I can’t leave out our planty friends, this Thanksgiving! These are some of my favorite plant-forward Thanksgiving recipes that together make up the most delicious plant-based Thanksgiving menu. Even better- this menu is designed for a smaller crowd (2-4), which many of us need this year, right? It’s easily doubled or tripled for more!Chef’s Note: This is not 100% plant-based/vegan, there is some cheese, butter and eggs- all of which are easily eliminated substituted if you would like to make this menu entirely plant-based.

Menu:

• Thanksgiving Cheese Board with Rosemary Pumpkin Hummus
• Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash
• Pear and Goat Cheese Salad with Rosemary Walnuts and Maple Vinaigrette
• Sweet Potato Pecan Loaf with Vanilla Cashew Cream

What you’ll need:

Fresh:

• 2 medium acorn squash
• 1 small onion or 1 large shallot
• 2 stalks celery
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 8-oz box mushrooms
• 1 bunch fresh sage
• 1 bunch fresh rosemary
• 1 head garlic
• 2 lemons
• 4 cups (1 16-oz clamshell) mixed greens
• 1 pear, sliced thin
• 1 small red onion, sliced thin
• Goat cheese
• 1/4 cup butter, ghee or coconut oil
• 2 eggs (or egg substitute)

Dry:

• Avocado or olive oil, as needed
• 1 cup wild rice blend
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup pecans
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 tbsp coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
• 1/3 cup dried cherries
• Maple syrup
• Balsamic vinaigrette
• Grainy dijon mustard
• 1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and dried
• Pumpkin puree
• Sweet potato puree (pumpkin works here, too)
• Tahini
• Blanched almond flour
• Arrowroot flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Ginger
• Cumin
• Sea salt
• Vanilla extract

Additionally (for cheese board):

• 2-3 x cheeses
• 1 x nuts
• 1 x dried fruit
• 1 x spread

Prep Plan

1 day ahead:

• Make Sweet Potato Pecan Loaf
• Make Cashew Cream
• Optional: roast squash ahead of time (stuff and reheat day of)
• Cook wild rice
• Prepare Rosemary Hummus

Day of:

• 1 hour before: Prepare squash (and/or reheat just before serving)
• Prepare stuffing while squash is cooking
• Prepare salad
• Prepare salad dressing
• Prepare cheese board
• Toss salad before serving
• Ice loaf before sitting down