According to Mercy for Animals, “More than 300 million turkeys are killed in the U.S. every year – 40 million for Thanksgiving dinners alone. “ Thankfully, we individually have the power to choose whether to continue this horrific tradition or to start a new tradition of compassion for animals. There are tons of options for non-bird meals for Thanksgiving, or as some veg folks have dubbed it – “Thanksliving.” Whether you want to make your own homemade nut roast,  go with a mock-meat Tofurkey or Field Roast, or enjoy a vegan potluck meal with other cruelty-free friends, we’ve got you covered.

Firstly, if home-made is your thing, try out some delicious vegan Thanksgiving recipes posted on Mercy For Animals website, or VegWeb. Most recipes can be made vegan by simply using a vegan butter alternative and soy/rice milk. Casseroles and desserts are easy to vegan-ize and lets face it: the side dishes are totally where it’s at.

You can get tons of vegan side-dish ingredients at most stores (hello, cranberries!), but its important to have a vegetarian roast option available at the stores. We checked out some local grocery stores to see how we’re looking on vegan roasts this year and here’s what we can tell you so far. You can find Tofurkeys at The Living Earth (Worcester), Wegmans (Northborough), Whole Foods (Framingham/Bellingham), and Roots Natural Foods (Leominster). We’ve put in calls to Shaws in Webster Sq. Worcester, as well as Stop n Shop on West Boylston St. Worcester, and Trader Joes in Shrewsbury. All three locations are working on getting some Tofurkeys within the next week. On average, basic 1lb Tofurkey roasts will only set you back $10, and $4 for the gravy. You can get a 3lb Tofurkey feast for $25 or less and it comes with faux wishbone, gravy and vegan chocolate cake. Whole Foods has Gardein mock meats, 1lb Field Roast Celebration Roasts ($8) and fancy looking 2lb Field Roast Hazelnut Cranberry En Croutes ($24). Loving Hut (Chandler St – Worcester) has mock-Turkeys in their freezer section as well. Hopefully there are other local stores carrying vegan options, so report back to us and let us know where you found yours!

If you want to break bread with other veg folks there are some cool events going on locally. This upcoming Saturday, November 19th, Clark University’s veg group SAAVY is hosting their annual vegan SAVVY Thanksg(l)iving!, complete with vegan mashed potatoes, green beans, cornbread, pies, sweet potatoes, and lots more. The event always has a huge turnout. If potlucks are your thing, whip something up and join other Worcesterites on Thanksgiving day for a  Vegan Thanksliving Day Potluck Celebration / Meetup ! 

If you’re not in cooking mood, but want to spread some holiday good will,  you can always opt to adopt! … a turkey, that is. Check out www.adoptaturkey.org- seeking to end the misery of commercially-raised turkeys by offering a compassionate alternative for Thanksgiving.

Vegan Ice Cream Hits Worcester

The permits are filed and the truck is ready to go. Starting this Sunday Karen from Like No Udder will be periodically driving her vegan soft-serve ice cream truck through the streets of Worcester. After setting up at the 2011 Worcester VegFest, the owner decided to include Worcester in her regular stops for the season. She’s kicking it off at stART on the street this Sunday on North Main St. So between noon and 5pm on Sunday, come downtown to pick up some ice cream. Like No Udder isn’t the only vegan food vendor either. At stART you can also get a plate of lo-mien and veg drumsticks from Loving Hut or some yummies from the other vendors.

Bring your own mug to a Starbucks today and get a free coffee. This is a good time to mention that Starbucks offers soymilk at every one of their locations. And as of last year, the frappucinos are also vegan.

There are two Starbucks in Worcester:

• 1 West Boylston Street (map)
• 11 East Central Street (map)

Come on, Dunkin Donuts

It would be nice if Dunkin Donuts would follow suit and offer some vegan options too. A few years back, an NYC Dunkin Donuts added soymilk and then a couple of DC Dunkin Donuts started carrying soymilk we even asked people in Worcester call local Dunkins to ask for soymilk. Unfortunately it has yet to become a national change.

Then after news broke on an undercover investigation into the facility that provides Dunkin Donuts with the eggs for their donuts, we at VegWorcester decided to have a free vegan donut give-away outside a local Dunkin Donuts. We had a blast and everyone loved the donuts (photos) and were shocked by the condition in which hens were kept in Dunkin Donuts’ egg farms.

