How to throw a very merry flexitarian holiday feast

Famed chef Teresa Carles is a pioneer in the culinary world, especially when it comes to vegetarian, vegan and flexitarian cuisine. Holiday meals are often heavily dominated by meat dishes, chicken broth-based soups, and carbs on top of more carbs. So when we collaborated with Carles to curate a traditional flexitarian holiday feast at Flax and Kale’s La Roca Village location, her imaginative dishes not only resembled the conventional ones, but they were bursting with flavour and absolutely divine.

“For me, my life is vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes, and nuts,” the Flax and Kale chef explains. “For 43 years I’ve only come up with menus and dishes that are vegetable-based, so meat or fish dishes don’t really enter my mind. Here I’ve created a very similar experience despite not including meat or fish in traditional dishes like escudella or cannelloni. The plates greatly resemble a traditional Christmas feast.”

Cannelloni is typically the most traditional Catalan Christmas dish. It’s packed with meat and smothered with heavy béchamel sauce–two ingredients definitely not included in flexitarian cooking. But for Carles, a native Catalonian, cannelloni is a must-have holiday dish. Carles’ version is made with homemade whole-wheat pasta and filled with a mix of mushrooms, nuts, and truffles. “The mushrooms provide a ton of flavour and umami, especially this time of year. They’re very fulfilling,” she explains.

Next, the pièce de résistance, the béchamel sauce. The much healthier, yet extremely similar version, is made from cashew milk and blended with truffle. It looks, feels, and tastes just like traditional béchamel.

Winter is coming, which means artichoke season will shortly be in full swing. For Carles, artichoke dishes very much remind her of Christmas – not to mention it’s a novel vegetable not eaten every day. “I take the artichoke hearts and fill them with a mix of mushrooms and caramelised onions, then top them off with a poached quail egg,” she shares.

You’ll find most Catalan Christmas tables feature a hearty, nourishing galets soup. Carles’ flexitarian twist not only warms the soul but is oh-so-delicious. Not to mention, you can order the dish at Flax & Kale in the Village! The broth is what truly makes the ramen truly special – made by cooking a whole host of vegetables for hours. “Once the broth has a full-bodied flavour, I take the vegetables, mash them and roll them with tofu and nori,” explains Carles. “I make it with traditional flavours such as seaweed, soy sauce and miso.” As for the ramen’s noodles, they’re made of sweet potato and Japanese tapioca.

Vegan foie is a dish that reads like an oxymoron yet is surprisingly delicious and satisfying. It’s made with B and soy proteins and a hint of beetroot for colouring. “This foie can be very complicated,” Carles explains. “The sauce on top is made of vegetables with a reduction of walnut oil, pea protein and a splash of red wine.”

Thinly-sliced, oven-baked eggplant gently hugging mushrooms, onions, peppers and cashew ricotta, sitting atop a base of sundried tomatoes and vegan mayonnaise. Yum. “I love this dish,” Carles admits. “This is a classic dish we serve in Lleida. The vegan mayo and the sundried tomato are really standout flavours. It’s a great dish to share with friends and family for Christmas.”

And as we all know, Christmastime is all about sharing. “It’s important to serve the artichokes, eggplant, and vegan foie at the beginning of the feast because they’re really dishes to share,” Carles advises. “And then everyone can indulge in their own cannelloni.” Amen.

Finally, dessert. This special Christmas cake is commonly served throughout Catalonia. It resembles the trunk of a tree or a log and takes the place of Santa Claus, who traditionally doesn’t exist in Catalan culture. The cake’s outer ring consists of brown chocolate and is filled with toasted almond turrón cream. Carles’ version appears and tastes nearly identical but is made with olive oil-based chocolate, almond and coconut cream and a gluten-free biscuit.