Now this recipe sounds quite tasty (I love pumpkin!)...
Ingredients:
Steps to make vegetarian pumpkin tart:
Ok, just typing this recipe in is making hungry 
I meant to write this one out during Thanksgiving and then somehow forgot about it. This was originally meant as a vegan recipe, but I usually adapt it and make it vegetarian. It’s really very tasty, although it does require a bit more work than some other nut loafs. Although if you double the recipe for the stuffing, you can get a main dish and a side dish for exactly the same amount of work. Vegan ingredient options are marked with a star and in italics. Leave out the eggs for vegan option.
Nut Loaf with vegan alternatives
Loaf
two tablespoons (or more) butter *oil or margarine
2 large onions, chopped fine
5 cloves (or an entire bulb) garlic, minced
3 cups raw cashews
1 1/2 cups bread
1 cup soup stock or broth— you can use water, but I wouldn’t
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 egg
Cook the onion and garlic in the butter, oil or margarine until tender, and remove from the heat.
Chop the cashews by hand or in a food processor; cut up the bread as well. Add the cashews and bread to the onion, then add the vegetable stock, egg, salt and pepper, nutmeg, and lemon juice. Put half of this mixture into a small, non-stick loaf pan. Even if you’re using a non-stick pan, I would still spray it with non-stick spray or oil it with olive or canola oil. If you want to use a regular pan that is not non-stick, the original recipe recommends lining the pan with parchment paper first.
Stuffing
3 cups bread cubes, toasted
four tablespoons butter *margarine or oil, melted but not hot
1/2 to 3/4 cup finely-chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1/2 teaspoon sage
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
salt to taste
pepper to taste
1 egg
enough to stock to moisten
Mix together all the ingredients. Put the mixture on top of the stuff in the loaf pan, and add the rest of the first mixture so that there are three layers of food in the pan.
Place the pan on a baking sheet or in a larger loaf pan (in case it overflows while cooking), and bake at 400 degrees F for half an hour. The top should be browned.
Let the roast cool for a few minutes, then serve out of the pan or invert it on to a plate. Serve with gravy, if desired. I’d recommend the mushroom gravy.
Green bean casserole is an easy enough solution for the vegetarians in your family, but what if you have a vegan coming for dinner? This green bean casserole should help them feel right at home while avoiding any animal products.
Vegan Green Bean Casserole
1 can French cut green beans
1.5 canisters vegan French fried onions (or make your own*)
1.5 cups soymilk
1 cube veggie bouillon (make sure this is vegan)
2-3 tablespoon corn starch (or potato starch) mixed with 2-3 tablespoon cold water to use as a thickener
1/2 medium onion, diced
3/4 cup chopped mushrooms (button, crimini, portabella, whatever)
1-2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon each of garlic, salt, pepper, basil, oregano, sage, marjoram, thyme,
or whatever seasoning you enjoy
Heat soy milk and veggie bouillon in a saucepan, stirring until bouillon cube disintegrates. Do not boil or scald the soy milk. Just heat it. Sauté onions and mushrooms in the oil in a skillet. Add salt, pepper, and any herbs or spices.
Mix the starch and water well, and pour into the soymilk/bouillon. Stir well, because this will thicken quickly. Quickly add the can of green beans and the sautéed veggies, and stir well.
Pour that mixture into a casserole dish or pan and top with rFrench fried onions. Bake in oven at about 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until the onions begin to brown. Remove. Eat. Enjoy.
3 large onions, sliced into thin rings
2 cups milk
2 cups all-purpose flour (can use gluten free)
oil (for frying)
salt
Soak the onions in the milk for 5 minutes. Heat the oil in a large skillet or deep fryer. Take a handful of onions and run them through the flour with a fork to coat.
Fry in batches in the oil, stirring as needed to brown evenly. Drain on paper towels and season to taste. Store in an air-tight container.
I hope you all had a great day feasting! Let me know what you made and what your favorite vegetarian dish was.
In our house, we have to make cornbread stuffing and bread dressing. I have a hard time getting past Thanksgiving without cornbread stuffing, and my husband prefers bread dressing (I like both, to be honest, but I’d probably skip the bread dressing every once in a while, if not for my husband). This is a good basic bread stuffing. You can add fresh herbs, instead of dried, add more vegetables to the onions and celery, throw in some cranberries or pecans— whatever your family likes. It’s also easy enough to turn into a vegan recipe, if you have some vegan bread on hand.
Herbed Bread Stuffing
10 cups (1-inch) cubes day old bread (1 lb) (any type will do— I usually use whole wheat)
3 medium onions, chopped
3 celery ribs, thinly sliced crosswise
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 stick unsalted butter or margarine
2 cups not chicken broth or vegetable stock
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Toast bread in a large shallow baking pan in middle of oven until just dry, 25 to 30 minutes. Cook onions, celery, and herbs in butter or margarine in a large heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until celery is softened, about 10 minutes. Stir together bread, vegetables, broth, and salt and pepper to taste, then cool completely, uncovered.