Let’s not forget about the little guys

They may not be offering free coffee today, but I feel like I should mention the Worcester’s local coffee shops too. The Bean Counter (Highland St), Espress Yourself (Pleasant St), and Java Hut (Main St) all already offer soymilk. Bean Counter and Java Hut have vegan baked goods too.

Enjoy your free coffee today

You may have already heard that Duck Yao now has a space. They’re at 872 Main St, Worcester and tomorrow 7pm-10pm they’re having their grand opening. Duck Yao will also be selling food at the Worcester VegFest this Sunday, so if you miss them tomorrow you can try some of their eats on Sunday.

From the grand opening facebook event:

Get your memory pressed starting now! Duck Yao, the illegal restaurant is legally open for one year NOW! Come for Chinese breakfast, lunch, and surprising dinners! But, especially come to see all your friends this:

Friday April 15th at 7pm for our Grand Affair Party!
Regular Hours: Tues-Sun 9-10, BYOB, BYOB, BYOB, BYOB

Many of you know what we are, but for those who are joining me blindly, welcome to the world of Duck Yao and the Happy Tea Stall

…

Location: 872 Main St. Worcester, MA 508-831-7988. Bike delivery for as far as Tyler, Mickey, and Sabat can do it. To get bike delivery, text or call: 413-367-6255.

The Happy Tea Stall is run by Patricia and features 3 delectable drinks: Avocado Shake, Chai Tea, and Thai Coffee.

We ARE the ONE-YEAR RESTAURANT, meaning we’re going to be around for one year only, so come this year and in a little bit of next year. It is a small takeout smash-in with tons of vision, magic, and taste.

Grand Affair Details: We’re gonna cook item #1 through item #55 in order, and pass them out, come for the whole time to get a taste of everything on the menu. Drinks go in rotation too. BYOB BYOB BYOB BYOB BYOB BYOB BYOB BYOB. Performance Art Show with acts TBD/famous people. Bringing back the firecracker entree and duck centerpieces.

RSVP to the grand opening on facebook.

Next month Duck Yao–the former underground Chinese vegan restaurant–will be opening their storefront on Main St in Worcester. Right now one of the owners is looking for some input from people like you. See below for info.

From Tiffiniy:

Hi everyone! You all have been so nice about vegetarian food! I got a
big secret that the big city can hear – Duck Yao is officially opening
their doors as a full-fledged take out eatery on Main Street between
Clark U and the co-op, across the street from the vietnamese sandwich
shop. And it will be happening in March.

On our menu will be vietnamese sandwiches, mochi, bun, sesame balls,
banana rolls, rice cakes, turnip cakes, sesame chicken, red bean buns,
scallion pie, and many more chinese food is healthy delights.

I’m looking for any ideas for food or decor. We have a few of our own
ideas, but tell me what you want. Also, looking for volunteers who
want free food and or maybe some money or indoor fruiting trees.

Here’s to the New Year of dogs that we don’t cook and feet that we soak!

I hear there is going to be a secret table.

Yingie z.
tycheng@gmail.com

Want to share your ideas with them? Leave a comment here and she’ll definitely see it.

A few dozen came out last Thursday to enjoy a delicious and mysterious 4-course vegan harvest “pop-up” dinner in Worcester. The local chefs worked behind the scenes to create not only a hearty fall-inspired menu, but also to offer a delightful candle-lit evening with old friends, new friends and plenty of suspense.

Though the multi-functional location of the pop-up might be better known for its showcasing of underground music, it transformed nicely into an atmospheric and imaginative dinner venue. The room was complete with long white-clothed tables and mis-matched wine glasses.

Guests were invited to enjoy their choice of wine while waiting for the hors d’oeuvres of spinach, onion marmalade, walnuts and ‘vegan feta’ in endive leaves. The endive appetizers served to share amongst each table were an inventive choice with a unique variety of flavors and textures that one could find inspiring.

The second course was an ode to the season, a butternut squash and sweet potato soup served with loaves of warm fresh bread. Slicing the bread as a group was a fun conversation starter and the pieces were perfect for dipping.

There was quite a wait in between the second and third course, which gave time for guests to relax, chat, and enjoy the wine. Although the intriguing pauses in between dishes weren’t too much of a bother, it was easy to fill up on wine and delicious bread!

