Non-vegan visitors

[Soynut]

My family is coming for a 2 weeks visit and I'm trying to figure out what to serve them. They're staying in a hotel, but I will cook a few dinners for them, of course. It's just that I'm not sure what will work for both non-vegan teenagers and grand parents. I was thinking something like lasagna (don't everyone like that?).... What other "family friendly" dishes could I make, any suggestions? And what about dessert - do you know anything readymade like a cake or a pie that I could buy. I'm usually not too bad of a cook, but trying to satisfy picky teens who are not vegans makes it a little bit of a double whammy. But I'm SO excited, though!:kangaroo:

[Bowwowmeow]

That sounds like fun Soynut!
My family likes Whole Foods' brand of vegan meatballs along with spaghetti and marinara sauce, but spaghetti with marinara is good without them too, if you don't think your family will like "fake" meats. Salad and garlic bread are good on the side with that or with the lasagna. A great big pot of chili is good too, with cornbread. Any kind of soup with crusty bread is good too.

I can't think of any ready made pies that are vegan. I'm sure there are, since pie crust is best made with vegetable shortening nowadays, but some high end brands like to use butter so they can charge more money. I've seen frozen pie crusts at Whole Foods which are vegan, and it would be easy to get one of those, put some canned apple pie filling in it, and top it with a simple crumb topping to make it Dutch apple pie. The Whole Foods store near me buys vegan carrot cake, vanilla cake, and German chocolate cake from a bakery in Santa Cruz, in addition to their own vegan chocolate mousse cake, so maybe the Whole Foods near you does something similar with a local bakery in your area. Of course, Newman Os are vegan. I'm sure the teenagers would love those. Probably the grandparents too, if they've got sweet tooths.

[Oracl]

We often do a pot of chili or some type of curry. Both seem to appeal to non-vegans as they are dishes with strong tastes and they appear "normal"! :rolleyes: ;) :)

We don't usually do dessert but I would think a good soy ice-cream with fruit would be easy and yummy. :yum:

[Soynut]

Oh, Thanks guys, I'll put your suggestions on my menu list. I have to plan because it's going to be some busy couple of weeks ahead (you know how it is) and i don't want to get stuck with what to eat in the middle of everything. As a vegan things are a tiny bit more complicated, so it's good to be prepared just like I would want them to be for me when I visit them. They're so nice and I'm sure we'll have a good time.

[Gliondrach]

All the foregoing advice was excellent but I have some which is even excellenter - baked beans on toast. You just can't go wrong with that.

[paul]

Most folk i know like a roast.
And goodluck with your visitors.

[dreamer]

If you can find good veggies (either fresh or frozen), veggie soup is usually yummy:uhuh: Or you could make a stirfry, which is especially good for omnis if you have seitan or faux meat strips you can put in it. As far as desserts, I don't know of many vegan ones unless you have a local store that carries soy ice cream. You can probably find some easy dessert recipes on-line, though if you have La Dolce Vegan cookbook there are a couple of easy recipes (like this week I made some coconut chocolate chip cookies:yum:).

[thevegantwins]

Many ethnic foods will work like Chinese, Mexican or Indian because it is so easy to make flavorful meals that are traditionally served without dead animal. Bean burritos, rice and guacomole for Mexican-the already mentioned stir-fry for Chinese and already mentioned curry for Indian.

[paul]

:yum::dribble::eat::hungry:Theres some wonderfull recipes on this fourm.

[Soynut]

Thanks again. I bought some tofutti cuties for dessert. I'll probably get some type of sorbet too.