I’ll make a confession. I’m not that great at cooking gravy. In fact, in the past I’ve made gravy that tasted a bit like, well, chalk. I remember, growing up, my Dad could just whip up gravy. No recipe. Just a few pan drippings, some water, some flour, some seasoning and voila! Clearly, gravy making is not genetic. Now, throw in the fact that now I’ve got to make gravy without pan drippings, and you can see what a problem I’m faced with. Fortunately, Simply Organics makes just add water vegetarian mushroom gravy mix but, although it will do in a pinch and definitely doesn’t taste like chalk, it’s not exactly the most fabulous gravy in the world, either. Enter, the vegetarian mushroom gravy recipe…
I recently discovered that there are, indeed, such things as gravy recipes (really I’ve known that all along, I just thought “who needs a recipe for gravy”). Clearly, I do. Last week, I made mashed cauliflower and, since I hadn’t been able to find Simply Organics’ mix the last time I was at the store, I was in need of a vegetarian gravy to go along with it. I found this recipe on epicurious.com that includes exotic mushrooms, and since I didn’t want to spend a fortune making gravy, I adapted it. The finished product was beyond edible— it was downright fantastic, if I do say so myself!
So, if you’re looking for a great vegetarian mushroom gravy to accompany your nut loaf, or mashed cauliflower or mashed potatoes— here it is! And since even I made it turn outright, you know it’s easy. Because of the corn starch, it has a slightly more gelatinous texture. If you want something thicker, consider thickening it with flour, instead. Also, I made it with mushroom broth, but for Thanksgiving, I’m thinking about using vegetable stock for a richer flavor.
Easy Vegetarian Mushroom Gravy
1 pound sliced button mushrooms
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, chopped fine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 1/2 cups mushroom broth
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves (I used a couple teaspoons of dried, since I didn’t have fresh, and it worked out just fine)
Slice mushrooms. In a 10-inch heavy non-stick skillet cook garlic in butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until pale golden. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened. Add mushrooms and soy sauce and sauté mixture over moderately high heat, stirring, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated and mushrooms begin to brown.
Add wine and vinegar and boil until liquid is evaporated. Stir cornstarch mixture and add to skillet with sugar. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring, and simmer 2 minutes. Stir in parsley and season gravy with salt and pepper. Gravy may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. When reheating gravy, add water if necessary to thin to desired consistency.
I love this recipe. It always gets rave reviews. You can use it as a side, or in place of your trusty pumpkin pie. Either way, it’s delicious! Use canned or fresh sweet potatoes. If you’re using canned sweet potatoes with syrup, either leave out the sugar, altogether, or cut it to 1/4 cup.
Praline Sweet Potatoes
4 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1/3-1/2 cup sugar (depending on your desire for sweetness— I use turbinado)
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 pint heavy cream
1/4 pound butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups chopped pecans
Butter one 2 quart casserole dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a mixing bowl, combine the sweet potatoes, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs and cream. Blend well, and spread evenly in casserole dish.
Prepare the topping by combining the butter, brown sugar, flour and pecans. Mix until crumbly, and sprinkle over sweet potato mixture.
Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven.
I got this recipe from an email. Originally, it was a recipe from a cookbook called “Vegan Delights”, but I altered it to make it easier, as the original recipe was very prep intensive. I’ve heard from people that have used this as their main Thanksgiving offering, and it was a big hit. I’m not sure yet whether I’ll be making this, my nut loaf, or the vegan nut loaf I’ll post in the next couple of days. What are you planning to cook for your vegetarian Thanksgiving?
Vegan Roast
1 can drained chickpeas, mashed (or substitute pinto, kidney or adzuki beans)
1 1/2 c (3-4 small) chopped carrots
1 1/2 c (2-3 stalks) chopped celery
1 1/2 c (abt 2) chopped parsnips (or small white turnips w/ 1/8 tsp cinnamon added to the main mixture)
2-3 vegetable bouillion cubes (or broth powder)
2-3 Tbsp (wheat free) Tamari soy sauce
1 1/4 tsp sea salt or vegetable sea salt
1/8 tsp or less cayenne powder
2 c (about 1 very large) finely chopped onion
6 c bread cubes cut in about 1/2 inch squares
2 c chopped mushrooms
1 1/2-2 c partially ground nuts or seeds (raw pecans, almonds, filberts or sunflower seeds taste best)
3/4 c chopped fresh parsley
1 c whole wheat flour
Optional-2-4 cloves fresh pressed garlic
I recommend running the vegetables through the food processor. Since you’re going to mash them all, anyway, I wouldn’t worry about chopping them into nice, pretty, even pieces. However you get them chopped, afterwards steam the vegetables until tender. Mash the chick peas and vegetables with the bouillon and other flavourings until thoroughly mixed and smooth. Add the raw onion and all the remaining ingredients and mix everything together well. Preheat the oven to 350 degreesF. Oil a 9”x13” low baking dish and line it with wax paper, then oil the wax paper. Shape the mixture into a 3” high, oblong loaf in the pan with rounded top and edges. Bake for 80-90 minutes until well browned and cooked as firmly as you like it. The roast usually easily removes from the wax paper. Looks terrific and tastes delicious with gravy. Keeps 5-7 days refrigerated, or may be frozen.
