A Very Gentle Thanksgiving

This Sunday past, I gathered with 55 individuals - some vegan, some vegetarian, even some meat-eaters like my mom and sweetheart who shared in a cruelty-free feast for the third annual Gentle Thanksgiving held by God's Creatures Ministry in Wayne, New Jersey.

To start: Trader Joe's white bean hummus and garlic hummus, with mini pita bread and chips. Check out their vegan list of offerings. My vegan TJ staples are tofu for eggless scrambles; soy creamer for coffee/tea; and almond milk for cereal. Also heart their vegan apple strudel and meatless meatballs (great for spaghetti or in sub sandwiches). To name just a few.

Trader Joe's pumpkin bread and cranberry sauce. I've veganized this mix at home using Ener-G egg replacer.

Tofurkey and the works: green beans, corn, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing and a biscuit.

Joe Dwyer, author of Shelby's Grace, was on hand. Shelby, found chained in a gas station, scared and hungry, now works as a therapy dog, and is a glowing example of how animals can forgive even after suffering the most egregious cruelty.

I coveted, but did not go home, with any of the fine raffle prizes. Love cozy pasta nights at home.

I could so picture this green candle and cheerful holly plant on my coffee table.

Sweet potato soup for frugal office lunches, apple crisp mix, cranberry trail mix, couscous: it's as if the person creating this basket thought of me personally!

Sweet ending: apple crisp and pumpkin pie.

My turkey that my family sponsored from Farm Sanctuary as a birthday gift arrived in the mail. Daphne was seized in a neglect and cruelty case this year, and lives at their Watkins Glen, New York shelter.

Said it before, will say it again: stand proud if you are shunning turkey this year, even if you are the only one at your table doing so (which is usually the case for me). I don't feel the least bit deprived I'm not doing something millions of others are doing just because that's what "they" say we should.

That said, educate, but be accepting of others choices. Someone at the dinner said he walked out of a Thanksgiving dinner and is no longer friends with the hosts because they didn't 'get it' about turkey. This gives vegans and vegetarians a bad reputation. Isolation is no way to foster a world of compassion. A veg lifestyle will simply not be everyone's choice - but reducing animal consumption through non-dairy; meat-free; and eggless alternatives is something realistically all can strive for to some level. If people can go veg, even better. Food for thought as we strive toward our goal of reduced animal suffering.

Event Alert: Gentle Thanksgiving Dinner in Wayne, NJ

"Animal cruelty is not an American value. But for the entirety of their short lives, turkeys on industrialized farms know nothing but fear and pain at the hands of humans." - Farm Sanctuary's Thanksgiving's Toll on Turkeys. That's nothing to celebrate, if you ask me, and I will not feel the least bit deprived passing on the turkey again this year.


As I so enjoyed last year, I'll be feasting on Tofurkey instead at God Creatures Ministry's Gentle Thanksgiving celebration on Sunday, November 21st in Wayne, New Jersey. Learn more about this event if you are in the area. Please mail checks for the dinner by November 17th if you plan on attending. Flashback to last year's celebration.

Learn more about Gentle Thanksgiving, and get cruelty-free recipes.

Hold the Butter on My Toast Please, Snoopy

It's almost Thanksgiving!

While not a happy time for vegans, there are reasons to make one feel like a kid again. Waiting for your favorite balloon to come down the Macy's Day Thanksgiving Parade while on the couch under a blanket with a mug of non-dairy cocoa. In New York City, kids young and old can watch the balloons being blown up the night before. It's simply magical. I'm 34, and still never miss A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Snoopy and Woodstock even cooked a vegetarian feast of pretzels, popcorn and toast, much to the dismay of Peppermint Patty and the gang.

And I love the idea of an entire holiday devoted to giving thanks. Sarah Ban Breathnech, in her book Simple Abundance, encourages us on a path guided by six principles: gratitude, simplicity, order, harmony, beauty and joy. In a passage on gratitude, she quotes Melody Beattie, who stated,

"Gratitude...turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."

Not on my dinner plate this year, turkey. This beauty lives at the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. Flackback to my visit, and yummy vegan eats. My mouth still waters thinking about the cinnamon French toast.

This year, I also plan to give thanks over a Gentle Thanksgiving Dinner hosted by God's Creatures Ministry. Whatever your religious stripes, you can share a humane meal including Tofurkey, wine and desserts. The dinner takes place next Sunday, November 22nd at 3:00 p.m. in Lakeland Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 231 Parish Drive, Wayne, NJ. RSVP with a suggested $20 per person donation by November 18th. Learn more.

Not in the area? Find similar events all over the country on Gentle Thanksgiving. Find recipes including Cranberry Sauce, Sweet Potatoes, Cornbread Muffins, and Vegan Pumpkin or Squash Pie.

If you're not a vegan or vegetarian, consider just trying to eliminate animal by-products from a recipe when it's possible. When I switched from lacto-ovo vegetarianism to veganism, it was eye-opening how animal products are in everything, when many times they don't need to be.

Here's to gratitude, awareness, great vegan food, and the joy of feeling like a kid again. Oh, my favorite balloon? Snoopy, of course!