Watch Unsuspecting People Experience a Vegan Thanksgiving

Imagine going to Thanksgiving dinner and instead of grandma’s mac and cheese, you're unknowingly being served a vegan substitute. Well, the BET.com staff got to experience this firsthand when they were tricked into a Thanksgiving dinner taste testing secretly prepared by vegan chef Jenné Claiborne of SweetPotatoSoul.com. Greens, beans, potatoes, tomatoes, lamb, rams, hogs, maws — were not on the menu, but vegan mac and cheese, cornbread stuffing, vegan ham and sweet potato pie were!

FYI, vegan cuisine uses no animal products or by-products, so say goodbye to the butter, milk, cheese, and meat that usually make up our favorite holiday dishes. Before completely dismissing chef Jenné’s vegan Turkey(-less) day menu, take note that although some of the staff thought the dinner did taste a bit different, they did give it five Shirley Caesar heads, which in this video means just as good as the real thing. Don’t believe it?  

Watch BET.com’s Breaks host, Brook England, team up with Jenné to dupe the staff in this hilarious taste test. You might even hear someone shout, “You naaame it!”

Find some of the recipes courtesy of Jenné Claiborne below.

JENNE'S VEGAN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 50 mins

Ingredients

• 2 cups butternut squash, cooked/steamed or roasted (roast at 375° for 30 minutes)
• 1 clove roasted garlic (roast with squash 375° for 30 minutes)
• 2 tbsp arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
• 1 cup unsweetened plain non-dairy milk (I use organic soy)
• 1 tbsp grapeseed oil, canola oil, or Earth Balance
• 3 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ lb macaroni noodles (1/2 pack)
• 3 cups brussels sprouts, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp red chili flakes

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Mix the arrowroot in a small bowl with ⅓ cup of the milk. Make sure to get out the clumps. Set aside.
3. In a sauce pot, warm oil or melt Earth Balance on medium heat.
4. Add in the remaining soy milk along with the mustard, onion powder, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and salt. Whisk to combine.
5. Stir in the arrowroot soy milk mixture, and continue to whisk to combine; over medium-low heat.
6. Continue to whisk to combine the ingredients and thicken the sauce (will take around 3 minutes to thicken up).
7. Meanwhile, cook your macaroni noodles al dente (follow package instructions––the shells I use cook for 13 minutes).
8. Strain the noodles and place in a deep baking dish to cool.
9. Transfer the sauce to a blender, then add the butternut squash and roasted garlic.
10. Blend until smooth, and season with more nutritional yeast and salt to taste. It should be pretty salty to balance the noodles.
11. Pour the cheese sauce over the noodles, and stir well to coat every noodle.
12. Massage the sliced brussels sprouts with olive oil, and a sprinkle of sea salt.
13. Spread evenly over the macaroni and cheese, then sprinkle red chili flakes over.
14. Bake for 20 minutes.
15. Serve immediately.

JENNE'S VEGAN SWEET POTATO PIE

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 50 mins

Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 3 cups pureed sweet potato
• 1 cup pureed butternut squash
• 1 cup sugar - half light brown, half cane
• ½ tsp salt
• ⅜ teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp nutmeg, freshly ground if possible
• 1 cup plain unsweetened soy milk (I use Westsoy brand)
• 4 tbsp arrowroot powder
• 2 vegan pie crusts

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Place all of the filling ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth.
3. Fill the crusts with batter, and bake for 50 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven to let cool for at least 30 minutes, then set in the fridge to chill for a few more hours or overnight.