The holidays are full of memorable events, but nothing brings a family together like food. Sitting down with your loved ones and sharing a meal brings a sense of togetherness and evokes feelings of thankfulness and comfort. It provides the assurance that the people who have gathered with you are full and happy.
Today, cooking a holiday meal that can be eaten by the entire family can be a difficult task. Beliefs, preferences, and allergies can make catering to everyone’s needs frustrating and nearly impossible. Luckily, there are plenty of alternatives out there that can be used to make holiday dishes available to almost everyone at your table this year.
Plant-based cooking not only ensures that vegetarians and vegans in your family can enjoy your meal, but it also eliminates dairy, making it okay for anyone who is lactose-intolerant. Plus, it eliminates any type of meat which may be avoided due to someone’s religious beliefs.
While drinks are just as important at the dinner table as the food, you can make sure everyone is catered to this year with an easy to make vegan eggnog.
Vegan Eggnog
Ingredients:
- 24 ounces silken tofu (crumbled)
- 2 cups of soy milk
- 2/3 cup turbinado sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water (cold)
- 1 cup rum
- 4 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 20 ice cubes
- Nutmeg for garnishing
Instructions:
- Place the tofu, soy milk, sugar, and salt in a blender and blend until the mixture is smooth.
- Pour the mixture into a bowl and whisk in the water, rum, and vanilla extract.
- You will want to keep the mixture refrigerated until it is ready to be served.
- When you are ready to serve the eggnog, blend the mix with the ice cubes until frothed
- Enjoy!
A hearty vegan Shepherd’s pie is an excellent way to ensure all your guests are able to enjoy a warm and filling entree this holiday season.
Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients:
- 4 Potatoes
- 2 tbsp vegan margarine
- ¼ cup unsweetened soy milk
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- One onion
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 ½ cups vegan ground beef substitute
- 1 ¼ cups vegan gravy
- ½ cup green peas
- ½ cup of corn
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- Dash of cayenne pepper
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Dice potatoes and chop onions
- Boil or microwave potatoes until soft
- Drain potatoes and mash with vegan margarine and soy milk
- Add salt and pepper to add taste
- Saute the chopped onions in the vegetable oil
- Combine the onions, beef substitute, vegan gravy, peas, corn, garlic powder, and a dash of cayenne pepper in a large mixing bowl and pour into a pie pan
- Spread the mashed potatoes over your vegetable mixture
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes
- Enjoy!
The holidays are full of wonderful sweets, so give vegan gingerbread cookies a try this holiday season to ensure everyone satiates their sweet tooth.
Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of vegan margarine
- 1 cup of sugar
- Egg Replacer for one egg
- 1 cup molasses
- Two TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 5 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 TBSP ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
Instructions:
- Beat the margarine and sugar together in a large bowl
- Add the egg replace, molasses, and apple cider vinegar to the mixture
- In a separate bowl, combine your dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the large bowl of wet ingredients and combine well
- Let the dough refrigerate for at least two hours to become firm
- Preheat the oven to 375 F
- Either roll out your dough and cut it into holiday shapes with cookie cutters or form it into ½ inch balls
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper
- Place your cookies on the sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes until done
- Enjoy!
The holidays bring a lot of different people from separate walks of life together. Plant-based options make sure that you are prepared to cater to anyone this holiday season. Feel free to leave a comment below with your favorite go-to holiday dish and make sure to subscribe!