Vegetarian, vegan dishes maintain ‘nostalgic feeling’ of holidays | The Daily Gazette
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Mashed potatoes, lasagna and chicken pot pie. And don’t forget the decorated cookies and gingerbread men.
When vegans in the Capital Region sit down for a holiday meal, traditional dishes and belly-warming comfort foods are on table. The difference is the foods are plant-based and free of meat, poultry, dairy or eggs. The “chicken” in that pot pie is seitan, a high-protein meat alternative made from wheat gluten.
“I just try to take everything my mom has made over the past 30 years and redo it as vegan,” says Chelsea Heilmann, co-owner of Square One Café, Schenectady’s first vegan restaurant. “You’re taking those traditional dishes but you’re adding a little twist to it,” she says. “You still want to remember that nostalgic feeling.”