Sunday, December 20, 2009

What are good Vegetarian Thanksgiving main dish recipes?

I will be spending thanksgiving with my family and I am the only vegetarian so I don't want to make a tofurkey and have leftovers for a week or two. Does anyone know of any good recipes that will go well with potatoes and vegetables?What are good Vegetarian Thanksgiving main dish recipes?
Stuffed eggplant. that's what I'm having.


Ingredients:


1 medium eggplant


1 to 2 tablespoons Earth Balance butter


2 tablespoons minced onions


1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes


1 teaspoon salt


1 cup soft breadcrumbs





Prep:


wash eggplant and cut in half, scoop out pulp, leaving 1/2 inch thick shell. Dice the scooped out pulp. In a skillet over medium heat melt butter. Add Onions and saute for 3 to 4 minutes; add eggplant pulp, tomatoes breadcrumbs, and salt. Mix well; fill eggplant shells. bake at 375° until browned, about 30 minutes.


What are good Vegetarian Thanksgiving main dish recipes?
Vegetarian Rock Cornish Stuffed Tofu has been my favorite Thanksgiving Dinner for several years now and usually I prepare it for 300 to 400 people! It is superb with Maple Baked Yams, Mashed Potatoes, Mashed Rutabaga, Asparagus with Lemon Butter, Cranberry Sauce and an awesome salad of Pomegranate Seeds, Pralines, Sliced Fresh Comice Pears and Baby Greens. The stuffing is already in the tofu but extra is always important to have on hand.


What better entrée than Vegetarian Rock Cornish Stuffed Tofu with Mushroom Gravy for Thanksgiving or Christmas Dinner? Frankly, I can’t think of anything that satisfiessc quite as well on all levels in your vegetarian kitchen: beautiful presentation, traditional flavors and it pairs well with all the trimmings!





Ingredients:


3 # Extra Firm Organic Tofu


1 Package Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing Mix


3 Large Spanish Onions sliced thin stem to stern


4 Stalks Celery minced


2 Cups Sliced Mushrooms


Bell’s Poultry Seasoning


¼ Cup Nutritional Yeast


2 Cups Frontier Vegetarian ‘Chicken” Stock


Paprika


2 Tbs. Granulated Garlic


2 Tbs. Granulated Onion


Tamari


Olive Oil





Method:


Prepare the Stuffing


Sauté the mushrooms, onion and celery


Pour 1 Cup RO Water over them


Add ¼ Cup Frontier Vegetarian ‘Chicken’ Stock Powder


Add ¼ Cup Nutritional Yeast


2 Tbs. Bell’s Poultry Seasoning





Method:


Cut the tofu blocks. Place 3 blocks of extra firm Tofu on a cutting board.


Cut each in half on the diagonal. Set the halves upright so that the hypotenuse faces you. Using a metal spatula, with a thin blade, carefully cut a wedge shape from the center of each half. The walls should be about 5/8 of an inch thick.


Reserve removed wedges and crumble finely into a mixing bowl. Make one cut along each of the outside walls being very careful not to cut all the way through the block. Using the edge of the spatula cut straight down and then cut parallel to the bottom. Lift the wedge of tofu out and reserve. Crumble the removed tofu wedge into the stuffing mixture.





Paprika Mixture for painting Tofu


Mix 1/4 Cup Hungarian Paprika


3 Tbs. each Granulated Garlic and Onion


Moisten with Tamari and olive oil until you have a thin paste


Paint the Tofu shells inside and out with the paprika mixture





Stuff the tofu shells with the stuffing


Paint the top of the stuffing with the paprika mixture


Place them in a baking dish


Bake at 350° for 30 minutes





Serve with Mushroom Gravy, Mashed Potatoes, Mashed Rutabaga, Asparagus with Mock Hollandaise or Lemon Butter, Whole Grain Finger Rolls and you have an amazing Christmas or Thanksgiving Dinner prepared in your vegetarian kitchen. Fabulous!


Good Luck and enjoy!



Enjoy the wholesome goodness of my world famous carrot stew:








2 tablespoons olive oil


2 cups finely shredded white cabbage (see Tip)


2 cups finely chopped wholesome carrots


1 cup finely chopped onion


6 cups canned vegetable stock (prepare using stock concentrate, cubes, or powder)


¼ cup tomato paste


1 apple, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks


1/3 cup uncooked long-grain brown rice


½ cup dark raisins


½ cup whole raw cashews


Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste





Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the cabbage, wholesome carrots, and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until the wholesome carrots are tender, about 10 minutes.








