Cooking is a joy. Cooking is rewarding. Cooking is stressful. Cooking is confusing. Cooking means different things to different people, and during the holiday season, everything is turned up to the max. With Thanksgiving just a few weeks away, that pressure only grows.
If you love cooking for friends and family on Thanksgiving but sometimes feel a little out of your element when it comes to what to make and how to make it, you’re not alone. A 2024 survey by Innerbody found that nearly 40 percent of Americans say hosting—which includes cooking and cleaning up after a feast—is one of the most stressful parts of Thanksgiving.
But here’s the thing: there is nothing like the smell of homemade food filling your kitchen on Thanksgiving Day. It’s that warm, cozy reminder that you created something from scratch. And the good news? Achieving that doesn’t have to be hard or overwhelming. What if expert chefs were right there with you to guide you step-by-step? What if every recipe were simple, perfected, and designed to help you shine?
Online culinary school Rouxbe (pronounced like “roo-be”) has launched an exclusive “Plantsgiving” guide designed to make cooking a vegan Thanksgiving feast easier, more rewarding, and more impressive than ever. With recipes, videos, and detailed chef tips, it’s a resource that can help you pull off a holiday showstopper quickly—even if you’re new to plant-based cooking.
“The guide offers something for everyone,” says Rouxbe’s Director of Culinary & Development, Dan Marek. “Whether you’re planning a fully plant-based feast or simply want to incorporate a few new plant-based dishes into your traditional Thanksgiving menu.”
Rouxbe’s new Plantsgiving guide will help you cook an impressive holiday feast.
Rouxbe’s brand-new Plantsgiving guide
When most people imagine a Thanksgiving meal, they automatically think of turkey. That’s not an assumption, it’s a fact. Research from the National Turkey Federation suggests that 74 percent of American households plan to serve a whole turkey this Thanksgiving, while 87 percent say that turkey usually features on their holiday table in some capacity. But that still leaves a significant slice of the population—about 44 million people—looking for an alternative in 2025.
If that’s you, welcome. And if you’re the one doing all the cooking, cooking school Rouxbe has you completely covered.
Instructional videos are a key part of the digital school’s approach. They replicate an authentic, in-person tutorial experience, showing exactly how and why certain cooking techniques work. It’s not just “soak macadamia nuts” or “blend until smooth,” it’s about teaching the underlying skills so you can carry that knowledge forward beyond the holidays.
The Plantsgiving guide teaches cooking skills that can be useful beyond the holiday season. | Rouxbe
Macadamia cheese, borrowed from Rouxbe’s Plant-Based Intro and Pro culinary training courses, is just one of the recipes included in the Plantsgiving guide. The downloadable manual also features lessons on how to make a delicious, versatile, plant-based cornbread from acclaimed pastry chef and cookbook author Fran Costigan, who is the Director of Vegan Desserts at Rouxbe.
“The guide goes well beyond recipes,” explains Eric Wynkoop, Rouxbe’s Director of Culinary Instruction. “It incorporates access to lessons, tips, techniques and more. Yes, you get access to incredible curated recipes, but you also get a mini-course that enables cooks to start developing their culinary skills.”
Other recipes from Costigan—loaded with her expert tips and tricks—include freshly baked biscuits (from her Essential Vegan Desserts course) and vegan pumpkin pie with candied walnuts. Costigan has been evolving her beloved pumpkin pie recipe since 2006, so you know it’s a tried-and-tested Thanksgiving-worthy dessert guaranteed to impress your family and friends.
If pumpkin pie isn’t your thing, the guide also includes French chef Jacques Pépin’s apple tart, as well as sweet dishes like brown rice pudding, bittersweet ganache glaze, and chocolate cake. These appear alongside an array of impressive Thanksgiving sides, including garlic mashed potatoes, raw cranberry relish, and potatoes fondant.
Of course, the guide also covers the main event, as—let’s be honest—it’s not Plantsgiving without an impressive centerpiece. Learn how to perfect dishes like plant-based meatloaf, lentil shepherd’s pie, hearts of palm crab cakes, and seitan roast. The latter is courtesy of chef, nutrition expert, and Rouxbe culinary instructor Char Nolan.
