Plant-Based Holiday Recipes to Try This Year

Your holiday feast can be both animal-friendly and delicious. See what plant-based recipes our US staff is cooking up this year, then try a few out for yourself!

Liz Q.’s Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:
- 3 lbs of sweet potatoes
- 1 stick vegan butter or plant-based margarine
- 2 lb bag of light brown sugar (1 package)

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
2. Peel and cut all sweet potatoes into small pieces. As you peel the potatoes, put them in cold water; otherwise, they will turn black.
3. Boil your cut sweet potatoes until they are halfway soft (approx. 30 mins).
4. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt your stick of vegan butter or margarine first, and then slowly add your bag of light brown sugar over the heat. It will begin to thicken. You may need to add water to thin it out gradually.
5. Keep stirring your sauce. Once it is ‘watery,’ pour your sauce over potatoes in a baking pan.
6. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. You can do so covered or uncovered.

Tova’s Triple’ Tata Hash with Avocado Lime Crema

Hash Ingredients:

• 1 large sweet potato (cubed small)
• 1 medium Yukon Gold potato (cubed small)
• 1 medium red potato, skin on (cubed small)
• 1 small Fuji or Granny Smith apple (cubed small)
• ½ cup tri-colored peppers (chopped)
• 1 small/medium shallot (chopped)
• ½ tsp fresh thyme
• ½ tsp. fresh basil
• ½ tsp. fresh cilantro
• 1 ½ tsp minced garlic
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• salt & pepper to taste
• 3 tbsp avocado oil or plant-based oil of choice

Avocado Lime Crema Ingredients:

• 1 ripe avocado
• ½ cup vegan sour cream
• 2 tbsp juice of a lime
• 1-2 tbsp water
• ½ tsp sea salt

Directions for Hash:

1. Chop all potatoes and fresh spices and place in a bowl.
2. Chop apple and set aside.
3. Season potatoes with remaining salt and pepper.
4. Heat your cast-iron skillet or heavy-bottomed pan with avocado oil.
5. Add potatoes and spices to the pot. Cook and turn frequently for 10 minutes.
6. At the 10 minute mark, add the apple and cook for another 10-12 minutes until fork tender.
7. It’s okay to see browning bits at the bottom of the pan (this is the best part for the hash).

Directions for Avocado Lime Crema:

1. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor except for the water.
2. Add water in increments to thin it out to the consistency you desire.
3. Add a dollop to your individual servings of cooked hash.
4. Enjoy!

Jeanne's Latkes

Ingredients:

• 6 potatoes
• ½ cup egg substitute
• ½ cup of matzah meal
• One small yellow onion
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of pepper
• Oil for frying

Directions:

1. Peel and grate potatoes, then place in a colander and set over a large bowl. Using your hands, squeeze out excess liquid from the potatoes. Pour out liquid and place potatoes in a separate bowl.
2. Grate/chop onion and add to potatoes along with egg substitute, matzah meal, salt, and pepper. Mix well.
3. Pour oil into frying pan, approx. 1 inch high. Heat oil until very hot. To test the heat, splash a little bit of water in the pan--if it sizzles, latkes are ready to make.
4. Take a heaping tablespoon of batter, gently place it in hot oil and slightly flatten in the pan.
5. Add a few more tablespoons into the pan without crowding the latkes (you need room to flip each one easily).
6. Fry until golden brown on edge then flip.
7. Cook other side until golden brown.
8. Serve and enjoy with apple sauce or plant-based sour cream.

Meganne's Greek Albanian Spanikopita Triangles

Ingredients:

• 1 package of Phyllo dough, thawed overnight in refrigerator if frozen
• 2 boxes of frozen spinach
• 2-3 bunches of scallions, chopped in small pieces
• Vegan egg replacer - equivalent of 4 eggs
• 1 block of firm tofu, pressed of its water and crumbled
• 1-2 sticks of vegan butter, melted
• Nutritional yeast and black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Remove Phyllo dough from fridge and let sit for a few hours until it reaches room temperature.
2. Sauté spinach, scallions, and salt in a pan until spinach is defrosted and cooked. Let cool.
3. In a large bowl, combine the 4 vegan eggs with the crumbled tofu and nutritional yeast until well-seasoned. Add in your cooked spinach and scallion blend to the bowl, and mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
4. Melt one stick of vegan butter. Lightly grease a large baking sheet.
5. Working quickly as the dough dries out fast, create your triangles: cut your phyllo dough in half lengthwise, ending up with 5-inch wide strips. Working with one phyllo dough strip at a time, with a pastry brush, add a layer of melted vegan butter on the phyllo strip. Put a dollop of your tofu-spinach filling on the end of one strip and fold it up until you get a wrapped triangle with all edges covered with phyllo. Generously brush the outside of the triangle with melted vegan butter. Repeat until you’ve used up all your phyllo and filling.
6. Bake triangles at 300 degrees for 45min-1hr. They are done when the top of each triangle is golden brown and crispy.
7. Remove from oven when done and let sit for 15 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

Nicole B.'s Mazamorra Morada

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds purple corn (maíz morado)
• 3 cloves
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 1 pineapple, peeled and chopped
• 1 granny smith apple, peeled and cored
• 9 cups water
• 1/2 cup of prunes
• 1/2 cup of dried apricots
• 1/2 cup of potato starch (chuño)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 lime
• Ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Break the dried corn into several pieces.
2. Place the corn in a saucepan with cloves, cinnamon sticks, pineapple peels, apple peels, and water. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes. Bring down to medium-high and cook partially covered for 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until reduced to 6 cups.
3. Strain, reserving liquid.
4. In the same saucepan, add the liquid, 2 cups chopped pineapple, chopped apple, prunes, apricots, and sugar. Bring to a boil, turn the heat to medium and cook for 20 minutes to soften the fruit.
5. In a bowl, dissolve the potato starch in a little purple corn liquid or water and add to the saucepan. Stir and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Turn off the heat and add the lime juice.
7. Serve and sprinkle cinnamon on top. Enjoy!