When the main course was ready, it came out in shifts, straight out of the oven and served with pot-holdered hands. The bowls of shells in mascarpone béchamel with caramelized mushrooms and onions were pleasantly creamy and had a baked crispy topping. Scrumptious and filling, yet almost overwhelming in its size, the shells dish was worth the wait.

As a sweet ending to the evening, the chocolate and pumpkin bread pudding was flavorful, holiday-inspired and left nothing to be desired. Following the dessert, the distinguished chefs for the evening came out to thank everyone for attending what hopefully was the first of many “pop-up” dinners to come.

Atmosphere, creativity and good vegan food made for an interesting and enjoyable evening in Worcester. Congratulations to the organizers of this event for the success of this first-time occasion, and the delectable choice of food. It can’t be said for sure where or when this tasty endeavor might return, but suffice it to say, this 4-course meal was more of an event than simply a dinner, and one that shouldn’t be missed next time it pops up.

previous post: mysterious-new-vegan-restaurant-pops-up-in-worcester

I was recently forwarded the following email about a mysterious new vegan “pop-up” restaurant that’s hitting Worcester. Sounds like a pretty awesome project. It comes pretty well vouched for, so I don’t think there’s any reason to suspect that they are any sort of (vegan) snake oil salesmen.

I’ll let the email speak for itself:

Worcester, are you hungry? Have you already hit up every veg restaurant in town? There’s a gaping hole when it comes to vegan Haute Cousine in this town. We’re aiming to fix that by bringing you the fanciest vegan meal you can imagine, and then using the profits to buy a food truck that will serve up new vegan creations year-round. Food trucks and pop-up restaurants are hot as hell, and we’re bringing both to Worcester.

Presenting: Harvest Pop-up

Thursday, November 11th at 6:30 pm

A vegan, fixed-price menu featuring four extravagant courses and wine. The main course will be shells in a ‘marscapone’ bechamel with soy lobster, caramelized onions and mushrooms, and sage-infused breadcrumbs by an award-winning vegan chef.

Tickets are $30 for one diner, or $50 for two. All profits will contribute to establishing a permanent veg food truck, servicing Worcester. You won’t be able to just show up, so buy your tickets in advance. The location (in Worcester) will be announced to ticket holders a week before the event. It’s going to be super secret, super fun, and super tasty. Bring a date and prove how cool you are. This is going to be the meal of the century, vegan or not.

IF YOU ARE EVEN REMOTELY INTERESTED IN DELICIOUS FOOD, e-mail worcesterpopup@gmail.com for more information about ticket purchases. E-mailing us isn’t committing to buy tickets, so don’t be afraid to give us a shout! We’ll also try and let you know about other awesome food projects that we might undertake in the future.

Who’s doing this? We can’t tell, but it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out. I can guarantee that you know us, know our cooking, and are probably our friends, so buy a ticket ASAP!

From Worcester Magazine:

Vegan Dishes Put Worcester on the Map

Story Updated: Oct 13, 2010 at 6:27 PM EDT

In recent years Worcester has grown into a hot spot for the vegan food. This year PETA named Worcester among the top-10 vegan-friendly mid-sized cities in America. At the end of 2009, Worcester even had more vegetarian restaurants than Boston.
The Vegetarian Resource Group found that only 3 percent of the general U.S. population is vegetarian or vegan, but 18 percent of U.S. college students are vegan. With 13 colleges, it’s no surprise that our city has a burgeoning vegan movement. At the end of last April, more than 2,000 Worcesterites came out to the first-annual Worcester VegFest, a daylong vegan festival at Worcester State College.

Why vegan?
Vegans avoid meat, dairy and eggs, opting for plant-based foods instead. For some, eating vegan is a way to improve their health. For others, veganism is an ethical objection to the routine cruelty involved in raising animals for food. With our society’s growing ecological consciousness, many have chosen a vegan diet because it dramatically reduces our carbon footprint ­— in 2006 a United Nations commission published a study stating that livestock is the principal cause of human-made global climate change.
Bill Clinton recently appeared on Wolf Blitzer’s show to discuss why he made the switch to a vegan diet. For Clinton it was a matter of health. “I did all this research, and I saw that 82 percent of the people since 1986 who have gone on a plant-based: no meat, no dairy of any kind… 82 percent of people who have done that have begun to heal themselves. Their arterial blockage cleans up; the calcium deposit around their heart breaks up.”
Whatever your reason for choosing vegan food, Worcester has plenty to offer at its many veg-friendly restaurants.