The Plantsgiving guide will also help you perfect indulgent festive desserts. | Rouxbe
The guide also features recipes and tips from Dan Buettner, National Geographic explorer and the first person to identify the Blue Zones—five regions of the world known for longevity. One of his recipes in the Plantsgiving guide, Eleni’s Sourdough Bread, comes straight from the kitchen of “an energetic, fast-talking, 70-something-year-old” from the Sardinia Blue Zone. Meli’s Family Minestrone is inspired by another Sardinian family dish, while Three Sisters Cherokee Succotash comes from the Cherokee people of the Smoky and Blue Ridge Mountains.
Why choose to learn to cook with Rouxbe
The world has changed dramatically in the last few years. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns helped many people realize just how much is possible without ever leaving home. But this is something Rouxbe, which offers several online cooking courses of various lengths and difficulties, has known for nearly two decades.
From the start, the online culinary school has embraced a digital-first model, allowing people to learn and perfect their skills in their own kitchens, without sacrificing the quality, feedback, and personal touch of traditional instruction.
Another way the world has changed? Things have gotten really expensive. In fact, according to recent research by Capital One and The Decision Lab, around 77 percent of Americans are feeling anxious in some way about their current financial situation.
Restaurant meals, cooking classes, and especially traditional culinary schools—where full-time diplomas can cost upwards of $30,000—are out of reach for many. Most people also can’t uproot their lives to attend a faraway institute.
Rouxbe, however, offers the equivalent of a structured culinary school experience, complete with real chef feedback, personalized assessments, and professional-level instruction. But it’s just more flexible, more affordable, and designed for real life.
If you’re not quite ready for a full culinary course with Rouxbe, the Plantsgiving guide is the perfect starting point. And with Thanksgiving just around the corner, it’s an easy way to create a stunning, plant-based holiday feast quickly. But beyond the recipes, the goal is to spark a deeper joy in cooking, one that inspires curiosity, confidence, and a desire to keep learning long after the holidays are over.
“We believe that learning learning cooking methods and technique builds lasting confidence in the kitchen,” adds Wynkoop. “While we love a great recipe, our goal is to empower people with the skills to cook meals they’re proud of—not just this Thanksgiving, but for years to come. Whether you’re cooking for yourself, family, or friends, developing strong culinary skills gives you the ability to create delicious, inspired meals consistently and with ease—and that makes plant-based eating feel approachable rather than intimidating.”
From Plantsgiving to professional chef
Rouxbe currently offers several vegan-focused culinary courses. There’s Intro to Plants, designed to help beginners build foundational skills and confidence. Plants Professional, developed in partnership with renowned plant-based chef Chad Sarno, helps intermediate and advanced cooks continue their development.
For those with a sweet tooth, there’s Essential Vegan Desserts. Led by Costigan, students learn to perfect indulgent sweets without the need for eggs or dairy. The Plants Protocol course dives into the health benefits of plant-based nutrition, while Plants RX is geared toward medical professionals who want to help their patients make healthier food choices. Finally, there’s Buettner’s Blue Zones Longevity course, which explores the culinary traditions and dietary principles from the world’s longest-lived regions.
“Rouxbe is definitely a great platform to dive into plant-based cooking. Most of us grew up and learned how to cook with animal products, and it’s a whole different game when you take these out of the equation,” says one satisfied Rouxbe student in a written review.
They’re not alone. Rouxbe’s reviews are full of positive feedback, with many students saying their kitchen confidence has improved significantly since taking one of the online school’s courses. Others praise the company’s distinct approach, featuring video tutorials and detailed, step-by-step recipes packed with chef tips and tricks.
Online teaching makes cooking classes and schooling more affordable and accessible.
One happy student writes: “I am a visual learner, and it really helped to watch videos and see pictures of recipes in the process. It is also wonderful to be able to take this course online, almost at my own pace, with just enough time constraints to make me keep going.”
Another adds, “The knowledge, confidence, and skills gained from this course have forever changed me. I could not be more grateful for all of the wonderful lessons learned on this cooking journey.”
To learn more about what Rouxbe has to offer—and to download the special Plantsgiving guide (it’s $25 and worth every penny)—click here. The guide is available right up until Thanksgiving Day.
“We hope the guide makes the holiday a culinary success,” says Wynkoop. “Beyond that, if you’re inspired to take your skills to the next level, we’d love for you to join us for a full course. After all, most of us eat three times a day—and at Rouxbe, we believe each of those meals can be pretty fantastic.”
Thank you to Rouxbe for partnering with VegNews on this story.
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Charlotte is a VegNews editor and writer based in sunny Southsea on England's southern coast.
