Build your own vegetarian Christmas dinner!

Ohhh yes, it's that time of year again! Time for my annual round-up of vegetarian Christmas dinner recipes.

In 2014 I shared my ultimate vegetarian Christmas dinner menu.

The year before that, I shared 50 vegetarian Christmas dinner recipes that can all be served alongside the usual veggies and gravy.

This year, I thought I'd let you build your own vegetarian Christmas dinner from a selection of my favourite recipes from around the web!

...yes, all three of these posts are basically the same thing with a different title. But there are lots of new recipes here too! So hopefully you'll be able to find plenty of inspiration here to build an amazing Christmas meal. Just pick one or two recipes from each category, and you'll have an irresistible vegetarian Christmas dinner... then you just have to remember to send me my invitation!

I've marked on which of the recipes are vegan, but obviously a lot of the other recipes could easily be adapted to fit with any dietary requirements.

Enjoy!

First up:

The main event

It's best to choose your main dish first, as it might determine what sorts of side dishes you want to serve alongside it. Since this will be the most important part of your vegetarian Christmas dinner, I have plenty for you to choose from!

Cheesy chickpea cake (pictured above)
Cauliflower cheese tart
Mushroom and chestnut pie
Vegetable toad in the hole
Cheesy carrot nut roast
Vegetarian haggis and mushroom wellington [vegan]
Carrot and white bean veggie cutlets
Beetroot and shallot tarte tatin from Delicious
Seitan roast stuffed with shiitakes and leeks from Post Punk Kitchen [vegan]

Cheese and onion plait (pictured above)
Carrot and cashew nut roast
Sage and onion homemade seitan roast
Cheesy lentil slice
Spinach and ricotta strudel with chickpeas
Chestnut and chickpea roast
Rainbow carrot, taleggio and hazelnut tarte tatin from Food To Glow
Huge Christmas sausage roast from Mouthwatering Vegan Recipes [vegan]

Creamy lentil and aubergine stack (pictured above)
Mini cheesy lentil loaves
Very veggie lentil bake
Cheesy potato and lentil pie
Mini mushroom picnic pies
Bulgar stuffed courgettes with pine nuts from Family Friends Food [vegan]
Tofu skin roulade with sage mushroom stuffing from Veggie Belly [vegan]
Mediterranean crescent ring from Erica's Recipes
Brie, potato and mushroom tart from Tinned Tomatoes

Potatoes

Next up, one of my favourite parts of the meal: the potatoes! a.k.a. the best vegetable ever. So good that it deserves its own category all to itself. I usually stick with roast potatoes, but if you're not a fan, there are loads of other options.

Perfect roast potatoes (pictured above) [vegan]
Buttery chateau potatoes
Cheesy herbed potatoes Anna
Hasselback potatoes with gorgonzola and honey from Jamie Oliver
Potato roses from Family Friends Food
Easy Dauphinoise potatoes from Kavey Eats
Easy sideways potato gratin from Family Friends Food

Low-key vegetable side dishes

Not all dishes at the table need to be battling for attention - some vegetables are just happy being simply served with tasty flavours. With all the super rich dishes that are sure to be around at Christmas, it's nice to choose to serve one or two more low-key vegetable sides as well to balance things out. Not to mention, they're usually quicker and easier to prepare (leaving you more time to nibble on chocolate)!

Honey and soy glazed carrots (pictured above)
Salt and vinegar roasted cauliflower [vegan]
Slow cooker ratatouille [vegan]
Maple dijon roasted Brussels sprouts from Closet Cooking [vegan]
Maple roasted rainbow carrots with fennel seeds from Food To Glow [vegan]
Braised greens from Jamie Oliver
Mediterranean roasted vegetables from Fab Food 4 All
Roasted red cabbage from Recipes From A Pantry [vegan]
Roasted Brussels sprouts from Hungry Healthy Happy [vegan]

Fancy vegetable side dishes

Having said that... when else can you pour cream all over your vegetables and call it good, if not at Christmas? Here are some more fancy vegetable side dishes - just one of these will probably be plenty.

Whole roasted cauliflower cheese (pictured above)
Roasted green beans with lemon and feta
Cheesy pesto white bean mash
Cheesy sweetcorn pudding
Creamed kale with chickpeas
Celeriac gratin from Jamie Oliver
Sweet potato gratin with chanterelle mushrooms and comté cheese from A Cozy Kitchen
Mini sweet potato gratins from Oh Sweet Basil

Stuffing

The dish that changes everything from an everyday Sunday roast to a super special Christmas dinner: stuffing! Even if you've got nothing to stuff, that doesn't stop you from having some stuffing on the side, and there are plenty of flavours to choose from.

Mushroom and chestnut vegetarian stuffing (pictured above) [vegan]
Roasted garlic and cauliflower stuffing
Herb stuffing with Brussels sprouts from Heartbeet Kitchen
Southern cornbread stuffing from Food To Glow [vegan]
Classic sage and onion stuffing from The Kitchn
Mixed mushroom stuffing from Jamie Oliver [vegan]
Squash and kale stuffing with sour cherries and pecans from Food To Glow [vegan]

Gravy

And finally, to tie everything together - lashings and lashings of gravy. Who says you need meat juices to make an amazing gravy?

The best homemade vegetarian gravy (pictured above) [vegan]
Caramelised onion gravy from Oh My Veggies [vegan]
Lentil gravy from Sodium Girl [vegan]
Vegetarian onion gravy from Kitchen Treaty [vegan]
Rich spring onion gravy from Food To Glow [vegan]

Dessert

If all that wasn't enough for you, you can always have dessert! These obviously aren't specific to a vegetarian Christmas dinner, but hey, we vegetarians like dessert too, right? Stick with something traditional, or go for something a bit more out-there... or both.

Super easy caramel pear crumble cake
Brûléed rhubarb and ginger cheesecake
Easy peanut butter chocolate pots
Toffee apple blondies
Homemade peanut butter millionaire's shortbread
Traditional Christmas pudding from A Mummy Too
Oreo and caramel cheesecake from Tinned Tomatoes
Death by chocolate cake from Coffee & Vanilla
Traditional figgy pudding from The Hedge Combers
Festiva cranberry, orange and walnut layer cake from Supergolden Bakes
Chocolate eclairs with cranberry and pistachio from Baking Queen 74
Cranberry and white chocolate trifle from Tin and Thyme

And there you have it. Hopefully even the fussiest of eaters will be able to find something they like in that lot! What will you be serving up for your vegetarian Christmas dinner this year?