There are currently over 3 million vegetarians in the UK, which has doubled over the last 10 years.  So we thought it would be only right to cater for their taste buds too.  Here are our top vegetarian recipes and tips to cater for our herbivore friends this festive season, without a nut roast in sight!

For starters;

Truffled Parsnip & Parmesean Bruschetta

Ingredients
1 mini ciabatta or panini roll, cut into 12 x ½cm slices
1 garlic clove , halved
50g butter
3 large parsnips , halved and quartered, cored and cut into 1cm cubes
1 tsp truffle oil , plus more to serve if you like
2 tbsp olive oil , plus more to serve
handful rocket leaves
50g Parmesan shavings

Method
1. Heat a griddle pan and toast the bread for about 2 mins on each side until golden and marked. Rub the cut side of the garlic clove over each piece.
2. Heat the butter in a large frying pan. Add the parsnips, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, then cook over a medium heat, shaking regularly until golden and softened, about 20 mins. Add a splash of water if you need to. Remove from the heat and whizz to a purée in a food processor with both of the oils. Season to taste. Set aside at room temperature if serving on the day. Can be chilled up to 2 days ahead.
3. To serve, top the toasts with the truffled parsnip mix (it should be room temperature), scatter with rocket leaves and Parmesan shavings, then drizzle with a little more olive oil or truffle oil.

And try this instead of the Turkey for mains;

Festive Fillet 

Ingredients
4 Grassington’s Gardein Turkey Style Fillets*
3 tsp olive oil
50g onion, finely chopped
4 cardamom pods, slightly split
5 large oranges, juice of all and grated zest of one
50g day-old wholegrain bread, crusts removed, roughly torn
50g unsalted cashew nuts, roughly chopped
12 sprigs dill (4 reserved for garnish)
2 tsp brown sugar
Pre-heat oven to Gas 5/180C

Method
1. Line a roasting tin with foil and bake the fillets for 16 minutes.
2. Heat 2 tsp oil in a large frying pan and sauté the onion until soft. Add the cardamom pods, orange zest and orange juice, leaving back 4-5 tbsp of juice.
3. Add the fillets and turn briefly to coat each side with the sauce. They will absorb quite a lot of the liquid so pour in more orange juice if necessary. Set aside.
4. Rub the bread to create breadcrumbs. Chop nuts and dill until fine and mix with breadcrumbs. (Alternatively, mix in a processor until crumbs form - in between coarse and fine).
5. Heat the remaining oil in a medium sized frying pan and add the breadcrumb mixture, stirring gently until starting to become crispy.
6. Peel and slice the root vegetables and steam until soft. Mash well and add sufficient stock or cream to make a soft purée.
7. To serve, place 3 good tbsp of the purée in the centre of each plate; cut each fillet diagonally into two slices and place on top. Sprinkle the toasted crumbs over the slices, pressing into the fillet where possible.
8. To finish the sauce, remove the cardamom pods and stir in the sugar and pomegranate molasses. Heat briefly before pouring around the fillets. Garnish with dill.

© Sarah Kearns 2008, recipe created for The Vegetarian Society.

So what about catering for a Vegetarian guest for meat-eaters? Here are our top five tips from the Vegetarian Society to ensure all runs smoothly

It’s good to talk!

Find out whether your guest is a vegetarian or a vegan. Vegetarians don't eat meat, poultry, game, fish, shellfish, crustacea or any other product which has been made from slaughtering an animal. They also tend to use free-range eggs. Vegans go a bit further by also cutting out milk, dairy products, eggs and honey.

Look closely
Be careful and watch out for products that could contain things like animal fats, gelatine (which turns up in lots of desserts) and animal rennet (which can be used in cheese).

Double dose
Whatever you decide to prepare for your veggie guest, allow for a couple of extra portions because the meat-eaters almost always want to try 'just a little'…

Unfamiliar ingredients
You should be able to find the ingredients for most vegetarian recipes most big supermarkets, but if you have difficulty getting hold of the ingredients you find in other veggie recipes, try your local health food shop.

Keep it separate
If you're having a traditional Christmas dinner, your veggie guests will probably enjoy sharing the roast potatoes, veg and gravy, so cook them in vegetable oil, separately from the meat. Vegetarian gravy granules and mixes are readily available in supermarkets and the majority of stuffing mixes are suitable for vegetarians and vegans, so look out for one that mentions this on the packet – plus this will save on your washing up!

For more information on all things vegetarian, visit http://www.vegsoc.org/index.html