Advice for upcoming Holiday week: best of best maybe?

[wycoff]

This will be my first time attending Thanksgiving and staying McDougall. I can see plenty of recipes for things, but it is hard to say what other people's recipe experiences have been, which things they like the most, etc.

To date I've lost 82 lbs on McDougall, and right now I am in the groove. It has gone really well so far, especially considering how big a change it was go from omnivore to Vegan/McDougall overnight. Feedback from these forums has been extremely helpful.

My first priority is to stay McDougall. Second is to find folks favorite analogs for the following Holiday foods:
[*] Turkey substitute (I heard of tofurky, but haven't tried it, don't know best way to prepare if I find it).
[*] Cherry pie (want low to zero sugar if possible, and a crust that isn't loaded with fat; hopefully not overly sour).
[*] Some kind of gravy for mashed potatoes.

Last week I gave a shot at a vegan vegetable pie. It tasted great, but it was not McDougall: too high in fat, though my wife and I ate the pie and still lost weight for the week, never went over our daily calorie limits.

My goal is to prepare foods ahead of time and take them to the big family function so my wife and I can eat and enjoy what we are eating. I'm open to just about any recipe that is tried and true.

Thanks!

[Plumerias]

I'm on my way out, so this will be brief. Use the search function and find previous years' threads on holiday meals, there are plenty. In some of them you will doubtless find links to holiday meal plans by Mary McDougall, those recipes are also on this site.

A thought...... instead of trying to replace/create compliant substitutes for popular holiday dishes, why not take something unique, something(s) that showcase the wondrous bounty of this way of eating?

Okay, gotta run.

[Ejeff]

There are a lot of gravy recipes I have enjoyed this one:
https://youtu.be/8w26-I9GYIE

[moonlight]

When thinking about taking food to a gathering for the Thanksgiving meal I have trouble with what to take. I mean, I could come up with one dish but I don't want to take 2 or 3 dishes, or repeat the whole meal MWL style or take a covered plate with a little variety but only for one person. That would just be weird. Also, I don't want to eat just one dish either... I'll be at my sister's house from about 10:30 until 3:00.... Maybe I can sneak out to the car and eat?!? Any suggestions? I'm leaning toward taking a casserole. It would at least have a little variety in one dish.

[michaelswarm]

My first priority is to stay McDougall. Second is to find folks favorite analogs for the following Holiday foods:
[*] Turkey substitute (I heard of tofurky, but haven't tried it, don't know best way to prepare if I find it).
[*] Cherry pie (want low to zero sugar if possible, and a crust that isn't loaded with fat; hopefully not overly sour).
[*] Some kind of gravy for mashed potatoes.

Make things you already know and like. Not best time to try new things. At very least prepare ahead of time.

Main Dish (turkey substitute): Lentil Loaf or Shepherds Pie .Don’t substitute. Just make own simple starch main dish.
Sheperds Pie from Plant Based News
https://www.plantbasednews.org/recipes/lentil-shepherd-pie
I omitted the mushrooms, doubled the lentils and omitted the olive oil. Next time I would make mashed potatoe topping with veggie stock instead of nut milk and possibly without mustard. Essentially a nice vegetable stew with mashed potatoes on top. Maybe layer filling over low fat pie crust below?

Pie Crust Low Fat Dough (wheat-oat)
Makes 2 cups dough. Don’t remember where I found this one.
- 3/4 cup oats
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/4-1/2 cup dried plums (fat replacement)
- 2-3 Tbsp cold water

Blend oats into oat flour. Mix oat flour with whole wheat flour. In blender blend dried plums and water into thick paste. Mix together flour mixture and plum paste. Press into pie pan.

Brown Gravy
Mostly vegetable broth, corn starch thickener, with nutritional yeast and soy sauce for flavor, and spices. Adapted from gravy recipes from Brand New Vegan and Nora Cooks.

