What on earth is Nutrituional Yeast - in an ingredient list.
that is something vegans eat for vitamin B12. To me it tastes like fake cheese. It's usually sprinkled on dishes.
Also used for gravy. Treat it like it's mushroom flavoring, adds "umami" flavor.
Dried shiitake mushrooms also make a great gravy; better if you also add oyster mushrooms. Make stock with some bouquet garni, and thicken with a little cornstarch.
Sounds like you have a plan, but for future reference.
I would grill or roast the tofurkey, if that's what they requested, and serve with nutritional yeast gravy or navy bean soup as gravy. Honestly, though, tofurkey is something that only ex-meat-eaters want for the first one or two Thanksgivings of veganhood.
Grilled portobello cap is easier and a far superior center dish; marinade with balsamic vinegar and garlic, and broil. Serve with steak knives, and even the die-hard carnivores will eat it. You can make gravy out of the stems. If you can get fresh shiitake, boil them lightly, then grill or broil, no seasoning needed, and serve them with the portobello; too expensive to make a meal just with them.
Another good meaty, yummy dish is deep-fried tofu--press the water out of the tofu first, then slice 3/8" thick, fry in corn oil until golden and chewy, serve with soy sauce with garlic, minced scallion, and vinegar, maybe some minced ginger. Or inari sushi; serve with soy sauce on the side, maybe with a drop of vinegar. Use some wild rice for luxurious texture.
I've served baked tofu, too. Press, then bake until warm inside. If you round out the corners, and wrap it in whole-wheat seitan dough, then bake, it almost looks like a cornish game hen, and tastes like it, too.
If you are bringing out the grill, you can grill 3/8-inch slices of yams or sweet potatoes, or both. Serve with soy sauce or balsamic vinegar on the side. Or, you can mash the grilled slices—top with a little malt syrup, if available, or maple syrup, and only the traditionalists will insist on the mashed potatoes.
You can "pickle" some daikon radish, by slicing them 1/4" thick, salt them, and leave them on a plate, without any overlapping, with a pool of vinegar. Turn the radish slices over after 10 minutes, and it's ready to serve. You can add sliced carrots.
Another winner that is Thanksgiving-worthy is roasted bell peppers. Quarter and de-seed the peppers. Broil them skin-side up until the skin starts to burn and smoke. Slice them into 3/8" strips, skin and all. Toss with enough olive oil to coat. Toss with balsamic vinegar to taste. Chill. The juice that forms will slightly slimy, and can be used like gravy, especially grilled sweet potatoes. You can do something similar with Roma tomatoes.
Hummus almost never fails with vegans. Serve with crunchy toasted bread or roasted vegetables. If you want to really rock the boat, serve hummus and tahini instead of mashed potatoes.
Consider making your own cranberry sauce if fresh cranberries are available. Really easy; use less water than recipes usually ask for, like maybe half as much as needed to cover the berries, and try about half as much sugar as the recipe asks for. Add a little cloves and orange zest. Using real maple syrup instead of half the sugar makes the flavor more complex.
For dessert, you can make shortbreads, substituting palm oil for butter, and then adding some water until the consistency is right. Add some extra sugar for better browning. Halva loaves are also good desserts (read the ingredients, as sometimes they add eggs); with or without chocolate, sometimes with pistachios. Try serving plain old white rice with some real maple syrup or sugar syrup flavored with saffron and/or orange zest. Sorbets are usually vegan. You can also make pumpkin pie by just baking or boiling the pumpkin, smashing it, cooking it while adding a little water water, sugar, and pumpkin spice to taste, and then baking in a shell with some sugar sprinkled on top. If you have a brulée torch, use it for any of these.