Thanksgiving – my favorite holiday. This year marks my fourth Vegan Thanksgiving and I couldn’t be more excited. I usually round up my holiday recipes from a variety of sources: blogs, cookbooks, Pinterest. But this year I decided to make everything up myself and I could not have been more pleased with the results!
My 2019 Thanksgiving Menu:
Stuffing with Apples, Parsnips, and Tempeh
Pumpkin, Butternut Squash, and Sage Risotto
Midwestern Style Green Bean Casserole
A bit about me and my Thankgiving background: I’m from St. Louis, Missouri and Thanksgiving is one of the most important holidays in my family. My mom makes pans upon pans of her famous stuffing so there is always plenty for everyone to take home leftovers. Her stuffing is perfectly moist and sticky and is always the most important dish besides the turkey. In years past I have struggled to find a vegan stuffing recipe that is as moist as the one I grew up with. So that was my goal: a traditional stuffing with the perfect textureand some added protein and flair.
APPLE, PARSNIP, AND TEMPEH STUFFING:
Yields 2 large pans of stuffing, serves 16-18
1.5 loafs of Bread**
4 Parsnips
2 fresh Apples (I used Honey Crisp)
1 White Onion
1 Shallot
1 bunch of Celery
1 32 oz box of Vegetable Stock
1/2 cup fresh Parsley and Sage, chopped
4 tbsp Earth Balance Vegan Butter
Poultry Seasoning to taste
1 16 oz block of Tempeh marinaded in: 1/3 cup Amy’s Vegan Worcestershire, 1 tbs Tamari, 1 tbs Rosemary, 1 tbs Crushed Garlic, Salt and Pepper and a touch of a Agave
**I used two kinds of bread. One loaf of locally made onion and herb stuffing loaf. This bread was very dense and had a focaccia texture. The second bread was a half loaf of a local whole grain bread. This loaf was perfect because of the nutty and seedy texture**
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Create your Tempeh Marinade. Chop your Tempeh into bite-sized pieces. Add Tempeh to the marinade and refrigerate. Pre-heat oven to 350.
2. Chop all veggies (and apples) into bite-sized pieces and combine in a large bowl. Finely chop Parsley and Sage
3. Heat half of the vegan butter in a large pan, once butter melts, add fresh Parsley and Sage (I had to use two pans so I split my butter and herbs in half)
At this point, spread bread cubes onto two cookie sheets and heat for about 6 minutes in the oven or until crispy.
4. Allow your herb butter mixture to cook for a couple minutes. Next add vegetable mixture to the pan(s). Again, you may have to do this in several portions. You want to leave enough room in the pans for the bread to fit in as well, so they should not be overflowing with veggies.
5. In a separate pan, heat 1/2 tbsp of vegan butter. Once butter is melted, add your tempeh. Allow tempeh to cook for about 6 minutes, turning cubes often with your spatula to allow browning on all sides. Once tempeh thoroughly browned, you can add it to your vegetable mixture. (If your veggie mix is in multiple pans, distribute tempeh as evenly as you can.)
6. Add in bread cubes in portions of about one or two cups at a time. Add vegetable broth to pan – you want enough to coat all the bread. You can add more butter at this point if you desire. As bread begins to soak up the moisture and veggies are evenly distributed, you can begin to transfer to your cooking dish.
7. Repeat this process until all your bread and veggies have been thoroughly mixed. I ended up with two 9 x 13 inch pans full. At this point, you can pour any excess vegetable broth over the stuffing. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until edges become crispy/toasted. The inside of the stuffing should be very moist and all veggies should be tender! If you make the stuffing the night before, stop at Step 6. and bake it when you are ready to eat it. (If you have left overs you want to reheat, I suggest adding about a cup more vegetable stock before re-baking)
Pumpkin, Butternut Squash, and Sage Risotto
In my opinion, risotto was made for holidays. It’s special enough that it feels festive, exciting, and a little splurgy, but it’s also simple enough that you’re not going to get gray hairs from trying to make it! It’s truly a win win. For me, this recipe has always been somewhat of a mac n’ cheese substitute and I typically just make it with Butternut Squash, but I thought the Pumpkin and Sage would bring it into the Thanksgiving realm perfectly. I know you’re going to read the ingredients below and think“Really, Christina? One and a half butternut squashes? That’s just rude.. what do I do with the other half?” And to that I say, enjoy it! I roasted one of my squashes two nights before I made my risotto, I ate one half and left the other to be used in the risotto. 🙂
INGREDIENTS:
Yields 10 servings
1 cup Pumpkin Puree
1.5 Butternut Squashes (or 2 small)
16 oz Arborio Rice
32 oz Vegetable Stock
1 cup Dry White Wine
1 cup Nutritional Yeast
8-10 Fresh Sage Leaves, chopped
2 tbsp Crushed Garlic
1 tbsp Olive Oil
2 Shallots
Spices: Salt, Pepper, Cayenne, Red Pepper Flakes, Onion Powder
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Using a large knife, slice your squash in half vertically. Place on a cookie sheet.
