How to Cook a Thanksgiving Feast without the Meat
November 3, 2011
•Le Cordon Bleu
•Orlando
• 0 Comments
How to Cook a Thanksgiving Feast without the Meat
The idea of a Thanksgiving feast without the turkey is enough to boggle the minds of many. How is it possible to prepare a festive meal without the staple of the season? Surprisingly, it’s not that difficult. There are many people who choose to forgo the meat on Thanksgiving and the challenge simply adds a whole new dimension to the creative culinary arts. In the Orlando culinary scene, there are certain veggie loving restaurants that dedicate portions of their menu to the meatless population. However, for many, part of the holiday season is about gathering around the kitchen and creating a homemade feast the whole family will love.
Here is a simple step by step guide for modifying your traditional recipes into veggie friendly ones!
Step 1: Let’s start with the main course, the turkey. Okay, so did you know there is actually a premade veggie version called the Tofurkey? As the name implies, this roast removes the meat and substitutes it with tofu. First, purchase the loaf at your local market or specialty store. You will need to de-thaw the roast in the refrigerator for a full 24 hours before cooking it.
Step 2: The roast comes with its own stuffing inside and a packet of vegetarian gravy, which can simply be spread over the roast. However, to spice it up a little bit buy 4 potatoes, 1 medium white onion and 4 carrots to cook in the pan along with the roast to create a full meal.
Step 3: Preheat the oven to 300 F. While the oven is heating up, chop carrots and potatoes into bite sized pieces while dicing the onion into smaller pieces. Remove tofurkey from package set aside a casserole dish with a cover or in a pan with aluminum foil.
Step 4: Next you will need to make the basting. Combine ¾ cup olive oil, ¾ cup vegetable broth, 2 minced garlic cloves and ½ teaspoon ground sage.
Step 5: Coat the tofurkey in about half of the prepared basting mixture and place it in the pan or casserole. Place veggies alongside the roast, covering thoroughly with provided gravy.
Step 6: Cover with lid or aluminum foil and allow the roast to bake for roughly 2 hours or until the internal temperature of 120 F. In order to avoid having the roast dry out while cooking, continue to cover the roast with the leftover basting about every 30 to 40 minutes during the cooking process in order to keep it tender and moist.
Step 7: Remove from oven and carve the roast similar to carving a turkey. Add additional gravy to the veggies if needed and enjoy! This meatless culinary art will be a Thanksgiving feast that everyone can enjoy…especially the turkey!
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Orlando. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Orlando offers culinary arts and pâtisserie and baking training programs in Orlando, Florida. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit Chefs.edu/Orlando for more information.
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