Just thinking about Friday night’s dinner made me stuffed—how can we possibly jump right into Thanksgiving now? But we must, because it is only 3 days away and there is food to be made! David and I tackled our grocery shopping today—Costco, Trader Joes and Kroger. The good news is that no one else had this idea, so the stores were empty. Um, no. But we did it, and in 2 hours we had everything we needed for our share of the dinner.
We’re celebrating Thanksgiving at my parents’ house again—the one downside of living so close to my parents is that we don’t usually get to host many big holiday meals, but our kitchen is the size of a postage stamp, so it’s just not practical. My mom is very thoughtful when we split up the menu though, and works to veganize as much as she can. And since I (obviously) love to cook, I’ll be bringing some dishes to share as well.
This year I’m bringing my green bean casserole, but I’m going to make my own fried onions to go on top this time. If I’m successful I’ll share my tips in the recipe.
I’m also going to make smashed garlic potatoes. My mom has always preferred hers whipped, and I like mine chunky. We boil the potatoes together and then split them up for the final preparation.
I’m also planning on a simple kale salad. I’m going to roast some delicata squash, and also add toasted pecans and dried cranberries to the mix. To keep the kale tender, I’ll massage it in the dressing first (see instructions here).
Orange Vinaigrette Dressing
1T orange juice
1T white wine/champagne vinegar
2T olive oil
1t dijon mustard
1 clove of garlic and salt and pepper
My dad will be making his cranberry relish—it’s not Thanksgiving in our family without it! He’s also in charge of the stuffing every year. His recipe calls for a can of cream of mushroom soup. I’ve offered to make a batch of this Joy the Baker vegan cream of mushroom soup to substitute—my dad seems super skeptical, but I know it will be delicious!
My mom will be making her Amaretto Sweet Potatoes—I have got to find vegan almond macaroon cookies like she uses in her recipe because it is SO delicious! And she’ll have pumpkin muffins and her potatoes too. My sister is bringing her corn pudding, and Irving will be brining the turkey for all but David and I! It’s a hands-on family affair!
And finally, for dessert, I’m going to be making my Aunt Betty’s French Apple Pie. I’ll post it to the blog next week probably, which I know is of no help to you right now, but I don’t have the recipe ready yet! In the meantime, some other great Thanksgiving desserts are my Pumpkin Spice Trifle, Festive Cranberry Torte, Raw Apple Pie, and Pumpkin Apple Crisp. In fact, check out this post with all of my pumpkin recipes!
Are you hosting guests overnight this weekend? My Cranberry Orange Muffins would be perfect to serve for breakfast!
I’ll be back here next Sunday with the release of my new ebook—Let It Snow—Homemade Candies for the Holidays. All recipes are vegan, gluten free, and delicious! Can’t wait to share it with you—now cross your fingers that I can get all of my recipes edited this week!
^^^ Vegan Cream Cheese Mints
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and families, and I’ll see you all next week!
I love to hear from you! Please leave a comment on my facebook wall or send me an email at sarah@frieddandelions.com.
