This year I made Buffalo style veggies and served them to the crew at Manhattan Theatre Club's Friedman theatre, where I met Alicia two years ago when she treated us all with a vegan spread from Candle 59.  Anyway, they all raved about how delicious it was then, and now.  The point is, sometimes you can just let the food do the talking.  Here is my recipie:

Buffalo Veggies:

1-3 packages of baby portabella mushrooms (quartered with stumps still attached)

1-2 peppers (I used 1/2 green, 1/2 red and 1/2 yellow peppers for color)

1 Onion

3 cloves of garlic

<<Soak ingredients overnight in 1-2 cups of Frank's Red Hot Sauce and 1-2 cups of white viniger.  (Fill with water to submerge) Keep refrigerated>>

Strain ingredients and sautee them with 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil until the juices evaporate.  

Enjoy!  

Its been over 17 years since my I decided to raise our children vegan. I'm very, very thankful we did! It's very sad for all those animals. 

http://www.veganrawfood.net

I woke-up today to this post and read it in bed as I thought about how grateful I am to have decided to live a cruelty-free life.  Thank you for this post...what a wonderful way to wake-up on Thanksgiving!

Gretchen

www.veggiegrettie.com 

Our house came with an old chicken house and coup.  So my husband would ocassionally bring home a lone duck and turkey, 3 goslings, pheasants and they would all hang out together in this large bird area and we would let them out into the garden.  The turkey was my little buddy.  He would follow me around and sit next to me and purr when I would pet him.  He was so sweet I just loved him.  People who met him thought he was so unusual, but I think if we treat an animal with love, they will return their trust and love you back.  That is the nature of animals. 

This week a couple people from our Vegetarian group went to our local college and walked around the campus a few times and handed out brochures for compassion for animals.  It allowed us to talk to some of the students in a non threatening way.  The best news, a new student joined us  and is in wants to start a vegan club on campus since there isn't one.  We said we would be happy to help them start one up.  We met this week and have a small group of 4 vegan's ready and willing to get one up and started.  I am so thrilled to have taken the time to canvass the college and to have met some students that are eager to form their own vegan group.  I feel a great sense of hope and inspiration from these students.

May you reflect on today's gifts that you have and for all the things that you can be thankful for. 

i love Thanksgiving but more for the sake of getting together and truly spending time to family and friends

i just want to let you know this yr was my first yr making vegan pies and bringing them to a holiday dinner, im in charge and ive been makin easier desserts past few years like last year brownies carrot cake and easier vegan foods n this yr i was worried but not bc i loved wat i made but i no i have diff taste buds now and like things more simpler, so i was nervous but i made your pumpkin pie, pecan pie and peanut butter pie and also a apple pie and pumpkin cinnamon sugar donuts, and not one person didnt love it! and said they cant wait til nxt holiday they want all the same things plus anything else i make! i was soo excited and even more when i said it was sweetened with maple syrup (except pb pie lol) and made with tofu and they were so surprised and didnt care bc the word tofu alone scares them and i want to thank you so much for givin me such great recipes!!

Today was my two year anniversary of becoming a vegetarian. So now, Thanksgiving reminds me not only of what to be thankful for, but also to be compassionate to other creatures in the world.

For our thanksgiving feast, my husband and I cooked some spicy pumkpin soup, marinated tempeh and mushrooms with lentils, rice, and baked apples.

http://jenzie.com/2011/11/our-thanksgiving-feast/

I made the most delicious seitan pot pie for Thanksgiving, plus vegan apple pie, brussle sprouts and the most amazing wild rice, mushroom and chestnut stuffing. I give thanks that I live in a country with the freedom to eat the way I want and voice my opinions loudly.

When my boyfriend asked me if I wanted the wishbone (from HIS turkey), I told him, "no, but I would have wished that the turkey was alive." I'm working on him, but at least the rest of the meal was vegan.

This was a great post- thanks for the continued inspiration and support! My family was very accomidating for my first vegan Thanksgiving with them and I'm glad to have had such a wonderful cruelty-free turkey day!

Thanks for the quotes-very inspirational! It also reminds us vegans that we're not alone. This year I did my first completely vegan Thanksgiving (last year I was still vegetarian at this time) with my family of omnivores and it was a success. I brought 2 dishes to share at dinner and 1 appetizer. As it turns out, my mom also brought an awesome fruit bowl and my aunt made sweet potatoes (w/ no dairy or anything). I ate more than enough food and some of my family members tried some of the vegan food I brought as well. It wasn't awkward at all and I feel great that I had a delicious holiday meal with no cruelty involved.

I wouldn't include Ginnifer Goodwin in the list of pro turkey celebrities, since she now spends her time trying to convince her vegan family to add cheese to their meals and sharing her recipe for bacon meatloaf.  She's not really a friend to turkeys, cows, chickens, pigs or fish any longer :(

For the first time in my life, I didn't eat turkey. It was served at my sister's, but I ate all plant-based foods that were offered.  I've made two attempts at a plant-based lifestyle, but failed utterly. I cannot do it without my God's help.  I believe little by little, with the strength of my Higher Power, I will get there.  It is m desire. 

My dogs are here, waiting for their daily walk.  So, here we go. 

~Roz G.

I like to call it "Save-A-Turkey" Day...

This year it was just a small gathering with me, my mom & her parents, and my boyfriend... and I was the only vegan there. My grandparents are still skeptic, but my mother and boyfriend know how yummy vegan stuff can be (especially my veg "macncheese") so we decided to have my grandmother make her basics and I would handle the rest (her-turkey & her dressing, me-my macncheese, collards, pumpkin pie, and the Tofurkey Veg Feast, & cranberry sauce that I made myself). Well, my grandmother's dressing just didn't come out right, and the Tofurkey roast was such a hit they didn't even bring out the sad turkey flesh.... it was amazing! I didn't really have as much time as I would have liked to devote to preparing foods since I just started a new job and it was occupying a lot of my time, next year my may even try to make my own "turkey", all vegan style of course! Hope all of you had as great of a day!!

Roslyn,  I encourage you to keep trying and set your mind set to eat plant based foods if this is your true desire.  I promise it gets easier and easier as you turn away from the animal products.  I think it takes practice and a bit of study - reading sites and blogs such as this one to help keep you motivated until it just becomes second nature.  Then the next steps are to eliminate the animal products that are in your fridge and cupboards.  Look for recipes on blogs that appeal to you, check out some vegan cookbooks and you will get to where you would like to be. 

My best to you, know you can do it.