Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and we all know what that means – family, football, and FOOD!
In case you’re vegan, starting a plant-based diet, or just hoping to eat healthier this holiday season, here are some tasty Vegan thanksgiving recipes that are easy to cook and even easier to eat!
Vegan Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup Vegan Butter
- 6 Tbsp All Purpose Flour
- 3 14oz Cans Coconut Milk
- 1 cup Vegetable Stock
- 3 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
- 1 cup Nutritional Yeast
- 3 tsp Onion Powder
- 3 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 and 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1 and 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 and 1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 3 Thick Slices White Bread (Toasted)
- 2 Tbsp Vegan Butter (Melted)
- 1 18oz package of elbow macaroni
Directions:
- Add the vegan butter to a pot and let it melt. When it’s melted add in the all purpose flour and stir it vigorously with the melted butter.
- Then pour in the cans of coconut milk and the vegetable stock. Use a hand whisk to whisk out the lumps. Keep whisking until it starts to boil and then keep whisking for a few minutes after it has boiled until it thickens. It will continue to thicken as it cools, so it doesn’t have to be all the way there when you remove it from the heat, as long as it has thickened considerably from when you started.
- Remove it from the heat and add in the dijon mustard, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt and pepper and whisk in. Now your sauce is ready, you can prepare your macaroni.
- Cook your macaroni according to the package directions and then rinse and drain.
- Add the cooked macaroni into the pot of sauce and toss it up with the sauce.
- Then transfer the macaroni and sauce to a 9×13 baking dish and smooth down.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Prepare the crumb topping by breaking up the 3 thick slices of toasted white bread and placing into the blender. Pulse blend until you have crumbs. Then transfer to a mixing bowl, and add in the melted vegan butter and toss up the crumbs with the melted butter.
- Place the breadcrumbs evenly over the top of the macaroni.
- Bake for 20 minutes until the topping is golden brown and crispy.
Vegan Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients:
- 3 lbs russet potatoes
- 1/3 cup diced onion
- 5 large garlic cloves, diced
- 1 1/2 cups vegan butter, softened
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened unflavored almond milk
- salt and pepper
Directions:
- Rinse and scrub potatoes and place in a large pot.
- Cover potatoes with hot water and bring to a boil, salt generously (about 2 teaspoons).
- Boil potatoes until a fork can go all the way through.
- While potatoes are boiling, sautee diced onion and garlic in a skillet with a teaspoon of olive oil.
- Cook garlic and onions until done (about 5 minutes on medium heat or until onion is translucent).
- Puree garlic and onion mixture with almond milk in a blender until it reaches a paste texture.
- Once potatoes are soft, mash them in a large bowl or pan and add garlic/onion puree, vegan butter, and salt and pepper to taste ( I used an additional 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper).
Vegan Pumpkin Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
- 3-4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cups warm water
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 4 Tablespoons coconut sugar, or granulated sugar of choice
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 and 3/4 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
- 4 Tablespoons melted coconut oil, or neutral vegetable oil of choice
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- Coarse sea salt for topping
Directions
Mix the coconut sugar, yeast, and warm water together in a large bowl. Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes in order to activate the yeast. Once the yeast has foamed, add the oil, maple syrup, salt, and pumpkin puree to the bowl and mix it all up.
- Add 2 cups of flour and mix until fully incorporated before adding in another full cup of flour.
- Use the last cup of flour to dust your hands and the dough throughout the kneading process. Lightly knead the dough until a slightly sticky dough ball forms, this should take about 2-3 minutes. (You may not need the full cup of flour. I use anywhere from 1/4-3/4 cups of it.)
- Once the dough comes together shape it into a ball. Then, lightly coat the bowl and the dough with a bit of oil. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise for 45 minutes.
- Turn out the risen dough onto a floured surface. Depending on the size of rolls you want, cut the dough into 9,12 or 16 evenly sized pieces.
- Form each piece into a ball by pulling and tucking the edges of the dough underneath itself. Gently roll the dough ball, seam side down, on an unfloured surface to create a smooth ball.
- Transfer rolls to a lightly oiled oven safe dish.
- Cover with a kitchen towel and allow the rolls to rise for another 30-45 minutes.
- Once the rolls have doubled in size, bake at 400ºF for 14-20 minutes or until the tops brown.
- Brush the warm rolls with oil and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Vegan Stuffing
Ingredients:
- 10 slices (450g) bread of choice cut into 1 inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered sage
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup vegetable broth (add more if needed)
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 400F.
- Spread the bread cubes across two large baking sheet. Bake for about 5-8 minutes until dried out and very lightly browned.
- Next, melt the vegan butter in a large skillet or pan over medium-high heat. When melted add the carrots, celery, onions, and garlic. Sauté for about 5 minutes until the veggies soften and begin to brown.
- Stir in the thyme, rosemary, sage, salt, and pepper. Then add the toasted bread cubes, vegetable broth, and dried cranberries -no need stir at this point. Remove the pan from heat and cover, then let sit for 10 – 15 minutes until softened. Stir well to combine and serve hot.
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
For Pie Crust
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for rolling)
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ lb vegetable shortening (½ cup + 1 tbsp) cold and cut into cubes
- ¼ cup non-dairy milk
Directions:
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together.
- Add in the cubes of vegetable shortening, using a fork to cut it into the flour until the mixture reaches a crumbly texture.
- Next, drizzle the milk over the flour mixture and mix with a fork until everything is combined enough to form a ball of dough. Be sure not to overmix!
- Clear your work surface and lightly dust it with flour. Then, scoop out your dough, shape it into a ball and place it in the center of your floured work surface.
- Roll out your dough into a circle. It should be a few inches larger than your pie plate in order to make room for the sides and edges of the crust.
- Transfer the dough into your pie plate. The easiest way to do this is by wrapping your dough around a rolling pin before carefully setting it into the dish.
- With a knife, trim off the excess dough around the edges of the pie plate. Fill any holes in the crust with extra pieces of dough.
- Finally, pinch the edges with either your fingers or a fork to add the finishing touches to your beautiful vegan pie crust!
For Pie Filling
Ingredients:
- 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Your pie crust should already be prepared inside your pie plate and ready to go.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the canned pumpkin, brown sugar, coconut milk, cornstarch, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and salt until fully combined and smooth.
- Pour mixture into the dish lined with your pie crust and spread evenly with a spatula.
- Bake for 1 hour and let cool for 30 minutes at room temperature. Cover the pie and chill in the fridge overnight, or for 4 hours at the very least.
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!