Vegetarian Thanksgiving help

[Amethyst]

We are having two sons’ girlfriends for Thanksgiving this year. We are used to having a nice vegetarian meal. We don’t generally go hog wild on side dishes.  “Why overeat just because it’s a holiday?” is my husband’s attitude. And I understand. But not everyone has the same taste in food as we do, so I like the idea of offering several side dishes just to give options. 
 

The NY Times has a great section this week on “Sidesgiving” and I love the idea, but so many of them (all?) require an oven. So I’m looking for side dish ideas that don’t require an oven. Any ideas? (Our main dish will most likely be spanakopita, so the oven will be in use already). 

[WildflowerMom]

Broccoli salad?   
 

found a recipe link... https://www.food.com/recipe/vegetarian-broccoli-salad-379886

Edited November 14, 2021 by WildflowerMom

[Katy]

I have a vegan cookbook with this really great root vegetable thing we have with thanksgiving.  Commenting to remember to post it for you later. 
 

Otherwise sweet potato pie.  Green beans with almonds.

[Jaybee]

I sautéed butternut squash today for a lunch side. (I cheated and used frozen.) I put some olive oil in the pan, but also added a little butter for added flavor. Salt, freshly ground black pepper, and it was so very delicious. I think it would pair well with the spinach.

I have mentioned this before on another thread, but we really like this dish as a main dish with some of the small sized round tortilla chips (any will do, those just seem to fit. It could easily be used as a side/salad/appetizer. I keep adding more ingredients in order to add more nutrients, and the broccoli and grated carrots were added the last couple of times. It's a pretty dish, too. And very forgiving as far as different options go. The name is what I saw for a similar dish online, so I assume this would still fall in that category:

Cowboy Caviar

1 can black beans, drained

1 can navy beans, (or other white bean, or black-eyed peas) drained

1 sm. can corn (optional)

1 small onion, chopped

3 Bell peppers, various colors, chopped

Minced garlic

2-3 grated carrots

Small broccoli pieces

1 ½ spoonful of chopped jalapeños (from the jar, not fresh)(optional)

Halved grape tomatoes

Cilantro

Freshly ground black pepper

Zesty Italian salad dressing

Mix together and store in refrigerator.

(Sorry about the double spacing.)

[Miss Tick]

3 minutes ago, Jaybee said:

I sautéed butternut squash today for a lunch side. (I cheated and used frozen.) I put some olive oil in the pan, but also added a little butter for added flavor. Salt, freshly ground black pepper, and it was so very delicious. I think it would pair well with the spinach.

That sounds delicious and easy.

My favorite Butternut Squash recipe uses Browned Butter and Rosemary

Cut 2lb  squash into similar sized pieces.

Steam until almost tender, but not quite.

Melt 4T but over medium heat and cook until golden brown and aromatic.

Add squash and 1t fresh rosemary and stir until squash is tender and coated. Last night dh added some dried cranberries.

Season with salt and pepper.

[prairiewindmomma]

Flipping through my Vegan Holiday cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz….

A soup for starters? Sweet potato? Mushroom? You could make it early and reheat in a microwave

Some sort of bread?

Some sort of green salad?

We eat very differently than my family of origin eats. They have a hard time recognizing “food” on the table. (And I swear, we are not super healthy or adventurous…I am saying bagels were exotic growing up.) Depending on who your guests are, following the pattern of vegetable side, salad, bread, etc. may be helpful.

[Corraleno]

You could do a roasted vegetable salad and cook the veggies the day before, so the oven will be free on Thanksgiving day. Some ideas:

Roasted butternut squash, beets, and Brussels sprouts with black rice and blood orange vinaigrette

Roasted vegetable and lentil salad with maple balsamic dressing

Roasted sweet potato, wild rice, arugula salad w/lemon dressing and chopped cashews

Lemon garlic roasted broccoli salad w/pine nuts, pomegranate, and goat cheese

Roasted sweet potato, black bean, quinoa salad w/lime vinaigrette

Roasted cauliflower and chickpea salad w/lemon tahini dressing

Roasted sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, and kale salad w/cranberries and pumpkin seeds (this one adds chopped chicken but you can just leave it out)
 

Edited November 14, 2021 by Corraleno

[Amethyst]

19 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

Flipping through my Vegan Holiday cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz….

A soup for starters? Sweet potato? Mushroom? You could make it early and reheat in a microwave

Some sort of bread?

Some sort of green salad?

This might not be a bad idea. Keep it simple. Start with a soup. I like that idea. And I can even make it days ahead of time. I’ll probably skip the bread since the spanakopita has all that phyllo. But some kind of cold salad. Maybe that’s enough to keep everyone happy. Thanks. 

[Amethyst]

1 hour ago, WildflowerMom said:

Broccoli salad?   

Thanks for this. I love the idea of a broccoli salad. 

