Our vegetarian and vegan friends are often hard-pressed at the Thanksgiving table. Since holiday meals are so much about connecting with family and friends, we look to be as inclusive as possible. So we want to offer everyone a main dish besides green bean casserole and mashed potatoes.
We offer here some of the standout Thanksgiving ideas from the Serious Foodie chefs as well as other resources. These dishes are so delicious, we’re sure that they will also appeal to the carnivores among us.
PASTA
While many people are watching their carbs, Thanksgiving is one of those holidays when you have to take a break from the diet. There are many possibilities, including a lot of gluten-free versions.
We published this lovely Sicilian pasta recipe which uses tri-colored cauliflower, but can easily be made with standard cauliflower, broccoli, broccoli rabe, or various combinations. Click HERE to read the recipe.
Photo courtesy of saltandwind.com
Gnocchi is a perfect fall dish – hardy, filling, and very versatile. This recipe comes from the Salt and Wind website (click HERE for their recipe), and there are plenty of others to try. We like trying different veggie versions – spinach, kale, and even a great red beet gnocchi recipe. We have even found some gluten-free recipes on various website (for example, check out this one at Serious Eats).
STUFFED VEGETABLES
Here’s where imagination can really go wild – start with eggplants, portabello mushrooms, any squash or zucchini, onions, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes – any veggie that has a hole, or can be hollowed out.
Photo courtesy of Bigoven.com
We found this amazing stuffed mushroom on the Big Oven website (click HERE for the recipe). While not vegan (it uses gorgonzola), this is a dish that is full of flavor and is beautiful on the plate.
We have our own favorite version of stuffed eggplants (click HERE for the recipe), and there are thousands more – one of our favorites is Michael Chiarello’s on Food Network (click HERE for the recipe). Or you can go really old school, with eggplant parm or eggplant rolatini (we love Lidia Bastianich – here’s her recipe).
VEGETABLE STEWS
The nice thing about making a vegetable stew is that it can be served as a main course with almost any grain, by itself, or as a hardy soup.
Photo courtesy of ACoupleCooks.com
We found a lot of simple recipes which feature root vegetables, such as one we found at William Sonoma. Our favorite is ribollita, which is a Tuscan vegetable stew. It was one of the winter-time comfort foods we remember well. We found this classic recipe on ACoupleCooks.com.
Photo courtesy of the NY Times
Here’s a recipe for those who want a bit of spice, using some Moroccan harissa sauce (alternatively, you can try the Serious Foodie North African Harissa spice blend – click HERE).
