Vegan Southern-Style Cornbread Dressing

Name: Vegan Southern-Style Cornbread Dressing
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 10
Ingredients: 1 cup white whole wheat flour ((or your favorite gluten-free blend)); 1 cup yellow corn meal; 3 tsp baking powder; 2 tsp corn starch, potato starch, or tapioca starch; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk; 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce; 1/4 cup water; 8 slices whole wheat bread or gluten-free bread ((about 10 ounces)); 1 large onion (, chopped); 1 cup chopped celery (, including leaves (2-3 ribs)); 1 large portabello mushroom (, diced (about 2 cups)); 4 cloves garlic (, chopped); 1 tablespoon dried thyme; 2 teaspoons rubbed sage; 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary (, minced (or 1/2 tsp. dried)); 1/2-1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 2 cups hot vegetable broth or “no-chicken” broth; 1 tablespoon soy sauce ((omit for soy-free or substitute with tamari for gluten-free)); 1 tablespoon almond butter, tahini, or cashew butter ((optional)); 1 cup additional broth (, as needed); salt and pepper (, as needed); hickory smoked salt (, optional)

November 19, 2012 By Susan Voisin 54 Comments
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I recently realized that I’ve never posted the one dish that we had every Thanksgiving and Christmas when I was growing up–Cornbread Dressing. That’s mainly because I’ve always counted on my mother to make it.

Even after I became vegetarian, my mother would set aside part of the dressing before she added the giblets or oysters or shrimp and bake it with vegetable broth separately for my vegan family and me. But because it’s a dish I love so much, I wanted to share it with you, so I took on the responsibility of making it myself this year.

As I mentioned, the traditional version usually has some kind of meat in it and a couple of eggs. Instead of meat, I make vegan cornbread dressing with diced portabella mushrooms, which mimic the meaty texture and add a deeper, umami flavor. And as for the eggs–well, I just leave them out and add a touch of nut butter for richness. The dressing is so full of the savory, herbal flavors of thyme, rosemary, and sage that nobody misses the eggs.

I start by making a very basic cornbread. My mother, wise woman that she is, always remembers to make it a couple of days ahead so that there’s one less thing to do right before the big holiday. She also taught me to start saving the ends of bread a couple of weeks beforehand; you can keep them in the freezer and defrost them right before you need them.

We always serve this dressing with a healthy drizzle of mushroom gravy, which also goes on top of the Baked Tofu that is almost always our holiday main dish. And it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without Cranberry Relish, Green Bean Casserole, and either Sweet Potato Casserole or Impossible Pumpkin Pie. What a feast!

If you’re still making up your Thanksgiving menu, don’t forget to check out my master list of Thanksgiving Recipes, which has everything you need, from main dishes, to side dishes, to desserts.

Also, check out this terrific Vegan Thanksgiving Pinterest board filled with dozens of recipes pinned by a select group of vegan bloggers and cookbook authors. So many recipes, so few holidays!

Southern-Style Cornbread Dressing, Baked Tofu, and Cranberry Relish

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