Vegetarian Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner
Being a vegetarian can be tough sometimes. Especially on Thanksgiving.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of food on the Thanksgiving table that vegetarians can eat. Most of the traditional dishes – stuffing, potatoes, veggies, cranberries – are either meatless or easy to make that way. But these are all side dishes, and they look like it. Without that big roast turkey in the middle of the table, the meal just looks like something is missing.
So when I started to put together this Vegetarian Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner, I knew I needed a fancy main dish to take center stage. Something like a whole butternut squash, cut in half and stuffed with a hearty quinoa stuffing. The quinoa supplies protein, and the other ingredients – onion, pecans, cranberries, spice, and more squash – supply flavor galore.
This show-stopping main course takes the place of turkey, stuffing, and cranberries all in one. All it needs is some roasted Brussels sprouts and potatoes on the side to make a complete Thanksgiving feast without a scrap of meat anywhere.
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Plus, since everything roasts on one pan, every part of the meal is guaranteed to be ready at the same time. Now that’s something to be thankful for.
Vegetarian Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Slice both butternut squash in half and scoop out seeds.
- From ONE of the squash, remove skin (you can use a potato peeler or knife to cut it off). Cut the flesh of that squash into bite-sized pieces. For the REMAINING squash, rub both sides with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place on the sheet pan, cut side down.
- Cut baby potatoes in half (or leave whole if very small), rinse, and place in medium bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Spread on the sheet pan alongside squash. Begin to bake the sheet pan for about 20-30 minutes, until squash is soft.
- Meanwhile, prepare the quinoa stuffing. Saute onions in two tablespoons butter over medium heat until soft and translucent.
- Add the cut butternut squash pieces, minced garlic, cinnamon, sea salt, pepper, and cumin. Saute for 1-2 minutes longer until garlic is fragrant and spices are combined.
- Add quinoa and broth to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes until all of the liquid has been absorbed. Add pecans and cranberries to the cooked quinoa and toss to combine and fluff the stuffing.
- When the sheet pan has completed its initial bake, remove it from the oven. Turn over the squash and scoop out most of the flesh. The cooked flesh can be mixed into the prepared quinoa stuffing or used for another purpose.
- Mound the prepared stuffing into the squash “boats”, place a couple pats of butter over each boat, and cover with aluminum foil. Stir the potatoes. Toss together brussels sprouts, olive oil, salt, and pepper and spread on the other side of the sheet pan.
- Return entire sheet pan to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes longer, until Brussels sprouts and potatoes are cooked through. Remove aluminum foil from the squash, and bake for 5 minutes longer to toast the top of the stuffing. Sprinkle sheet pan with pomegranate seeds and fresh chopped parsley and serve.
How can I store my Thanksgiving Leftovers?
- Storage: Store everything in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or freeze up to 1 month.
- I love to pack up leftovers in a couple lunchboxes for a yummy work lunch.
Recipe Tips:
- I love the festive, rustic look of the colorful baby potatoes, but you can use red potatoes, fingerling potatoes, or golden potatoes, too. These all take about 1 hour to cook and get crispy brown. Be sure to stir midway through so that both sides can get browned.
- You could swap in/out other vegetables for the Brussels sprouts such as asparagus or green beans (both have much shorter cook times) or small potatoes.
- The quinoa stuffing is vegetarian and *can* be vegan if you substitute another cooking oil for the butter. The stuffing is soooooo delicious – the cinnamon and cumin give it a lovely fall flavor.
- You can also use pre-cut butternut squash for the stuffing part of the recipe and just use one whole butternut squash to load with the stuffing for the sheet pan bake. Pre-cut butternut squash is typically available in my supermarket produce section.
More Thanksgiving Recipes We Love!
- Classic Green Bean Casserole
- Thanksgiving Crockpot Recipes
- Savory Cauliflower Stuffing
- Roasted Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe
- Thanksgiving Appetizer Platter
Vegetarian Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner
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Ingredients
Quinoa Stuffing Ingredients:
- 2 whole butternut squash
- 1/2 large yellow onion diced
- 6 tablespoons salted butter divided
- 2-3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup pecans
- 1 heaping cup dried cranberries
Potatoes:
- 2 pounds baby potatoes
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
- salt/pepper to taste
Brussels Sprouts:
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts rinsed, trimmed, and cut in half
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Freshly chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Slice both butternut squash in half and scoop out seeds.
- From ONE of the squash, remove skin (you can use a potato peeler or knife to cut it off). Cut the flesh of that squash into bite-sized pieces. For the REMAINING squash, rub both sides with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place on the sheet pan, cut side down.
- Cut baby potatoes in half (or leave whole if very small), rinse, and place in medium bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Spread on the sheet pan alongside squash.
- Begin to bake the sheet pan for about 20-30 minutes, until squash is soft.
- Meanwhile, prepare the quinoa stuffing. Saute onions in two tablespoons butter over medium heat until soft and translucent.
- Add the cut butternut squash pieces, minced garlic, cinnamon, sea salt, pepper, and cumin. Saute for 1-2 minutes longer until garlic is fragrant and spices are combined.
- Add quinoa and broth to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes until all of the liquid has been absorbed. Add pecans and cranberries to the cooked quinoa and toss to combine and fluff the stuffing.
- When the sheet pan has completed its initial bake, remove it from the oven. Turn over the squash and scoop out most of the flesh. The cooked flesh can be mixed into the prepared quinoa stuffing or used for another purpose.
- Mound the prepared stuffing into the squash “boats”, place a couple pats of butter over each boat, and cover with aluminum foil.
- Stir the potatoes.
- Toss together Brussels sprouts, olive oil, salt, and pepper and spread on the other side of the sheet pan.
- Return entire sheet pan to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes longer, until Brussels sprouts and potatoes are cooked through. Remove aluminum foil from the squash, and bake for 5 minutes longer to toast the top of the stuffing.
- Sprinkle sheet pan with pomegranate seeds and fresh chopped parsley and serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer: Family Fresh Meals is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
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