Mushroom gravy
Recipe and photos courtesy of Jeanine Donofrio ((loveandlemons.com)

Meatless memories

Entertain with thoughtful vegan and vegetarian recipes

by JANNISE JOHNSON

The holidays bring friends and family together to share good times and delicious meals. Those with dietary restrictions, such as vegans and vegetarians, are often overlooked (especially when the star of the table is a turkey or ham) and left wondering what they can eat from holiday spreads or office potlucks. If you are hosting a holiday meal, don’t be intimidated when you find out one of your guests has a different diet.

Enter the Veganuary organization, a global nonprofit started in the U.K. in 2014 to encourage people to abstain from meat and animal products for the month of January. According to Wendy Matthews, U.S. director of Veganuary, hosting vegans and vegetarians doesn’t have to be stressful.

“Veganism is often defined by what we don’t eat: meat, fish, eggs and dairy, plus some of the animal ingredients that are hidden away in products, such as whey [from milk] and gelatin [from animal bones],” Matthews says. “But really, we should focus on all the great things that vegans do eat. Vegetables, fruits, grains, beans, nuts, pasta—there is a good chance that half the foods you already eat are vegan.”

Creating labels for vegan and vegetarian dishes is helpful if you don’t want the whole meal to be sans meat, dairy and eggs. Matthews explains that making a dish that’s free from animal products is not as complex as some people would have you believe. The Vegan Society touts itself as the oldest vegan organization in the world. The organization’s website (vegansociety.com) has several useful resources, including recipes. Just click the “Lifestyle” tab.

Veganuary.com also has ideas for substitutions and recipes for holiday favorites, such as vegan gravy and stuffed squash. Try mashed potatoes made with vegetable stock or an unsweetened plant-based milk, such as almond, soy or oat. That takes care of the side dishes, but what about the entree? Many vegan and vegetarian meat and cheese substitutes are easily accessible these days. If the host wants to try their culinary hand at making the main dish vegan, why not try a tofu turkey roast or a mushroom Wellington. Many conventional desserts can also be made for vegan guests, Matthews says.

“Did you know that many store-bought pie crusts are accidentally vegan?” she adds. “Just quickly scan the ingredients to make sure they don’t contain animal ingredients like lard, butter or whey.”

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Types of diets

Check with guests on their particular diet. Vegans consume no animal products. The lacto-ovo vegetarian diet excludes all meat, but includes eggs and dairy products. The ovo-vegetarian diet excludes all animal-based foods except eggs. The lacto-vegetarian diet excludes all meat and eggs, but includes certain dairy products. The raw vegan diet consists of unprocessed raw plant-based foods. If you have a certain diet, politely inform the host or offer to bring a dish.—JJ

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