Veggie main for Christmas Day - ideas needed

[monkeyonthetable]

I know it's early, but because this year has been so tough, I want to make Christmas very special so want to practise any new recipes a few times.

DS (18) is veggie, the rest of us aren't. We love traditional Christmas dinner and he loves all the veg but I want him to have something really good to replace the turkey.

There will be
roast potatoes, parsnips and carrots
sprouts and braised red cabbage
veggie stuffing balls made with apricots, walnuts, shallots and fresh sage
veggie cumberland chipolatas
veggie red wine and garlic gravy

I don't really want anything too bulky like pie as he loves all the veggie bits. And I don't want him to be stuck with some processed quorn thing - he gets a lot of that sort of thing every time we have meat or fish.

What would go well with the traditional veg and be a really delicious veggie treat?

tbh the things you are doing already will make for a perfectly delicious meal, just making sure that there is enough of everything that there is no chance that he'll be ready for another portion only to find it's all gone - the important thing about Christmas dinner is that there must always be leftovers of everything. But if you want one more thing, maybe these from M&S? Or something similar home-made with a large flat mushroom piled with some kind of mixture (pine nuts, chestnuts and truffle pesto?) and baked?

@YayoKireZukusi - you've just come up with the perfect thing. He loves mushrooms and I would never normally make something like that. But a huge field mushroom stuffed with feta and pine nuts and truffle oil. He'd love that. Thank you so much! I don't need any other ideas now. I know that's what he'd love and it will work with the rest of the dinner.

I am sad that you don't want 'pie' ie pastry, as we have Rose Elliott's Mushroom, Chestnut and Red Wine Encroute, every year and like to spread the love. It's really lovely, not boozy at all, and lasts us several days.

Christmas Day obviously with all the festive trimmings
Boxing Day with Fry Up, (welsh Valleys version of Bubble and Squeak) and Garners Pickled Onions and Shallots. After a walk to the pub, this might be my favourite meal of the year.
In next few days, with beans and homemade chips.

If you really don't want this 😉 make a simple nut roast or try one from M&S.
As a long time veggie I would really miss having something special on my Christmas dinner plate

Ok that mushroom sounds fab, I think I will try it this weekend, it's good to practice!!

This thread is so lovely and glad you found the perfect thing!

I was going to suggest Mushroom Wellington, but a big flat field mushroom with stuff on sounds perfect

I made chestnut, butternut squash and pomegranate loaf a couple of years back. The pomegranates shine like jewels against the brown and orange plus it had flat leaf parsley, shallots, panko bread crumbs and thyme. Made them in individual loaf tins, it made 4 but froze well. (We had two veggies)

I just clicked on this thread to suggest the Rose Elliott recipe that @IamEarthymama has linked to. It's absolutely fantastic. I've had it every Christmas for at least 25 years. It goes brilliantly with roasties and other wintery veg. It feels special but is easy to make and you can do it in advance and stick it in the freezer and then just bung it in the oven with the rest of the food on the day. I often use the standard recipe to make two smaller ones if not everyone is going to be eating it. I can't recommend it highly enough

These are all fantastic.

I am going to make the pie @IamEarthymama suggested for Boxing Day. Thank you for the link! Good to know it can be made in advance and frozen, too. DS will be very happy.

The pomegranate loaf also sounds wonderful @movingonup20. I'll make that for NYD. It sounds quite fresh tasting - perfect for new year.

You lot are brilliant. Thank you so much for the suggestions.

I have been trying to find a picture for you monkeyonthetable
Will keep looking

You must update us at Yule xx

@IamEarthymama - how do you do the pastry? Do you lattice it or plain with pastry holly leaves on top? (Seen pics of both online)

Cross-posted with you @IamEarthymama. Thank you.

Talking of Yule, we might do a butternut, sage, feta, pine and honey pie for Winter solstice with a sunburst pattern of pastry. I did that for my dad a few times, who is more pagan than Christian and everyone liked it.

Here they are!
With little veggie sausages too.
Don't forget sage, thyme and onion stuffing .
Lashings of gravy yum.
Ooh I can't wait, something to look forward to more than ever this year.

I am going to try the pomegranate roast for New Year.

As you can see it was holly leaves last year.
I sometimes do a Christmas Tree design.

One year when we both had flu and ate our Xmas dinners in our vests like Onslow, I tried ready made pastry. It wasn't as good as home made.
The gluten free version is sometimes a bit of a patchwork as it does roll out as well as with 'real' flour.

monkeystthetable
*
Please share the recipe, that sounds wonderful
We usually go to Glastonbury for Yule but I don't think that will be on the cards this year *

Can I suggest Delia's Parsnip Roulade. DH and I are both veggie and it's been our standard Xmas dish for about the last 25 years. I think it's from her Xmas book.

One year I’m definitely going to make these mushroom tarts www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/dec/19/shroom-for-manoeuvre-yotam-ottolenghis-mushroom-recipes-for-the-festive-season

Previously I have made vegetable tarte tatin, mushroom And squash wellington and nut roast. Not all at the same
Time!!

Nothing. There is so much food at Christmas there's no need for a special thing. Just serve the Christmas veg.

I do all of those things for veggie DS (22)'
Whatever "veggie" main course I make tends to get snaffled up by the meat eaters as well so just beware and make sure he gets served first

I make a roulade like using Delia’s recipe for the actual sponge roulade bit often. It’s incredibly easy. I find the parsnip filling a bit bland sometimes so mix it up with cheese sauce, spinach, leeks, mushroom and pea filling which goes down a storm any time of year and meaties love it too.

There’s something ceremonial and occasiony about hacking a slice off something large and communal rather than everyone else getting to do that and having a single portion of the typical goats cheese tart or whatever.

I got a recipe on here, from bbc good food, for beetroot tarte tartin which is vegan and gorgeous and has a similar sharing/ceremonial quality. Everyone can have a bit, it’s lightish despite the puff and it looks the nuts with the star anise among yue beetroot. For veggies I’ve added chunks of lovely rich goats cheese on top which pairs brilliantly with the earthy sweet beets.

I’ve got to do a vegan main again this year but can’t use pastry and I made a very disappointing nut roast last year so I’m still on the hunt.

@YayoKireZukusi - I'm not vegetarian but I'd scoff that all day long!

I’ve got to do a vegan main again this year but can’t use pastry

Most shop pastry is vegan, or is there another reason for the no pastry?

One year I had quite a few veggies I made Delia's oven baked mushroom risotto and served that instead of stuffing. Worked really well.

Oh I’ve reread your post and realised you know that because of the beetroot tarte
tatin.