A vegan’s guide to Christmas

By Aleena Yarovaya,
BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

David Van Muyden bites into his favorite christmas stuffing made out of bread, celery, onion, and garlic.

Joy Emojong chops up the kale for her favorite salad and takes the warm rolls out of the oven.

Tracy Begley carves her tofurkey into thin slices.

This is what the holiday season looks like for the vegan community.

Although Christmas time food may seem meat- oriented and daunting for a vegan, there are many animal product free replacements for holiday dishes.

The carved turkey is traditionally the centerpiece and focus of most holiday meals, but many vegans such as Tracy Begley, a Davis High parent and vegan of three years, opt for a meat alternative called tofurkey. “It’s a really good substitute for regular turkey and I actually enjoy eating it,” Begley said.

According to UC Davis nutrition expert Dr. Liz Applegate, not only vegans enjoy this meatless holiday dish. “Some people really like it even if they’re not vegan,” Applegate said.

David Van Muyden, a DHS science teacher and three-year vegan, enjoys many vegan dishes during Christmas. He enjoys making his favorite stuffing as well as salad, sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes with vegetable margarine instead of butter.

“Two platefuls of that and I’m stuffed,” Van Muyden said.

Joy Emojong has been a vegan since March and will be tackling her first vegan Christmas season this year. For Emojong, her go-to meals this holiday season will be kale salad and vegan bread rolls. Although this will be Emojong’s first Christmas as a vegan, she doesn’t think that it will be too difficult.

“I haven’t had meat in so long so it’s not appetizing anymore,” Emojong said. Instead of meat alternatives, Emojong just eats a lot of vegetables.

While being vegan during the holidays in America is getting progressively easier as more brands and restaurants are incorporating vegan options, vegans traveling to foreign countries often don’t have the same luxury.

Annabelle Lossin has opted out of being vegan this holiday season. For Christmas break, Lossin is traveling to Germany. “Practically all they eat there is sausage and meat,” Lossin said.

Her vegan diet also left Lossin feeling weak and unfulfilled. “I started to not have energy to do anything throughout the day because I basically wasn’t eating anything but salad,” Lossin said.

Begley also struggles with veganism during the holidays. Her family members make food that don’t accommodate her vegan needs. “The desserts are very tempting but I know I can’t have them,” Begley said.

Holiday parties are just another bump in the road for vegans.

Van Muyden will usually go to family events and will contribute a dish. “It expands awareness when you bring food without animal products and it’s still tasty,” Van Muyden said. But in general, there is usually plenty of food for Van Muyden to eat at holiday parties.

As for Begley, she usually bring a side dish that she can eat as well as little snacks that she can eat throughout the holiday.

Applegate recommends looking in the freezer aisle if vegans are having trouble finding inspiration for holiday meals. “There are many things that would surprise you that are vegan,” Applegate said.

Applegate also recommends that vegans make sure they are getting enough vitamin D during the holidays and wintertime. According to Applegate, in October through March, there isn’t enough vitamin D in Davis.

Applegate suggests drinking soy milk to get enough vitamin D. “Many vegans will think, ‘Oh, I’m drinking soy almond milk so I’m fine,’ but almond milk doesn’t actually have nearly as much essential nutrients as soy milk” Applegate said.

“Being vegan during the holidays does take some planning and effort,” Applegate said.