Getting your Vegan Eats in Worcester
Worcester is a melting pot. In our little city, you can sample some of the best vegan foods from around the world. Pho Da Kao on Park Avenue offers big bowls of Vietnamese vegetable Pho, a traditional noodle soup ($7.76). Udupi in Shrewsbury offers all-vegetarian South Indian cuisine. Try the savory Chana Batura — chickpea curry with puffy fried bread ($10.25). For a meal on the go, you can pick up a couple of Jamaican curry pockets from One Love Cafe on Main for less than $5. The Sahara on Highland Street has a fattoush salad ($7.95) that makes a hearty-but-healthy lunch.
You’ll find plenty of vegan options at chain restaurants like Moe’s, but local businesses are often better at responding to local demand. So delicious vegan fare is easier to find at the mom-and-pops. While most restaurants in Worcester will have a vegan dish on the menu, there are definitely some shining stars:

• For a leisurely lunch, stop by the cafe at Bahnan’s International Market on Pleasant Street. For $7 you’ll get a falafel sandwich, steak fries crusted with Middle Eastern spices, and a soda.
• A cornerstone of the vegan scene, the second-Saturday-of-the-month buffet at Loving Hut on Chandler is a deal for $10. (Next one: [November 13].)
• Flats on Maywood Street is a new pizzeria with a stellar Neapolitan vegan cheese pizza ($14), which you get in classy 100 percent post-consumer recycled pizza box. The white sauce is also dairy-free. Flats could certainly win over Worcester’s entire vegan community by adding mock meats to their menu
• A relatively new addition to the city, Belmont Veg serves up home-style Jamaican vegan food and features a rotating menu with new items each day. Choose one of the three sizes (small, $9.91; medium, $10.09; large, $12.22) and order a “whatever” to sample a mix of everything they have that day.
• If you’re out at the Dive Bar on Water Street, step outside to Chris’s Hot Dog Cart for a vegan completo: a veggie dog topped with sliced avocado, onions and peppers
• Like to do your own cooking, but want to try some interesting new ingredients? Mekong Market on Main Street has a substantial selection of specialty mock meats. They have everything from veg pork to vegan shrimp.

Much of the credit for the ample vegan choices at local restaurants is due to Worcester’s numerous student groups. Every month, college veg groups are holding vegan potlucks or movie nights. Clark University’s Student Association of Vegetarian and Vegan Youth has its annual vegan Thanksgiving dinner coming up soon. It’s free and open to the public. WPI’s Veg Polytech is planning a trip to The Boston Vegetarian Food Festival on the weekend of October 30 and 31 in Roxbury.

Worcester has award-winning vegan food. Get out there and try it!

If you appreciate the coverage of vegan- and vegetarianism, you should send a quick note to the editor (editor@WorcesterMagazine.com) or leave a comment on Worcester Mag’s website. I’m sure she’ll be happy to hear some feedback and encouragement. Who knows? She may even run your comment in the paper.

Today’s vegan donut feed-in went really well! We gave out about 100 donut samples and flyers about the campaign to get Dunkin Donuts to add vegan donuts. We were out there urging Dunkin Donuts to quit supporting animal cruelty at egg factory farms. We met some vegetarians and vegan who were excited to see us out there, some Dunkin customers were shocked to see images of the inside of DD’s egg-suppliers. Everything went really smoothly, despite a little hassle from a cop who was a tad grumpy about not getting his donuts fast enough. (No joke.)

I just posted some photos on the VegWorcester flickr page.

Greg took some sweet photos too, which I will post soon.

UPDATE: Greg’s kick-ass photos are now in the Feed-in flickr photo set.

Apparently Price Chopper now offers vegan cookies. Do you know what the story is? I plan to call the manager on Monday to see if I can find out if this is a company-wide thing, or just at the Price Chopper near Webster Square. In any case, you should stop by and give them a try. This weekend they had chocolate chip, peanut butter and chocolate chip, oatmeal, sugar cookie, macadamia nut, and one with everything in it. They’re good!

Do you know what the story is?