Thanksgiving is, thankfully, right around the corner! Stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, and don’t forget, TURKEY!! My mom makes the best turkey… She brines it for three days beforehand and it is perfect! The only trouble is, my mom recently became gluten-free and my dad has been a vegetarian for the past 20-something years. My roommate has the same problem at home because she’s a vegan!
Now, you might be thinking, “What does gluten-free mean? What does it mean to be vegan?” Fear not, I’m here to tell you! To be vegan, you need to cut out anything that comes from an animal. No more meat, cheese, butter, milk, and, in some cases, honey. Gluten-free means no wheat, flour, rye, or anything like that. Wheat is found in bread, pasta, and a surprising amount of other things, which means Thanksgiving can be a total nightmare.
Fortunately, I asked my mother and my roommate about what they have planned for Thanksgiving this year and I’ve come up with a list of vegan, vegetarian, and a few gluten-free options so you can happily ditch the turkey this Thanksgiving!
Gluten Free Stuffing
Instead of traditional stuffing, try Cornbread Stuffing! Buy or make cornbread that doesn’t have any wheat flour in it and make stuffing like you would with normal stuffing, but now it is gluten free!
Gluten Free Gravy
Gravy can be a big issue because of the flour that is used to thicken it. If you make your own gravy, buy gluten-free cornstarch or some other gluten-free thickener to make your gravy gluten free!
Gluten Free Dessert
Use gluten-free all-purpose flour. It might be heavy and dense and it might not taste exactly the same, but it is dessert and it is gluten-free! You can also do a nut crust. There are recipes on the Internet about crushing almonds up and turning them into a gluten-free crust.
Vegan Cornbread
All you need is coconut oil, cornmeal, all-purpose flour, almond milk, apple cider vinegar, and two tablespoons of maple syrup to make it sweet! Perfect vegan substitute to traditional cornbread!
Vegan Stuffing
Butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, apples, shallots, onion, celery, cranberries, walnuts, a host of herbs and seasonings, and hearty bread combined to make the perfect Thanksgiving stuffing, minus the animal products!
Vegan Gravy
There are a whole bunch of vegan gravy recipes on the internet! I won’t go into the whole list of ingredients, but some of them call for a particular brand of flour, but you can use any kind of all-purpose flour (even gluten-free if you want).
Saffron Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are crucial to make Thanksgiving dinner amazing! This recipe is perfect for vegans. Potatoes combine with vegan margarine, flour, non-dairy milk, coconut milk, garlic, and saffron, which makes it warm and buttery in color.
Jellied Cranberry Sauce
This recipe keeps it simple with fresh or frozen cranberries, water, optional lemon zest, and sugar. Perfect addition to your vegan feast!
Seitan Stuffed with Walnuts, Dried Cranberries, and Raisins
Seitan is a perfect meat alternative that is also derived from wheat gluten, to take the place of turkey! The seitan is stuffed with a mixture of vegetables, dried cranberries, walnuts, soy sauce, whole-wheat bread, and chia seeds.
Crustless Pumpkin Pie
Would it really be Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie? No!! It is vegan, it can easily be made gluten-free, and it’s super healthy! Pinterest has a hundred recipes for crustless pumpkin pie!
Chocolate Avocado Mousse with Fresh Raspberries
Combine the two super-foods—dark chocolate and avocados—with cocoa powder, agave, vanilla extract, and a dash of cinnamon for an incredibly healthy dessert. Add fresh raspberries on top and you’ve got a delicious and healthy Thanksgiving dessert.
Gluten-Free and Vegan Apple Crisp
Apples, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt make a simple base for a classic Thanksgiving dessert. The topping is made from a combination of gluten-free flours, gluten-free oats, almond meal, some brown sugar, cinnamon, and a bit of non-dairy butter.