Enjoy a Cruelty-Free Christmas!
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Christmas should be a celebration of life. This year,  many households right around the world will celebrate a vegan Christmas. There are so many exciting options for creating that perfect vegan feast. Here are just a few cruelty-free recipes you might like to try this festive season!

Tofu Turkey
Serves 8 Recipe courtesy of "Instead of Chicken, Instead of Turkey" an excellent cookbook by Karen Davis (United Poultry Concerns)

Ingredients:
2 kilograms Tofu
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup onions, diced
1 1/2 cups mushrooms, diced
1 1/2 cups celery, diced
1/4 cup sesame oil + 2 Tbsp to marinate
1/2 cup soy sauce (tamari) + 2 Tbsp to marinate
1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp celery seed
2 Tbsp dried sage
1 1/2 Tbsp dried savory
1 1/2 dried rosemary
1 1/2 Tbsp dried thyme
1 tsp black pepper
4 cups soft breadcrumbs
piece of cheesecloth

Directions:
Line a 12 inch colander with a large piece of clean, damp cheesecloth and set aside. Crumble the tofu well then mix in the 4 tablespoons of marinate (Patty's adaptation) and mix again. Pack it into the colander. Cover tofu with overlapping cheesecloth, and place a plate on top of cheese-cloth-covered tofu. Place a heavy object on top of the plate and let rest for 1 hour at room temperature.

For the stuffing, saute garlic, onions, celery and mushrooms in 1 tbsp sesame oil. Add the herbs and half the soy sauce, cover and cook five minutes or till vegetables are soft. Add bread crumbs and mix well.

Remove weight and plate from tofu and open top layer of cheesecloth. Scoop out tofu with a large spoon leaving 1 inch of the sides next to the colander. Press the stuffing into the hollowed out tofu and press down firmly. Cover the stuffing with the remaining tofu and press down firmly again. Turn stuffed tofu onto an oiled baking sheet, flat side down. Preheat oven to 200 degrees

Combine remaining sesame oil and soy sauce and baste tofu turkey with this mix. Cover 'turkey' with foil and bake for one hour. Take foil off and baste again then cook for a further five to ten minutes. Transfer to a platter and baste again. Garnish with parsley and cherry tomatoes and serve with mushroom gravy and cranberry sauce.
Bon apetite!

Jo's Vegan Trifle
A delicious dessert

Ingredients:
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Chocolate Cake
1 cup soy milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup cocoa
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
¾ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Cream
3 cups soy milk
6 tablespoons cornflour
¾ cup vegan margarine
1/3 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Custard
6 tablespoons vegan custard powder
3 tablespoons sugar
3 cups soy milk

Other
1 can stoneless cherries
Extra cherries (fresh or canned) (optional)
Plain chocolate shavings (optional)

Directions:
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Cake
Heat oven to 180c. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin with baking paper. Whisk soy milk and vinegar together then leave for a few minutes Sieve flour, cocoa, baking powder, bicarb of soda and salt into a bowl. Whisk sugar, oil and vanilla extract into milk and vinegar mixture. Gradually beat flour mixture into wet mixture until smooth. Pour into cake tin and bake for around 35-45 minutes (or until a sharp knife inserted into the cake comes out clean). When cake is cooked, removed from tin, peel off baking paper and leave on a rack to cool. Once cool cut into large chunks.

Cream
Mix cornflour with some of the soy milk to form a smooth paste. Place the remaining soy milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil. When boiling add the cornflour paste and whisk until thickened. Set aside to cool. Beat together the sugar, margarine and vanilla essence until pale and creamy. Add the cooled soy milk mixture and whisk together.

Custard
In a saucepan, mix the custard powder and sugar with some of the soy milk to form a smooth paste. Slowly add the remaining milk, beating constantly. Bring the mixture to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes or until thick. Set aside to cool.

Note: to avoid a skin forming on the cream and custard, you can place a layer of cling wrap or baking paper over the surface while cooling.

Assembly:
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Arrange a layer of cake in the bottom of a large (ideally glass bowl). Drizzle on some of the juice from the canned cherries and scatter some of the cherries around the cake (but do not over soak the cake in the juice). Repeat until all cake and cherries are used. Pour the cooled custard over the cake. Spread the cream in an even layer over the custard. Decorate with extra cherries and chocolate shavings (if using). Chill until you are ready to serve.

Other ideas for the festive season:

A great Rum Balls recipe - Vegalicious

And the following blog - ZB's Vegan Recipes