A Fully Vegan ThanksLIVING Feast

A Fully Vegan ThanksLIVING Feast

Maybe it's your first holiday season eating plant-based. Or, maybe, it's your thirtieth! Or, maybe, it's your first-time cooking for a vegan family member. Or, maybe, you just love cooking and as long as it tastes good, it doesn't matter that it's vegan! Whatever your reason, these recipes are perfect for the season. Scroll on down for an entire feast of recipes from soup and salad to start, to sides, a show-stopping stellar main dish, and even a no-fuss dessert.

Harvest Butternut Squash Stuffing and Seitan Roulade En Croute

Thanks to everyone who came out to Tanaka Farms on Saturday for the Plant Powered OC Vegan Holiday Cooking Demo and Talk. It was a great turnout and we had a super fun time!

A couple of notes about the following recipes. THEY ARE FLEXIBLE! Don't like pecans? Use walnuts. Don't like yellow onions? Use red ones. Don't like cranberries? Use raisins. Don't like wild rice stuffing? No worries, use your favorite stuffing recipe instead. Don't want to put the puff pastry on? Don't! It's all about making food that YOU like. Not me. So have fun with it.

Vegan Thanksgiving Survival Guide!

Maybe this is your first Thanksgiving as a vegan. Or maybe this year, the rest of your family has decided to come to your house for a cruelty free holiday and you are freaking out about how to make a meal to make converts out of all of them. Or maybe you just want an easy Thanksgiving dinner you can have on the table in about an hour. In any case, I'm here to help. I'll share some of my own recipes, and point you to a few of my favorite vegan bloggers out there who have done a damn fine job of making incredibly tasty Thanksgiving treats.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
This bad boy has been in my repertoire for ages, and it never disappoints.  Creamy and pumpkin-y and autumn-y and cinnamon-y and nutmeg-y. It has all of the goodness that is required of a dessert worthy of a holiday feast.  Oh, and it's mega easy to make, to boot. (Oh, and hey, if you use a gluten free crust, this one is totally easy to make gluten free.)

A Vegan Thanksgiving Feast in Under an Hour?

Maybe you are the only vegan in the household this Thanksgiving?  Maybe this is your first year hosting a Thanksgiving in your home?  Maybe you aren't so surefooted in the kitchen and are nervous about pulling off the perfect meal?  Or maybe you have to work Thanksgiving day (like me!) and can't figure out how you are ever going to be able to make a full on vegan feast after a full day at work? I give you a Vegan Thanksgiving Feast ready in under an hour!  

I did a trial run last night to make sure that it still tasted home made, because a lot of this meal is made from a package.  But guess what?  This semi-homemade feast had all of the flavors and practically none of the fuss of a scratch-made Thanksgiving.

So what do you need to make a full on vegan Thanksgiving meal in under an hour?

Thanksgiving is when? OMG.

There has been so much going on lately, that Thanksgiving has completely snuck up on me!  I fear I have no time to experiment with new recipes this year, so I will be depending on some of my tried and true favorites to get me through this holiday.

Going way back, I will make a double batch of Greek Stuffing.  It is adapted from a recipe my cousin Jerry made for us on Thanksgiving many moons ago, that was full of fatty ground beef and lots of dairy butter.  When I recreated it as a vegan dish and submitted the recipe to Better Homes and Gardens recipe contest, guess what?  It won.  Haha.  If I have time, I will make a Seitan en Croute, if not, I will rely on a classic Tofurkey Roast to center my plate.  And for dessert I will most likely enjoy a slice of my super easy, and super tasty Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie.

Veganized Family Favorite!  Greek Stuffing made with seitan instead of ground beef.

Greek Stuffing
2 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice blend
500 grams vegetable bouillon (2 cubes)
24 ounces prepared seitan (about 3 cups) chopped into tiny little pieces 
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup golden raisins
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup pine nuts
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

Prepare rice, according to package instructions adding bouillon cubes to the water. 
Sauté seitan, or other meat substitute, in a separate pan in a smidge of olive oil, until browned. 
Use about half of the olive oil in a large pan (I use a wok) and sauté the onions and garlic on medium high heat for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant. 
Reduce heat, add the seitan, then all other ingredients to the pan, mix well and remove from heat. 
After rice is fully cooked, add to the sautéed ingredients along with the remaining olive oil and mix it all together.

