Vegetarian Thanksgiving Day Feast - by Adrienne Schroeder
November 16, 2012
Posted By: Shaunescy
People always ask me what kind of meal I make at Thanksgiving. They often cringe when I mention Tofurky. But the Tofurky frozen Thanksgiving dinners are delicious. It’s a tofurky roast filled with vegetarian stuffing and it comes with vegetarian gravy and even a tofurky-jerky wishbone. They even throw in a small vegan chocolate cake for dessert. The only problem is that I have a recently diagnosed gluten allergy and tofurky has wheat gluten in it. In fact everything in the dinner package has wheat gluten in it. (I was very sad when I realized this.)
So this year we’re doing something a little different. I’ve got a menu that is gluten free and much less processed than the Tofurky dinner, but still tastes like Thanksgiving. Each dish is made with just a few ingredients and is very easy to put together. Here is my menu… Lentil roast Baked sweet potatoes Holiday green beans Traditional mashed potatoes Homemade cranberry chutney Warm apple dessert
Lentil roast-
- cooked lentils
- eggs
- cooked quinoa
- ricotta cheese
- feta cheese
- chopped walnuts
- Franks hot sauce
First I cook a cup of dry lentils on the stove. Just cover the lentils with water or veggie broth, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 45 min. (You may need to add a little more water while they’re cooking.) Then in a large mixing bowl add all of the cooked lentils, 2 eggs, ½ a cup of cooked quinoa, ½ a cup of ricotta cheese, ½ a cup of feta cheese, ½ a cup of chopped walnuts, and 2 spoonful’s of Franks hot sauce. (You could substitute BBQ sauce for the Franks if you prefer.) Then put the mixture into a glass-baking dish and cook at 350 degrees for about 45 min. It’s a great, hearty vegetarian protein dish that pairs well with traditional Thanksgiving side dishes.
Baked sweet potatoes-
- sweet potato
- butter
- walnuts
- cinnamon
- nutmeg
- agave
Bake 2-3 large sweet potatoes at 400 degrees for about one hour. Then scrape out the sweet potato from the skin and put in a mixing bowl with 2-3 large spoonfuls’ of butter. (You can substitute the dairy butter with soy butter to make this dish vegan.) Then add ¼ cup of chopped walnuts, and a spoonful of cinnamon, and stir it all together. Then drizzle the potatoes with agave and serve.
Holiday green beans-
- green beans
- pomegranate seeds
- lemon juice
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
I steam the green beans for just 5-7 minutes to keep them fairly crisp. Then lay them on a plate or platter, drizzle with olive oil, squeeze a little fresh lemon juice over them and add some salt and pepper. Then sprinkle with pomegranate seeds. I think this is a great alternative to a heavy green bean casserole.
Homemade cranberry chutney-
- Cranberries
- Apples
- Agave nectar
- Ginger
- Cinnamon
This is super easy…Just add a bag of fresh cranberries, a cup of water, a cup of agave, 2 spoonful’s of fresh grated ginger, a spoonful of cinnamon, and about ½ a cup of thinly sliced apples. (I think a little clove would be a great addition, but my husband isn’t a big fan of cloves so I left them out.) Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to low and simmer about 10-15 minutes.
Traditional mashed potatoes
-
Yukon gold potatoes
Butter
Milk
Salt and pepper
I always make mashed potatoes with Yukon Gold potatoes. You can either peel and boil 4-5 large potatoes until tender, or you can wrap them in foil and bake them in the oven at 400 degrees for about an hour and then scrape the inside of the potato from the skin. (Baking them takes more time, but you don’t have to keep an eye on them while they’re cooking. Just set the timer so you don’t forget about them.) Once they’re peeled and cooked, just add a few spoonful’s of butter (about 1 large spoonful per potato used) and pour in the milk a little bit at a time as you’re mixing it all together until you get the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Warm apple dessert-
- greek honey yogurt
- gluten free granola
- 2 medium sized apples
- cinnamon
- 1 tbsp. butter
First I melt a large spoonful of butter in my iron skillet and then add 2 large sliced apples and a few dashes of cinnamon. (Cardamom would be good too.) I stir it over medium heat until the apples are tender, about 10-15 minutes. While they’re cooking, I place some plain greek yogurt with a little honey stirred in, into individual dessert bowls. Then I spoon some gluten free granola over the yogurt (Udi’s has some great gluten free granolas) and top it off with the apples and another dash of cinnamon. It reminds me of a healthy version of an apple cobbler.
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Today's guest blog is from Adrienne Schroeder who writes theveggiehouse.blogspot.com . Adrienne is a mother of three (vegetarian) children who loves to create simple, healthy meals for her family. She is also a local photographer whose work has been published in Montana Parent, Mothering and Parenting magazines and can be seen at www. adrienneschroederphotography. com.
