In this weekly series we have been discussing the benefits of a vegetarian diet including: better health, food safety, animal rights, public health, frugal living, global food insecurity and the staggeringly huge impact of meat/livestock production on climate change/resource depletion.
Pardon a turkey this Thanksgiving. No need to be a part of the mass slaughter
Ben Franklin called turkeys "true American originals." He had tremendous respect for their resourcefulness, agility, and beauty. Turkeys are intelligent animals who enjoy having their feathers stroked and who like listening to music, with which they will often loudly sing along. In nature, turkeys can fly 55 miles an hour, run 18 miles an hour, and live up to 10 years.
But the story is very different for turkeys on factory farms: They will be killed when they are only 5 or 6 months old and, during their short lives, will be denied even the simplest pleasures, such as running, building nests, and raising their young.
Like chickens, the 300 million turkeys raised and killed for their flesh every year in the United States have no federal legal protection. More than 45 million turkeys are killed each year at Thanksgiving alone, and more than 22 million die at Christmas.
Before ending up as holiday centerpieces, these gentle, intelligent birds spend five to six months on factory farms, where thousands of them are packed into dark sheds with no more than 3.5 square feet of space per bird. Turkeys are genetically bred to grow as fast as possible, and they often become crippled under their own weight.
Macca's Meatless Monday/Meatless Advocates is a solution oriented activist group, with solutions for some of the most pressing issues of our time including: climate change, global food/water insecurity and public health. Here we don't just talk about the severity of the crisis. Armed with knowledge about how our actions can contribute we become part of the solution.
I was inspired to create this series by former Beatle and vegetarian advocate Paul McCartney(Macca) who partnered with the Meatless Monday campaign to promote less consumption of meat. We not only discuss the advantages of a less meat diet; we also do some cooking, share recipes and listen to great Beatle music!
This Thanksgiving we have much to be grateful for. We can breath a sigh of relief at the reelection of our President. I can't even begin to imagine the fear and sadness we would be experiencing now if the election had turned out differently. All of us need to be concerned about the dangers of climate change and the environment and at least now with this President there is some hope that we can move forward.
Our consumption habits must change in order to avoid the worst effects of climate change and the most effective personal change we can make is to eliminate/reduce meat consumption. I'm grateful that we have this easy solution that can make such a huge positive difference.
This Thanksgiving I know many who will be celebrating their first meatless no-turkey Thanksgiving. I know that it takes a real paradigm shift to imagine a Thanksgiving without the presence of the big bird so I'll try to simplify it for you. Of course it's easy if like me you'll be a guest. Just show up and eat everything except the bird. For me, Thanksgiving has always been about the sides anyway. But, if you're doing the cooking there are two directions you can take. One is to use the fall harvest bounty to create your own traditional creation and you can check out all my previous meatless Thanksgiving diaries for some ideas there's even a whole diary devoted to holiday pies! Or you can make all the traditional Thanksgiving sides such as mashed potatoes, dressing, cranberry sauce etc. and serve with a faux turkey product.
Here is a traditional Thanksgiving with all the trimmings. The faux turkey Tofurky is in the upper left of plate. Just follow the directions on the package and it turns out great every time. Use your fave mashed potato, corn bread stuffing, cranberry and green bean recipe and serve with a fresh southern style salad.
MAPLE ROAST TOFURKY
1 defrosted Tofurky
3 baking potatoes, peeled and quartered
1/2 pound whole baby carrots or 4 large carrots, diced
2 cups chopped onion (optional)
1 cup chopped celery (optional)
2 cups apple cider
1/3 cup real maple syrup
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
2 tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram
2 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3/4 cup margarine
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 cups vegetable stock
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons apple brandy (optional)
1. Boil apple cider and maple syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 20 minutes).
2. Remove from heat and mix in 1/2 of the thyme and marjoram and all of the lemon zest. Add the margarine, and whisk until melted. Add salt and ground pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until cold. (Syrup can be made the day before.)
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Place your defrosted Tofurky in the pan. Rub the maple syrup mixture onto the Tofurky, leaving a little (approximately 1/8 of the mix) for later.
5. Add the potatoes, carrots, celery and onion; arrange the veggies around the Tofurky.
6. Sprinkle the remaining thyme and marjoram over the vegetables, and pour the vegetable stock into the pan.
7. Wrap the “roast” and veggies in the foil, sealing it tight.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
9. Remove the roast from the oven and baste the Tofurky with the rest of the syrup mix.
10. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from ov
SOUTHERN CRANBERRY APPLE PECAN SALAD
8 cups mixed greens
2 apples, sliced thin (skin on)
1 cup fresh cranberries (or dried)
1 cup raw pecans
4 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese (optional)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small drop pure liquid stevia (or 1/8 tsp. grade B maple syrup)
1/8 tsp. dried mustard
Dash Celtic sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
Combine olive oil, vinegar, garlic, stevia, dried mustard, and salt/pepper and aside.