Yield: 8 servings

Seiten en Croute:  A savory moist seitan roast wrapped in flaky puff pastry.

Seitan en Croute: Inside Shot

Seitan en Croute

2 cups (288 g) vital wheat gluten flour

1 cup (120 g) whole wheat flour
1/4 cup (30 g) nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup (235 ml) beef flavored vegetable broth (or plain veggie broth)
1/2 cup (120 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (60 ml) soy sauce or tamari
3 tablespoons (50 g) tomato paste
1 tablespoon (45 g) prepared stone ground mustard
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
2 sheets vegan frozen puff pastry

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).
Have ready a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat such as Silpat.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together, gluten flour, wheat flour, nutritional yeast, parsley, paprika, garlic powder, and pepper.
In a separate bowl, mix together broth, oil, soy sauce, tomato paste, mustard, and liquid smoke.
Add wet to dry and knead together until well incorporated and until moist dough forms.
Let rest 20 minutes.
Thaw puff pastry according to package instructions.
Form into a loaf (similar to a meat loaf shape) and place in the center of the baking sheet.
Bake, uncovered, for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
Increase the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C, or gas mark 5).
Cover the loaf entirely with one of the pastry sheets, tucking the edges underneath the loaf.
Slice the other sheet into 10 even strips for weaving. Weave the strips, on the diagonal across the top of the loaf. Tuck loose ends under the loaf.
Sprinkle a little paprika and parsley on top for color.
Return to the oven and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until pastry is fluffy and golden brown.
Allow to rest about 15 minutes before serving.

Yield: About 8 servings

Pumpkin Cheezecake Pie
1 (9-inch) pie crust (you can make your own, but I went with a premade graham crust for this one)
2 (8 ounce) containers of vegan cream cheese
1 (15 ounce) can of pure pumpkin puree
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).

Beat all ingredients together using an electric mixer until smooth. 

Pour into pie crust. 

Place a pan of water (about 1-inch deep) on the bottom shelf of the oven. 

Line a cookie sheet with foil. 

Place the pie on the foil lined sheet and place in the oven on the top rack.* 

Bake for 45 minutes. Remove and let cool, place in refrigerator until ready to serve, and to set even more.

Yield: One 9-inch pie

*This step helps keep the moisture in the oven and prevents the pie from cracking on the top!

  

The obligatory "What I'm making for Thanksgiving dinner" post

I cannot believe that tomorrow is the day before Thanksgivng.  I have been working so much lately helping everyone else get ready for Thanksgiving, that I really haven't had any time at all to prepare for my own!

So, as I previously mentioned, I am working Thanksgiving morning, so I will need to do all of my cooking tomorrow night.  Knowing that tomorrow will be a horribly long and strenuous day at work, I am going to go simple, yet traditional.  There are only 4 vegans at dinner this year, so I don't need to go overboard, and even I have come to admit, that it is okay to buy some things from the store...

The Menu:
*Seitan en Croute

*Cheesy Herb and Garlic Mashed Potatoes (Made super easy by jazzing up some instant potato flakes!)
*Garlic and Mustard Roasted Brussels Sprouts (RECIPE BELOW, from 500 Vegan Recipes)
*Bread Stuffing (Stale bread cubes baked with The leftover Sippity Soup from the other night, with dried cranberries and rosemary added, and the beans and broccoli fished out.)
*Storebought Vegan Mushroom Gravy from Whole Foods Market
*Storebought Vegan Cranberry Sauce from Whole Foods Market
*And for dessert...Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie


Garlic and Mustard Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Sorry I don't have a picture of these...you'll just have to trust me on this.  I just bought mine on the stalk today.  Less than $3 for the whole stalk!

*Gluten Free
*Soy Free
Even if you don't care for brussel sprouts, give these a try. The marinade is so flavorful you will totally forget you are eating this high protein, high fiber, calcium rich, mini cabbage!

