I remember eating Au Gratin Potatoes as a kid. I always loved how gooey, warm, and savory it tasted. Who doesn’t love Au Gratin, it’s comfort food right?
But one thing that I didn’t like about it, was that it was a side dish. It wasn’t supposed to be the main course. But I loved Au Gratin so much that it’s the only thing I wanted to eat. I wanted that creamy comfort food with the crunchy top to take up all space on my plate. Forget the greens, forget the beans, forget everything else! I just wanted Au Gratin!
Fast forward 25 years and now I can eat all the Au Gratin I want! You see, one of the reasons why the Au Gratin I grew up eating was a side dish, is because it wasn’t particularly healthy.
But this vegan Au Gratin recipe is different. This recipe is guilt free while still being packed full of flavor! Winning!
This plant based take on one of my favorite classic comfort dishes is made with cauliflower instead of potatoes and it uses a simple cashew cream to replace the cheese and butter. Not only that, it also has a hefty amount of greens mixed in so this dish can take up all the room on my plate.
It’s creamy, it’s delicious, it takes less than 30 minutes to make and it’s truly plant based.
This will work as a side dish or as a main course for 2. And in case you’re wondering, I like to eat it as a main dish.
Plant Based Cauliflower Au Gratin
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Chopped Onion
- 3 Cloves Garlic Minced
- 1/2 Green Chili Chopped optional
- 3 Cups Cauliflower Florets (small or medium size florets)
- 1/2 Cup Water
- 2-3 Cups Swiss Chard or other green
- 1/4 Cup Cashews blended with 1 cup water for cashew cream
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1 Tsp Cumin
- 1/2 Tsp Garam Masala optional
- 1 Tsp Oregano
- 1 Tsp Sage
- 2 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 1 Tsp Braggs Liquid Aminos optional
Walnut Parmesan
- 1/2 Cup Walnuts
- 1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast
- 1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
Instructions
- Heat skillet to medium high heat. Add onion, garlic and green chili to pan along with 1-2 tbsp of water. Cook until translucent, adding 1-2 tbsp of water as needed to prevent food from sticking.
- Add cauliflower along with 2 tbsp of water. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add greens and mix in. Cover and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Add cashew cream, spices, herbs, nutritional yeast and liquid aminos if using. Bring to a boil uncovered and simmer until mixture has thickened to preference. Taste and add salt if desired. If the mixture gets too thick, just a tbsp of water at a time until desired texture is reached.
- Meanwhile, make the walnut Parmesan. Sprinkle the Parmesan on top of the Au Gratin and serve.