WET
- 2 cups Vegetable stock
THICKENER
- 3-4 Tbsp corn starch or flour
- 1/4 cup vegetable stock
FLAVOR
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1-2 tsp soy sauce-
SPICES
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp yellow mustard

In sauce pan heat vegetable stock until boiling. In cup mix resrved vegetable stock and corn starch. Mix thickener into vegetable stock and stir until well mixed and gravy begins to thicken. Add nutritional yeast, soy sauce and spices.

[Ltldogg]

My advice is to not change a thing else you risk falling into the pleasure trap. Make all your favorite on-plan foods in advance, take with, enjoy. It's that simple. Don't give into peer pressure and don't try anything new. It feels like you are setting yourself up for failure and giving yourself an excuse and reason to do so. Don't...your health depends on it!

[Mom+Me]

wycoff, congratulations on your impressive weight loss and continuing to be in the groove--that's great!! I'm short on time now, too, so this will be brief:

--I wouldn't recommended Tofurky. If I'm not mistaken, the 3rd or 4th ingredient is oil. Yes, we used to have it in the past, but your knowing it has oil--and in such a high quantity--could end up bothering you and mess up your groove. Also, I was able to sample some the other day and couldn't believe how salty it was; it was almost offensive after being used to lower salted foods. I saw a recipe the other day + I'm thinking of trying to make my own. I have to look for it + I will share it.

--Except for the tofu, which really isn't too processed anyway (some will disagree), this loaf is very WFPB: https://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2010/11/t ... -loaf.html It's very good! Just don't expect it to look or taste like a turkey or a Tofurky. By the way, Trader Joe's has their own "turkey", but I put it down after seeing oil in the ingredients.

--I skimmed all the posts, so I may not have seen this correctly. At this point I wouldn't worry (sounds heartless but there's truth to it) about providing healthier substitutes for others since you're not hosting the dinner. The most important thing is that you take care of yourself and stay in your groove. Most people, though surprised with the new less of you, do not want to give up their favorite "treats", especially for Thanksgiving. Don't be surprised if not everyone will be happy for you and if they even try to underhandedly sabotage you ("But it's your favorite!", "I made it just for you." "One bite won't hurt." "Come on, it's Thanksgiving--join in the fun!"). I've seen it where close siblings and friends feel very threatened when they realize that if you continue in your weight loss, you will soon not be the biggest one around and they will be--after decades of being big, but the smaller one.

I'm sorry, this post has gotten off track, but I agree with Ltldogg. Rather eat your everyday foods than to slide down the slippery slope. Believe me, I am talking from experience. I, too, have had great successes for months on end only to slip and fall...even though beforehand I felt rock-solid and thought how could it possibly happen?!?! It can, and it does. I'm not saying that this wil happen to you, because there have been plenty of times I didn't slip and fall, but I'd rather you error on the side of caution.

Really have to get going, but I'll look for that recipe....

[Lyndzie]

I wrote this two days ago and forgot to hit submit!

This is what I did last year: viewtopic.php?f=52&t=57495&p=592932&hilit=Thanksgiving#p592932

Essentially, I make one dish per day on Mon, Tues and Wed with leftovers, then bring a plate to reheat. At my family’s Thanksgiving they even ruin salad with dressing and bacon bits, so nothing is safe. This year I might do the Vegan 8’s BBQ lentil loaf and Thug Kitchen’s Gratin Potatoes. I’m making the loaf for another Thanksgiving, so I’ll jus make extra to pop in the freezer and thaw the day before, and the make the potatoes the day of (they are best fresh).

If you want cherry pie, find a compliant crust, fill with your favorite pie fillings and make a crumb topping.

