I’m so proud of myself…. I survived a Vegan Thanksgiving! lol Awww… it wasn’t that bad.
Ya know, I didn’t mind creating an ALL VEGAN Thanksgiving just for the experience of it. I think the best part of Thanksgiving are the wegetables (say it with me: wedge a tab bulls), anyway…..
And for those of you who haven’t had the experience
it’s my job to give you the heads up!
So here we go!
This IS the stuffing. It is such an ez breezy thing to make…. and it doesn’t have anything in it that a vegan can’t eat.
But I thought I might take it one step further and use it to stuff artichokes.
You can follow this video and see all the intimate details of creating this dish. And I want to say, it was one of the best things I made, all day.
I mean, how hard is it to take onions and shrooms, caramelize them in your pan with grapeseed oil, add some panko, brown it all up then throw it into your food processor with some parlsey,sage, thyme, oj, garlic salt and garlic pepper?
Not hard at all. The HARD part…. if we want to call it that, is cleaning and cutting the artichoke. YEP. It’s called a ‘choke’ in the middle, and it’s a bear to get out! But what lies beneath the choke? Solid gold. The artichoke heart. YUM!
So, it’s worth the effort. Click here to watch the video.
Ok. So we have that nailed.
And of course we made the classic mistake of forgetting to defrost the store bought Tofurkey. But GOOD NEWS! When you make that mistake you just double your cooking time, and you’re good!
Here’s the tofurkey…. with a ton of veggies below it. Doesn’t it look nice?
Well, I have FOUR WORDS for Tofurkey:
I can’t eat it!
To give vegans some credit here, I think that when you go Vegan, your palate changes. It’s cleansed. So any flavor whatsoever tastes like a good flavor… the one you were expecting…. because that’s your expectations.
And isn’t that a good lesson for Chef Marian and you to learn? Or should I say, re-learn? Not everyone has the same palate.
I really seasoned well. I don’t know what more I could have done with it. But guess what? EVERYONE at the table was happy with it. Even the people that weren’t vegans (go figure).
But here is one of the best parts of a Thanksgiving. Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes. And what better way to smash then to put through a ricer? There is none.
Ya know, with potatoes, less is more. You over mix them and you will get a gluteny….almost like glue texture. YECH!
But with the ricer, you place them inside, squeeze the handles and they come out like rice.
Then it’s EZ Breezy to add cream (and in this case I added that wonderful new product Coconut Creamer because it’s non dairy), and whatever you choose to season your potatoes with.
And just remember: it’s the holidays. SAGE. It’s a good thing, in stuffing, potatoes, or under the skin of your bird, if that’s what is on the menu.
Get creative!
I boiled water and threw Rosemary into the water, so my potatoes came out with a Rosemary scent. Then I added chives, roasted garlic, garlic salt and garlic pepper. Simple. And a perfect side.
Another perfect side……?
Turnips. And how to we make these festive?
We throw in walnuts and maple syrup.
Just be very, very careful….
The maple syrup burns very easily. So steam the turnips first, so they’re cooked, and then add your maple syrup, salt and walnuts.
You will be amazed at the warm glo these turnips will have when you’re done cooking them.
Every enjoyed the turnips!
I would say the dinner was successful. The tofurkey, gravy, garlic smashed potatoes, mushroom green bean casserole (which by the way came out so good that I will have a video and blog about it tomorrow), butternut squash soup, salad with toasted squash seeds, turnips with walnuts, stuffed artichokes, cranberry sauce, vegan rolls, vegan butter and olives….
Did they get enough food?
Ya think?
Well, they did not, would not push away from the table until they had their Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Cake (all vegan of course) and Roasted Chestnuts.
And these were the chestnuts before I scored them.
You know to take a knife and do a criss cross on the flat side, right?
It lets the steam escape… and roasts them up nice.
350 in a preheated oven…. and that’s what you do while everyone is enjoying dinner.
Like we used to say in the hippie years: “It was a stoned gas baby”! lol
Am I old, or what? Nooooooo. That does not require an answer.
I’ll have the green bean casserole, some video and a few more tips in my next blog.
And remember, xmas is coming. You can use these cookings ideas thru the holidays……..
Happy Eating,
Chef Marian
mm@chefmarian.com
P.S.- Got any great recipes? Be a ‘guest blogger’ on ChefMarian.com. Send me an email with pictures!