This blog post is about the vegetarian food and drink that I devoured at Christmas.
This post highlights some of the vegetarian and vegan items I consumed during a few days. I enjoyed some wonderful food and ate too much, as per usual!
What can you feed a vegetarian at Christmas? Plenty! Breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks can all be a delight to the taste buds. I am currently based in the UK, so expect a British viewpoint.
Below when referring to items such as bacon and sausages, I’m talking about the egg and meat free versions. I especially like the Linda McCartney sausages which can be found in Holland and Barrett, Iceland, Tesco and other places. The vegetarian egg free bacon I love is from H&B.
Breakfast
So let us start with vegetarian breakfasts which will not only satisfy a hunger, but are a tasty treat. The good old veggie bacon sandwich is a great start to the day, especially if accompanied by a mug of filtered coffee or strong tea, such as Assam with a dash of milk.
The sandwich itself consists of buttered toasted bread, a couple of vegetarian bacon slices which are grilled, and an optional dollop of brown or tomato sauce. Some people might appreciate a light sprinkle of black or white pepper, or a thin layer of English mustard.
Those with a larger appetite, could opt for a cooked breakfast, which can consist of many different boiled, fried, grilled, toasted or oven cooked items. This year I ate microwaved plum tomatoes, bacon, baked beans, hash browns, sausages, sliced mushrooms cooked in a small amount of oil and grilled bacon. On a side plate I had a couple of bits of toast.
There are many additions and alterations you can make, such as grilled tomato halves, grilled potato pancakes and fried new potatoes.
The toast is always on side plate, and having a jar of jam available, is a nice touch for spreading on leftover toast. A glass of fruit juice, typically Orange, accompanying coffee or tea helps wash the breakfast down.
Fizz and Nibbles!
Now let us move onto vegetarian nibbles which can be consumed with champagne or another sparkling alternative.
As the main meal was in the evening this year, before opening Christmas presents we ate a lovely selection of Indian snacks, such as onion bhajis, samosa and other tasty food with dips.
To wash it all down we drunk a lively sparkling vegan Cantine Maschio Prosecco Brut, which is a great Italian white wine.
The Starter.
On Christmas day my starter consisted of melon.
The Main Meals!
I ate a couple of different vegetarian roast meals this Christmas.
For the meal on Christmas day, I devoured vegetarian gammon (brought from Holland and Barrett), roast potatoes, brussel sprouts, peas, two different types of stuffing, cauliflower cheese and gravy. I sprinkled some white pepper over the top of the food.
On another day I ate a slight variation, with courgettes and oven cooked parsnips accompanying the sprouts, spuds and stuffing.
I enjoyed an onion gravy and a bit of mint sauce. I used black pepper with the second meal.
Desserts
I ate two different types of desserts this year, with the first being a trifle and the second a banoffee pie.
The trifle was homemade, and the banoffee pie was brought from Tesco.
Cheeses
As always the Cornish Cruncher from Marks and Spencers was a great choice. The delicious extra strong cheddar cheese, goes well with a strong red wine.
I also ate some lovely blue cheese made on the Isle of Wight.
Drinks!
I’ve already mentioned the champagne alternative I enjoyed (with the nibbles), but I also drunk red and white wine from Oxford Landings. These days if I feel like a beer I might drink a chilled Cobra, but I didn’t have one this year.
I’m not going to lie, the Merlot from Oxford Landings isn’t the greatest, but drinkable, and the Sauvignon Blanc is pretty good.
My better half enjoyed Indian tonic water, accompanied by lemon slices.
I also drunk hot chocolate with whipped cream.
Conclusion
Catering for vegetarians is easy, even for those who also don’t eat eggs. I enjoyed good food and drink, but more importantly I enjoyed good company and some down time from work.
Leave a Reply