Check out the article in Time Magazine about the growing number of Americans who are enjoying a meat-free Thanksgiving this year.
If you’re among their ranks, you have a lot of great options this year.
As good as Gardein Holiday Roast was the other evening, I wanted to try a different plant-based roast before Thanksgiving. Thanks to my wonderful friends at Field Roast, Hazelnut Cranberry Roast En Croute gives you a plant-based roast that doesn’t try to mimic turkey at your holiday table. The sausage used in this roast tastes a lot to me like Field Roast’s delicious apple-sage sausages, enhanced with hazelnuts, ginger, cranberries, rosemary, and dried apples wrapped in flaky puff pastry.
The downside? This roast has to be fully thawed, so you have to remember to take it out of the freezer and stick it in the fridge 24 hours before you plan to cook it. (It looks pretty unassuming in all its pale, doughy, thawed glory before I removed the plastic wrapper.)
The upside? There’s something about food wrapped in flaky puff pastry that is immensely appealing and instantly festive – plus this roast is delicious . . . even the next day!
I think this roast is a decided improvement on Field Roast’s Forager’s Roast which I reviewed a few years ago. I believe that Forager’s Roast got a makeover and is now called Celebration Roast, which I haven’t tried yet. My recollection of Forager’s Roast it that it had an appealing mixture of flavors (seitan, mushrooms, butternut squash, and wild rice), but felt more like a vegan stuffing, instead of an actual proper roast.
Make sure you let the Hazel Cranberry Roast cool for at least 15 minutes before you slice it – otherwise that flaky puff pastry will go everywhere!
The first night, I served it with steamed asparagus and baked Carnival Squash, filled with my Citrusy Cranberry Sauce.
The second evening, I switched up the sides and served it with baked sweet potatoes, and a corn pudding embellished with red and orange bell peppers, scallions, and chives.
Either way, make sure you serve it with plenty of my favorite Citrusy Cranberry Sauce.
Here’s to a Happy Meat-Free Thanksgiving!
- Zest and juice from 1 navel orange
- Water
- 1 cup organic sugar
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 12-ounce bag cranberries (washed and picked through)
- 1 clementine or mandarin, peeled, seeded, and chopped fine
- 2 tablespoons Cointreau (or Triple Sec)
- Zest the orange, cut it in half, and squeeze the juice into a measuring cup. You should have ⅓ to ½ cup of juice, depending on how large your orange was. Add enough water to the orange juice to make ¾ cup of liquid.
- Put the orange juice, water, zest, and sugar into a saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil.
- Make sure the sugar is dissolved, and stir in the cranberries and the chopped clementine or mandarin. Return the mixture to a boil.
- Once it boils again, turn down the heat and let it simmer for about 10 minutes until about half the berries have popped open and the mixture is thickened and saucy. If the mixture doesn't seem thickened and saucy enough for you, let it cook about 3-5 minutes more.
- Remove from heat, and stir in the Cointreau or Triple Sec. Let it cool and transfer to a bowl.
- You can make this up to a week ahead of Thanksgiving, but I usually do about 2-3 days before. Just refrigerate in a covered container, and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Note - A lot of recipes will say to cook the cranberries for 5 minutes. But when I've followed that advice, the cranberries don't seem cooked enough for my hubby's Southern palate. So, I cook them quite a bit longer, and he and his wonderful family are always pleased with the results!
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