Good morning, animal lovers!

For those of you considering taking the turkey off the table four days from now, here's the recipe that knocked the socks off Catskill Animal Sanctuary guests a few weeks ago. We had a lovely little event -- if seriously hampered by the downpour -- comprised of readings in the barn from my book Where the Blind Horse Sings, tours to meet some of the notable four-legged characters from its pages, and then a vegan cooking demonstration/tasting by Julie Barone and Julie Gelardi.

What a hit!! Everyone in the room went back for seconds, and I saw a few people waddling up to the table for a third helping!! Tastier than any turkey, by a long shot!

By the way, we LOVED this cornbread stuffing, but you can put your favorite Thanksgiving stuffing inside a pumpkin instead of a dead bird. It's that simple!! We cooked the stuffing separately in a glass dish, then stuffed some into the pumpkin and spooned the rest around the outside of the glazed and gorgeous pumpkin, garnishing with parsley. Beautimous!!

Cornbread Stuffed Pumpkin: More Decadent Than Any Butterball!!

Wash and scoop out seeds and pulp of 1 medium-large (or 4 smaller) pumpkin or other winter squash. Bake in a 350 degree oven with lid on for 45 to 60 minutes, or until pierced easily with a fork.

Make the stuffing per instructions below, and feel free to stuff inside the pumpkin AFTER cooking or to pile the stuffing around the turkey, garnishing beautimously with your favorite herbs. Serve w/your favorite vegan gravy: a mushroom/rosemary gravy works for me!!

Cornbread and Pecan Stuffing
First, make the cornbread:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup plus 1 Tb water
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tsp salt

1. Heat the oven to 350.
2. In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients.
4. Add the wet to the dry and mix as little as possible. Do not over mix. Just fold, gently, with a rubber spatula.
5. Pour into an oiled 9-inch cast iron skillet or 8-inch square baking pan or 9-inch pie plate. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

NOTE: Fine to make the cornbread ahead of time to make your holiday cooking easier. It's OK if it's a little stale; in fact, that will make for a better stuffing!!

Next, the really yummy part:
Stuffing (easily doubled or tripled)

1 large yellow onion, diced
1 bunch celery, trimmed and then diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
¼ tub of Earth Balance (that is not a typo. If you're concerned about fat intake, try reducing amt. of "butter" and substitute extra veg stock)
1 recipe cornbread, above
1 loaf of your favorite bread, stale if possible, cut or torn into chunks
1 cup vegetable stock (or more!)
1 cup pecans, roughly chopped
1 generousTb dried sage
2 generousTb fresh chopped parsley
2 tsp salt (that’s what recipe calls for, but I used one tsp. and it was ample)
1 tsp pepper
1 cup fresh, whole cranberries or 1/2 cup dried cranberries

1. Melt the Earth Balance in a large stock pot. Sauté the onion, celery and garlic until the onions are translucent. More of a sweat than a sauté, actually…
2. Turn off the heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well. If it seems too dry, add more melted Earth Balance or veggie stock, or some of both. Yes, that is a lot of fat. You'll know why when you taste it. This kind of indulgence is ONLY for Thanksgiving!!
3. Stuff into a baked pumpkin, or individual delicate squashes, or a casserole dish. Do NOT stuff into a dead bird. Bake for a good 30 minutes at 350 degrees. You want the inside piping hot and a little soft, with the outside golden brown.
4. You may also add sautéed mushrooms, any kind, for extra flavor and richness

Have a warm, happy and turkey-free Thanksgiving from your pals at Catskill Animal Sanctuary!