This creamy, vegan casserole is the kind of rich, comfort food you look forward to at Thanksgiving–without all the fat and calories.
Thanksgiving is just three days away, and I don’t know where all my time went. Well, actually, I do know how I used some of it: making this casserole, twice, to get it just right so that if you decide to include it in your holiday meal, you can be sure it will work.
And it will! It’s my new favorite dish, though my family won’t allow me to make it for Thanksgiving because they just had it twice in the same week. But that shouldn’t stop you from putting this delicious yet nutritious casserole on your holiday table.
The standard broccoli-rice casserole usually contains white rice, chicken, cheese, and sometimes cream cheese, so the nutritional benefits of the broccoli get lost in a sea of cholesterol, simple carbs, and fat. Even vegan versions often contain Daiya or some other high-fat, processed vegan cheese, but not mine. There’s no cheese at all, and the only fat comes from seeds and nuts, which you can even leave out if you want.
The first time I made this broccoli casserole, I used chickpeas and some Lotus Foods Madagascar Pink rice (a swag-bag gift at Vida Vegan Con). It’s a quick-cooking, lightly milled rice that looks almost red when it’s cooked, as you can see in my photos.
The second time I made it, I used ordinary brown rice and soy curls instead of chickpeas, and if I were going to serve this to non-vegans, that’s the combination I would choose. It’s not an elegant dish, but then again, neither is stuffing or sweet potato casserole. It’s the kind of rich, comfort food I look forward to at Thanksgiving–without all the fat and calories.
So what are you serving? I’ll be traveling to my parents’ house with a green bean casserole, a double-layer pumpkin cheesecake, and a still-undecided protein dish (timbales? baked tofu? seitan cutlets?) with mushroom gravy. My mother will be handling the rest of the meal, which will include her cornbread dressing, my lemon pie (made with home-grown lemons), and, I hope, cranberry relish. It will be a feast of family and food! I hope your holiday is just as happy.
Creamy Vegan Broccoli and Rice Casserole
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1 1/4 cup plain unsweetened soymilk or other non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch or potato starch
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 tablespoon sherry optional
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon tahini or cashew butter optional
- very generous grating black pepper
Casserole
- 1 head broccoli about 5 cups, cut into small florets
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1/2 red or yellow bell pepper chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped celery chopped
- 1 3/4 cups cooked chickpeas or other options, see below
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 cups cooked brown rice warm, if possible
- 2 tablespoons sliced or slivered almonds optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375. Lightly oil or spray a medium casserole dish (about 2-1/2-quart size).
- Place the sauce ingredients into a blender and process until smooth. Set aside.
- Place the broccoli in a steamer basket set over water and steam, covered, until just barely tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
- While the broccoli is steaming, heat a large, deep non-stick skillet or saute pan. Add the onion, bell pepper, and celery and cook, stirring constantly, for 4-5 minutes. Stir in the chickpeas, thyme, rice, and steamed broccoli. Make sure the sauce is well-blended, and add it to the skillet. Stir gently and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Check seasonings, adding more salt and pepper if necessary, and smooth into the prepared casserole dish and sprinkle with almonds, if desired. Bake until the top begins to brown, about 20 minutes. Serve hot.
Notes
- 1 cup dry soy curls, rehydrated in hot vegetable broth and drained
- 2 cups baked tofu, cubed
- 1 1/2 cups tempeh bacon
- 1 1/2 cups sliced or diced seitan
Nutritional info is approximate.
Kelly
November 30, 2012 at 4:43 pmOh my goodness, this is so good! I made this for a Thanksgiving potluck and it was gone! My husband begged me to make this again just for us. I love this dish! Thanks for posting!
Susan
December 26, 2012 at 3:25 pmHi Susan. I made this for Christmas dinner. Wonderful addition to all of my other veggie dishes. Your recipes are always so reliable. Thank you.
charlotte jackson
January 6, 2013 at 2:37 pmI just wanted to say this recipe is so good. I made it a second time, more creamy, and I have to say it was so close to something I would of liked in my passed eating ways. I am always looking for comfort food that anyone would like, not just us crazy fat free vegans. Thank you so much.
Sharon
January 28, 2013 at 12:12 pmI made this for lunch today & both my husband and I liked it. I didn’t want to wait for brown rice to cook, so I used 1 cup millet, cooked according to the package directions and added that in place of the rice. I think it was a tasty substitution and I may make it that way again. Someone’s suggestion to add mushrooms sounds good also.
Nicole
February 8, 2013 at 11:52 amCould you substitute something in place of the broccoli? While I do love broccoli, it just doesn’t really love me back ha. Would zucchini work?
Susan Voisin
February 8, 2013 at 11:59 amZucchini will probably work. It’s more watery than broccoli, so that may cause the casserole to be a little moister.
