Everyone knows the very best a part of any vacation meal is the aspect dishes. Positive, the entrée is scrumptious, and all of us need seconds. The soup is heat and comforting, and the salad is mild and flavorful. However the array of all of the totally different aspect dishes is what excites us. There are potato dishes, rice dishes, vegetable dishes, and a lot extra. This Christmas, strive altering issues up a bit. You may make all the normal dishes however add one or two new aspect dishes and watch how merry everybody’s Christmas will get.
1. Tacky Polenta
Mashed potatoes may be the normal aspect dish but it surely’s all the time enjoyable to shake issues up a bit. This polenta is wealthy, creamy, and tacky. It cooks up super-quick and everybody will adore it. Right here’s the way to make my Tacky Polenta: In a big saucepan, carry 6 cups of water to a boil over excessive warmth. Add ½ tsp. kosher salt to the boiling water. Add 2 cups polenta regularly whereas whisking. Decrease the warmth and cook dinner the polenta till it’s thickened and easy. Proceed to combine for quarter-hour. When the polenta is at a consistency to your liking, flip off the warmth. Soften in 3 Tbs. vegan butter and 1 ½ cups of vegan cheese of your alternative. Combine till the cheese is melted and mixed. Style for seasoning changes.
I significantly prefer to serve my Braised Seitan Ribs in Spicy Chile Sauce over this polenta. One other approach to take pleasure in polenta is by making these Zucchini Polenta Fries.
2. Fried Smashed Potatoes with Lemon French dressing
Right here is one other spin on the normal mashed potatoes aspect dish. These fried smashed potatoes are a traditional French recipe. Crimson potatoes are smashed and fried till crispy after which topped with a tangy French dressing. This dish will wow everybody. To make my Fried Smashed Potatoes with Lemon French dressing: Put 2 lbs. child purple potatoes in a pot, cowl them with chilly water and produce the water to a boil over medium-high warmth. Prepare dinner till the potatoes are fork-tender, about 20 minutes or so. Drain the potatoes right into a colander and dry them. Utilizing a potato masher, a giant spoon, or your hand, gently press down on every potato till every is evenly smashed and flattened. In a big skillet, warmth 3-4 Tbs. vegetable oil over medium-high warmth. Add 4 minced cloves of garlic and cook dinner for 1-2 minutes. Don’t let the garlic burn. When the garlic is simply golden and you may odor it, take away it from the oil. Add the smashed potatoes to the skillet and let cook dinner till the bottoms are browned and crisp, about 5-7 minutes. Rigorously flip every potato to allow them to crisp on the opposite aspect, for about one other 5-7 minutes.
Whereas the potatoes are cooking, put together the dressing. In a small bowl, mix 3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil, the zest and juice of 1 lemon, 2 Tbs. chopped recent parsley, 1 tsp. dried thyme, ½ tsp. kosher salt and ¼ tsp. black pepper. Combine properly and style for any seasoning changes. Switch the potatoes to a platter. Spoon the lemon dressing over the potatoes. Toss to coat. Season with kosher salt as wanted. Garnish with 2 Tbs. recent chopped parsley.
Different potato recipes everybody will love embody Dill Pickle French Fries, Spicy Candy Potato Salad, Baked to Perfection Potato Rounds, and Wholesome Stuffed Potato Skins.
Get the Blessed Cookbook!
3. Tacky Cauliflower Gratin
Everybody loves cauliflower – test. Everybody loves cheese – test. Everybody loves cauliflower coated with cheese and baked – triple-check. This dish is not going to solely attraction to everybody’s tacky needs but it surely feeds a crowd. If cauliflower will not be your factor, that’s positive. Use broccoli, inexperienced beans, or no matter your favourite veggies are as a substitute. My Tacky Cauliflower Gratin makes use of chickpea flour to make the thick, scrumptious cheese sauce so it’s gluten-free however you should use any flour you want. I additionally like to make use of orange or purple cauliflower to make the dish extra colourful. Preheat the oven to 400 levels. Core a head of cauliflower (about 3 lbs.) and minimize the pinnacle into massive florets. Blanche the cauliflower in a pot of boiling water for only a few minutes. You wish to be tender however nonetheless have crunch. Drain and rinse with chilly water to cease the cooking. In a medium-sized saucepan, soften 2 Tbs. vegan butter over medium warmth and whisk in 2 Tbs. chickpea flour till properly mixed. Let it cook dinner for a minute so that you gained’t style the flour. Slowly add 2 cups heat non-dairy milk, whisking, till you’ve got a easy sauce. That is your béchamel sauce. Add ½ tsp. kosher salt, ¼ tsp. black pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Add ½ cup vegan cheddar cheese and whisk till easy. Flip off the warmth and put aside. Put a couple of ladles of the béchamel sauce within the backside of an 8 x 8 baking dish. Add the cauliflower to the baking dish and canopy it with the remaining cheese sauce. In a small dish, mix 1/3 cup gluten-free bread crumbs, 2 Tbs. vegan grated parmesan and a couple of Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil. Combine and sprinkle over the cauliflower. Bake for half-hour or till the highest begins to brown. Flip the oven on broil for two minutes to crisp up the highest. Let sit for a couple of minutes to set earlier than serving.
