A few years ago, I celebrated an “Urban” Thanksgiving with friends in San Francisco. Of course, every Thanksgiving is vegetarian for me. But that year in particular, my friends agreed to cook NO meat, NO fish, NO turkey. What an awesome way to spend the holiday! Why not spare a turkey this year and try a vegetarian Thanksgiving?
Here are some vegetarian fabulous ideas to cover every food group on the big day:
Butternut Squash with Butter, Apples, Raisins, and Croutons:
Food Group: Carbs and fat
This recipe is delicious!
-Start out by baking the butternut squash whole at 350F for about 30-40 minutes, until it becomes soft.
-At the same time, start making croutons by dicing bread, place in a pan, and coat with olive oil. Bake at 350F for ~10 minutes, until crispy.
-Once squash is soft, cut in half. Scoop out the seeds, and coat the inside pit with butter (if you like a lot of butter like me, then spread the butter all over the squash).
-Sprinkle Thyme and Rosemary on the Squash.
-Dice apples, and add into the pit. Also add raisins and croutons. Coat with more butter if you dare.
-Place squash back in oven and bake for another ~20 minutes.
-Remove and cool. A little sweet, a little savory. Enjoy 
Baked Brussel Sprouts:
Food Group: Carbs and fat
There are two ways I like to do Brussel Sprouts:
-Baked Brussel sprouts take almost no effort: Wash brussel sprouts, cut ends off, add into a deep pan or pyrex, coat with olive oil, sprinkle a little salt, bake for 30-40 minutes at 350. Voila.
-Pan-roasted Brussel Sprouts take a little more effort, and I like these better: Wash brussel sprouts, cut ends off, and cut Brussel Sprouts in half down the middle. Coat a pan with Olive Oil and place the flat side of the cut Brussel Sprouts into the pan. Turn up to medium heat and let Brussel Sprouts cook until the flat side turns brown (~20 minutes). Flip them over, then roast briefly on the other side. Sprinkle a little salt and you’re done!
Pistachio-Breaded Tofu:
Food Group: Protein
This is the “meat” of your thanksgiving meal. Load up on tofu and enjoy! The biggest plus is that it won’t make you tired.
-Preheat oven to 350.
-Start with firm tofu. Slice into bread-sized pieces, and pat dry.
-Coat a skillet with olive oil, and grill each piece on medium heat for 5-10 minutes. Make sure you grill both sides.
-Grab a bag of de-shelled pistachio nuts, and use a coffee-grinder to grind down to a fine powder. Evenly into a shallow pan or plate.
-Once the tofu is off the grill, coat each side of the tofu with the powdered pistachio nuts.
-Place onto a shallow pan, drizzle more olive oil on top, and place into oven for ~20 minutes.
-Pull them out when they’ve browned
Cornbread
Food Group: Carbs
Any cornbread recipe will do. Depending on how much you like cornbread, you may want to try a recipe that actually incorporates whole corn. I really like this Honey Cornbread recipe. You can even throw in whole corn kernels
Pumpkin Pie
Food Group: Carbs and fat
You can make it, bake it, or just buy one from Whole Foods. Either way, you can’t go wrong. Here is an awesome recipe for Tofu Pumpkin Pie