Place mixed greens, cranberries and pecans in large bowl and toss with dressing, reserving about 1 tbsp.
Divide evenly among four plates, top with apples and goat cheese, drizzle remaining dressing over top, and serve.
WILD MUSHROOM and CARAMELIZED ONION SHEPHERDS PIE
This is a knock out holiday entree. You can make individual pies or use a 9 in. pie plate. Serve with your fave veggies such as green beans, beets etc. Serves 8
Potatoes
3 lb. Yellow Finn or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
¼ cup heavy cream
4 Tbs. unsalted butter
6 Tbs. grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for sprinkling
2 Tbs. chopped chives
Filling
5 Tbs. olive oil, divided, plus more for greasing rings
2 medium yellow onions, halved and sliced (3 cups)
3 medium portobello mushroom caps
1½ lb. assorted wild mushrooms, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 cup grated Asiago cheese
2 Tbs. flat leaf parsley, thyme, oregano, and/or sage
1. To make Potatoes: Put potatoes in pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 30 minutes, or until tender. Drain. Warm cream and butter in pot; add potatoes, and mash until smooth. Stir in Parmesan and chives, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cool.
2. To make Filling: Heat 1 Tbs. oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onions, and cook 20 minutes, or until golden.
3. Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Set portobellos gill-side up on baking sheet, and drizzle with 1 Tbs. oil. Roast 25 minutes, or until tender. Cool, then slice thin.
4. Toss wild mushrooms with remaining 3 Tbs. oil and garlic on separate baking sheet; season with salt and pepper, if desired. Roast 20 minutes, or until tender. Cool, chop, and toss with Asiago, herbs, and onions.
5. Coat baking sheet and inside of 8 3-inch baking rings, ramekins or 9-inch pie dish with cooking spray. Layer portobello slices on bottom of each ring. (Add any leftover portobellos to mushroom mixture.) Use half of wild mushroom mixture to create second layer. Use one-third of Potatoes to create third layer, then add remaining mushroom mixture. Top with remaining Potatoes, shaping each into dome. Sprinkle each pie with pinch of Parmesan. Bake 40 minutes, or until golden. Let cool in rings 5 minutes. Use metal spatula to transfer pies (in rings) to plates. Run paring knife around inside of rings to loosen; lift off rings.
SOUTHERN STYLE WILD RICE CROQUETTES
This entree is for dressing lovers. Delicious with your favorite gravy.
2 cups short grain brown rice
1/2 cup wild rice
4-5 medium mushrooms, minced
1 small onion, peeled and minced
1 small carrot, grated
1/2 stalk celery, trimmed and diced
1 cup diced tempeh
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried herb(s) of choice: sage, thyme, rosemary (I use herbes de provence)
3/4 cup toasted, chopped pecans
season to taste with: salt black pepper
1. Wash rices, combine in a heavy pot with 5 cups water or vegetable stock and a pinch of salt. Cover, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook about one hour or until rice is very tender and slightly sticky.
2. Meanwhile heat a sauté pan and sauté the mushrooms, onions, carrots , and celery Saute about 10 minutes. Add the tempeh, parsley and dried herbs.
3. When rice is cooked, add the sautéed vegetables and pecans to the pot, season to taste and stir very well until completely combined.
4. Cool just enough so you can handle this mixture, then form into 8 burger-sized croquettes. (If your croquettes are reluctant to stick together, put half the mixture in a food processor with the blade inserted and purée. Add back and mix well to combine with the rest of the mixture in the pot.)
5. Wipe out the sauté pan, heat, add a little olive oil, and fry on medium heat about 5-10 minutes a side, or until nicely browned and crisp.
6. Serve hot with sauce or gravy of choice.
To make this recipe as stuffing: substitute long grain rice for short grain, use 1/2 cup less water, add 3/4 cup dried cranberries, and leave out the tempeh.
VEGAN PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE
This is the best. So delicious and even healthy! (sort of) I would have this for breakfast has lots of protein.
1 12 ounce package silken tofu
1 8 ounce container Tofutti vegan cream cheese
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
dash salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 pre-made pie crust (I use a simple graham cracker crust)
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Process all ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth and creamy.
Pour into pie crust and bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
Allow cheesecake to cool slightly, then refrigerate. Cheesecake will set more
"Strawberry Fields Forever" The Beatles Let me take you down cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
"When Shadows Fall (Home)" Paul McCartney from Kisses On the Bottom
What are you doing for Thanksgiving? Please share your holiday recipes and fave Beatle music here!