1 pound (454 g) Brussels sprouts
1/4 cup (60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (84 g) agave nectar
2 tablespoons (30 g) prepared stone ground mustard
2 tablespoons (30 g) minced garlic
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).
Have ready a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment or aluminum foil.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together olive oil, agave, mustard and garlic.
Toss in brussel sprouts to coat.
Spread evenly on baking sheet in a single layer.
Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes, until tender.

Yield: 4 servings

Giving Thanks!

Wow, Thanksgiving is next week. I can't believe how quickly this year has passed. There is so much to be thankful for.

I am thankful for my health.
I am thankful for my family.
I am thankful for my husband.
I am thankful for my friends.
I am thankful that I have a safe roof over my head.
I am thankful that I have food on the table.

I am thankful that I have the opportunity to do what I love and share it with you!

Next Thursday, when you sit down and give thanks, what are you going to eat? Here's what I was thinking about:

Seitan en Croute
(from 500 Vegan Recipes)
RECIPE HERE



Stone Ground Spinach Mashed Potatoes
(from 500 Vegan Recipes)



Cranberry Chorizo Cornbread Stuffing
(from 500 Vegan Recipes)



And for Dessert?
Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
(from 500 Vegan Recipes)
RECIPE HERE




And lest I forget...I AM THANKFUL FOR MY PUBLISHER, Fairwinds Press! Celine and I are writing another book together...woo-hoo! It is tentatively titled The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions and will be chock full of fun foods...and guess what else? Full color pictures!

And so it begins...

I brought home my annual Pre-Thanksgiving haul from Whole Foods!



So, I guess I'd better get to work!

On another note, I have been making an effort to try new things. Last week at the farmer's market, I was talking with a hydroponic organic farmer (so cool!) and she turned me on to Yellow Squash Blossoms.



I asked her what to do with them, and she said, make quesadillas, with lots of cheese. Hmm. So a Mexican flair? I made a flatbread sammy with Avocado Cilantro hummus, roasted red peppers and squashblossoms sauteed in onions and garlic. Yummy.



When I have some time to whip up some queso, I am going to try out that quesadilla idea.

VeganMofo and Straight-Up-Thanksgiving Burgers

This here burger was the brainchild of my bestest friend, Jen. She said if I could pack an entire Thanksgiving dinner into a burger, she would be in heaven. So, I gave it a shot. Invited her over and had her test it out. She said it was crack. So, there you have it. If you're in the mood for Thanksgiving, make it. It's also a good way to use up "real" Thanksgiving leftovers.


Openface on a grilled sourdough dinner roll, with plain brown gravy.

Straight-Up-Thanksgiving Burgers
Ingredients (makes 8 big burgers)
4 cups prepared mashed potatoes (I used the Garlic Smashed potatoes from Cozy Inside, but any mashed potatoes will work. Skin on adds more texture to the burgers)
4 cups prepared stuffing/dressing (I used McCubbins Herb flavor, but I think any bread based stuffing would work fine...In fact, a few slices of stale bread, cut into cubes and mixed with margarine and veggie broth, then baked amkes a prettay darn good stuffing.)
1, 14oz can of cut green beans, drained
1 cup French's french fried onions (Seriously, would it be Thanksgiving without them?)
1 cup diced onions
2 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp margarine for sauteing onions
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Prepare mashed potatoes and stuffing, set aside. In a pan, on medium high heat, melt margarine and add onions and garlic and saute until just beginning to brown. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and form into patties. Pan fry, in oil, about 3-5 minutes per side or bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Everything is already cooked, you just need to heat 'em up!

VeganMoFo and Leftovers

Nothing much happening 'round here...I am STILL eating leftovers!

VeganMoFo and the day AFTER!

The day after Thanksgiving is sometimes better than Thanksgiving itself! No stress, no rushing around...just fuzzy slippers, sweats and a big ol' plate of leftovers.

I forgot to post pictures of a few of the other things I made yesterday, so here they are:

Julie Hasson's Pumpkin Spice Cake made into a 2 layer cake with cream cheeze frosting from VCTOTW. Everyone loved the cake. Sadly, I didn't even get to try it, because my husband and I had to leave to go to his mom's house for round two.


