Life with Dee

Creating a beautiful life...

  • Start Here
    • Welcome!
    • Disclosure Statement
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
  • Home & Garden
    • Homemaking
      • Cleaning
      • Domestic Dee-va
      • The FlyLady Method
    • Gardening
    • Country Living
    • Frugal & Green
      • Green Living
    • Productivity and Time Management
    • Organization
  • Dee’s Kitchen
    • Menu Monday
    • Recipes
      • Instant Pot
      • Vegetarian
      • Guest Posts
      • Pinterest Recipe Review
      • In My Kitchen
      • Tea
  • French Inspiration
    • French Friday
    • French Inspired Living
    • French Links
  • LWD Book Club

Vegetarian Thanksgiving ~ When You’re Not Vegetarian

November 21, 2017 By Deanna Piercy 2 Comments

If you’re newly vegetarian or will be hosting a vegetarian for Thanksgiving, you might be wondering how to pull off a festive meal which is generally focused on turkey and possibly ham. Well, I’ve got you covered.

Vegetarian Thanksgiving

 

Several years ago we went vegetarian for a year. We did end up making an exception for Thanksgiving day but I also experimented with a meatless version a couple of weeks beforehand. And you know what? It wasn’t that hard.

 

You see, I realized that it’s actually all the side dishes (and desserts!) which truly make a special meal. Sure, I really do like turkey but leaving it off the menu didn’t keep us from having a delicious meal.

 

If you are hosting a vegetarian or two for Thanksgiving this year, my suggestion is to go ahead and make your usual turkey and ham for everyone else. Don’t try to substitute a meatless main dish for the vegetarian(s) but just make sure you have plenty of hearty side dishes. Make both regular and vegetarian gravies – be sure to label them! – but otherwise everything else can be made to suit vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.

 

Here is a sample menu:

  • Turkey (and ham if desired)
  • Mashed Potatoes
  • baked dressing (use vegetable broth in place of chicken broth)
  • gravy (vegetarian and regular)
  • Sweet Potato and Apple Casserole with Streusel Topping
  • Green Bean Casserole (my version)
  • Homemade Cranberry Sauce
  • Layered Salad
  • Squash Casserole
  • deviled eggs (make sure you have plenty for the vegetarian as a protein source)
  • homemade rolls
  • pies, cookies, other yummy desserts

 

And it’s as simple as that. With all those delicious side dishes, the vegetarian won’t feel deprived at all. Of course, if your vegetarian guest offers to bring a non-meat main dish that’s great. Just be sure they know that all the side dishes will be vegetarian and that you’ll have vegetarian gravy, too. As an extra thoughtful touch, print a list of ingredients for each dish. Many non-vegetarians aren’t entirely clear about what is vegetarian and what isn’t. Your vegetarian guest will truly appreciate knowing that there’s no cream of chicken soup in the green bean casserole and that you didn’t add chicken broth to the dressing.

~~~~~

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Life With Dee!



Vegetarian Thanksgiving

Related Posts

  • Vegetarian Recipes ~ An Ongoing CollectionVegetarian Recipes ~ An Ongoing Collection
  • Mashed potatoes ~ Homemade, of courseMashed potatoes ~ Homemade, of course
  • How to Cook a Frozen Ham in the Instant PotHow to Cook a Frozen Ham in the Instant Pot
  • Homemade Cranberry SauceHomemade Cranberry Sauce
  • Thanksgiving Recipes and ResourcesThanksgiving Recipes and Resources
  • Menu Plan Monday ~ Thanksgiving EditionMenu Plan Monday ~ Thanksgiving Edition

Share this post:

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Share on Email

Filed Under: Dee's Kitchen, Vegetarian

« Chicken Creole ~ Slow Cooker or Instant Pot Recipe
Menu Monday ~ November 27, 2017 »

Comments

  1. Tori says

    November 22, 2017 at 3:42 am

    Yes, it’s often as simple as just making sure the side dishes really are vegetarian friendly, by avoiding using chicken broth in dishes that call for it usually, or not using grease from any meat products if you’re roasting or frying anything (mentioned because I know someone who sometimes uses bacon grease or goose fat when doing their roast potatoes).

    Reply
    • Deanna Piercy says

      November 22, 2017 at 3:47 pm

      Oh, good point about the grease. I hadn’t thought about that because it’s not something I do.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Dee - Profile Pic

I’m Dee, a Francophile with a hippie heart, trying to create a beautiful life in the country while dreaming of Paris.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

LWD Book Club ~ March

LWD Book Club March 2021

FAVORITE POSTS

Goodreads Challenge

image

Copyright © 2021 · Life With Dee