This vegan creamy potato casserole is a veggie-centric twist on classic scalloped potatoes. Thinly sliced potato rounds are layered with a rich and creamy cauliflower-cashew sauce and baked to perfection. Each serving is packed with veggies, but you’d never know it based on taste. Read: This is a great way to get your veggie-hesitant relatives and little ones to consume more veg!
I always seem to cut it down to the wire with Thanksgiving recipes. Especially this year, because WHAT?! How is it already Thanksgiving week??
Thankfully, this is an easy last-minute add to a balanced holiday spread, and it’s versatile enough to easily extend into the Christmas season without garnering any confused looks.
This simple vegan potato casserole requires a short least of ingredients (just eight + salt and pepper) and 20-ish minutes of active kitchen time. The rest is hands-off bake time in the oven.
And it’s incredibly satisfying, too.
To make it, you’ll start by thinly slicing about three pounds of russet or Yukon potatoes. I used russet during recipe trials, but I have a feeling Yukon might be even tastier.
Once you’ve thinly sliced the potatoes, begin to layer them in a casserole dish or pan like so…
Then, prepare the creamy cauliflower-cashew sauce by blending boiled or steamed cauliflower florets (fresh or frozen), raw cashews, nutritional yeast flakes, apple cider vinegar, olive oil (optional), garlic, and salt until super smooth and creamy.
Once the sauce is ready, pour about two-thirds of it over the first layer of potatoes. Then, top with the remaining potatoes and remaining sauce. Sprinkle the surface with freshly ground black pepper and chopped rosemary.
Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the edges are rich golden brown in color.
Let the casserole cool a bit, and then slice and serve. That’s it. Nothing fussy or complicated about this plant-powered holiday side!
Ingredients
- 3 pounds russet potatoes (about 12 small to medium potatoes), peeled
- 4 cups fresh or frozen cauliflower florets, steamed or boiled until fork-tender
- 1 1/2 cups filtered water
- 1 cup raw cashews (soaked for two hours if not using a high-speed blender)*
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes**
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil***
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 1/2 teaspoons sea salt or to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1–2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 baking dish.
- Thinly slice the potatoes into 1/8-inch-thick rounds using a knife or mandolin (be very careful if using a mandolin).
- To a high-speed blender, add the cauliflower, water, cashews, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, garlic, and sea salt, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Arrange about two-thirds of the potatoes in the pan, creating two shingle-like layers. Pour about two-thirds of the cauliflower cream sauce over top and use a spatula to gently spread it over the potatoes. Top with the remaining potatoes (about one layer) and pour the remaining cream sauce over top and use a spatula to gently spread it over the potatoes. Season the top with black pepper and sprinkle with the rosemary.
- Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Let cool slightly, and then slice and serve.
Is there a substitute for the cashews? We have a severe cashew allergy in my house!!
Yes, going to add a note now (receiving lots of questions on this), but you can use shelled hemp seeds (aka hemp hearts) in place of the cashews. Enjoy!
I’m glad I got to try this…so delicious! I’ll be swapping out my traditional recipe for this one. 😉
If one has a severe nut allergy what could be used in place of the cashews????
Hi, Ron! You can use shelled hemp seeds (hemp hearts) in place of the cashews. Enjoy!
My husband told to go vegan by heart doctor st Cleveland clinic. Unfortunately, he’s allowed no nuts or oil of any kind…n one, due to clogged arteries. Are there ANY good recipes with no olive oil or nuts used?
Hi, Denise! Wonderful to hear doctors recommending a plant-based diet. Is he allowed seeds? For the cashews in this recipe, you can substitute shelled hemp seeds, and per the recipe note, you can omit the olive oil altogether. If seeds aren’t allowed, I have a feeling the recipe would work just fine if you swapped out the cashews and added in another cup of cauliflower (so 5 cups total). I haven’t tried this substitution myself, but it should work okay!
This recipe looks awesome! But I have a tree but allergy, is there any substitutions for the cashews? Thanks!
