Christmas can be Christmas without ham and without hurt feelings. "We can put aside our political differences, our problems and our baggage and we can be in the moment with the food," says O'Donnel. "There's something pretty powerful about that."

If La Gaga's ensemble was more than another look-at-me demand, I missed it. But okay, it worked. Another meaty image appears in Kim O'Donnel's new book The Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook.

I used to live in Asia, from whence soyfoods originated about 2,000 or so years ago and where tofu chefs and tempeh artisans are respected and revered...

Passover, like Easter, is a spring holiday, marking the season of renewal and rebirth. It's time to rethink our priorities and our traditions. Meat consumption really is a case where less is more.

It's been a big year for the food movement.