Thursday, April 10, 2008

Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole


I'm kind of on a "veganize things I used to love" kick right now, so Veganomicon is on the back burner a little, so to speak. People on one of the forums I frequent have been RAVING about a Mac and Cheese recipe from VegNews, so I decided to test it out. Cheese substitutes are difficult. There are a few decent ones that you can buy. Most homemade recipes rely heavily on nutritional yeast, which has a very distinct flavor that people tend to have a strong opinion about: love it or hate it. I do not love it so much, though I'm going to try out the Veganomicon Cheezy Sauce to give it another chance. The important thing to remember I think when trying out cheese alternative is to NOT think of them as cheese substitutes, but as their own thing. I decided to try this sauce out because it does not call for nutritional yeast or any soy ingredients. I altered it slightly to increase to give it a sharper taste. Yum!

Then I remembered: Mom's Rice-Broccoli-Cheese casserole. Mmmmm. So good. So, I though, if this sauce makes a good Mac and Cheese, I wonder how if I could use it make a vegan version of my old favorite?

Oh yes. I actually liked this sauce BETTER with the rice and broccoli than I did with just pasta. I think it added more texture and flavors. I topped it off with bread crumbs, which gave it that nice, crunchy brown top that help make casseroles so tasty. And the leftovers are even better!

Coming up: tortilla soup and "chicken" enchiladas! So stayed tuned!

1 comment:

Buku Chic said...

Veg News Mac n Cheese is the best!! Even my omnivore friends absolutely LOVE it. I posted that recipe on my ::new:: blog: vegangolab.blogspot.com