Vegan Thanksgiving 2011: Planning and Resources

Inspiration for my main course comes from my son's "treat turkey" that he made with the sitter:

Adorable, right?

I know those gumdrops are not vegan, but I didn't have the heart to intervene.  And, if you like turkey shaped things, check out Cara's blog, Fork and Beans for lots of turkey shaped foods.  

Anyway, I am going to apply the sitter's awesome treat turkey idea to a Gobbler Loaf for Thanksgiving day!

I'll probably use black olives for the eyes, a carrot beak and a parsley waddle.  That's what I'm thinkin'.

For sides, I'm probably going to make mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy, and I'm going to roast these on the stalk:

Gorgeous, right?  I'm going to do a sweet balsamic glaze.  JL's "honee nut brussels" are another great idea.

If they don't turn out well, I have some asparagus as a back-up.

Now, for breakfast on Friday (or even on Thursday, my dad is coming early), I am going to make two breakfast burgers, the Denver Omelet Burger and the Log Cabin Burger from Joni Newman's new book, Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet, which I actually got from my library (someone there is into vegan cookbooks because there are quite a few of them now).  I love that I could actually try it before buying it (which I plan to do because it is awesome).  

And, my hubby is going to make his famous Hubby Hash, which looks like this:

I love this hash.

For dessert, I am making my favorite pumpkin pie from The Joy of Vegan Baking with a ginger snap crust.

Here are just a few resources if you need more ideas for your vegan holiday meal!

A great main dish is Dreena Burton's Chickpea Tart

Another beautiful tart is Robin's Tuscan Vegetable Tart

Check out Ginny Messina's Easy Vegan Entrees in The Examiner

FREE recipes from Isa's new book Pie in the Sky (including pumpkin cheesecake!)

A feast from Robin Robertson

And, if you don't feel like cooking your main course, here is the first place "turkey" according to some slightly irritable, and not very vegan friendly omnivores at The Washington Post.  (Erica Meier, the Executive Director of Compassion Over Killing was a judge, thank goodness!!)

Here are VegNews's selections for store bought vegan "centerpieces" (all are "turkeys")

NYT interactive **vegetarian** recipe index for Thanksgiving

A long list from the NYT blog all tagged "**vegetarian** Thanksgiving"

**Please note: At first I thought these NYT recipes were vegan recipes (many of them definitely are) but some contain eggs or dairy, but not a big deal because you guys know how to sub that stuff, right?? :-) Anyway, a lot of good ideas in those links.**
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Now Updated for 2012!

Dynise Balcavage & Sarah Kramer have delicious Thanksgiving Recipes featured in The Today Show Blog

Robin Robertson's Thanksgiving Side Dishes for 2012

*I'll add more links as I come across them, guys.*
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Don't forget!  You can easily veganize many traditional recipes by using veggie stock (or using Rapunzel vegan bouillon cubes, my fave), non-dairy butter (like Earth Balance for baking or Smart Balance Light for spreading), non-dairy milks (like soy or almond, rice, hemp, etc. etc. use unflavored for savory dishes, please!), vegan cream cheeses and sour creams (my favorites are from Tofutti).  And, don't forget if you are making a vegan lasagna or baked ziti for your main dish, you can make cashew ricotta to stuff it with and sprinkle some Daiya cheese on top!  Daiya is great on top of pizza, too, obviously.  Any further feast related questions, post here and I'll get to them asap.

What are you guys making for the big day??