Cheesy Vegan Squash Casserole

By: Nele Liivlaid from nutriplanet.org

By: Nele Liivlaid from nutriplanet.org

"This vegan squash casserole recipe is a perfect comfort food that will enrich your dinners. It is also a great recipe for batch cooking – just double the recipe and store in fridge for easy weeknight meals. Watch tutorial video further down! In my vegan casserole the sweetness of butternut squash and lightness of zucchini meet in a perfect combination with flavourful tomato sauce and hearty cashew cheese. I must say I’m particularly happy about the vegan cheese – it firms up perfectly on top of the casserole and stays so creamy between the layers."

NotesServing tips for my zucchini casserole:
It is perfect as main meal as well as side dish.
Have plenty of greens with the casserole: lettuce or steamed kale, chard or pak choi.
Steamed veggies would also make a good companion to this casserole: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower.
If you need extra sauce, try Tahini-Chickpea Dressing, Vegan Cheese Sauce or whip up a simple dressing made of tahini, lemon juice, water, turmeric, salt and black pepper.

Check more tips from original recipe!

Click here for the easy healthy recipe

Serves6 people

Preparation Time50 min

Chilling Time45 min

Cooking Time45 min

Ingredients

1 large onion (Tomato Sauce)
2 medium garlic cloves (Tomato Sauce)
24 (1-ounce) tomato puree + about ¼ cup water (Tomato Sauce)
1 teaspoon Himalayan salt (Tomato Sauce)
1 teaspoon dried oregano (Tomato Sauce)
1 dash black pepper to taste + a few drops of stevia, optional (Tomato Sauce)
3 1/2 (1-ounce) cashews, soak (Cashew Cheese)
1 teaspoon turmeric (Cashew Cheese)
1 teaspoon Himalayan salt (Cashew Cheese)
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (Cashew Cheese)

Soak cashews for at least 2 hours. Rinse and drain when you start making the cheese.
Start with cutting your squashes longways into the length of your casserole dish. Cut about 1-1½ cm (0.4-0.6 inch) thick pieces. Place the squash slices on 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle some Himalayan salt onto summer squash.
Next, bake butternut squash at 200°C (390°F) for 25-30 minutes. Then, do the same with summer squash.
While the squashes are baking, prepare tomato sauce. First, in a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chopped onion with a few tablespoons of water for about 3 minutes until the onion is transparent. Then, add tomato puree and oregano. Mix it all up, bring to boil and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. Stir the sauce every now and then. Turn off the heat and add crushed garlic, salt, pepper, and stevia.
When the tomato sauce is nicely simmering, chop olives and basil leaves and cut tofu into 12 slices.
Then, prepare vegan cheese by blending all ingredients into smooth mixture. See tips below.
Now, it’s time to assemble the casserole! Take a baking dish (I used 22x22 cm, 8.6x8.6 inch) and start layering. 1st layer: tomato sauce; 2nd layer: butternut slices; 3rd layer: tofu; 4th layer: cashew cheese; 5th layer: olives and basil; 6th layer: tomato sauce; 7th layer: zucchini slices; 8th layer: tofu; 9th layer: olives and basil; 10th layer: tomato sauce. Finish with cashew cheese. Check the video in my blog post!
Bake the squash casserole at 200°C (390°F) for 45-50 minutes until the cheese starts to turn golden brown. Let cool for at least 45-60 minutes before serving. The longer it cools, the tastier it gets!