Holiday Vegan Recipe: Cranberry and Pecan Rice Pilaf

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday! I spent it in Indiana with my boyfriend's family and was requested to bring a vegetarian dish because there would be two others besides me not eating turkey. I wanted to make something everyone would like so I searched online and found this rice recipe on Oh She Glows. It turns out that my dish was the only thing vegan on the table because even all of the other sides had cheese or milk. In fact, the mashed potato recipe called for SIX packages of cream cheese. Of course, it was all delicious but my stomach hurt for days (because I also kept eating the yummy leftovers).

Cranberry and Pecan Rice Pilaf

Ingredients

3/4 cup pecans

1 sweet onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups chopped celery

1 1/2 cups dry brown/wild rice mix

4 cups vegetable broth (or dilute with water)

1 bay leaf

3/4 cup dried cranberries

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

If pecans are not bought toasted, bake them in your oven at 350F for 8-10 minutes, until brown. Heat skillet with some olive oil on low heat and add onion and garlic. Sauté for about 5 minutes. Add 1.5 cups of the celery (leaving 1/2 a cup raw) to the skillet and cook for another 5 minutes. Slowly add the rice and vegetable broth. Use water if you don't have enough broth. Also add the bay leaf. Cover the pan and reduce to low heat. Let simmer for about 30 minutes. Then, check on the dish to see if the broth/water has dissolved. Keep cooking until it has and the mixture can be moist when you're done. Take out the bay leaf and mix in the cranberries, pecans, remaining raw celery, and salt and pepper. Now you have a delicious rice dish that everyone will enjoy!

What was your favorite food at the Thanksgiving table?

Did you or your host have to cater to any special diets?