21 Delicious Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes Everyone Will Love

From savory stuffing and scalloped potatoes to sweet and creamy pumpkin pie, these plant-based recipes will fill your table with all your favorite, classic Thanksgiving dishes.

August 25, 2022

By: Food Network Kitchen

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Photo By: Teri Lyn Fisher

Photo By: Matt Armendariz

Plan a Meatless Holiday Feast

Whether you're looking for vegan or vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes for just yourself or everyone in your family, these favorites surely won't disappoint; there are plenty of ways to fill your table with delicious, holiday-worthy dishes, minus the turkey. Make a crowd-pleasing stuffing everyone can enjoy, sweet potatoes that'll impress guests on a whole-food diet and more. This green bean casserole will have everyone coming back for seconds. We substituted a few vegan ingredients, such as unsweetened almond milk and vegan sour cream, for an equally comforting side dish that all can enjoy. Assemble the entire casserole in a large oven-proof skillet for easy cooking and minimal cleanup.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Green Bean Casserole

Vegan Potato, Pepper and Olive Phyllo Cups

Finely chopped potatoes are quickly boiled, then mashed with olive oil and nutritional yeast to make a creamy, "cheesy" base for these low-fat, one-bite vegan appetizers. Make the filling the day before your Thanksgiving get-together, then fill, heat and serve on the day.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Potato, Pepper and Olive Phyllo Cups

Vegan Gravy

"Umami" is the Japanese name for "savory taste," an essential characteristic of foods, like sweetness or saltiness. Use vegetables high in glutamate, an amino acid that plays an important part in umami, and give them a quick char before simmering them down to a rich, flavorful stock used for gravy even a meat eater will enjoy.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Gravy

Portobello Wellington with Red Wine Gravy

Chef and recipe developer Lou Oates says, "Vegan entrées can get complicated, and I didn’t want to create a dish that would take six hours. Ultimately people just want a nice vehicle for gravy!" And, that's exatly what she's created here with this show-stopping vegan main.

Get the Recipe: Portobello Wellington with Red Wine Gravy

Vegan Pie Dough

Unrefined virgin or extra virgin coconut oil gives this pie dough the same flakiness that butter does. Plus, it's more forgiving to work with: You don't have to worry about it getting too soft or melting while you're rolling out your crust.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Pie Dough

Vegan Stuffing

All of the usual suspects are here (minus the butter and eggs) to re-create the comforting flavors of traditional stuffing. Green tea may seem like an oddball ingredient, but we like its earthy flavor and find it a better replacement for chicken stock than vegetable stock, which can be too sweet and high in sodium.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Stuffing

Vegan Wild-Rice-Stuffed Butternut Squash

This impressive autumn-inspired dish can be served as a main course for vegan and vegetarian eaters, or it can be enjoyed by everyone at the table as a side dish. The small amount of curry powder gives the squash a nice warmth and depth.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Wild-Rice-Stuffed Butternut Squash

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

We use a few vegan-friendly stand-ins for this can't-believe-it's-vegan pie. Unrefined coconut oil provides a flaky, buttery texture for the crust, and silken tofu lends creaminess to the filling.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Pumpkin Pie

Crunchy Sweet Brussels Sprout Salad

Give your standard salad greens a rest and try shaved Brussels sprouts instead. The hearts of these vegetables, in combination with chopped walnuts, give this salad a satisfying crunch while cranberries add just enough sweetness.

Get the Recipe: Crunchy Sweet Brussels Sprout Salad

Vegan Scalloped Potatoes

Nutritional yeast, which is grown on molasses and then dried out, adds a nutty cheesiness (plus an extra helping of vitamin B12) to these bubbly spuds. Silken tofu and tender new potatoes add creaminess without dairy and browned onions give the dish a deep savoriness.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Scalloped Potatoes

Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Herb-Mustard Glaze

Chef Rich Landau says, "The holiday is about flavors, not turkey". We couldn't agree more. If you want to make this cauliflower feel like a classic main, set up a carving station!

Get the Recipe: Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Herb-Mustard Glaze

Gluten-Free Skillet Cornbread

Sometimes warm, freshly baked bread — ideally made from dough that doesn't involve activating yeast or kneading — is all you want for breakfast. This gluten- and dairy-free skillet cornbread fits the bill. It isn't cakey, like muffins or banana bread, but it is mildly sweet and goes perfectly with a cup of tea. It's perfect for lazy mornings if you have leftover squash to stir into the batter. The scallions in the batter may make you consider serving this with dinner, and they can certainly be left out if you want to serve it with jam.

Get the Recipe: Gluten-Free Skillet Cornbread

Deep-Dish Vegan Apple Pie

Extra virgin coconut oil is a great substitute for butter in both the pie dough and the apple filling to make this all-American fruit pie vegan friendly. Use a mix of apples for the filling: The Golden Delicious keep their shape and are a perfect contrast to the soft McIntoshes, and the Granny Smiths give a nice tartness.

Get the Recipe: Deep-Dish Vegan Apple Pie

Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole

We took this classic holiday dish and made it vegan-friendly, nixing the heavy cream and butter in favor of rich, creamy coconut milk. The result is a fluffy, non-dairy sweet potato filling that will satisfy everyone at your table. It's topped with a crunchy golden-brown nut layer spiced with cinnamon.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole

Vegan Cheddar Wheel

This vegan Cheddar looks and tastes the part! Made with cashews and sweet potatoes, it has a firm texture, sharp flavor and natural coloring. It looks beautiful on a board, as part of your Thanksgiving appetizer spread.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Cheddar Wheel

Vegan Biscuits

These tender biscuits will wow even non-vegans! The almond milk and plant-based butter provides a moist, flakey texture, similar to the dairy-based classic. We added some fresh scallions and fresh cracked black pepper for a tasty recipe everyone can enjoy.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Biscuits

Gluten-Free, Vegan Cranberry-Almond Tartlets

These tartlets are the perfect way to please everyone at the table on Thanksgiving. As with most vegan and gluten-free tarts, they're best served the day they're made, but you can press the crusts and freeze them ahead of time to give yourself a head start. The toasted-almond milk for the filling and the cranberry topping can be made up to three days in advance. Just bake the crusts and cook the filling the day you're serving the tartlets.

Get the Recipe: Gluten-Free, Vegan Cranberry-Almond Tartlets

Roasted Fingerlings

Sunny Anderson's fingerling potatoes could not be a simpler side for your Thanksgiving feast. Just chop up some garlic and rosemary, sprinkle over the potatoes and toss in a healthy splash of olive oil. Then pop them in the oven.

Get the Recipe: Roasted Fingerlings

Roasted Cauliflower with Herb-Caper Sauce

This simple dish can easily be thrown together in a pinch. Make the sauce a few hours ahead and keep it in the fridge until you're ready to serve. The cauliflower cooks quickly: Toss it in the oven to roast while the main dish rests.

Get the Recipe: Roasted Cauliflower with Herb-Caper Sauce

Maple-Glazed Roast with Winter Vegetables

Vegan chef Makini Howell created this recipe so that she could "serve something that looked like a ham or turkey for that familiar feeling". Assuming most people don’t want to make their own seitan, she adapted the recipe to focus on the rich maple glaze, which you can use to dress up a store-bought roast instead.

Get the Recipe: Maple-Glazed Roast with Winter Vegetables

Vegan Pear Tart

For the anti-pie people among us, this pear tart is a perfect Thanksgiving dessert. The crust is kept vegan with canola oil, which is less flaky but still provides a satisfying crunch. The cinnamon-sugar blend develops the sweetness of the pears.

Get the Recipe: Vegan Pear Tart