We won’t lie to you. Sticking to a vegan meal plan over the holidays can be challenging – especially if you’re new to a plant-based diet. The temptation is everywhere! Between turkey, ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, casseroles and pies, this is likely the biggest test of your self-control you’ll have all year long.
The holidays are tough even for me, and I’ve eaten a plant-based diet for years. My weakness? Cheesy potatoes. They remind me of celebrating the holidays as a kid. Every Thanksgiving, without fail, someone in my family would make an ooey, gooey batch of scalloped potatoes with a crunchy breadcrumb topping. It’s truly my favorite comfort food – which is exactly why I decided to veganize it for this year’s festivities.
I recently used the sauce from this vegan mac and cheese recipe to make vegan scalloped potatoes for a potluck dinner. Holy smokes. You won’t even miss the cheddar in this classic recipe turned plant-based. Surprisingly, there isn’t a drop of plastic-y, fake cheese in the entire dish. Seriously! This is as homemade as it gets when it comes to vegan “cheese” sauce. It even pairs well with cooked broccoli or cauliflower. I plan to try it on every veggie I can get my hands on.
Just a heads up – the sauce is going to taste really salty before you bake it. Don’t panic! The raw potatoes will absorb a lot of the salt as the dish gets warm and bubbly in the oven. The end result is a darn good vegan version of a classic holiday recipe. Enjoy!
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PinIngredients
For the potatoes:
- 2 pounds of russet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/8” rounds
- 2/3 cup earth balance
- 1/2 cup unsweetened, non-dairy milk (soy, almond, or coconut)
- 4 tbsp. shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 c. red or yellow potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1/2 c. carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2/3 c. onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 c. water
- 1/2 c. raw cashews, soaked for at least 6 hours
- 4 tsp. sea salt
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. paprika
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne, optional
For the topping:
- 4 tablespoons melted Earth Balance
- 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. In a medium saucepan, add shallots, chopped potatoes, carrots, onion, and water, and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until vegetables are very soft.
- Add the cashews, salt, garlic, 2/3 cup Earth Balance, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper, paprika and cayenne to a blender or food processor along with the cooked vegetables and cooking water. Blend until smooth and creamy, gradually adding the non-dairy milk. Warning: The sauce is going to taste very salty at this point. Don’t panic! The raw potatoes will absorb a lot of the salt during the baking process.
- Transfer half of the sliced potatoes into a greased 9×13 baking dish. Pour half of the sauce evenly over the potatoes. Layer the rest of the potatoes on top of the sauce and pour the remaining sauce on the second layer of potatoes.
- Now make the topping. Combine the melted Earth Balance, Panko breadcrumbs, and nutritional yeast in a small bowl. Stir to combine. Once the Earth Balance is completely absorbed, sprinkle the topping over the potatoes.
- Bake the potatoes until bubbly and the top begins to brown, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and serve warm.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 12
- Calories: 216
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 924
- Fat: 14
- Carbohydrates: 21
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 3
- Cholesterol: 0
This is one my favorites. I’ll have to try this one. Looks great.
Thanks, John! You’ll have to let us know how you like it.
Have you ever tried adding a vegan meat to this recipe?
@Shari – No, but that would be awesome! If you give a try, let us know how it goes 🙂