The Festivous Loaf, sliced and ready to eat:


And a really horrible shot of the "Vegan Buffet"...my camera died after this shot, so I didn't get a better one, but it's the only shot of the pumpkin raviolis so I posted it anyways. Also, we got to put our food in the actual DINING ROOM this year, and the TURKEY was shoved onto the little crappy kitchen table. I guess it pays to have a pretty presentation!


All in all Thanksgiving was a success. I wish I could've stayed at Dad's longer, but I had a wonderful time at Dan's Mom's house as well. Now off to put on those fuzzy slippers and get to my leftovers...

Festivous Loaf

Festivous, you know, for the rest of us?   The holiday meant for those who don't celebrate those other holidays and made famous by the memorable Seinfeld episode.  But every holiday needs a signature dish, right?  Alright. Here it is. The one, the only, the Festivous Loaf.

Ingredients:
2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
2 cups garbanzo bean flour
2 cups all purpose flour (can sub whole wheat pastry flour here too)
2/3 cup vegetable broth powder (I used vegetarian chicken flavor)
2-3 cups water
Pesto (I used sundried tomato flavor, but any pesto will do)
2 boxes of storebought stuffing mix (prepared with vegetable broth)
4 cups additional vegetable broth

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the flours with the vegetable broth powder and slowly add in the water. Start with 2 cups and add more if needed. Knead together until a nice smooth dough ball is formed. Knead for 5 more minutes, and then cover and set aside to rest for 20 minutes.
While it's resting, prepare 2 boxes of storebought stuffing according to package instructions and set aside. (Most boxed stuffings are vegan, infact they are really just a bag of seasoned croutons or bread crumbs so if you have a favorite stuffing recipe, this would be a good place to use it.) Set aside.
After your dough has rested, roll it out on a well floured surface, trying to keep a rectangular shape...mine ended up being almost as big as the cutting board:



Spread a hearty layer of pesto all over the dough:



Sprinkle on a good amount of prepared stuffing:



Roll that puppy up!



Pour about 2 cups of vegetable broth into a 9 x 13 baking dish, then place the loaf in the dish:



Add the remaining stuffing all around the loaf:



Place in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 90 minutes, basting with the remaing broth every 15 minutes or so. You'll know it's done, when it is firm.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I realized that I didn't even post yesterday, so today you get two posts! First off, I would like to wish all of you out there the warmest Thanksgiving wishes. May all of your families and friends be nice to you when you show up with a vegetable or a festivous loaf rather than partake in the dead bird.

The countdown is on and I think I am on schedule. The festivous loaf is in the oven, and all I have left to do is finish the raviolis and make the gravy and frost the cake.

Here is a picture of phase one completed. All that needs to be done is to reheat and enjoy! Clockwise from 9 o'clock is Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Greek Stuffing, Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash, and Bryanna's Pumpkin Pie:



I will post a tutorial on the festivous loaf next! Enjoy your day!

VeganMoFo and Thanksgiving Preparations

Alright. I went shopping. Did the dishes, and I am ready to start this feast.

My official menu is:
Cozy Inside Greek Stuffing (recipe below)
Ravioli with Pumpkin filling and a pumpkin seed creem sauce (will post recipe soon...)
Festivous Loaf (will post recipe soon...)
Cozy Inside Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes (recipe below)
Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash (I veganized this recipe)
Bryanna Clark Grogan's Pumpkin Pie (recipe here)
Julie Hasson's Pumpkin Spice Cake (recipe here) I am subbing chocolate chips for the fruit and frosting it with cream cheese frosting as a 3 layer cake for my Dad's birthday.

I may also make some bread, and a "fried cheese" appetizer, and if I have time I am going to make Joanna's Green Beans, from Yellow Rose Recipes.

Hopefully I'll be able to out do last year's feast!