Pig bug
May 15, 2013 at 8:41 pmThis is a lovely recipe. Thank you! I’ve recently given up eggs, dairy, and soy so I can continue to nurse my son. I’ll make this recipe again, and I look forward to trying some of your other dishes!
Holly
October 19, 2013 at 6:12 pmSusan, this was amazing. Unbelievably cheesy and so good for you. I cooked my rice in a little no-chicken broth base. I diced some roasted red bell peppers and substituted red kidney beans instead of chickpeas. With my Vitamix, I was able to blend some raw cashews into the sauce. I did saute my veggies in a little bit of olive oil. I know oil is bad, but I just love a little bit for mouth feel. Thanks for creating such an awesome site!
Ernie
November 28, 2013 at 9:12 amI doubled all the spices and used roasted red pepper hummus instead of tahini and liquid smoke in place of smoked paprika. It is a delicious, keeper recipe that will be well received today. Thank you.
Shawna
November 29, 2013 at 2:43 pmSusan, Your recipes are genius! We served this Broccoli Casserole, your Garden Skillet Pie, Impossible Pumpkin Pie, Applesauce Ginger Cake, and Cranberry Relish at Thanksgiving yesterday, and all were hits with vegans and non-vegans alike! Thank you for your blog and recipes. You make it so easy to cook for our vegan/carnivore family! And your mushroom gravy is the best food on the planet!
Kim
January 13, 2014 at 7:05 pmAnother winner, thank you!
Sara
February 12, 2014 at 9:59 pmI just made this recipe for the first time tonight and it turned out wonderfully, and I didn’t even add the almonds or tahini. The only changes I made were to use a whole red bell pepper, a mix of brown and black rice, double the dry mustard, and a large head of broccoli from my garden (about 7 cups worth). I also used flax milk instead of soy, and accidentally dumped in a few tablespoons of cooking sherry, which I thought would ruin the sauce but it didn’t. Some mentioned that this requires a lot of pots- here is how I cut down on that. I used one pot to cook my rice while I chopped & prepped everything else. My second pot was my large enamel coated cast iron pot (5 quarts). I used it first to steam the broccoli, then put the broccoli in the strainer and used the pot to cook the onion/pepper mixture, then stirred in the chickpeas, rice, broccoli & sauce, and then baked the whole thing in the same pot in the oven.
Jem
December 13, 2014 at 3:58 pmHow does one ACCIDENTALLY dump in cooking sherry! Are you sure it wasn’t some fine wine that you were sipping at the moment? 🙂 Too cute.
Pamela
March 22, 2014 at 4:53 pmThis is so fantastic!! Vegan and non vegans will love it!! So hearty and delicious. Thank you!!
Mrs. B
September 28, 2014 at 3:11 pmThank you so much for sharing this recipe, I have been transitioning to Vegan from Vegetarian over the last 6 months and finding recipes like yours is awesome. First time I have ever gotten right up and made the recipe after reading through it. Have an awesome day, this turned out so yummy. Thanks again.
Sandi
October 22, 2014 at 4:55 pmSusan, I made this tonight, and it was great. It would be perfect at a holiday dinner. I didn’t have rice, so I used bulgar, and it worked perfectly. It took a bit longer than the 10 min. prep time, but worth it. Thanks for the recipe, and for all of your great recipes, and my best wishes for your good health.
MT
November 3, 2014 at 5:15 pmI tried this recipe yesterday and it came out wonderfully! Definitely will repeat again. Thank you very much for the wonderful recipe. Keep up the wonderful job!
Danielle
April 30, 2016 at 9:25 pmSo I was in the store and saw cauliflower “rice” and immediately thought about your recipe and replacing rice with the cauliflower. It’s In the oven right now. I snagged a quick taste before I put it in and tasted just as great! Can’t wait until it’s done!
Kate
August 29, 2017 at 3:29 pmI’ve made this a few time over the years, but just recently made a few to freeze before baby. I used boiled potato chunks instead of chickpeas, and they subbed in great! I would recommend increasing the amount of sauce a bit if freezing, but it held up well and freezing in a muffin tin makes it easy to portion- we defrost 2 pucks for each of us, one for the toddler! Such a nourishing meal to have on hand. Thanks for sharing!!
Susan Voisin
August 29, 2017 at 4:04 pmSuch a great idea! Thanks for posting!
Sherri
November 15, 2017 at 11:15 amThis looks fantastic, thank you! I’m going to make it for Christmas – I’m in Canada and we celebrated Thanksgiving in October. I’m SO glad I found your site, you make is possible to have tasty dishes even on a vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, dairy-free diet!
Katie F.
June 3, 2020 at 4:50 pmDelicious! I love the creamy sauce you created. It is healthy and scrumptious. Other recipes do not include a home made sauce. The sauce is creative and a winner. Thank you!