Planning a vegetarian-friendly Thanksgiving for the office is simple—show your meat-free teammates your gratitude by keeping their needs in mind at the next holiday event. You might believe it isn’t a holiday feast without the turkey, but they probably think otherwise. And while many traditional Thanksgiving side dishes appear vegetarian on the surface, you need to verify that they don’t contain any hidden animal products (think sausage lurking in that stuffing, mashed potatoes covered in gravy, or crumbled bacon on a casserole). With that in mind, be sure to order several plant-based dishes so your vegetarian teammates aren’t left with just a pile of yams on their plates. Here are nine vegetarian Thanksgiving food ideas to get you started on your catering order.
1. Mushroom Spinach Risotto
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Mushroom Spinach Risotto
This creamy Italian rice dish is absolutely meatless. A fistful of chestnut mushrooms and baby spinach makes this Thanksgiving dish an excellent and filling vegetarian main course.
2. Hearty Stuffed Squash
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Stuffed Squash
As long as there’s no trace of bacon or sausage in the stuffing, sweet winter squashes stuffed with tasty ingredients like seasoned bread crumbs, dried fruits, and melted cheese are the ideal main dish for those forgoing the turkey. Order extra because your turkey-loving guests are bound to appreciate it as a side dish.
3. Pumpkin Alfredo with Mushrooms
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Pumpkin Alfredo with Mushrooms
This vegetarian pasta dish of buttery sweet potatoes is like a warm hug from a friend on a cold Thanksgiving day. There’s no holiday guest who wouldn’t want this for dinner.
4. Satisfying Green Bean Casserole
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Green Bean Casserole
Fresh green beans are smothered in a creamy mushroom sauce, topped with crispy onions, and baked until golden-topped. Just check to make sure it isn’t made with chicken broth or bacon.
5. Comforting Pear and Gorgonzola Cheese Tart
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Pear and Gorgonzola Cheese Tart
The fall flavors of this savory-sweet tart is inextricably linked to the holidays and will please both vegetarians and meat-eaters alike on Thanksgiving.
6. Creamy Macaroni and Cheese
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Macaroni and Cheese
Pasta coated in a savory cheese sauce, topped with breadcrumbs, and baked until warm and bubbly is an all-purpose comfort food that’s almost always vegetarian. This nostalgic dish is a favorite with practically everyone and likely to be the first to go, so be sure to order extra.
7. Warming Roasted Root Vegetables
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Roasted Root Vegetables
For a Thanksgiving side dish that is delicious, healthy, and vegetarian, you can’t go wrong with a slew of seasonal root vegetables like beets, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and carrots, sliced into cubes, and then roasted at high heat until their natural sugars condense and caramelize. The most typical seasonings for roasted veggies are salt, pepper, fresh and dried herbs, oil, or butter, but watch out for added bacon when you place the order.
8. Velvety Mashed Potatoes with Roasted Veggies
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Mashed Potatoes with Roasted Veggies
Creamy mashed potatoes are almost always vegetarian unless they contain chicken broth. But no one wants a meal of side dishes. So build an insanely delicious vegetarian main by adding filling roasted veggies. Some of your meat-loving guests are bound to insist that it’s not the holidays without gravy, so ask your caterer to serve it on the side.
9. Silky Pumpkin Pie
Thanksgiving Catering Idea: Pumpkin Pie
Spiced pumpkin custard baked in a sweet pie crust is practically the embodiment of fall. And happily for vegetarians, this classic Thanksgiving dessert and many other pies like apple and pecan are free of gelatin—just make sure none of the crusts contain lard.
We understand that delivering a delicious, piping hot Thanksgiving meal is not going to be easy, especially if you’re feeding both meat-lovers and vegetarians. If you’re planning a Thanksgiving meal for your entire workforce, an extra set of hands can rescue you from cooking with four burners all day. At ezCater we’ve got you covered with over 80,000 restaurants nationwide that offer business catering. Many of our partner restaurants can help you to create a Thanksgiving menu for any dietary food plan. Place the order and we’ll knock out the catering, so you can enjoy the table talk.
