Thanksgiving Vegan Meet-up
Our DallasVegan 101 Meet-up group gathered on Saturday night to celebrate Thanksgiving. What a potluck it was!! I was very camera happy…so you get to see all the wonderful dishes everyone brought.
I’ll start with my contribution…Mashed Potatoes (I used a recipe I got from a Spiral Diner cooking class last year)…
and Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy from VwaV. I am making these same mashed potatoes and gravy for my family on Thanksgiving, so it was great to test out the recipe. The gravy is soooooo good.
I also put out the remaining slices of our Celebration Roastfrom Whole Foods. It disappeared quick! Eric and I bought another celebration roast last night for Thanksgiving. We love it sooo much. It’s excellent on a sandwich with cranberry sauce!!
Now for everyone else’s dishes… Sweet Potato Casserole
Green Bean Casserole
Tofurkey
More Mashed Potatoes
I really didn’t understand what this was exactly, but I know it’s from an Indian restaurant. They are basically fried hot peppers and hot potatoes. There were two sauces to dip them in. VERY spicy!!
Southwestern Corn Pudding from VwaV. This was awesome!!! I’ve actually got the recipe out right now and am debating adding it to my Thanksgiving menu. My mom always makes this corn casserole, so this definitely reminded me of it, except this one is almost better with all of the southwestern spices, not to mention that it’s vegan. 
Macrobiotic Rice and Veggie Casserole
Shepard’s Pie
Here’s a picture of my plate before digging in.
And of course, what meal would be complete without desserts?!! Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake from Fat-Free Vegan.
Gingerbread Iced Cookies
What’s for dinner?
So I know I go a few days without blogging, and then I go crazy and post like five million things, but that’s what’s working for me right now. With teaching and yoga, it’s just harder to post during the weekdays. I’m going to try to start blogging at least once during the week.
This week we had some yummy, new meals. First up was VeganDad’s Creamy Mac and Cheeze. I was determined to make macaroni and cheese this week after the disappointing serving I had at Spiral Diner. VeganDad’s I have to say is the best I’ve had yet, but again, not sure I would repeat it. Maybe I just don’t love mac and cheese enough. The best “cheese” sauce we love is the sauce in the Fettuccine Alfreda recipe in Vegan with a Vengeance. I sprinkled our mac and cheeze here with red pepper to give it some added spice. I also used whole wheat shells because I couldn’t find any whole wheat macaroni. We had it with steamed broccoli and an heirloom tomato. I remember as a kid, my mom would always eat sliced tomatoes with some mayo on top. I never liked tomatoes back then, but I thought I would give it a try with some Nasoya sandwich spread (vegan mayo). It was ok, but I prefered them plain. The heirloom tomatoes are to die for right now!
Next up was what ended up being probably one of my favorite vegan meals I’ve ever made. It was AWESOME!!! Sweet & Sour Chipotle Tempeh with Sweet Potatoes (from Eat, Drink, and Be Vegan, p. 147). I served it with brown basmati rice. I rushed home from work to get it assembled and ready to go into the oven, so that after yoga I would be able to just pop it in. It has to bake for about an hour and 10 minutes. But oh my goodness…it is so sweet, spicy, and 100% delicious. I love pineapple, tempeh, and spicy/sweet things, so it’s no surprise I loved this. Eric was a huge fan as well. I can’t wait to make this for guests in the near future. I think it will be a hit! It makes a lot. Eric had it for lunch the next day, and I had it for lunch the next two days. Yum!! (The pictures don’t do this justice. Really…if you go buy Eat, Drink, and Be Vegan just for this one recipe, it would be worth it.)
On Eric’s last night (when I baked the Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cupcakes) in Dallas, we headed to Freebird’s for a burrito. I got a 1/2 bird on a spinach tortilla. Inside it I got, black and pinto beans, veggies, tomatoes, lettuce, mild hot sauce, guacamole, and corn. The limes on the side are to squeeze on top. Yum! Look at how big they are too!! I got the smallest one, the 1/2 bird. It’s amazing that people can eat the bigger ones. I ate every bite of this one though. It’s just perfect.
And lastly, this is my first dinner without hubby. Bow Ties (which I did corkscrew pasta instead) with Bean Sauce (from The McDougall Quick & Easy Cookbook, p. 168). Frozen okra with fresh black pepper is on the side. Simple, filling, and made for a great lunch on Friday.
