Last night we hosted our Thanksgiving dinner. And of course, I offered to cook. My mom and I planned out the menu on my drive in from Houston on Tuesday morning. The rest of Tuesday was spent planning, arguing and grocery shopping.
I wish I could say that I slaved and slaved over this meal. But, in reality I got an unexpected work project dumped on me Wednesday morning, so it came together in between work and a few phone calls.
Let's talk food.
The spread.
Herb pasta with peas and corn, brussel sprouts, seitan and mushroom gravy.
My mom made the herb pasta using a herb mix I purchased on a trip to Italy. It's an unbelievable mix that my mom "lost" in her pantry for the last year. When I found it, I felt like I found a hidden treasure.
The brussel sprouts were simply oven roasted with salt and pepper. Simple and thanksgiving-y. And the sliced seitan served as our "turkey" for the night.
The mushroom gravy was incredibly good too. It was really flavorful and really easy to make. In fact, I made it after the guests arrived at our house. (Here is the recipe.)
These dishes were outsourced to my two aunts. The mashed potatoes were vegan made with russet potatoes, green chile and cilantro. And the green bean casserole was a classic. Both of these platters were licked clean by the end of the night.
Autumn quinoa, mac & cheese and bread.
The autumn quinoa was a dish made with a variety of veggies and flavored with cinnamon and cumin and garnished with some roasted cashews. The mac and cheese was a vegan version made using a Whole Foods recipe. It was a little heavy for my taste but the kids liked it. (Also, random side note: This dish helped us figure out that my brother is allergic to cashews. You should see the poor guy's face right now. It's a mess.)
We also served some bread because you can't have too many carbs, right?
THE BEST PART...
It was my mom's birthday yesterday. She had these grand plans to keep mum about the whole thing but Facebook had different plans. The kids all knew it was her birthday so, we celebrated the Thanksgiving birthday the only way we knew how...
With a pumpkin pie, of course!
Here's a birthday shout out to you, mama! You are the best mom and the best friend a girl could ask for.
Happy Birthday!
Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!
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