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So this will be our second Thanksgiving on this blog, and we’re really happy that you’re all here and reading our recipes and thoughts — we got online to share, and we’re thankful that some of you find it worthwhile to come read.
While this is pretty last minute, we thought we’d post what we’re planning for Thanksgiving — Denise and are are cooking together, for a full safe for both of us holiday of food. Some of the recipes are on the blog, some aren’t, and it’s likely things will change the day of. But maybe this will be of some interest to anyone who is still thinking about what to make or what to bring or eat.
This past summer, one of my co-workers went through a phase of making Thanksgiving dinners — I don’t think she was cooking a whole turkey, but part of it, plus dressing and cranberries. I think it happened more than once, and the craving turned out to be transferable.
But for me? Turkey, eh, whatever. I don’t like it or dislike it, but I don’t feel excited enough to cook one if I don’t have to. What I love about Thanksgiving are the side dishes, and while most of my family’s traditional foods are not allergen-free in their original formats, it is truly easy to make most of them safe with dairy alternatives (although, personally, I prefer vegetable broth to most non-dairy milks in mashed potatoes — less chance for an odd sweet flavor to happen).
For my mid-summer Thanksgiving, I decided to do a casserole of all my favorite flavors, and since there is just one of me, I did individual casseroles so that I could freeze some of them. If you wanted turkey, you could make it on the side. If you wanted a full vegan meal and you’re not gluten-free, add diced seitan with the mushrooms in the gravy portion, but be sure to leave some extra room for it at the top of your casseroles. Some sort of cranberries on the side? Why not? This can be the main dish, the centerpiece, the only dish, or a side. Nothing but versatile, right?
This casserole has a base of mashed rutabaga, a center of vegan, gluten-free chestnut and celery dressing, and a rich mushroom gravy, all baked in one lovely personal-sized casserole. I’ve never made this as one large casserole, but I think doubling each layer and increasing the cooking time would work.
Mini-Thanksgiving, Casserole Style
3 servings
Pre-heat oven to 350F, and spray three 1/2 cup mini-casserole dishes with cooking spray (note on cooking spray — the only one I’ve found free of all allergens including soy is Pam for Grilling).
First, make the rutabaga:
2 cups stock (veg or chicken) or 2 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes (watch for hidden gluten and soy in stock and especially bouillon — look for natural brands for boxed stock for the best selection of options)
about 2 cups of cubed rutabaga (look for it frozen and bagged)
Boil rutabaga in stock until cooked through. Takes 20-30 minutes for fresh rutabaga, but 10 or so for frozen.
Drain rutabaga, and mash with:
1+ Tablespoon soy-free Earth Balance
salt and pepper to taste — be generous with the pepper here.
Spoon into bottom of dishes and press down with the back of the spoon. Should be about 1/4 to 1/3 an inch at the bottom of each dish. If you have leftovers, pack them in or eat them.
Rutabaga base
Next, make the dressing. In large skillet, over medium heat, heat
1 Tablespoon olive oil. When shimmery hot,
Add:
1 cup of diced onion. Cook until translucent.
Add 1 cup celery, chopped, cook until hot, 3-4 minutes
Add one package of chestnuts, chopped (my package was 5.2 oz, and was about 15 chestnuts)
Heaping 1/2 teaspoon thyme, crushed as you add it.
Chestnut-Celery Dressing
Cook everything about 5 minutes. Onions should be entirely clear, celery should still retain a bit of crisp, the chestnuts don’t appear to change.
Stir in 1/3 cup gluten-free bread crumbs (I make my own from the leftover pieces of bread from each loaf, but if you need to buy some, the Ener-G loaves make good bread crumbs).
Spoon over rutabaga, leaving just a bit of room (1/4 inch or so) at the top. Scrape all the bits out of the skillet.
Chestnut-Celery Dressing, stage 2
Finally, make the gravy. Into the same skillet you just used (really no need to wash it out), still over medium heat, add
2 Tablespoons olive oil. When shimmery hot,
Add 1/4 cup onion, diced small. Cook until translucent.
Add 1 3.5 oz package of shitaki mushrooms, washed, stemmed, and diced. Cook until the liquid comes out of the mushrooms (watch, if you don’t know what I’m talking about — you’ll see it). 2-5 minutes. Then add
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 Tablespoons garbanzo bean flour
2 Tablespoons of soy sauce, gluten-free tamari, or coconut aminos
Whisk these until you’ve made a slurry, good and thick. Let it cook for a minute. Begin to slowly drizzle in water, about 1 Tablespoon at a time, stirring and letting each addition thicken before adding the next drizzle. Add at least 1 cup of water, and not more than 1.5 cups.
