This veggie-loaded Vegan Cauliflower Casserole is layered with ooey-gooey cheese, topped with buttery breadcrumbs and then baked to perfection. It’s easy and delicious!
Autumn is right around the corner and that means it’s time for everything warm, comforting and definitely cheesy! Am I right? So, to celebrate, I’m sharing this Cheesy Vegan Cauliflower Casserole to kickoff the season.
It will fit right into your weeknight dinner routine, weekends or for your holiday table. It’ll be on our Thanksgiving table along with my Meatless Loaf, Sourdough Bread Stuffing, Vegan Greenbean Casserole, and my Sweet Skillet Cornbread Recipe. I can’t wait!
This veggie-packed casserole is also kid-friendly. I mean, who wouldn’t eat their veggies when they are smothered in a cheesy sauce?
The ingredients are simple! Here’s what you’ll need: (full amounts in recipe card below)
Cauliflower, Panko Breadcrumbs, Vegan Butter, Raw Cashews, Unsweetened Soy Milk, Vegetable Broth, Lemon Juice, Tapioca Flour/Starch, Nutritional Yeast, Dijon Mustard, Granulated Garlic, Granulated Onion, and Salt.
Tidbits:
– I recently switched to Sari Foods Nutritional Yeast. I like it better because the vitamins and minerals are naturally occurring. They don’t add any synthetic vitamins, so it’s better for you and it doesn’t taste as bitter either. It’s a few dollars more than most brands but so worth it. (*It doesn’t contain B12, so you’ll have to supplement if you depend on nutritional yeast for that)
– If you have Vegan Lactic Acid, you can use that in replace of the lemon juice. It adds a similar tangy flavor that cultured cheese has. I usually add 1 1/4 teaspoons in place of the lemon juice. You’ll need to add a few tablespoons of broth or non-dairy milk to make up the liquid portion of the lemon juice.
Vegan Cauliflower Casserole
Easy prep
Preheat your oven to 400° F (200° C) and lightly grease a 3-quart casserole dish. Set aside. Now combine the melted butter, granulated garlic, and breadcrumbs in a small bowl.
You’ll need to soften the cashews first for the vegan cheese sauce. To do this, boil water in a small pot and remove from heat. Add cashews and cover for 15-20 minutes until they’re softened.
*TIP:
To make things easier, you can prep ahead and pre-soften the cashews by placing them in cool water for 4 hours or overnight in the fridge (instead of heating them in water). Then they’ll be ready to pop in the blender right away.
Steam the cauliflower
While the cashews are soaking, you can start steaming the cauliflower florets. This will soften them up and speed up the cook time in the oven.
To start, Place about 1-inch of water into a Large Pot that will fit your steamer basket. Place your basket on the bottom and cover pot with a lid. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil.
Once boiling, turn heat to med-low to maintain a low boil and place cauliflower florets into the basket. Cover and steam for 7-10 minutes until just tender. Uncover and remove from heat.
*TIP:
You can also boil the cauliflower in water for about 5 minutes until just tender. Drain the florets really well before putting them in the casserole dish.
Time to make the vegan cheese sauce!
To get started, drain and rinse the cashews (discard soaking water). Now place all cheese sauce ingredients in a High-Speed Blender. Blend until cashews have completely broken down and the sauce is smooth. This should take about 1-2 minutes.
*TIP:
If you don’t have a high-speed blender, the cashews might not completely break down and this could result in a gritty texture. You can try soaking the cashews longer for 12 hours or more.
Now for the stretchy cheesy goodness!
Pour blended vegan cheese sauce into a medium skillet/pot over medium heat (I used the same pot for steaming the cauliflower). Cook for 4-5 minutes until it thickens up a lot and becomes slightly stretchy. Stir often to prevent it from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pot.
*TIP:
If the cheese sauce is too thick for your taste, you can add a little soy milk or broth to thin it out. Taste for seasoning and add more if needed.
Grab your baking dish
Pour half of the vegan cheese sauce into the greased casserole dish and spread along the bottom. Now add the cauliflower florets on top in mostly one layer.
Top with more vegan cheese sauce!
Pour the remaining cheese sauce on top of the cauliflower and spread out evenly. You can sprinkle the top with fresh-cracked pepper if desired.
The buttery breadcrumb topping
Now sprinkle the top with prepared panko breadcrumbs and cover with foil. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is hot and bubbly. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until breadcrumbs are light golden brown.
TOPPING IDEAS:
– Fresh-Cut Parsley
– Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
– Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Enjoy!
I’d love to hear from you
If you make this recipe, let me know what you think by ★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs so I don’t miss it.
- 1 large head cauliflower , cut into bite-size florets (about 2 pounds)
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (GF if preferred)
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter , melted (+ more for greasing dish)
- 1 cup raw cashews , soaked in very hot water
- 2 cups unsweetened soy milk
- 1 cup vegetable broth , low sodium
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour/starch
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic , (+ a pinch for breadcrumbs)
- 1 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1 1/4 teaspoons sea salt , more to taste
- Fresh-cut parsley
- Crushed red pepper flakes
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Preheat oven to 400° F (200° C). Lightly grease a 3-quart casserole dish and set aside.
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Combine the melted butter, breadcrumbs and a pinch of granulated garlic in a small bowl. Set aside.
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To soak cashews, boil water in a small pot and remove from heat. Add cashews and cover for 15-20 minutes, until softened (*see note).
