Posted by Michael Katzenberg on Nov.25, 2009

©iStockphoto.com - bukvalno

Years ago, vegetarians had to skip the main course and settle for a few side dishes during Thanksgiving. In 1995, Tofurky, a product created by Turtle Island Foods, Inc., changed all that. Finally, vegetarians could have a “roast” that tasted like turkey even if it didn’t have the consistency of real meat. However, it took several years for the product to be widely distributed so many vegetarians had to contend with side dishes or make up their own Thanksgiving feast in the meantime.

Luckily when my wife and I became vegetarians in 2000, we could easily duplicate the traditional Thanksgiving menu by cooking the Tofurky roast available at the Whole Foods near us. Since we discovered that we didn’t like the stuffing that came with the Tofurky, we made our own and bought jars of ready-made mushroom gravy to add to theirs. We followed this “tradition” until last year when we decided to try something different. Luckily, we still lived near a Whole Foods store so we ordered their Vegan Hazelnut Cranberry Roast Stuffed with Apples and Crystallized Ginger, Wrapped in a Puff Pastry, along with their Green Bean Casserole and Creamy Home-Style Mashed Potatoes. Although the meal was delicious, we thought it was a bit rich.

Instead of buying a ready-made dish, there are many worthy centerpiece recipes available on the Internet. One of these is actually on the Tofurky website. For those who can’t make it to the award-winning The Chicago Diner for their annual vegan Thanksgiving feast, the recipe for Tofurky Wellington is probably the closest thing you’ll find to the restaurant’s Beefy Wellington.

The Vegetarian Times website has a section for special occasion menus. Since their Roasted Vegetable Cornucopias with Gravy is the only centerpiece recipe available in the Thanksgiving section, you’ll have to dig a little further to find any other options.

Whole Foods presents several Thanksgiving themed centerpiece entrees on their website (www.wholefoodsmarket.com), such as French Lentils in Puff Pastry, Harvest Vegetable Shepherd’s Pie with Mashed Yams, and Green Apple and Butternut Squash Casserole. The website also offers suggestions for non-traditional Thanksgiving feasts such as Indian, Mexican, and Italian. Since vegetarians have often had to fend for themselves during Thanksgiving, perhaps they might be more open to different alternatives to the traditional Thanksgiving menu than other people. Interestingly, my wife and I decided to go the non-traditional feast route this year and have Chinese food even before I read about these suggestions!

Whatever route you choose to take this Thanksgiving, the wide variety of recipes now available to vegetarians means you don’t have to settle for the ordinary like most meat eaters will this Thanksgiving. In fact, you might even tempt a few of them to go vegetarian for a day, or at least expand their palate a little.

Share

Posted under Cooking Healthy, Food, Nutrition & Recipes.