Since I haven’t tried this recipe yet I’m not totally convinced that the whole oil, wax paper, oil process is necessary. But I hate to tell you that you can skip that step and then get comments telling me that I ruined somebody’s Thanksgiving because their vegan roast stuck to the bottom of their pan, leaving them with nothing but a big pile of crumbs to serve. SO— Use your own discretion. If you really care that it comes out of the pan looking beautiful, I suggest following the directions. Also, I will probably add poultry seasoning to this, as I think that makes the house smell like Thanksgiving and is familiar to those who normally eat meat, so it makes them feel more at home with a vegetarian Thanksgiving entree.
I can hear you thinking, “It’s great that you’ve given us a dessert and a side, but come on WE could have figured that out! What about the more difficult vegetarian Thanksgiving items? What about a main dish? What about stuffing? Can stuffing be made without meat-based broth?”
Well, the answer is “yes”. Several years ago I went to Thanksgiving, and there were THREE cornbread dressings there. My sister in law made hers with sausage, so that was a no go for my family. My aunt was bringing my grandmother’s recipe, complete with turkey giblets. And I had to bring a third because, well, what else was I going to do? If I wanted cornbread dressing, I had to make my own. I emailed my aunt to get my grandmother’s recipe. My aunt was absolutely positive it could not be made without giblets and chicken broth. Well, you know what? By the end of the meal, both of my aunts wanted the recipe. Since I never write anything down, I can’t share the exact recipe with you, but I’ll share the recipe I’m going to make this year. Hopefully, it will be as good.
Vegetarian cornbread dressing
Cornbread, use your favorite recipe (I use Hodgson Mills cornbread mix to prepare one pan)
7 slices oven-dried wheat bread
1 sleeve saltine crackers (I suppose you could use some healthier choice, but I usually use the saltines)
8 tablespoons butter
2 cups celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
7 cups no chicken broth by Imagine
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sage (optional)
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning (optional)
cayenne pepper, to taste (optional, but this really does make the dressing— you just need a small amount)
5 eggs, beaten
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine crumbled cornbread, dried wheat bread slices, and saltines; set aside.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the celery and onion and cook until transparent, approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Pour the vegetable mixture over cornbread mixture. Add the broth, mix well, taste, and add salt, pepper to taste, sage, poultry seasoning and cayenne. Add beaten eggs and mix well. Pour mixture into a greased pan and bake until dressing is cooked through, about 45 minutes.
Even if you’re vegetarian or have vegetarian guests, you’re still going to want dessert, right? In theory, I love pecan pie. But I’ve never found a recipe made without corn syrup, which I don’t eat. These Pecan bars should really make a good stand in. The recipe is from the Barefoot Contessa. Because this is a bar recipe, it should also work in the warmer months as a picnic food.
Pecan Bars
Crust:
1 1/4 pounds unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 extra-large eggs
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Topping:
1 pound unsalted butter
1 cup good honey
3 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 pounds pecans, coarsely chopped
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the crust, beat the butter and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, until light, approximately 3 minutes. Add the eggs and the vanilla and mix well. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the batter with the mixer on low speed until just combined. Press the dough evenly into an ungreased 18 by 12 by 1-inch baking sheet, making an edge around the outside. It will be very sticky; sprinkle the dough and your hands lightly with flour. Bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is set but not browned. Allow to cool.
For the topping, combine the butter, honey, brown sugar, and zests in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low heat until the butter is melted, using a wooden spoon to stir. Raise the heat and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the heavy cream and pecans. Pour over the crust, trying not to get the filling between the crust and the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the filling is set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold. Cut into bars and serve.
You may be asking yourself— is this really a THANKSGIVING vegetarian recipe? Well, you could certainly use it for other times of the year, but I think it would make a great side on a Thanksgiving table. I bet even the non-vegetarians would like it. It reminds me of the squash casserole with cream of mushroom soup and water chestnuts— only a little healthier, I think, and with a little kick. You could also serve this as a main dish, and if you’re going for a fancy Thanksgiving dish, you could use this as a stuffing for zucchini (you’d want to chop the squash, instead of slice— or maybe even puree). Just put it into hollowed out zucchini, instead of a casserole, put a bit of the cheese on top and cook as directed.
Mexican Squash Casserole
2 yellow squash, sliced
2 zucchini, sliced
1 medium onions, sliced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons oil
4 ounces green chile, chopped
2 cups red corn or yellow corn sliced off the cob (or frozen if fresh is unavailable)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese grated
1/2 cup Monterey Jack Chesse grated
1 teaspoon cumin
Lightly sauté the squash, zucchini, onion, and garlic until just soft. Toss with the remaining ingredients. Place in a lightly oiled 2-quart casserole dish. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Well, it’s getting to be that time of year— Thanksgiving. So, what do vegetarians do with a major holiday that centers around eating a bird? There is actually no reason a vegetarian can’t have a delicious Thanksgiving meal. So, whether you’re a new vegetarian, just looking for some new ideas to add to your vegetarian Thanksgiving table, or a meat-eater with vegetarian guests coming, stop by in the upcoming weeks to see lots of recipes for a yummy vegetarian Thanksgiving.
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