4 Tips for a Successful Vegan Thanksgiving!

It's still world vegan month, so let's keep the vegan train going, even during Thanksgiving! Here are 4 tips to make it a success:

1. If dining with close family or friends, let the host know that you are eating plant-based and perhaps they can make some of the side dishes without meat or diary. You’ll have to gage this one carefully; if they are unwilling, try steps 2 and 3.

2. Bring a delicious side dish that you have made before and others have tasted/approved! Don’t announce that the dish is vegan, just serve it along with everything else. Stick with some of the traditional side dishes but find good vegan recipes to make the vegan version.

3. Find one or two good substitutes for the entrée and test them out ahead of time. Some people like the mock turkey rolls, which are very convenient, but you can also go in a different direction with the entrée. If your crowd isn’t very familiar with mock meats or don’t care for them, them coming up something entirely different my be the way to go. For example, a butternut squash lasagna or roasted stuffed pepper or squash(see recipes below). As long as they delicious and filling, they will be a winner! Choosing something different avoids the comparison to meat which can sometime be a letdown if the substitute isn’t on point.

4. Veganize the desserts. Dessert is probably the easiest of the dishes to veganize. This generally involves replacing cow’s milk with a plant milk like coconut milk (in place of condensed milk) or almond milk, and replacing eggs with some other type of binder like ground flax seeds and water or applesauce. Find a vegan recipe of your favorite desert and whip up something delicious. See my recipe page for a vegan sweet potato pie (www.rubylathon.com/recipes).

Relax and have fun! Enjoy the food and company. Even if everything doesn’t turn out perfectly, its okay, you can try again until and focus on the most important part which is fellowship with family and friends.

Get my sweet potato pie recipe here: www.RubyLathon.com/recipes