For extra scrumptious gratin dishes, do this Potato and Mushroom Gratin, Kale and Mushroom Gratin and Tacky Leek and Potato Gratin.
4. Roasted Acorn Squash with Spiced Pumpkin Seeds
Winter squash is plentiful and it tastes so candy, you may neglect it’s a vegetable. Roasting brings out that sweetness by caramelizing the pure sugars. Including spice balances all that sweetness for an ideal aspect dish. Making my Roasted Acorn Squash with Spiced Pumpkin Seeds is straightforward and scrumptious. First make the spiced pumpkin seeds: Preheat oven to 375 levels. Mix 1 cup hulled pumpkin seeds in a bowl with ½ tsp. floor cumin, ½ tsp. chile powder, ½ tsp. kosher salt, ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper, ¼ tsp. black pepper and 1 tsp. lime juice. Toss to cowl the seeds within the spices. Unfold the pumpkin seeds on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast them for five minutes or till they’re evenly browned. To make the squash: Flip the oven as much as 425 levels. Minimize 2 acorn squash into 1-inch slices. Toss the squash slices with 2 Tbs. oil, 1 Tbs. brown sugar, 1 tsp. smoked paprika and 1 tsp. kosher salt. Lay the squash on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 30-35 minutes. Toss the spiced pumpkin seeds on the squash and roast for five extra minutes.
Attempt different squash dishes like these Squash Truffles, Savory Butternut Squash Pie, Wild Rice with Kabocha Squash and Sage Butter, and Sauteed Delicata Squash Rings.
5. Sautéed Brussels Sprouts, Artichoke Hearts, and Sundried Tomatoes
Okay, a minimum of one in every of these aspect dishes has to have some inexperienced greens, proper? Listed below are 3 greens I’d have sworn I didn’t like earlier than I grew to become vegan. Now, they’re all favorites of mine. Artichoke hearts get so creamy and opulent when cooked. They’re an ideal steadiness to the verdant sprouts and the tangy sundried tomatoes. To make my Sauteed Brussels Sprouts, Artichoke Hearts, and Sundried Tomatoes: Steam 2 lbs. child Brussels sprouts over a sizzling pot of water till they’re tender. When they’re cooled, minimize them into halves. Warmth 2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil in a pan over medium warmth. Sauté one minced garlic clove and a pinch of purple pepper flakes for only a minute. Add 2 Tbs. chopped sundried tomatoes and cook dinner for about 2 minutes. Add the infant Brussels sprouts and cook dinner on each side till they’re browned and crispy, about 6 minutes. Minimize 16 oz. artichoke hearts into quarters and add to the pan. Prepare dinner till the artichokes are additionally barely browned and crispy. Add kosher salt and black pepper to style.
Different yummy veggie dishes embody Pomegranate Balsamic Roasted Greens, Tzimmes, Roasted Jerusalem Artichokes with Braised Garlicky Kale, and Straightforward and Scrumptious Roasted Rosemary String Beans which you’ll find by downloading the Meals Monster App, which is on the market for each Android and iPhone and will also be discovered on Instagram and Fb. The app has greater than 10,000 plant-based, allergy-friendly recipes, and subscribers acquire entry to 10 new recipes per day. Test it out!
Individuals could also be anticipating the same old mashed potatoes and inexperienced bean casserole however you may make your vacation meal way more thrilling by altering up the aspect dishes. These 5 recipes are assured crowd-pleasers!