Recipes:
Garlic Smashed Potatoes
Ingredients
4 large russet potatoes
½ cup soy creamer
¼ cup vegan margarine
¼ cup vegan sour cream
1 head of roasted garlic (see below)
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Wash potatoes and cut them into approximately one inch chunks. Place chunks into the boiling water and cook until tender, usually 10-15 minutes. Drain and return to pot. Add in the creamer, margarine, sour cream and garlic. Smash with a potato masher until you get your desired consistency. I like mine with lots of lumps. Serve nice and warm smothered with Earth Balance and Mushroom and Onion Gravy. For cheesy garlic smashed potatoes, try adding in a quarter cup of nutritional yeast.

Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
1 head of garlic
Olive oil for drizzling
Sea salt to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove excess outer layers of skin, but do not peel. With a knife, cut the top off of the whole head of garlic, exposing just the tips of the garlic cloves. Place on a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Wrap the entire clove in the foil and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven, let it cool to the touch. Squeeze each clove out and use in garlic smashed potatoes, eat them on their own as an appetizer, spread onto bread, or add into any recipe calling for garlic when you want a milder, roasted flavor. To roast more than one head of garlic at a time, use a muffin tin!


Greek Stuffing
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice blend
500 grams vegetable bouillon (2 cubes)
24 ounces seitan, about 3 cups chopped into tiny little pieces, (or any other meat substitute like Boca Crumbles, Textured vegetable protein, or Tempeh sausage crumbles)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup golden raisins
4 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup pine nuts
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
Directions
Prepare rice, according to package instructions adding bouillon cubes to the water. Cook seitan, or other meat substitute, in a separate pan in a smidge of olive oil, until browned. Use about 1/2 of the olive oil in a large pan (I used a wok) and sauté the onions and garlic on medium high heat for about 5-7 minutes, or until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant. Reduce heat, add the seitan, then all other ingredients to the pan, mix well and remove from heat. After rice is fully cooked, add to the sautéed ingredients along with the remaining olive oil and mix it all together.

VeganMoFo and the last "Pantry" experiment

This is the last meal of the great grocery experiment of 2007 as it is time to begin prepping Thanksgiving dinner and go grocery shopping!

This "Experimental Loaf" was made to see if it would work. It worked, so now I just need to tweak the thickness of the dough and change the filling so I can make a larger one for Thanksgiving dinner.



Basically it is a dough made with a mixture of vital wheat gluten, chickpea flour and whole wheat flour, rolled out, and spread with an herbed paste then rolled up and baked. When I tweak it to perfection, I will post the recipe.

Now I'm off to work, and after work...I'M GOING SHOPPING!

VeganMoFo: Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving.

I love Thanksgiving! Dead birds aside, my family has a great time together, eating drinking and telling really stupid stories about eachother from year's passed. We always crack up, and we always have a good time. This year, same as last, I will be responsible for the "vegan" table. Normally there are 5 of us, but this year, only 3 will be there. I usually make enough food for a small army, but it's always awesome. The omnivores are always interested in tasting the "weird" stuff and they always have nice things to say.

This is last year's feast (not everything is showing) :


Our table consisted of pumpkin gnocchi, Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash, Greek Stuffing, VCTOTW Pumpkin Cupcakes, VwaV Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy, Garlic Smashed Potatoes, A Tofu Not-A-Turkey with Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole, Nutty Cheeze Sqaures and crackers (because not only do we do dinner, we also do appetizers and snacks), SunDried Tomato Focaccia, and of course, SoyNog!

This year I am making Greek Stuffing, Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash, Fried Nutty Cheeze Sticks with Marinara, Butternut Squash Ravioli in a sage cream sauce, Traditional stuffing, a loaf of ho'made wheat bread, Joanna's Sesame Green Beans, and I am still trying to think of a dessert.

What are you making?

Today was the first time in over four years that I had to punch a timeclock at a "job." I have forgotten what it's like to work a straight 8 hour day. I really like being my own boss, so this transition is going to be strange. Especially when it comes to meals. I have decided to pack my lunch, whenever possible, to save money and time (I only get a 30 minute lunch break.) Today I had coffee with vanilla silk creamer for breakfast, a Scarborough fair burger on a bun with vegenaise and some generic oreos for lunch, and I totally skipped/forgot to eat dinner because when I got home from work I cuddled up with my sick kitty, and konked out for the night.