[Amethyst]

15 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

You could do a roasted vegetable salad and cook the veggies the day before, so the oven will be free on Thanksgiving day. Some ideas:

Roasted butternut squash, beets, and Brussels sprouts with black rice and blood orange vinaigrette

Roasted vegetable and lentil salad with maple balsamic dressing

Roasted sweet potato, wild rice, arugula salad w/lemon dressing and chopped cashews

Lemon garlic roasted broccoli salad w/pine nuts, pomegranate, and goat cheese

Roasted sweet potato, black bean, quinoa salad w/lime vinaigrette

Roasted cauliflower and chickpea salad w/lemon tahini dressing

Roasted sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, and kale salad w/cranberries and pumpkin seeds (this one adds chopped chicken but you can just leave it out)
 

One of my sons is a picky eater (yes, age 29. It doesn’t seem to go away like I had hoped), but he does like butternut squash and sweet potatoes so there are lots of options here for me to seriously consider. Thanks!

[Katy]

[Katy]

[Corraleno]

Sweet potato, wild rice, cranberry pecan pilaf (cooked on the stove top, so no need to use the oven)

 

[regentrude]

Our sides for vegan thanksgiving include:

Wild rice lentil pilaf (you don't have to stuff it in squash, it is great on its own)
https://www.kitchentreaty.com/wild-rice-lentil-stuffed-delicata-squash/

Shredded and sauteed brussel sprouts with maple glazed&salted pecans

 

 

 

 

[DreamerGirl]

Would you be ok with Indian ?

If so, 
 

This is the big recipe list and It is hard to wade through.

https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/recipes/veg-recipes/

This is easier

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/collections/indian_vegetarian_recipes

I particularly recommend

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/courgette_pakoras_83738 (zucchini is courgette in the UK, but really this can be made with potatoes, onions, cauliflower, capsicum). It is an appetizer really but it can be a side.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/spiced-okra-curry

This is one of the holy grail recipes. Veg biriyani. You can make ahead and it is better on the next day as all the flavors combine

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/spiced-vegetable-biryani

Spinach

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/saag-paneer

Paneer is cottage cheese you can get in an Indian store but you can substitute tofu.

Vegetable Korma

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/user/14949281/recipe/vegetable-korma

You can serve it on plain rice or as a side to flatbread. It is a kind of stew or curry.

 

 

 

[WildflowerMom]

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/276723/roasted-brussels-sprouts-with-parmesan/?did=695270-20211110&utm_campaign=alrcom-daily-dish_newsletter&utm_source=allrecipes.com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=111021&cid=695270&mid=71579130460

[Jaybee]

Yum yum yum. I am not a vegetarian, but I am really trying to move toward more vegetables, and trying to focus more on making every element of the meal healthy and nutritious. (That sounds like a "duh" comment, but there are so many things we eat that have unhealthy parts to them, or at least parts that could be improved.) There are some great looking recipes in this thread!

[gardenmom5]

3 hours ago, Amethyst said:

(Our main dish will most likely be spanakopita,  

yum.

I would consult a good Greek cookbook.  I can see a lot of veggies. - avgolemono soup? Mediterranean fruits? greek breads, tabouleh - I even found a brown rice recipe that has dried apricots.

[Tiffnkids]

I get the not wanting to overeat just because it's a holiday! But just because there are a lot of different things to eat doesn't mean people have to overeat. I make so many things for Thanksgiving - everyone gets a few bites of everything they like, and then we all eat the leftovers for the next 3 days!

 

Cranberry sauce is super easy to make and stash in the fridge as a side dish. It also freezes well. 

I do my mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving in a crockpot to free up oven/stovetop space. If you have an instant pot and/or crockpot, you can probably find a side or two that would work for you!

I think it would be totally fine to just serve what you normally serve, too! Maybe run your menu by the girlfriends? Invite them to bring a favorite side dish?

[Amethyst]

2 hours ago, Corraleno said:

Sweet potato, wild rice, cranberry pecan pilaf (cooked on the stove top, so no need to use the oven)

Wow. This looks good, and not too difficult, has sweet potatoes (ds favorite), and on the stovetop! Very real contender. Thank you!

[Amethyst]

Thank you all so much. You’ve given me so many great ideas. It will take me some time to go through all these. But I know I’m going to try lots of these even if it’s not for Thanksgiving. I need more every day ideas (I get so bored with the same things over and over), plus Christmas is coming. So I’ll definitely be trying out some of these suggestions. Thanks so much!!

[WildflowerMom]

I've been wanting to try this nut loaf, but without the topping.  I'd serve it with cranberry sauce. 

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/116815/vegetarian-nut-loaf/

[mathnerd]

Thanks for starting this thread. I don’t make an elaborate vegetarian Thanksgiving feast, but these links are tempting me to try many dishes!

[Storygirl]

Can you ask for some input from the guests? I would want to make sure they are happy and comfortable, and I wouldn't want to make squash, for example, if they didn't like squash. Perhaps they would have a favorite dish they would like to make as a contribution.

[Amethyst]

20 minutes ago, Storygirl said:

Can you ask for some input from the guests? I would want to make sure they are happy and comfortable, and I wouldn't want to make squash, for example, if they didn't like squash. Perhaps they would have a favorite dish they would like to make as a contribution.

Both of the girlfriends will be visiting from Florida (we're in PA) and staying over several nights. While I'm hopeful some of them (meaning my sons and daughters) will decide to make some food, I don't want to ask the girlfriends to cook in my kitchen if they don't want to. If they were just visiting for the day from out of town, I'm pretty sure they would bring something. I know that one girlfriend is somewhat dairy intolerant (though she does eat some cheese). And the other gf is a pretty adventurous eater. But that's the reason I want choices - so that there is more a chance there will be something they like.