Spoon gravy over casseroles. At this point, you can cover the casseroles and refrigerate overnight, or you can bake them immediately. If immediately, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. If you are taking them out of the fridge, let them sit 15 minutes or so to come up towards room temperature, and then bake 25-30 minutes. These freeze okay, but let them thaw thoroughly and then bake.
2 cups stock (veg or chicken) or 2 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes
about 2 cups of cubed rutabaga
1+ Tablespoon soy-free Earth Balance
salt and pepper to taste — be generous with the pepper here.
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 cup of diced onion
1 cup celery, chopped
1 5.2 oz package of chestnuts, chopped (15 chestnuts)
Heaping 1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/3 cup gluten-free bread crumbs
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup onion, diced small
1 3.5 oz package of shitaki mushrooms, washed, stemmed, and diced
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 Tablespoons garbanzo bean flour
2 Tablespoons of soy sauce, gluten-free tamari, or coconut aminos
(Final note — it seems to me that chestnuts are tree nuts, but did not confirm this. Assuming this is so, this recipe is not nut-free. MK, and readers, I checked this morning and confirmed they are tree nuts -Denise)
I think you’re an apple crisp person or an apple pie person. Or at least I am, and I fall squarely into the apple crisp camp. I can pass up apple pie anytime because unless the crust is perfect and amazing, which it rarely is, I don’t want it. It just seems like a waste of space in my stomach when I could be using that space for the good stuff. And a fruit crisp is all good stuff. And it’s a lot easier to make a crisp than a pie. So since it’s that time of year when you can get both cranberries, and lovely apples, I decided this would be a great time to post this recipe. This is also a lovely alternative to pie at Thanksgiving if you’re in a time squeeze or you just haven’t managed to perfect your pie crust technique yet, gluten free or otherwise.
Cortland Apples
As a side note, I have a problem with believing that 4 cups of cored, peeled and sliced apples can possibly equal 3-4 real apples. For some reason when I’m at the grocery store, I am compelled to buy twice as many apples as I need. So although there are 5 apples in this picture, it’s because I already cut up the 3 apples (three, count them, three) I needed to make this recipe, because I bought eight. (Eight!! What was I thinking?) So when I say 3-4 apples below, I really mean it. Good thing we like to just eat apples.
Apple Cranberry Crisp
12 oz bag of fresh cranberries (or frozen, I often pop a bag or two in the freezer at this time of year to have on hand later when you can’t get them)
4 cups of cored, peeled, and sliced apples (3-4 apples depending on size, I used Cortlands, but any baking apple will do. )
1 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup quick cooking oats
½ cup of oat flour (you may need additional flour depending on humidity and whether your crumble stays together, add it 1 Tablespoon at a time until it holds together)
6 Tablespoons of Earth Balance soy free margarine
1 teaspoon of Earth Balance soy free margarine
Quartered, Cored and Peeled ApplesCored, Peeled and Sliced Apples
When peeling apples, I prefer to use a vegetable peeler rather than a knife because it cuts a thinner peel off and I lose less apple to the garbage can. I like to do varying size pieces so that some get more mushy and some are larger so you get a varying mouth feel.
Rinse the cranberries and pick out any mushy, squashed, or icky-looking berries, as well as any leaves and stems left in the package.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
Cranberries, Apples, Sugar, Salt and Lemon in BowlCranberry and Apple Mixture after mixing
Once all your apples are peeled and your cranberries are clean, combine the cranberries, apples, sugar, lemon juice and salt in a bowl. Mix the contents of the bowl well.
Cranberry Apple Mixture in Baking Dish
Grease the bottom and sides of an 8” x 8” baking dish with 1 teaspoon of Earth Balance soy free margarine. After greasing is complete, place place the cranberry apple mixture into the baking dish.
Brown Sugar, Oats, Oat Flour and Earth BalanceCutting in Earth Balance
In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, oats, and oat flour. Mix well, and then cut in the Earth Balance soy free margarine. I used a pastry blender, but you could use a fork if you don’t have one.
Apple Cranberry Crisp after baking
Cover the cranberry apple mixture in the baking pan with the brown sugar mixture. Bake at 325 degrees for 60 minutes (70-75 minutes if your cranberries are frozen) or until topping is crispy and fruit tender.
Serve with your favorite vanilla dairy free ice cream or dairy free whipped topping. Enjoy!