One of our Christmas guests is vegetarian and only just told us

[AnnaleeP]

Christmas this year is just me and DH and a couple of close friends. When we invited them they said they had a friend coming to stay, would it be OK for them to come too? We said yes, that was 6 weeks ago. Since then we've sorted out what they're bringing food-wise.

Tonight DH gets a text 'will there be room for a tray of vegetarian sausages to go in the oven?' Errrr if the extra guest is vegetarian the time to mention this was 6 bloody weeks ago. I'd like to be able to serve the poor lady something a bit nicer than freaking Linda McCartney sausages for Xmas lunch so now we have to rethink what we were planning on serving. Obviously the vegetables with the main meal are OK but the starter was going to be fish and meat and there's quite a lot of meat involved in the main obvs. I'll have to make veggie gravy and different roasties for her. I dunno what to do for the main. DH is trying to get some answers out of them but so far it's 'oh don't go to any trouble, she'll just have sausages' - she's not having freaking sausages! Just tell me what she wants and I'll make it! Is it me? I'm just trying to be hospitable to someone I've never met, it's bloody Xmas.

Being a host is about making people feel welcome. If someone asked me to bung some 'cardboard' sausages in the oven for them, then that's what I'd do. What they eat isn't the reason why they're there.

Whatever you do, DON'T ASSUME GOAT'S CHEESE IS THE ANSWER TO EVERY VEGETRIAN PROBLEM! I can assure you, it's not.

I would use a good vintage cheddar instead of the parmesan - I've heard italian chefs admit that they'd use things like smoked streaky bacon and strong cheddar instead of italian sourced ingredients like pncetta and parmesn in dishes, anyhow, since it's often better to use good quality locally sourced ingredients than something imported.

If you're having a cheese board, then buy the supermarket hone brand cheese - the vast majority of sainsbury's ones are veggie (just look for the green V)- even the parmesan style basics is veggie.

Red bisto is bogging, nickelbabe I might happily moisten a meat pie with something like it on the rare occasion I eat one, but wouldn't want it for Christmas dinner. Its flavour overpowers everything.

I loooooooooooooove bisto!

Waitrose aubergine & feta pate is much nicer than mushroom or what about the many delicious veggie soups you can buy. Lots of yummy ready made veggie main courses available e.g. tesco feta and cranberry parcels, Linda Mc Veggie Roast, Waitrose always have somthing nice too.

It won't be too tricky.

And thanks for that about the basics italian hard cheese, nickel - I just checked online, but the info wasn't readily available. It's not as full flavoured as parmesan, but quite pleasant.

I'm impressed with sainsbury's packaging labelling these days.

Bisto caramelised onion gravy (in the glass jar) is very nice and easy to make lump free. No vegetarians in this house but we happily have this with a roast dinner.

Aldi have a very nice garlic mushroom pate at the moment, again I'm not a vegetarian but found it very moreish, it would be lovely with some nice fresh bread as a starter.

Noodles That's exactly the kind of thing that makes it hard for veggies and hosts alike.
No one is saying vegetarians are exotic creatures, just it's nice as a host to have advance notice of alternative dietary requirements so we can cater for them in the same way we would cater for any of our guests. I hate that 'I'll bring my own'' thing, if I invited you it stands to reason I want to provide food for you.

I had a guest come to a bbq who was allergic to soy. The family were staying with friends of ours. I found out when his mother gave me a lovely, patronising, little lecture about the number of products we had used in the preparation of the meal that contained soy. The mayonnaise in the potato salad I'd made, the bbq sauce my husband had put on the ribs, the peanut butter we'd used to make the satay chicken, the bread for the bruschetta, even the bloody crackers we served with cheese, maybe the cheese itself I forget. I had no idea, it seems like soy is in everything. If they'd let me know even a day before I could have worked around it but as it was I felt terrible. The young man clearly felt awkward too because he felt he was putting me out (he wasn't, he was really nice - his mother on the other hand...) I managed to ensure he got an adequate meal but it wasn't the way I like to treat my guests.

she's veggie not vegan (a whole new level of awkward)

do her the sausages, give her veg, she can have cheese and stuff.

CHRISTMAS IS NOT RUINED, CALM DOWN.