Pre-heat oven to 350.
2. Cut a few slits into the squash to help vent. Spread crushed garlic and spices over the squash. Drizzle olive oil over the top. Bake for 50-55 minutes.*You can easily prep the squash, make your stuffing or green bean casserole and pop those into the oven with the squash*
3. Let squash cook for at least 20 minutes before beginning step 3. Now, chop your shallots and cook for 3 minutes in a little olive oil. Next add your rice and the cup of white wine.It’s important to use the wine before using vegetable stock as it helps to set up the flavor of the dish.
4. Allow wine to dissolve and stir. Begin by adding 1/2 – 1 cup of vegetable stock at a time. Allow liquid to evaporate before adding in more, stirring about every minute or two. This process repeats itself about 10 times. Be patient – it is a lengthy process but if you try to rush your risotto, your rice will not have the creamy texture you desire. You shouldn’t cook the rice higher than medium heat! Once rice is about half way cooked (after about 20-25 minutes) add in 1 cup of the pumpkin puree.
5. At this point your squash should be done cooking. Allow it to cool for 5-10 minutes. The squash should be easy to scoop out of its skin with a spoon. You can spoon all of your squash into a medium sized bowl. Begin mashing your squash with a fork. This should be fairly easy. Don’t go overboard – you’re not making mashed potatoes – it should still have a meaty texture.
Add squash to your risotto pot.
6. Add this point, add any additional spices including nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, cayenne, red pepper flakes, onion powder, etc. Continue adding in vegetable stock, even if it’s just a splash at this point.
7. Finely chop your sage and cook in a small pan with a touch of olive oil. It only needs to cook for about two minutes before you fold it in.
8. Once all liquid is dissolved and your rice is soft and creamy, your risotto is finished. Allow to cool for at least half an hour.
(If you try the risotto immediately, a lot of the flavor nuances will not be present – it needs to set! Risotto is usually amazing as a left over since all of the flavors have time to soak in. If you wish to make it the night before, add about 1 more cup of vegetable stock when you reheat it to keep the texture moist and creamy.)
Midwestern Style Greenbean Casserole
As previously stated, I grew up in the midwest. Green bean casserole was a staple at every major holiday and I also usually requested that my mom make it for my birthday. This was my fourth year attempting a vegan green bean casserole and honestly, I had never had one that truly filled the void for me. I would hunt the internet for a promising recipe and end up doing a TON of work for a dish that didn’t taste at all like I remembered my beloved childhood version tasting. That’s when it hit me, where I’m from green bean casserole has three ingredients – canned cream of mushroom soup, canned green beans, and french fried onions… CANNED! Green bean casserole is supposed to be EASY, something you just whip up in a jiff! So here’s the version I concocted below and I’m obsessed with it. The trickiest part of the recipe is the amount of liquid, you want it to be soupy enough but not too soupy. The first time I made it, I eye-balled everything and it was perfect. The second time, I measured it all out but wound up with a lot of extra liquid, so I had to re-adjust the measurements from there. Use the version below as a guide, if you feel you like a soupier version, add a touch more liquid! I have also found that the left overs are just as good if not better.
INGREDIENTS:
yields 10 servings
1 cupunsweetened Soy Cream
1/4 cup Vegetable Stock
2/3 cup Cashew Meal (or almond flour)
1/3 cup Nutritional Yeast
2 handfuls of Daiya Mozzarella Style Shreds
2 14.5oz cans of Green Beans, drained
3 4oz cans of Mushrooms, drained
French Fried onions to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Add soy cream and vegetable stock to the pot and begin warming over medium heat. Slowly begin stirring in Cashew meal and Nutritional Yeast. You’re essentially making a Roux.
Stir in one handful of the Daiya Mozzzerella.
2. As sauce begins to ticken, add your Mushrooms.
3. Next add your Green Beans.
4. Pour mixture into an 8×6 cooking dish.
5. Add the second handful of Daiya Mozzerella. At this point I ground salt and pepper over the mixture.
6. Top with French Fried Onions. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes or until onions have browned and sides of the casserole look cooked.
Okay, okay… I know you’re thinking where is the protein in this meal?! What’s the MAIN DISH? Honestly, for me, this is Thanksgiving as I remember it (I was never one for Turkey). But if you feel that you really crave that central item, I invite you to choose one or two of my recipes to use as side dishes to be prepared alongside a Tofurky or Lentil Loaf. For me, in this meal, the stuffing is the main event. You could even double the amount of tempeh in the stuffing if you wanted to make the center of the dish!
So far this week, I’ve been to two spinning classes, one high intensity cardio-kick-boxing-zumba class, and done a little yoga at home. Trust me, this meal made it all worth it. 🙂