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I'm vegan, so no turkey for me! It's funny, I used to work in a fancy-schmancy cooking store. People would rush in and ask me what the best way was to cook a turkey. I told them I'd have to refer them to someone else since I was vegan. They'd stand there and look at me agape, finally blurting out "Oh no! what do you eat at Thanksgiving?" I'd reply, "Everything else." They'd think on this, and it would suddenly dawn on them that much of their Thanksgiving meal was vegetarian anyway.

As for me, my husband and I are trying the tofurkey meal (fake roast, dumplings, stuffing & gravy) for the first time, though we hear the Celebration roast is better. Most years, we just go for a million sides—roasted root vegetables, mashed potatoes, stuffing, vegetarian gravy, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, wild rice. I also make a mean vegan pumpkin cheesecake with tofutti cream "cheese".

Though there was just a bunch of vegan recipes posted on NPR, and man does that mushroom pie look good! (as an entree).

I make a vegan lentil and nut roast as a main, with a spicy garlic-ginger-cranberry chutney, and piles of sides. It holds up nicely as a sandwich loaf for leftovers, too.

mniche, that's so funny. It's like their world falls down at the thought of Thanksgiving with no turkey. A few people in my extended family don't do poultry....but they;re not vegan so they can eat the ham. But you;re correct, meat is not the focus is most of the other dishes (you can make vegan stuffing, or not put bacon in your beans).

I'm not sure how I feel about the 'fake turkey'. Unless you;re abstaining from meat for health purposes, isn't that going against what you belive?

I'm a vegetarian, have been for the past 15 or so years, so I don't even remember what Thanksgiving with turkey is like. I've always loved all the sides and been totally satisfied with them, especially stuffing...

Having said that though, we've been cooking a Tofurkey for at least the past 6 or so years, and I really like it - you should definitely try it! Another good option is a turkey loaf from Quorn - I did a taste test a couple of years ago Tofurkey and Quorn are actually pretty different, I think it depends on your texture and taste preference.

I really like all the fake meats out there (again, I don't even remember what real meat tastes like), so going with Tofurkey doesn't bother me at all. Actually my meat eating boyfriend also likes it and we just had one a couple of weeks ago. I recommend roasted it with some chopped up veggies like carrots and onions. Good luck!

Fun fact: my dad was college roommates with the Tofurkey founder!

I'm vegetarian with a gluten and corn intolerance. I was never a big Thanksgiving fan (probably because seeing 2 large dead animals - ham and turkey - on the table made me sick), so I quit going home for that holiday years ago. I thought it would be lonely at first, but I like having the day to myself. I sleep in, cuddle with my animals, watch some sort of TV marathon, and make some food if I feel so inclined. For me, it just doesn't make sense to go all the way home for a holiday that I don't care about anyway when I'm going to be there again in a month.

I enjoy mashed potatoes and cranberry salad and have been trying different vegan mashed potato recipes lately. I make vegan versions of Lebanese green beans and rice too. These are all just foods that I enjoy when it is cold though.

I do like pumpkin pie so I either buy a gluten-free frozen one from Whole Foods or make one myself.

Most "fake meat" contains gluten so I don't bother with it and I never liked meat so I don't feel the need to replace it in meals. No criticism of those who use it though!

"I'm not sure how I feel about the 'fake turkey'. Unless you;re abstaining from meat for health purposes, isn't that going against what you belive?"

Not at all. What I believe is that sentient beings should not be abused and eaten unless it comes down to a survival situation. Since fake "meats" don't contain any part of an animal, it's fine by me. The thing about most "fake meats" is that you can't eat them expecting them to taste like meat. The ones that fail horribly are the ones that try to do this. So the best tasting fake meats are the ones that sort of try to recreate the experience (burger, texture, etc...) without getting too wrapped up in trying to taste like meat.

That said, wheat gluten tastes exactly like chicken. To me anyway, I haven't eaten meat in a long time and have sort of forgotten what it tastes like too. It kind of creeps me out in a way. Tofurkey is soy based, the Celebration Roast is wheat gluten-based.

Ok, I do understand veggie burgurs (Im a meat eater but they are a staple in my freezer) sausages, and the like. I think what I am confused about are the products that try to fully imitate the LOOK of meat products...the one specific thing I was thinking of was a peice of tofu? chicken that had a little wing molded onto it. That just seems weird to me.

Oh, I've never seen those. The two roasts I'm referring to look more like a roulade. I would garner that the ones actually shaped like an animal are to help during the transition from real meat to fake meat. Or to make you omnivourous family feel more at ease with a fake roast at the table.

Hey, I have that dinner set featured in the pic!

No turkey for me. If you need any inspiration to go vego, check out this video (warning: it is somewhat disturbing but I think we need to be aware of this stuff):

http://www.chooseveg.com/meet-your-meat.asp

One other thing, I totally agree with not trying to make non-meat products imitate meat. It's just saying that you really want to be eating meat and accept something else as a second rate substitute. There are so many totally awesome vegetarian meals out there that simply don't need meat. We have to embrace them to create a true vegetable-based food culture that is accepted in its own right.

although I am a meat eater, I've never really eaten much turkey on thanksgiving and usually give it to whoever is sitting next to me and doesn't want to get up hehe... I'm more about all the sides and rolls :)

To heck with Tofurky, seitan Wellingtons are where it's at:

http://www.nativefoods.com/extras/events/wellingtons.shtml

The taste is better, the texture is better, and everyone loves 'em.