Jackson Free Press

We've had it all before: roast turkey, stuffing, dinner rolls and pumpkin pie. It is easy to get tired of the typical Thanksgiving meal, specifically when the post-turkey drowsiness sets in.

Get creative; try to center a Thanksgiving meal on an ethnic category of food. For Mexican food lovers, try cooking a batch of chorizo pumpkin soup for an appetizer. Onion and Mexican chorizo sausage add a warm flavor to this soup.

As a substitute for the usual green-bean casserole, consider chilled corn, which provides spice through roasted chilies and fresh serrano chilies. If you aren't a cranberry fan, substitute mango salsa for cranberry relish. Finally, replace the main dish—roast turkey—with a suckling pig, coated with a guajillo-chile marinade and stuffed with diced apples, pineapple, tomatoes, green olives and Mexican oregano.

For meatless Mexican dishes, Bryan Carrero, chef at High Noon Café in the Rainbow Plaza (2807 Old Canton Road, 601-366-1602) recommends seitan, tempeh and tofu as meat substitutes. Seitan is a "wheat meat" or "wheat gluten." He also recommends using nuts and beans as meat substitutions because they are high in protein.

"I found that seasoning with chile powder, cumin and jalapeños will make a dish taste Mexican," Carrero says. Rainbow Whole Foods, next to High Noon Café, carries vegan sour cream to accompany your Mexican meal.

Vegetarians can also enjoy a butternut squash and apple casserole, for example, or sweet potatoes. Try cooking a gravy using vegetable broth rather than pan drippings or animal fat.

Stuffing is also an option, and this dish is even more delicious when you add cranberries or whole wheat bread. For mashed potatoes, Carrero suggests using soymilk and vegan butter by Earthbound.

For recipes that call for eggs, you can use an egg replacement powder. Carrero likes to make macaroni and cheese with nutritional yeast, a cheese-like flavored powder, and tamari, a paste that is slightly thicker than soy sauce.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals will smile on the person that chooses to cook a nut roast or a Tofurky rather than a capon. You can cook Tofurky in a variety of ways, including deep fried or roasted with a maple pecan glaze. Rainbow Whole Foods sells a Tofurky dinner roast that includes tofu roast, cranberry apple potato dumplings, and mushroom gravy.

Or, try stuffed acorn squash or a wild rice and cranberry pilaf as your centerpiece. For a dessert, whip up a chocolate pumpkin pie or a vegan pumpkin spice cake using egg replacer and vegan cream cheese frosting.

Gluten-free dieters have options, too. For your Thanksgiving meal, try maple-glazed roasted root vegetables or carrot cornbread. Prepare cornbread stuffing with vegetable broth. Or, try a vegetarian Thai pumpkin curry. Finally, cook cranberry orange rice pilaf as the main dish and serve a dairy-free, gluten-free apple tart.