Don’t Overcomplicate: Tips and Dishes for Serving Vegans at the Holidays

With more and more people choosing to be vegan or vegetarian, it’s fairly likely that at a big gathering during the holidays you’ll be serving one or two people that follow this lifestyle. But, if you’re not vegan yourself, it can be difficult to know what to prepare and how.

“Don’t overcomplicate the situation,” says Seizan Dreux Ellis, executive chef of the vegan Cafe Gratitude in Southern California. “So many people tend to think that they have to do something that’s unusual or complicated or super different than what they’re doing.”

Chef Dreux Ellis also points out that some classic Thanksgiving dishes may be closer to being vegan already than you might think. “Many of the foods that we serve around the holidays are, if not vegetarian or vegan by nature, with small tweaks you can make them vegan or vegetarian,” he says. “That could be something as simple as replacing butter with a high-quality vegan butter, or using vegetable broth and gravy as opposed to chicken broth.”

With these types of substitutions, however, he does caution that you may need to pay a little bit more attention to flavoring and seasoning.

“You might want to add a few more herbs than you normally do, or spices, or make sure you’re using a better quality olive oil because meat or animal products have super high flavor profiles,” he says. “If you’re looking at incorporating tofu or tempeh or those kinds of vegetable proteins, then you might want to consider marinating first before using them in your recipe.”

There is the question of serving. Do you tell people that you’ve altered each dish? Of course, you can let your vegan and vegetarian guests know which ones you’ve catered to their needs, but beyond that, there’s no need to broadcast information that might turn other guests away from a perfectly good dish.

“If you stay with things that are familiar to people, they probably won’t notice necessarily that they’re vegan or vegetarian,” Dreux Ellis says.

Turns out when it comes to serving vegan food, the mantra of what they don’t know won’t hurt them remains true. Now it’s time to get out there with some recipes. To get you started, check out these dishes from Chef Dreux Ellis’s new cookbook, Love is Served.

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1 of 3Courtesy of Cafe Gratitude

Roasted Maple-Miso Brussels Sprouts

Ah Brussels sprouts, the classic enemy of children and even some adults, but not in this dish. The maple-miso glaze brings an incredible sweetness, and when the Brussels sprouts are roasted in it, it creates a delicious combination of flavors that is almost certain to convert the biggest of sprouts skeptics.

2 of 3Courtesy of Cafe Gratitude

Rosemary Butternut Squash and Radicchio Dip

What is a gathering without a few good dips? This one is perfect for Thanksgiving dinner. It keeps the creaminess of a good dip and combines it with the freshness of herbs, the earthy flavor of the squash, and the bitter bite of the radicchio.

3 of 3Courtesy of Cafe Gratitude

Shaved Kale, Persimmon, and Pomegranate Salad with Fig Balsamic Dressing

There are few dishes more vegetarian than a good salad, and this is certainly a good salad. The base of kale, fennel, and radicchio can have a bit of a bite, but when combined with the maple walnuts and fig balsamic dressing, the salad turns into a beautiful mixture of sweetness and bitter freshness, with a little bit of creaminess from the cashew mozzarella.

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