Variations on a Vegetarian Christmas Dinner

“What are you having for Christmas dinner” has been the question on the lips off all my non-vegetarian friends recently. It seems everyone wants to know how I'm getting away without eating turkey. Even tough the turkeyfree Christmas is perfectly easy, totally tasty and doesn't involve killing a turkey all I could do is stare with panic each time someone asked. I didn't know.

See, at the most fabulous foodie feast of the year I don't bloody well get to cook. Not to fault our chef, Stephen's brother, it's just that... I want to spend weeks/months planning ever aspect of a meal and wake up on the day to execute it perfectly. I'm the type of freak that finds that sort of thing fun. Instead I get to prepare a vegetarian alternative to turkey that gets warmed up and the chef puts on some potatoes not cooked in goose fat and slings me a couple of sprouts. Then Stephen makes us some instant gravy to top it all off.

This year I needed something easy to reheat after last year’s stuffed cabbage got a little too leathery after being left in the steamer too long. After toying with the idea of Wellingtons I went for this Carrot and Cashew Fan from the Vegetarian Society. It was a little bland but a perfect vehicle for all the trimmings.

Stephen found it slightly more easy. As a bigger mock meat fan than I am he picked up one of those Linda McCartney roasts and after a test drive thought it would be perfect for the big day. He enjoyed it with spuds, mini sausages and lashings of gravy.