Meanwhile, whisk together the vegetable stock and tomato paste in a measuring cup; add to the soup pot. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Stir in the apple and rice. Reduce the heat; cover and simmer until the rice is al dente, about 35 minutes.








Stir in the raisins and cashews. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is done, the raisins are plumped, and the rice is tender about 10 minutes. Season to taste.



If you like soup, I have made this vegetarian wild mushroom soup before and it's fabulous! http://www.chef2chef.net/featured_recipe…





Another main dish that sounds good that I haven't tried is this stugffed eggplant recipe: http://www.chef2chef.net/featured_recipe…





Here's one for cornbread dressing too: http://recipes.chef2chef.net/recipe-arch…






My sister is a vegetarian and we've tried various things for Thanksgiving. One that has worked really well is lentil rice loaf - tends to be mildly flavored with curry, has protein, and you can put a mushroom gravy on it to good effect... good luck!
Last year we made Quorn tenders in vegetarian gravy over mashed potatoes. YUM
My mom usually makes a seitan (wheat gluten) roast.
I found the website I linked below while looking for some ideas for you. I will post a couple recipes that I like even though they serve 6 people, some folks may want to try your dish.





BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH WHOLE WHEAT, WILD RICE, %26amp; ONION STUFFING


Serves: 8





Even those of us who have given up turkey welcome a Thanksgiving dish that has been ';stuffed.'; This satisfying dish makes a handsome centerpiece for the holiday meal.


4 medium-small butternut squashes (about 1 pound each)


3/4 cup raw wild rice, rinsed


1 tablespoon light olive oil


1 heaping cup chopped red onion


1 clove garlic, minced


2 1/2 cups firmly packed torn whole wheat bread


1 tablespoon sesame seeds


1/2 teaspoon each: dried sage, dried thyme


1 teaspoon seasoned salt, or to taste


1 cup fresh orange juice


Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.





Halve the squashes and scoop out seeds and fibers. Place them cut side up in shallow baking dishes and cover tightly with covers or more foil. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until easily pierced with a knife but still firm.





In the meantime, bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in the wild rice, reduce to a simmer, then cover and cook until the water is absorbed, about 40 minutes.





Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until golden.





In a mixing bowl, combine the cooked wild rice with the sautéed onion and the remaining ingredients. When the squashes are cool enough to handle, scoop out the pulp, leaving firm shells about 1/2 inch thick. Chop the pulp and stir it into the rice mixture. Stuff the squashes, place in foil-lined baking dishes, and cover.





Before serving, place the squashes in a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or just until well heated through.





VARIATION: To add drama to this presentation, try this recipe with other squash varieties. Hubbard squash, delicata, sweet dumpling and golden nugget are just a few of the stuffable edible squashes available.











';THREE SISTERS'; STEW


6 servings





In Native American mythology, squash, corn, and beans are known as of the ';three sisters.'; These are the very crops, along with garden vegetables, that the harvest festival of Thanksgiving is meant to celebrate!


1 small sugar pumpkin or 1 large butternut or carnival squash (about 2 pounds)


1 tablespoon olive oil


1 medium onion, chopped


2 cloves garlic, minced


1/2 medium green or red bell pepper, cut into short, narrow strips


14- to 16-ounce can diced tomatoes, with liquid


2 cups cooked or canned pinto beans


2 cups corn kernels (from 2 large or 3 medium ears)


1 cup homemade or canned vegetable stock, or water


1 or 2 small fresh hot chiles, seeded and minced


1 teaspoon each: ground cumin, dried oregano


Salt and freshly ground black pepper


3 to 4 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.





Cut the pumpkin or squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and fibers. Cover with aluminum foil and place the halves, cut side up, in a foil-lined shallow baking pan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until easily pierced with a knife but still firm (if using squash, prepare the same way). When cool enough to handle, scoop out the pulp, and cut into large dice. Set aside until needed.





Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and sauté over medium-low heat until translucent. Add the garlic and continue to sauté until the onion is golden.





Add the pumpkin and all the remaining ingredients except the last 2 and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently, covered, until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.





If time allows, let the stew stand for 1 to 2 hours before serving, then heat through as needed. Just before serving, stir in the cilantro. The stew should be thick and very moist but not soupy; add additional stock or water if needed. Serve in shallow bowls.








Happy Holidays =)

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