[Mom+Me]

I'm sorry to be getting back so late, but better late than never, right? Part of the reason for the delay is because I haven't been able to re-find that recipe I was referring to in my prior post. This one is very close to it, though: "Tofu and Seitan' Turkey'" http://whiskflipstir.com/2010/09/23/tofu-seitan-turkey/

I plan to make this for Thanksgiving. But, I will not use the Better Than Bouillon No Chicken because it contains oil. Instead I will use what I often use for flavoring, Seitenbacher Vegetarian Vegetable Broth
https://www.amazon.com/Seitenbacher-Veg ... 939&sr=8-3 You can also purchase one can for $7.50, but this is a better deal. Also, I will use water in place of the oil and hope that it works! I considered using toasted sesame oil because that would give it a nutty taste (and on rare occasion you find some of Mary's or other McDougall contributors who have recipes that use minimal amounts, if desired), I took it off the shelf and looked at it but I just could not muster up the gumption to buy it and put it back. The water will have to do!

The recipe also calls for chickpea flour. If you don't have it, read down in the comments and you'll find good tips. I believe it's commentator #8 that used cooked chickpeas.

I'll report back after Thanksgiving as to how it turned out and how well it was received. ...hopefully smiling faces and full bellies.

[Mom+Me]

Okay, so I finally read everyone's post on this thread rather than having skimmed it days ago when I first posted.

wycoff--I can understand why you want to make items that are tried + true + recommended. Unfortunately I don't use a lot of recipes but whip things up. It's a lot easier to make a compliant cherry crisp than pie, so you may want to do that. Again, I've just thrown things together, but there are crisp recipes out there that are completely compliant. If they're for apple or peach, etc., you can just substitute cherries.

I watched your vegan vegetable pie video. You really have the skills! The completed pie, especially when you cut into it, looked scrumptious! I have to admit that I internally cringed when I saw the shortening. But I don't say that to condemn you at all!! Everyone is at a different place and Lord knows I have eaten my fair share of non-compliant foods even after committing to following this WOE. The main thing is that you keep going and don't let it trip you up. I have had problems with that.

As mentioned, a shepherds pie is a great idea to bring for you and your wife, or if your host doesn't mind, you could bring a whole casserole dish of it.

For what it's worth, last year I made the Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy mentioned above. It was okay, but everyone's taste is different. In a pinch you can buy no-oil vegan gravy packets that actually taste pretty good. Over the years we've had different varieties and all were good--some even better than others. I've also made Mary McDougall's and I remember it tasting good but not thickening enough; it took a lot longer to thicken than was stated. Maybe I did something wrong.

Whatever you do, I wish you and your wife the best. Enjoy and remember it's only one meal. Even if you do have something that isn't 100%, just get back on-plan and let it roll off your back. It's nice that you have the support of your wife; that is such a blessing!

Just remembered another thing: You mentioned that you still lost weight and didn't go over your calorie limit, despite having the vegetable pie. That is great! But just keep in mind that it's more important to feel satisfied from enough whole starches than to worry about calories or pounds lost.

moonlight--Completely understand your thoughts and feelings! If I were you I'd arrive at your sister's house comfortably full. If your sister doesn't mind, I'd bring a compliant shepherds pie--a whole casserole--enough for you and to share! Do you have any plans for dessert? If she doesn't mind, maybe you could bring something you can eat, too. What would you like? Maybe someone can recommend a recipe.

[deweyswakms]

I am lucky to be eating with a few other vegans, so we will all bring a dish. I made this to test it, and it is FABULOUS! Definitely let it sit overnight in the fridge so the flavors develop. It's a bit messy when cutting the orange slices away from their membranes, and I ate those anyway.

https://www.forksoverknives.com/recipes ... #gs.iqhz5r

Enjoy, Marsha

[Lyndzie]

I am lucky to be eating with a few other vegans, so we will all bring a dish. I made this to test it, and it is FABULOUS! Definitely let it sit overnight in the fridge so the flavors develop. It's a bit messy when cutting the orange slices away from their membranes, and I ate those anyway.

https://www.forksoverknives.com/recipes ... #gs.iqhz5r

Enjoy, Marsha

That looks so easy! I might bring this as well. Thanks for sharing!