mushroom gravy, but miso adds a delicious richness that can’t be beat. I use arrowroot powder instead of flour and corn starch as it gives the gravy a better texture. Oh, and I go a little crazy with the black pepper in this one.

Stuffin’ Muffins
Several friends have sent me stuffin’ muffins recipes, so I figured why not give it a try using my usual stuffing recipe with onions, celery, and green apples. Press about 1/3 cup of stuffing into each muffin tin, then bake at 350F for about 45 minutes. Instead of vegetable broth, I used miso broth to moisten the bread for added yumminess. If you want crispy edges, brush your muffin tin with oil and skip the parchment paper. I took the parchment route for easier cleanup!

Vegan Thanksgiving Stuffing Muffins

Jellied Cranberry Sauce with Fuji Apple
Thanksgiving just isn’t complete without homemade cranberry sauce. Since 2009, I’ve been using this recipe from Food & Wine, but I always make it with fresh orange juice for an extra ooh la la. It was the perfect way to use up the last of the fresh cranberries from our CSA.

Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts
All of you anti-brussels sprouts folks out there seriously need to give these a try. Roasting them makes them oh so amazing, and adding a dash of balsamic vinegar is genius. I followed this recipe to the T, and this was the the dish that disappeared first.

Broccoli Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
My sister visiting was the perfect excuse to make a batch of these stuffed shrooms. I skipped the egg and used soy cheese in the bread crumb mixture. The final drizzle of dijon sauce wasn’t necessary as everything was already tasty as is!

Vegan Thanksgiving Holiday Menu

Mashed Parsnips & Cauliflower
I love potatoes, but when there are already so many indulgent foods, it’s good to have a lighter option. Plus, we needed to use up the last of the parsnips and cauliflower from the CSA. Both veggies have a light, but creamy texture. Steam or saute until tender, toss them into the Vitamix, then season away.

Apple Pie with Sweet Corn Ice Cream
Over the past few months, we’ve received obscene amounts of apples and sweet corn from our CSA. Luckily, an apple pie uses about 6 apples, and I’m married to a pie lover. We got creative and mixed pureed corn into our go to vegan vanilla ice cream recipe. Voila, apple pie a la mode with a twist!

Veganizing Your Holiday Menu
This year, I’ve learned that it’s not hard at all to put together a vegan Thanksgiving #Thanksliving spread. For recipes that call for an egg, you can often skip it or use a substitute depending on what role the egg plays in the recipe. If you’re using margarine, double check the ingredients as not all margarines are 100% vegan. If you’re using store bought items, like pie crust, to cut down on kitchen prep, you’ll be surprised by how many products are accidentally vegan.

Vegan Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich

Leftovers Breakfast Sandwich
I don’t know about you, but having a big ole plate of leftovers gets boring after a while. Most Thanksgiving flavors are very complementary, so stack them high in a sandwich. Why yes, I even put the mashed parnsips and cauliflower in there with lots of miso gravy and added a thick slice of soy cheese for good measure.

Leftovers Shepherd’s Pie
If a bigger than your mouth sandwich isn’t your thing, there’s always shepherd’s pie. It’s a great way to use up random odds and ends. I layered the bottom of a glass dish with chopped seitan, veggies, miso gravy, then topped it off with mashed parsnips and cauliflower. Bake for about 30 minutes at 400F, until the top just begins to brown. Perfect dinner on a chilly day.

Vegan Thanksgiving Leftovers Shepherd's Pie

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7 Comments

  • Reply
    cookiesnchem
    at

    Lovely compilation! I’m loving that parsnip mash :)

    • Reply
      wazwu
      at

      Thanks so much! This was my first time making parsnip mash, and I was surprised by how naturally creamy it was. :)

      • Reply
        cookiesnchem
        at

        I’m definitely going to try this out! Maybe I’ll add some basil and garlic :)

        • Reply
          wazwu
          at

          Hope you like it! I used garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper for seasoning. Basil would be tasty too!

  • Reply
    Mitzie Mee
    at

    I’m a big fan of anything miso and your creamy gravy looks really delicious. I also like your left-over pictures and I’m curious about that soy cheese. What happens when it melts? Does it keep its cheesy texture?

  • Reply
    ThanksLiving Feast / Vegan Thanksgiving – Let's Nom Nom!
    at

    […] when I assembled the leftovers into a hefty breakfast sandwich last year? Well, I think I’ve outdone myself this year with this ridiculous beast of a […]

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