I know so many people who are eating dairy-free these days: kids with dairy allergies, friends on Whole 30, vegans, and some who are somehow finding themselves a little less tolerant to dairy as they age.
(Ahem, speaking for a friend, of course.)
Whatever the reason, it’s not easy navigating or hosting the holidays wondering what you should avoid or serve to friends with different diets and food needs. And yes, you can totally roast seasonal vegetables tossed in olive oil (which by the way, you should) to suit everyone, but adapting traditional mashed potatoes are a different story.
Check out these five classic holiday side dishes all made totally dairy-free, that are sure to please everyone at the table.
Top: Dairy-Free Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes at What Great Grandma Ate.
Related: 9 mashed potato alternatives for your holiday table. (No offense, mashed potatoes!)
5 classic and delicious dairy-free holiday side dishes
1. Making mashed potatoes dairy-free
Classic holiday side dishes (and really, all dishes) are often made with butter so your best bet for making them dairy-free is to replace the butter with a vegan butter or ghee. That’s exactly what Jean does in her excellent recipe for Dairy-Free Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes at What Great Grandma Ate. Both ghee and coconut milk add a richness to the russet potatoes, making me wonder if I should always ditch the cream.
No Instant Pot? No problem. Jean also adds stovetop instructions just in case you don’t have one.
Tip: If you don’t want to make your own ghee, many grocery store brands like Organic Valley have started making ghee for purchase.
2. Making green bean casserole dairy-free
Naturally dairy and gluten-free, the Oven Roasted Garlic, Bacon & Brown Sugar Green Beans at Allergy Awesomeness could make you forget that green bean casserole recipe entirely. It’s just that good.
As a mother of a child with severe allergies, Megan is an expert on allergy-friendly recipes, and also on what kids like to eat. So I think you’ll love her site, and not just this smart dairy-free adaption of a classic holiday side dish. But start here anyway; she even offers a couple of options for cooking the beans, depending on whether your kids like them tender or crisp.
Related: 6 spice mixes you can use on veggies to tempt even the pickiest kids.
3. Making holiday dinner rolls dairy-free
There’s no need to miss out on buttery soft dinner rolls with recipes like these Simple Vegan Dinner Rolls from Minimalist Baker. Dana has been making vegan recipes for so long, I always trust she’ll have a great option, no matter what I need. Her easy-to-follow instructions help even novice bakers achieve dinner-roll success.
I suggest checking out the readers comments below the recipe for additional tips like how to make this holiday side gluten-free.
4. Making scalloped sweet potatoes dairy-free
For the friends and family that still crave a creamy, starchy holiday side dish beyond classic mashed potatoes, treat them to this Paleo-frirendly, dairy-free scalloped sweet potato recipe at The Roasted Root. A creamy cauliflower puree adds a sauce-like richness that pairs wonderfully with the potatoes and other herbs and spices. Such a treat to go with virtually any holiday main course at all.
Bonus: It also happens to be a great dish to make a day or so ahead of time to save you some hassle the day you’re feasting; simply rewarm before serving.
Related: 12 prep ahead holiday cooking tricks to ease last minute stress (and cleanup!) in the kitchen.
5. Making wild rice stuffing dairy-free
For a great twist on a crowd-pleasing stuffing recipe for your holiday table, I love this Best Ever Wild Rice Stuffing from Iowa Girl Eats. Kristin makes her version with wild rice, bacon, cranberries and almonds, but you can skip the bacon to make it meat-free, and simply replace the two tablespoons of regular butter with ghee to make it entirely dairy-free. Which, by the way, is a whole lot less than the two sticks of butter my usual stuffing recipe calls for. Colorful and flavorful, my whole family is looking forward to this one this year.