Hi, Steph! You can substitute shelled hemp seeds (aka hemp hearts) for the cashews. They’ll impart a touch more earthiness to the flavor but overall should be very, very similar. Enjoy!
We love potatoes and this look wonderful! I’m thinking about nestling in some broccoli in the layers and serving with sliced brown tomatoes. Thanks!
This was sOOOOOOO delicious! Bonus: MY SON loved it!!! No complaints from him. :)
Happy to hear you and your family enjoyed the recipe, Heidi! Thanks for taking the time to come back and share your thoughts and rating. :)
Mine tasted like fish :( Weird. Why would that have been? I am hopeful reheating the leftovers will give different results.
Hi, Amy! Oh dear, this should taste nothing like fish at all. Is there any chance your nutritional yeast might have gone off? Or perhaps your cauliflower? The only reason I could possibly imagine this dish tasting fishy is if one of your ingredients was old or rotten. I’m so sorry you had a bad experience with it!
Had the same taste in ours. An off, fishy taste and all of my ingredients were super fresh. But I’ve had this before, a weird combination of flavors that give off that taste. And I didn’t mention the fishy taste even though it was there, but my boyfriend mentioned it.
Hi, Teresa! Ugh, I’m so sorry you had this experience, too. I’ll admit, I’m completely stumped by this. One thought: What type of casserole dish did you bake it in? The reason I ask is that some uncoated metallic-based dishes can react with the lemon juice in the recipe and cause an off taste. If not that, do you like nutritional yeast in general? I know some people don’t care for it and since it is a prominent flavoring in this recipe, that could be the culprit, too. Either way, I’m so sorry that you had a bad experience with this recipe. It’s always my aim to please and delight with my recipes and a fishy flavor is a total no-go!
What are
Yeast flakes………
where do I find them in the grocery?
With yeast….baking?
Hi, Mary! Nutritional Yeast flakes are an inactive form of yeast that have a cheese-like flavor. Depending on the store, you can find them in the bulk section (e.g., Whole Foods) or the baking or health foods sections.
Is there a sub f ou r cauliflower, that is not another vegetable???
Hi, Jan! Unfortunately, I can’t recommend a substitute for the cauliflower that isn’t a vegetable. If I test one out in the future and it works, I’ll be sure to update the recipe notes.
I couldn’t get the sauce a creamy consistency. It was grainy. I blended and blended in my large Ninja. Any suggestions?
Hi, Tanya! Did you soak the cashews before blending? I know from reader comments on other recipes that the Ninja can be hit-or-miss when it comes from blending cashews.
Hi…Can you make this a day ahead or even early in the day to cook that evening?
Thank you!
Hi, Lori! Yes, you can assemble this ahead of time to bake later in the day (or even the next day). Enjoy!
Is casserole covered when baking?
Nope! Uncovered the entire time. Enjoy!
This is delicious, the whole family loved it
So happy to hear this, Chrissie! Thanks for taking time out of your weekend to come back and share your thoughts and rating. Means a lot to me and is helpful for others hoping to make the recipe, too!
Haven’t tired Yet. I say that because I am surely making this one! question.. what do you think about my adding a little sprinkle of vegan rice paper bacon crumbles between the layers along with a little follow your heart parmesan? (will watch the salt after those additions.)
I think those would be delicious additions, Mary! And yes, smart idea to adjust the salt to accommodate for those. Would love to hear how this turns out for you!
Can you freeze any excess?
Hi, Carrie! Yes, absolutely. Leftovers should keep for up to one month in the freezer.
This might be the first recipe that I’ll follow to a T without any alterations and still taste amazing! Deng! This is an absolute hit, my non vegan friends loooooved it and even asked for a recipe. I am rummaging through your other recipes to see what to try next! Great great job
So happy to hear you enjoyed it, Dola! Thanks for taking the time to come back and share your thoughts—means so much. Happy cooking! :)
This was delicious! I had dried rosemary instead of fresh so I put it in the blender with the sauce to hydrate. Super creamy, savory, and so so good! Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it, Emily! Thanks for taking the time to come back and share your thoughts, rating, and adjustments. :)