A Vegan Thanksgiving

To all the Guam Vegans who celebrate, I hope you had a great Thanksgiving! I definitely echo Lisa's thanks to the many places on Guam that make it easier to be vegan every day and to the people, like her, who do the same. Over where I usually blog, I wrote about some of the non-food aspects of Thanksgiving, but I thought I would share a bit here about the food. While it was certainly healthier than the standard American Thanksgiving, it was by no means as healthy as could be. During the holidays, I enjoy proving to others that you can both be vegan and enjoy some of the delicious, special dishes that many Americans associate with certain celebrations. I consider it my own, quiet kind of activism - changing the way people look at vegan food. I'll also admit that I have something of a sweet tooth. I should change that, but I haven't yet. 

The staple of my Thanksgiving every year is the Tofurky Roast. I look forward to it all year long. This year it was stocked at both Payless (Micronesia Mall) and Simply Food. Here's what ours looked like when it was finished cooking.

I have vowed to make my own stuffing from scratch next year, but this year, I used Arrowhead Mills organic stuffing, purchased at Simply Food, with the addition of some diced celery and onions. I did, however, make fresh whole wheat rolls from scratch. I am by no means one who writes recipes. I just make food. I can tell you how I cook things, but precisely what amount I use of what is something I'll never be able to figure out. Sorry. 

The ingredients:

1 packet active dry yeast 

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon salt

+/- 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Enough water to make a good, pliable dough

The process: Knead the dough for about ten minutes, cover and let rise in an oiled bowl for two hours. Next, shape the dough into balls, place well apart on a greased baking sheet, and let proof for 30 minutes to an hour. Bake at 375 F for 20 minutes, and here's what you get:

Next on our table was sweet potato casserole, or candied yams if you prefer. This is really not a healthy dish, but it's delicious, and we only eat it once a year. Last year, I made it sans marshmallows, which is certainly one way to make it healthier. This year, I ordered vegan marshmallows from Food Fight Vegan Grocery, based in Portland, OR and almost immediately felt guilty for the waste of a box and for the fuel that would be used to bring it to me. Can you tell that I have an internal conflict with this dish? I'll quit going on and just tell you how it's made.

The ingredients:

4 large, or 6 small sweet potatoes (or yams, depending on who you talk to - the kind with the orange flesh)

Vegan marshmallows (or not)

+/-1/4 c. vegan margarine (I use Organic Smart Balance. Note that the non-organic is not vegan)

1/2-1/3 cup chopped pecans

Cinnamon - a lot

Nutmeg - not quite as much

Cloves - even less

The process: Preheat oven to 350. Peel and cube sweet potatoes, rinse, and place in a baking dish. Place dollops of vegan margarine over the top and sprinkle with spices, freshly ground is best. Place in the oven and bake until the potatoes are nice and soft, approximately 30 minutes, stirring once or twice to distribute the spices. Use a hand blender or a fork to mash the potatoes, add pecans, mix well, and top with marshmallows. Bake another ten minutes or so, until marshmallows are golden brown. The result:

It doesn't look very impressive from the top, but it was my omnivorous husband's favorite dish of the evening. It really is delicious.

My favorite every year is green bean casserole, now that I have finally devised a way to veganize it. 

The ingredients:

About 1lb fresh or frozen green beans (for those with base access, the Andersen commissary carries frozen organic green beans)

1-2 cups mushroom gravy - make your own, or use the Road's End Organic mix available at Payless

2/3 cup Toffuti Better Than Sour Cream (also available at Payless - note that their Sour Supreme contains 

hydrogenated oils, but the Better Than Sour Cream does not, so it's your best bet)

1/4 c. slivered almonds

2 cups french fried onions

The process: Place everything but the onions in a bowl and mix until beans are well coated. Place all in a baking dish and cover with onions. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until top begins to brown. The result:

Another that doesn't look gorgeous from the top, but tastes delicious.

Now, on to my favorite thing about Thansgiving: the pies. Each year, I make pumpkin following this recipe for the filling, and whole wheat pastry flour, a touch of oil, and a bit of cold water for the crust. I also used a paring knife to cut leaf shapes out of the crust. The result:

I use the same crust for our pecan pie, along with this recipe for the filling, but I add a teaspoon of agar agar powder with the sugars to help the filling set a bit better. Believe it or not, I'm on a constant quest to make my Thanksgiving a touch healthier without compromising the tastiness. This year, I opted to make raw cashew "whipped cream" instead of buying the spray can of soy whipped cream that Simply Food carries. It was delicious, but definitely could never pass for dairy, which is quite alright with me.

Tell us: what are your favorite special occasion dishes?