Countdown To Thanksgiving-- A Vegan Thanksgiving Recipe Series (Mashed Potatoes and Gravy)

Today is World Vegan Day! YAYYY! This also marks the beginning of World Vegan MONTH!  And to top it all off...  you have 20 days until Thanksgiving!  Are you beginning your meal plans yet? 

I challenged all of my friends on Facebook and my Twitter followers to try one vegan recipe at some point this month.  One of my friends posted this:  "This will be my husband's first thanksgiving as a vegan.... do you know any AMAZING recipes for the big day?"  I do! And I was going through all of my blog posts and realized that I hadn't posted some of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes!? So this post (and the next few..) are dedicated to you Jenny!

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because it has to do with food.  Food is one of my greatest passions (clearly or I wouldn't do this blog!) so to have a day dedicated to it... UH HELLO?! YES PLEASE!  And a vegan one is not that hard to do successfully.  I suggest making food that you and your family are used to... Just swap out the non-vegan products for vegan ones!

For this post, we shall start off with something easy..

Mashed potatoes with Vegan Gravy.  (6-8 servings)

4 to 6 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup unsweetened rice milk
1/4 cup Earth Balance Roasted Garlic & Herb spread
**extra garlic powder/chives/herbs to taste**

Put the cut potatoes into a large pot, cover them with cold water, and add a large pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Drain well. 

Meanwhile, in a small pot heat the milk and Earth Balance. While the potatoes are still warm, mash them (or beat them with electric mixer for smoother consistency) into a bowl. Stir in the warm milk/Earth Balance a bit at a time, until the potatoes are fluffy. Season with salt and pepper and gently fold in the chives, salt and pepper, garlic to taste. Serve immediately with gravy. 


Now, there are a multitude of ways to go with vegan gravy... Do you want brown "meaty" gravy, "chicken" gravy or mushroom gravy?  **There will be a recipe for mushroom gravy coming when I do green bean casserole!**

Gravy is probably one of the EASIEST things to make... EVER!

4 TBSP  Earth Balance- vegan margarine
2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
4 TBSP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Melt Earth Balance in pan over medium heat.
 

Add flour, stirring constantly for 2 minutes, you want the mixture to turn light brown but not burnt.
 

Add broth, salt and pepper and continue to stir for 3 minutes, sauce should be getting thicker.
 

Move to a gravy bowl and serve.

**you can add more flour/broth to make the consistency to your liking.