12/01/2010

Vegetarian Alternatives for Your Home Dinner With Vegetarian Guests

Whether your entire family is vegetarian or you wish to accommodate vegetarian guests this holiday season you'll enjoy learning about the various meal ideas you can offer your guests. Unexpected guests are common place during holiday dinners, so it's important to always include a few vegetarian options in your dinner menu.

A few things to remember when preparing foods for your vegetarian guests are that there are various types of vegetarians whose diets have vastly different restrictions. For instance, lacto-ovo vegetarians do not eat meat, but they do eat dairy (milk and egg products). Vegans on the other hand do not consume any meat or animal by-products, which excludes all dairy (milk, butter, eggs). If you're not sure of your guests' preferences, provide vegan dishes to be on the safe side.

Be sure to offer at least one vegetarian option for each of the following food types: proteins, starches, vegetables, dessert.

There are processed vegetarian protein options available from various vendors like Tofurky, Boca and Morning Star to name a few. From any of these suppliers, you can create filling soy-based protein dishes from vegetarian burgers, ground (soy) meat, deli slices and more. These food options can be found at health food stores and major grocers.

Among non-process protein options, there are bean casseroles, falafel, hummus, all beans (pinto, chick peas, black beans, kidney beans etc), and guacamole. Be aware that beans take a long time to cook, so if you've recently moved, be sure that the movers put your pressure cooker in plain sight, so you're not scrambling at the last minute. Most vegetables provide some level of protein, but these are some foods with the most protein per serving.

A few ideas for your starch/carbohydrate dishes can be a potato and beats casserole, rice dishes, mashed potatoes, Asian-style stir-fry dishes with tofu or a number of imitation meats or vegetarian lasagna.

A vegetarian feast would not be complete without tasty vegetable dishes. Oven roasted corn that is battered in non-dairy butter and garlic powder, wrapped in foil is a great option. Feta cheese zucchini and squash, mixed spring or garden vegetables are just a few among the many options you can choose from.

For dessert you can serve non dairy ice cream, fruit smoothies, fruit cocktail, chocolate mousse, pineapple cake. Unless you order deserts from a vegetarian bakery, you can make almost any desert recipe by substituting the dairy products for non-dairy alternatives such as almond milk and silken tofu in place of eggs. There are vegetarian substitutes for almost all dairy based products.

For the assurance that only moving company insurance can provide, be sure to add vegetarian alternatives to your feast to accommodate everyone at the dinner table.

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