Product Review: Tofurky Feast

Product: Tofurky Feast by Turtle Island Foods
Where to get it: most vegetarian/organic specialty stores, some larger supermarkets and http://www.tofurky.com.

The holidays can be a difficult time for some vegetarians, particularly those who are new to the scene. This past Thanksgiving marked my first major holiday as a herbivore, and in the weeks leading up to it, I became nervous about how difficult it would be for me.

There is not often a time that I miss meat, but as the holidays drew closer I was worried that I would be "missing out" somehow, and this had very little to do with the actual food that was being eaten. Humans are complex creatures, and our capacity for memory association is remarkable. When it comes to the holidays, I sometimes wonder if it's less about the delicious and fatty foods we consume, and more about what they represent: the traditions and the memories.

So this Thanksgiving, my husband and I decided to start our own little tradition when we saw the Tofurky Feast at our favourite vegetarian grocer.

Included in the package are the following:

* One Tofurky Roast (made with organic non-genetically engineered soybeans)
* Eight Cranberry Apple Potato Dumplings
* Tofurky Giblet & Mushroom Gravy
* Herbed brown and Tofurky Wild Rice Stuffing
* Tofurky Jurky Wishstix

We also bought some fresh veggies and cut them up and put them in the oven with the tofurky roast.





I figured that I would like the meal, but I was pleasantly surprised to realize how delicious and 'holiday-ish' it really was. As I've mentioned, my husband is not a vegetarian and like most of our society, is accustomed to a big, fat, hormone-pumped turkey to celebrate the holiday. However, he was also very impressed by the qualify of the meal and we've already decided to do up another one for an upcoming Christmas celebration.

There wasn't any part of the feast that we didn't enjoy or appreciate. I was expecting the roast to be a bit dry, especially after I forgot to baste it (whoops), but it was moist and although it didn't taste like traditional turkey, it still had a 'holiday' feel to it.

My personal favourite part of the meal were the apple-cranberry dumplings, a really fun twist on an old holiday classic. And you don't even have to miss out on making a Christmas wish, as the good people at Turtle Island Foods provide a tofurky jurkey wishbone, ready to be broken apart when you finish your meal!

So, my fellow vegetarians, there is no need to fret about the season. While it may be difficult to convince Grandpa Bob to trade in the turkey for a tofurky feast on Christmas Day, you can always prepare one for a selected few and have yourself a merry little meatless Christmas.