I think also having to find a shelf in the oven on Xmas day can be tricky so finding somethings that doesn't need to go in the oven might be much easier for the OP rather than the sausages which the op correctly thought were due to politeness.

I suppose if they're insisting LM sausages are fine then go with that. The rest is fairly easy, potatoes in veg oil, you can buy some nice pouches of veg gravy atm if you don't want to go Bisto. I like LM and Qourn sausages, I always cook extra as my meat loving childen take a Qourn one along with their pork. They hate all the other qourn stuff but have a thing for the sausages. The good thing is they can also be fried if you are lacking in oven space. She may really hate one of the usual veggie offerings like Goats Cheese, nut loaf, or mushrooms and prefers to be safe and not hungry. You may not like them but she does.

I'm doing a wild mushroom and pastry plait thing for me this year, it feeds 6 so it will be offered as a side dish and cold later. If you do want to do your own veggie dish then maybe check first if they like it. I cannot stand goats cheese and have been told several times in the past not to worry there will be a veggie option. Yup bbqs of fecking goats cheese or some vegetables on a skewer wish they had let me bring my own sausages. So if she really does insist on the sausages then just go along with it, there could be a valid reason. It would be embarrassing for her if you went to great lengths to produce a veggie centre piece but it features the one thing she can't stand.

If she does like mushrooms then Google veggie mushroom pate, dead easy to make, lasts in the fridge and goes down well with meat eaters too. Could be a substitute for a starter.

You sound like a good host

Maybe your friends (with the vegetarian guest) could solve this problem for you?

thatsnotaknife is the mushroom pate chilled or canned? I want to know where to look.

You have plenty of time to make a single serve lasagna or shephards pie. Use Quorn mince and make it the usual way. It will be miles better than anything you can buy from the shops and will show you to be a thoughtful host. For veggie gravy - nearly all chicken/turkey powdered gravy sachets are actually vegetarian but don't say it for obvious reasons. Just buy a sachet where all the ingrediants are vegetarian and make up.

I was told today that I'm hosting another 10 people to the 30 I already knew about. We're all eating vegetarian - I'm making 2 types of veg lasagna, roasties with olive oil, roast parsnips/carrots, indian style stuffed sprouts, ricotta and spinach stuffed cannoli, home made nut roast, and three types of home made desserts. You can have a bloody fantastic vegetarian christmas dinner

Sorry but you're overthinking it. If she says she wants veggie sausages serve her veggie sausages!

Also a lot of 'vegetarians' do eat fish.

I've read back now to one of your updates.
I've recently picked up to freeze and eat on other days:
Sainsburys - Butternut Squash and Mushroom En croute.
M&S - parsnip and red onion roast, it has bulgar wheat and dried fruit in.

They could both be a main course but any extra would go fine with a trad turkey roast as a side dish for meat eaters.

• I'm veggie and I.....eat the same goose fat roasties as everyone else"

You're not a vegetarian.

Also a lot of 'vegetarians' do eat fish

Nope, a lot of fecking eejits pretending to be vegetarians eat fish.

User14... That used to wind me up too, even though I'm strictly carnivore. Ok, omnivore, I like chocolate too

However I do hate fish. So I used to reply that in that case, that made me a meat eating vegetarian... At which point they would squawk something along the lines of don't be so bloody ridiculous, you can't have a meat eating vegetarian.

To which I replied that they were the ones who started it saying they were a fish eating veggie so that it absolutely follows using that logic to have meat eating veggies too that don't eat fish. And that if they wanted to call themselves pescatarian that was fine. Or if they must and say that they were a bit like a veggie (but not actually one) who also ate meat well that worked too.

But for as long as they called themselves a fish eating veggie then I would call myself a meat eating veggie and they couldn't complain.

Funnily enough, most of them stopped the fish eating veggie thing...

And hopefully it is clear from the above that I believe a veggie does not eat fish or meat, there is no such thing as a meat eating or fish eating veggie. But it does make for a fun argument discussion when confronted with fish eating veggies!

Can I be an offal eating vegan then?

Ask friend for this lady's number and talk to her direct.

It would be a shame to source a fabulous nut roast so she doesn't have to have Linda McCartney sausages, then find out she doesn't eat nuts.