A traditional holiday vegetarian dish

The Holiday season is my favourite time of the year! I love all the traditions that come with it…

Every year I put out old decorations that were made or purchased as a kid, I listen to classic Christmas music for several weeks before December 25th, and I cook the old traditional meals I grew up with.  

When I was younger, we had our traditional meals and to me it is important to keep those memories alive. Some of the meals include pork tourtiere, pigs’ feet stew, cocktail sausages, cream fudge and yule log cake.  

When I became vegetarian, it was important to find a way to adapt the old traditions to my new lifestyle. During my first year as a vegetarian, I came across this recipe in a cookbook written by 2 dietitians from Québec which became my most popular dish over the holidays. The first time I made it, people around me were so impressed by the flavors that they didn’t believe me when I mentioned it’s completely vegan. And now, I am asked to prepare it every year! 

Makes 1 tourtiere (6 slices)

Preparation 30 minutes 

Cooking 40 minutes 

Tourtiere Filling Ingredients:

• 1lb of extra firm tofu 
• 1 onion, finely chopped 
• 4 garlic cloves 
• 2 tbsp olive oil 
• ½ tbsp ground cloves 
• ½ tsp cinnamon 
• 1 tsp dried thyme 
• 1 tsp dried savory 
• 4 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce 
• 4 tbsp water 
• 4 tbsp Torula yeast (optional) 
• Salt and pepper 

How to Make Vegetarian Tourtiere

Whole Wheat Crust Instructions

1. Mix together salt, water, and vinegar.
2. In a food processor, combine the flours and add the cold butter or margarine, in small amounts.
3. Still running, pour in the liquid with a spoon until a ball of dough forms. Let the food processor run for about 30 seconds between each spoonful of liquid.
4. Divide the dough into two equal portions.
5. Flatten each portion into an 8-inch (20 cm) disc.
6. Wrap both portions of dough in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the garnish.
   Adjust the amounts of oil or flour as needed, depending on the consistency and strength of the dough.

*Keeps 5 days in the refrigerator and 6 months in the freezer. 

Tourtiere Instructions

1. Chop the tofu into small grains in a food processor or by passing it through a grinder.  
2. In a large pot, brown the onion and garlic in olive oil for a few minutes, just to soften them. Add all other ingredients and cook for about 10 minutes.  
3. Adjust seasoning to taste by adding salt and pepper. Pour the preparation into a rolled out whole wheat crust (see recipe above). Cover with other pie crust. Bake at 425º F for 10 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375º F, and cook for another 30 minutes.  
4. Serve with cooked carrots, beets or your favorite holiday stuffing.

That’s all it takes to make this delicious holiday tourtiere recipe!

Nutrients per meal serving

Analysis done with butter and without torula yeast.

457.6 Calories 
35 g Carbohydrate 
12.3 g Protein 
30.3 g Fat 
3.5 g Fiber 

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