Not all Canadians eat meat. But pinning down the number who call themselves vegetarians is no easy task.

Several polls suggest that somewhere between three and 10 per cent of North Americans consider themselves vegetarian, although some of the respondents said they sometimes eat meat, fish or poultry. In a 2006 Harris poll commissioned by the Vegetarian Resource Group, 2.3 per cent of those surveyed said they never eat meat, poultry, or fish/seafood. When the list is narrowed, 6.7 per cent said they never eat meat.

Furthermore, 1.4 per cent of those surveyed said they also don't consume dairy products or eggs, which would classify them as vegans.

Whatever the number, a walk up and down the aisles of Canada's major supermarket chains suggests there's a strong market for vegetarian products.

There are different types of vegetarianism:

• If you're a vegan, you eat no animal products whatsoever.
• If you're lacto-ovo, then you would include milk and eggs.
• If you're lacto-vegetarian, you'd include dairy.
• If you're semi-vegetarian, you would still include some animal products like chicken and fish.

Vegetarians need to replace the protein and amino acids non-vegetarians get from their diet – so some planning is required, according to Melodie Yong, a registered dietitian with the healthy heart program at St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver. The more restrictive your diet, the more planning you should be doing. Yong says this is especially true with children: they need vital nutrients that are important for growth, like calcium and iron, vitamin D and especially protein.

• External link: A new food guide for North American vegetarians (pdf)

"It's really important, especially if you don't include dairy products, to make sure you get high calcium plant foods, which would be in things like almonds or sesame seeds and dark green vegetables like broccoli or kale," Yong told CBC News. "So it just takes planning, and I would definitely recommend people talk to a registered dietician to make sure they're covering all their bases."

If you're planning a holiday feast that will involve vegetarians and non-vegetarians, there are some options you could consider, to make everyone feel welcome:

• Consider not serving turkey. Make the whole meal vegetarian.
• If you are serving the traditional turkey and all the fixings, add a special vegetarian entrée and meat-free gravy.
• Provide a wide variety of vegetarian side dishes such as baked squash, roasted vegetables, wild rice, baked or mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce.
• Make all appetizers vegetarian. You don't have to serve pate or seafood to make your first course tidbits delectable.
• Letting your vegetarian guests bring their own entrée may put both you and them at ease.
• Prepare a second batch of stuffing – one that's not cooked inside the turkey.

Vegetarians now have store-bought alternatives to traditional holiday turkeys. At least two products – Unturkey and Torfurkey – are available through natural food stores and some supermarket outlets.

Or, you could prepare your own tofu-based "turkey" meal. Here's one recipe that will go down well with the strictest vegetarians at your table:

Tofu Turkey with Stuffing

Yield: 8 servings

2.5 kg firm tofu

STUFFING INGREDIENTS

• 30 ml toasted sesame oil
• 1 large onion, chopped fine
• 300 ml celery, diced (about 4 stalks)
• 250 ml finely chopped mushrooms
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 30-60 ml sage
• 10 ml marjoram
• 5 ml thyme
• 5 ml savory
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 10 ml rosemary
• 10 ml celery seed
• 60 ml soy sauce or tamari
• 750 ml prepared stuffing

BASTING MIXTURE

• 125 ml toasted sesame oil
• 60-80 ml soy sauce or Tamari
• 30 ml miso
• 30 ml orange juice
• 5 ml mustard
• 500 g tofu for the "drumsticks"

Mash tofu or mix well with hands. Be sure that all of the lumps are out. Line a large colander with wet cheesecloth overlapping the sides. Add the mashed tofu to the cloth- covered colander, press down and cover with the overlapping sides. Place in a large bowl. Cover the cheesecloth with a plate that fits inside the colander and place a 2.5-kg weight on the plate. Refrigerate and let sit for two to three hours.

When time is up, start the stuffing. Sauté the onions, celery and mushrooms in the two tablespoons sesame oil. When soft, add the garlic and all the rest of the stuffing ingredients, except stuffing, mixing well. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add herb stuffing and mix well.

Remove tofu from fridge and take off weight, plate and top of cheesecloth. Hollow out tofu to within 1 inch of the sides and bottom, placing the tofu in a bowl. Place the stuffing inside the shell and pack in firmly. Cover with the remaining tofu and pat down firmly. Turn stuffed tofu onto a greased baking sheet, flat side down. Gently press on sides of "turkey" to achieve a more oval shape.

If desired at this point, mold "drumsticks" out of 500 g of tofu, and place on each side of the "turkey."

Mix up the basting mixture and baste tofu "turkey" with half of it. Cover the "turkey" with foil, and bake at 200 C for about an hour.

Remove foil, baste with all but 50 ml of the remaining mixture and return to the oven for another hour, or until the "turkey" is golden. Remove from oven and use rest of basting mix.

Using at least 2 large spatulas, move to a large plate. Serve with the gravy of your choice and cranberry sauce – and the rest of your vegetarian fixings.