A Hungry Vegan Bear Thanksgiving!

There are a few spices and herbs that I find are an absolute must during Thanksgiving, such as, thyme, rosemary, and sage.  And I cannot live without cinnamon and nutmeg in a pumpkin pie, oh my!  The best part of Thanksgiving is not only the food on the table, but the enticing aroma’s, so don’t hold back when it comes to herbs and spices and, most importantly, have fun!

I like to do some preparation work the evening before, because our kitchen is modest in size.  Prepping the evening before also eliminates being overwhelmed on the holiday.  I plan to enjoy the day with friends instead of making myself crazy bouncing between the kitchen and grill.  I began the pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, and the stuffing together the night before the big day.  Also, I’m a huge fan of marinating, so I threw the Portobello’s together and set them in the refrigerator overnight.

And, just in case one of my veggie dishes did not turn out, I had an alternative veggie dish waiting in the wings.  My advice during Thanksgiving, any holiday really, is don’t sweat it and ask for help, if you need it, after all this is what family and friends are there for and, in my opinion, Thanksgiving is not a spectator sport.

Portabella Mushrooms

3 cloves garlic

½ bottle Cabernet Sauvignon

Black pepper

Fresh rosemary

Fresh thyme

Dash of salt

Begin by cleaning up the mushrooms a bit with a dry paper towel and cut a little off the stems, if desired.  Set the mushrooms in a Tupperware container and pour the wine directly over the mushrooms, add the crushed garlic, pepper, rosemary, thyme, and salt to the mix.  Cover the container and refrigerate.  

Place the mushrooms on the grill and cook for about 10-15 minutes.

Pumpkin Pie

1 container firm silken tofu

25 oz pumpkin

1 Tbsp Cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

Dash of salt

3 Tbsp Flax seed (as egg replacement)

1 c brown sugar

2 Tbsp molasses

Begin by preparing the crust by crushing the crackers into tiny pieces.  I used a hammer to crush the crackers, but you can use a rolling pin or, if you're bored, your car.  Add the melted margarine to the crackers and if you think the mix is still a bit dry, add a smidgen more margarine.  Bake the crusts on 325 for about 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Once the crusts are done baking, set them on a cooling rack, and begin prepping the wet mixture for the pie.

I used a blender for this mix, because it makes the process go very quickly, which I absolutely adore.  Begin with the tofu and then proceed to add the rest of the ingredients.  I like a spicy pie and I have a tendency to add more cinnamon and nutmeg, because I can't quite help myself.

Makes 2 pies

Bake 30-40 minutes at 350

Graham Cracker Crust

Little less than 2 packages of graham crackers

¼ c margarine (until crackers are moist)

Stuffing

1 bag bread cubes
1 1/2 Tbsp margarine

Fresh sage

Fresh rosemary

Fresh Thyme

Black pepper

1 box of veggie broth

½ pack of soy sausage

2 c celery

½ medium red onion

Begin by emptying the bag of bread cubes into a large plastic bowl and set that to the side for a moment.  Next, take a large frying pan and drop in the margarine.  I use a higher setting on my stove top, not quite on high, but enough to make a nice sizzle when I begin to add in the celery, soy sausage, and onion.  Add in the fresh and dry spices.  Once the soy sausage, onion, and celery is golden brown, add in half the box of the veggie broth.  Then dump the heated mixture on top of the bread cubes.  The next step is entirely up to you, if you would like to heat the rest of the veggie broth, you may do so on the stove top, but I did not heat the rest of the broth and opted to dump the rest of the broth into the bowl. 

Finally, dump the contents into a deep cake pan and cover with foil.  Place the stuffing into the oven and cook at 375 for about 30-45 minutes.  Every so often stir the stuffing to ensure that it does not stick to the pan.

Cranberry Sauce with Apples

2 Gala apples

1 bag of cranberries

¾ c brown sugar

Bit of water to cover the base of the saucepan

I love cranberries, I love cranberries, because I can cook 100 other things in my kitchen while the sauce is cooking.  Begin by peeling the apples and cutting out the core.  Next, add a bit of water to the base of your saucepan and then slice and dice the apples into the pan.  Take the bag of cranberries and empty them into a strainer-wash the berries and look for any stems that might have made their way into the bag.  Then dump the clean cranberries into the sauce pan.  Stir the apples and berries together in the saucepan and then set the mix on the stove.  Cover the saucepan and set the temperature to high.  Then as the boiling process begins, drop the temperature down to low and add in the brown sugar.  A wonderful thing will occur as you are attending to a half dozen other things...the sauce will begin to go from a thin liquid to a nice thick sauce.  This year I decided to experiment a bit and use apples in the sauce instead of oranges.  The consensus at the end of our dinner was, "it's great, but the oranges are better."  Needless to say, if you're like me, and looking to branch out with your Thanksgiving menu then give this recipe a shot.

Saucy Apple Sauce

Trader Joe's Gala apples made great sauce!

I love the fall season.  The smell of apples cooking on the stove top or pumpkin pie sitting and cooling on a rack brings a smile to my face.  These simple pleasures not only warm the heart on a brisk November day, but it also warms the spirit...OH and it makes the house or apartment, in my case, smell delicious!

This evening I had a bag of apples sitting in my refrigerator that have been staring at me for the past week begging for me to use them.  I know, I should have just eaten them raw if it bothered me so much, but these were not the best apples to eat raw.  They were a bit flavorless and blah, so I decided my only option for these apples were to mash them into submission and make sauce.

When I visit my parent's home in the fall, I mentally cross my fingers that my mom will make apple sauce.  I don't know why or how, but she makes the best apple sauce I've ever had.  Every year I try to recreate her sauce, but it never quite comes out like her recipe.  I think this has something to do with the simple fact that it is made by my mother.  What I find most entertaining about her apple sauce is that it is not just a sauce, but a dessert. 

Below is my own creation that was tangy and delicious on a cool Culver City evening.
The Hungry Vegan Bear's Saucy Apple Sauce
2 lb. bag of Gala apples
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp Bourbon vanilla
2 tsp nutmeg
splash of water

Begin by peeling the apples and cutting out the core.  Next, slice and cut the apple into cubes.  I like the cubes because this allows for a thicker version while mashing.  I usually have a few larger lumps in my sauce, which I like because it feels more filling later on when I'm consuming a bowlful.  Add the cubed apples to a pan with a splash of water and set the heat on the stove top to about a medium heat.  At this point, I add in the cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar.  Then cover the apples and let it simmer on the stove top until it comes to a boil.  Then uncover and begin to mash a few of the softer apples on the bottom of the pan.

I'm a firm believer in heat fluctuation, which means that I usually dip down the heat from the medium and then back up, if the apples or stove top is not cooperating.  Once I've done this a couple of times, I set the sauce on low, mashing and stirring, and allow the sauce to simmer. 

The preparation and cooking time is around 30 minutes.  Once the sauce is done, allow it to cool, and then serve with soy milk, whipped cream, or soy dessert.  Or, for you traditionalists out there, simply dish out a scoop or two into a bowl and serve.