Create your own vegan Christmas dinner

Ditch the turkey this year in favour of a vegan holiday dinner that makes vegetables the centerpiece of your holiday table.

The side dishes are easy enough to make vegan.

Cranberry sauce is vegan by nature and instead of lathering your carrots in butter, drizzle them in honey and fresh thyme. Instead of soaking broccoli in cheddar cheese sauce, toss it with dried cranberries and toasted pecans or almonds. Roast acorn squash needs only a drizzle of maple syrup to be a culinary achievement.

Add some toasted walnut pieces and a sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley and suddenly you are vegan gourmet.

What should you do for a turkey substitute? I believe trying to replicate turkey in vegan form is a fool’s journey. Instead, vegetables such as mushrooms, cauliflower, and eggplant offer a meaty richness.

SAVOURY ROASTED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS

4 Servings

4 large portobello mushrooms, stems and gills removed

4 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced

1 small zucchini, diced

1 bell pepper, finely diced

1 1/4 cups mixed mushroom

1 clove garlic, mind

Splash of white wine

1 cup breadcrumbs

4 sage leaves diced

Preheat oven to 375F. Toss mushrooms in 2 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet gill-side up. Place a sauté pan over mediumlow. Add remaining olive oil, onions, zucchini, and peppers. Sauté until vegetables are soft. Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. Add mushrooms. When mushrooms have released their water and soft, add white wine. Add the breadcrumbs and sage, stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fill mushroom caps with the stuffing. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes.

Note: for a vegetarian version, top

Portobello mushrooms can be the star of the show on a vegan Christmas dinner table. 123RF

with mozzarella cheese before baking.

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER STEAKS

4 Servings

Cauliflower sliced lengthwise into half-inch thick pieces*

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried sage

Pinch salt

Pinch pepper

1 lemon, juiced

Preheat oven to 400F. Mix olive oil with garlic and herbs. Place cauliflower on a baking sheet and brush both sides of cauliflower steaks with oil. Season with salt and pepper. Place in oven and roast for 15 minutes. Flip and roast for a further 15 minutes. Finish with lemon juice.

*Expect to get 4 steaks.

ROASTED EGGPLANT STEAKS

1 large eggplant Salt

4 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp dried thyme

1 tbsp dried sage

Pinch salt

Pinch pepper

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

4 sage leaves, diced

Preheat oven to 400F. Mix olive oil with garlic and herbs. Place cauliflower on a baking sheet and brush both sides of cauliflower steaks with oil. Season with salt and pepper. Place in oven and roast for 20 minutes. Flip and roast for a further 20 minutes. Drizzle steaks with balsamic vinegar and sprinkle with fresh sage.

BUTTERLESS MASHED POTATOES

While you may never get the creamy character without the butter or cream, you can still pack your mashed potatoes with lots of flavour. Sauté garlic and fresh herbs in olive oil and add this to your boiled potatoes before mashing. Count on 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 clove of garlic, and 1 tablespoon of minced herbs of olive oil for every pound of potatoes.

VEGAN GRAVY

The challenge of vegan gravy is thickening it. You can certainly fill the flavour void by using the liquid from reconstituted dried mushrooms as the liquid base. Make a roux out of equal parts of vegan butter and flour and use this to thicken your gravy. If you can’t find vegan butter, use cornstarch instead. Simply sauté your vegetables (diced onion, carrot, celery, reconstituted mushrooms) in olive oil with some herbs of your choice. Top with mushroom stock (mixed with vegetable stock, if you need more liquid).

After five to 10 minutes strain to remove solids. To finish, whisk in a little roux to your warm stock. Keep adding and whisking in roux until your desired consistency is achieved.