The number one reason that the folks at www.gentlethanksgiving.org give to skip turkey this Thanksgiving? You won't fall asleep during the football game.
While this list of top 10 reasons to go vegetarian for Thanksgiving is somewhat of a joke, it speaks to a growing trend among those concerned with animal rights, environmentalism and health issues. Many people choose to leave the meat out of their holiday celebrations and now there are more options than ever for those who want to do a vegetarian holiday.
The famed Ithaca eatery, Moosewood Restaurant, recognizes the rising tide of vegetarianism in its latest cookbook, "Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates," published last year. For years, says David Hirsch, co-owner of Moosewood, vegetarians and vegans have felt left out of holiday celebrations that largely revolved around meat dishes.
"A lot of vegetarian and vegan people have had problematic holidays. A lot of the dishes that they could eat would just be secondary," he said.
For many who don't eat meat, a holiday meal meant a plate full of side dishes with no real main dish. When everyone else has a centerpiece dish on their plate, there is a tendency to feel left out. Hirsch says it doesn't have to be that way.
"We shouldn't get hung up on the idea of a main dish. We focus on a little constellation of dishes. It's not a turkey model," he said.
Their book provides filling recipes for all holidays from traditional holidays like Easter, Hanukkah and Christmas, to some out of the ordinary days like Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, Kwanzaa and Japanese Bean Day. But Hirsch says if any holiday is seasonal it's Thanksgiving.
The cookbook offers a number of vegetarian and vegan options like a mushroom filo pastry, roasted winter squash and red cabbage with cranberries. Most of the dishes focus on fall harvest fruits and vegetables and are fairly easy to prepare.
"We tried to make it as harvest-oriented as possible," Hirsch said.
If you're still looking for a more traditional Thanksgiving meal with a central item and a number of side dishes, then there's always the Tofurkey options. Many have heard of the Tofurky legend, but few actaully know what it is.
At first mention, the idea of a tofu turkey seems wholely unappetitizing to most people. But over the years, Turtle Island Foods, maker of the Tofurky brand of meatless products, has revamped its holiday options and made them as palatable as real turkey.
If you want to go all out, you can order the Tofurky Feast that includes one Tofurky roast made with organic non-GMO soybeans, eight Cranberry Apple Potato Dumplings, Tofurky Giblet Gravy, herbed brown and Tofurky Wild Rice Stuffing and Tofurky Jurky Wishstix, a vegetarian wishbone replacement.
This feast for four, avaliable on-line at www.healthy-eating.com, will set you back about $50, but it's cheaper than a turkey dinner. For more information on Tofurky meals and other vegetarian Thanksgiving options visit http://vegweb.com, or Nava Atlas's www.vegkitchen.com.
The famed Ithaca eatery, Moosewood Restaurant, recognizes the rising tide of vegetarianism in its latest cookbook, "Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates," published last year. For years, says David Hirsch, co-owner of Moosewood, vegetarians and vegans have felt left out of holiday celebrations that largely revolved around meat dishes.
"A lot of vegetarian and vegan people have had problematic holidays. A lot of the dishes that they could eat would just be secondary," he said.
For many who don't eat meat, a holiday meal meant a plate full of side dishes with no real main dish. When everyone else has a centerpiece dish on their plate, there is a tendency to feel left out. Hirsch says it doesn't have to be that way.
"We shouldn't get hung up on the idea of a main dish. We focus on a little constellation of dishes. It's not a turkey model," he said.
Their book provides filling recipes for all holidays from traditional holidays like Easter, Hanukkah and Christmas, to some out of the ordinary days like Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, Kwanzaa and Japanese Bean Day. But Hirsch says if any holiday is seasonal it's Thanksgiving.
The cookbook offers a number of vegetarian and vegan options like a mushroom filo pastry, roasted winter squash and red cabbage with cranberries. Most of the dishes focus on fall harvest fruits and vegetables and are fairly easy to prepare.
"We tried to make it as harvest-oriented as possible," Hirsch said.
If you're still looking for a more traditional Thanksgiving meal with a central item and a number of side dishes, then there's always the Tofurkey options. Many have heard of the Tofurky legend, but few actaully know what it is.
At first mention, the idea of a tofu turkey seems wholely unappetitizing to most people. But over the years, Turtle Island Foods, maker of the Tofurky brand of meatless products, has revamped its holiday options and made them as palatable as real turkey.
If you want to go all out, you can order the Tofurky Feast that includes one Tofurky roast made with organic non-GMO soybeans, eight Cranberry Apple Potato Dumplings, Tofurky Giblet Gravy, herbed brown and Tofurky Wild Rice Stuffing and Tofurky Jurky Wishstix, a vegetarian wishbone replacement.
This feast for four, avaliable on-line at www.healthy-eating.com, will set you back about $50, but it's cheaper than a turkey dinner. For more information on Tofurky meals and other vegetarian Thanksgiving options visit http://vegweb.com, or Nava Atlas's www.vegkitchen.com.
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