Vegan Recipes for Christmas Dinner
If you're planning on sharing your Christmas with vegans, you'll need to cater part of your menu to their tastes. Luckily, many vegan dishes can be just as tasty as their meat and dairy counterparts, and also much healthier. Below, you'll find two great vegan recipes for Christmas.
Eggplant Gratin
Ingredients:
1/8 tsp. saffron
3 tbsp. hot water
2 lbs. sliced eggplant
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 minced red onion
1 minced clove garlic
1/2 tsp. dried herbs
2 1/2 lbs. chopped ripe tomatoes
Salt
Pepper
2 eggs
1 cup ricotta cheese
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
12 large basil leaves
3 oz. grated Gruyere
Crumble your saffron int your hot water and place aside. Put oil in a frying pan and heat. Add a layer of eggplant and fry until golden brown. Turn and repeat with each slice until you've fried all the eggplant. Separately, heat oil in another pan and cook your onions, garlic and herbs over low heat for 15 minutes until softened. After that, add the tomatoes and cook for another 15 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Beat your eggs, and then add your milk, ricotta, saffron water, Parmesan and a dash of salt and pepper. Get your oven to 350 and put a cup of tomato sauce on the bottom of a baking dish. Cover with a layer of fried eggplant and then top with salt, pepper and basil. Top with your Gruyere, and then add more eggplant and basil. Put the ricotta layer on top of that and cook for 40 minutes. Let cool and serve.
Boozy Fruit Cake
Ingredients:
8 oz. dates
8 oz. water
3 oz. wholemeal flour
3 oz. white flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. mixed spice
12 oz. mixed dried fruit
4 oz. dried apricots
3 oz. mixed nuts
4 tbsp. orange juice
4 tbsp. rum
Heat your oven to 340F. Add your dates and water to a saucepan and boil. Cook for five minutes to soften and then mash them up. Add the rest of your ingredients to the pan and mix thoroughly. Spoon this mix into an oiled cake tin and bake for 1 1/2 hours. For extra holiday flair, add a layer of marzipan on top!
