CHICO — Entering a month of holiday baking and cooking, sometimes I’m left thinking only of the treats my mother would fix.
Soups would be churning in the blender and bubbling on the stove. Sugar cookies or pie would be our projects for the day when it turned cold and dark in the Arizona desert. At that age, simplicity is key and you memorize every step in the process until it is ritual — the kneading of dough, the whipping of sugar into batter and the giggles while mixing food colouring into frosting.
There seems no question each year that these rituals will return to signal the joy of wintertime spent together and the start of a new year — until you reluctantly grow up.
Recreating that memory from Mom’s beloved “The New Basics Cookbook” alone in my own kitchen feels daunting when you thumb through recipe after recipe calling for heavy cream, egg whites or even honey. As a plant-based adult, you almost feel it could be sacrilegious to start making adjustments to these classics, when she isn’t there to correct or gape aghast at what you’ve done to her pie crust.
But as I’ve written more than once before, eggs and milk and their ilk aren’t necessary for recreating your favourites or persuading your family. In fact, I’ve started to try every year to rethink what I can from childhood to find more ways to use the magic of plants and make something even better than my memory.
Perhaps my mother would be surprised, but she might also appreciate the improvisation with more natural ingredients in mind.
For now, I am remaking the “New Basics” classics like pie crust and sugar cookies using the same ingredients, and vegan butter and milk when necessary.
As for the main courses, take a look at your mom’s or grandmother’s recipes with a fresh eye for where plants can be substituted with no pain.
Soups that can be made vegan:
- Sweet potato bisque
- Carrot soup
- Split pea soup
- Spicy chipotle pumpkin bisque
- Three bean minestrone
- Tomato bisque (with vegan cheese)
Let’s not forget that protein sources are much easier to find these days to make suitable for the holidays:
- Holiday roasts (look for the Gardein or Trader Joe’s versions)
- Tempeh, cooked with maple syrup and liquid aminos
- Glazed grilled tofu (cook it longer for that “braised” look and pour on the teriyaki glaze)
Vegan pumpkin pie
Buckle up, because I am going to drop one word to remind why pumpkin pie is obviously possible to make vegan: Coconut. Specifically, coconut cream, to replace eggs — because why bother with an egg or cow’s milk in your pumpkin pie?
Here’s a pie you’ll want to make every week through New Year’s Eve.
Pie crust ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups flour of your choice
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 5-6 tablespoons vegan butter
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of baking powder
- Up to 1/4 cup cold water
- Optional: 1 tsp each of cinnamon and cloves
Directions: Cut softened butter gradually into flour with a fork until it distributes and turns into crumbly texture.
Slowly start adding cold water by the tablespoon and begin to knead as the mixture comes together into crumbly dough. Add sprinkles of flour if it gets too wet.
Wrap in plastic and chill for at least half an hour in the refrigerator.
Filling instructions:
- 1 can pumpkin puree
- 1/2 can coconut milk (the kind with full fat cream)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch
- 1-2 tablespoons cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tablespoon cloves
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Directions: Mix all filling ingredients together in a large bowl.
Roll out chilled pie crust on a floured surface into thin crust. Press into an oiled 9” pie pan and crease edges along the top.
Pour in the filling.
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit or until crust is browning and filling is solid. Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator for at least four hours.
Serve with vegan whipped cream or brown sugar and nuts of choice.
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