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While the cashews are soaking, you can steam the cauliflower. Place about 1 " of water into a med/large pot that will fit your steamer basket. Place your basket on the bottom and cover pot with a lid. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn heat to med-low to maintain a low boil and place cauliflower florets into the basket. Cover and steam for 7-10 minutes, until just tender. Uncover and remove from heat.
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Drain and rinse cashews (discard soaking water). Now place all cheese sauce ingredients in a high-speed blender. Blend until cashews have completely broken down and the sauce is smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
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Pour cheese sauce into a medium skillet/pot over medium heat (I used the same pot for steaming the cauliflower). Cook for 4-5 minutes until it thickens up a lot and becomes slightly stretchy. Stir often to prevent burning. If sauce is too thick for your taste, you can add a little soy milk or broth to thin it out. Taste for seasoning, and add more if needed.
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Pour 1/2 the cheese sauce on the bottom of the greased casserole dish. Now add the cauliflower on top in one layer. Pour the remaining cheese sauce on top of the cauliflower. Now sprinkle with prepared breadcrumbs and cover with foil. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is hot and bubbly. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until breadcrumbs are light golden brown. Remove from oven. *Sprinkle with optional fresh-cut parsley and crushed red pepper flakes. Enjoy!
*Cashews: To make things easier, you can prep ahead and pre-soften your cashews by placing them in cool water for 4 hours or overnight in the fridge (instead of heating them in water).Then they'll be ready to pop in the blender right away. * If you don't have a high-speed blender, the cashews might not completely break down and this could result in a gritty texture. You can try soaking the cashews longer for 12 hours or more.
Do you think you could make this the day before and then pop in the oven to reheat? Looking for something to make in advance for a Thanksgiving dinner I am attending.
Hi Laurie, I would make it up until the baking point and leave the breadcrumbs off too. You can add them the next day right before baking. I usually add a few splashes of vegetable broth to the top (before breadcrumbs) to add moisture. It helps the cheese thin out too. You’ll need to bake it longer to fully heat and keep it covered so it doesn’t dry out. Just uncover to brown the breadcrumbs. I’d love to hear how it turns out for you. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Melissa – i pisted thus today on FOK group and wanted to shsrr with you.
Have you ever found a dish that was just so good you had a really hard time stopping?
I found that dish today. Cheesy Vegan Cauliflower. There is very little to sub out if you want to keep it pure whole food. I tried cashew based cheeses before and never found anything i liked. But this one is so creamy, smooth and tasty. I kept finding excuses this afternoon to go in the kitchen to eat a spoonful. The web site photos are so much better than mine but you can see I finished off quite a bit today.
https://veganhuggs.com/cheesy-vegan-cauliflower-casserole/
This was yummy, yummy! Dangerously good…. hard to not take a second (and third) helping! Thank you for this wonderful recipe, Melissa.
Hi Sylvia, I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you for the most wonderful feedback 🙂
Oh yum! Oh wow! So very delicioius! Thank you, Melissa!!
I am a newbie to the Vegan world! Starting my third week! I am doing really well with no meat since I ate very little before…. but I am still cravin the no cheese
I tried a few ready made brand cheeses and they were gross lol
Does it taste better when you make your own with the cashews?
I am going to try this tmrw 😀😀
Thanks for the recipe idea
Hi Gracie, Congratulations on your new vegan journey! I totally understand cheese cravings. I had them for a year after going vegan. It will get better as your taste buds adjust. Store-bought cheeses are always a hit or miss. However, so many new brands are hitting the shelves and I’m sure you’ll find something you like. I prefer Chao Cheese slices and they melt really well. I also love Miyoko’s brand of cheeses, but they aren’t available in all stores (it’s getting better though).
I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the ‘cheesy’ taste of this recipe. I can’t say that it will taste exactly like dairy cheese, but it’s pretty darn close.
Thank you for stopping by and feel free to reach out if you have any questions. 🙂
This looks totally amazing and perfect for fall. Thanks so much for coming up with this and sharing it! I can’t wait to try it.
I also wanted to let you know that the number/type of ads on your site are bogging it down to the point that I could hardly scroll down to the bottom to see the recipe and leave a comment. 🙁
Hi Dianna, thank you so much! It’s one of my fall favorites!
I’m sorry about the ad situation. My old blog theme was causing everything to lag, but I fixed it this weekend with a new theme. It should be running much smoother now. Unfortunately, I need to keep the ads to fund my site, but I’ll keep trying to improve user experience the best I can. Thank you for sharing your feedback with me. 🙂
Hello Melissa
My husband made this for dinner and we both loved, loved, loved it!
Loved the lemony flavour, the texture of the sauce…all of it was pure deliciousness.
We have been vegan only 15 months and my husband gets a bit despairing sometimes with what he perceives as lack of flavour in vegan foods but this recipe of yours had us both ooohing and aaaahing! Thanks so much! It will be going in our favourites file!
YAY! This is so awesome to hear and I’m glad your hubby approved of the flavor profile. Thank you for making it and sharing your feedback. Have a lovely week! 🙂
Eager to try it! I’m curious about the casserole dish. What a gorgeous blue!
Hi Esther, thank you so much! The blue dish is made by Lodge. It’s an enameled cast iron casserole dish in Caribbean Blue color (3.6 quart). The link is below my recipe card. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
It looks like it’s out of stock on Amazon. I’m sure you can find it somewhere else though. I paid about $65 for it.
I’m trying to see how well this fits into a diabetic food plan. However, the nutrition background above does not give the serving size. Can you add that?
The serving size is a little over a cup. 🙂