Vegan Spinach Florentine from Julie's Vegan Casseroles Book. Review.

Another fantastic book to add to the holiday must. Julie Hasson’s Vegan Casseroles: Pasta Bakes, Gratins, Pot Pies, and More.

Casseroles are a fairly new occurrence in our house. They are completely opposite of Indian food. Indian food usually has multiple dishes served with freshly made flatbreads or rice or grains and some condiments. Sure they all can end up in a bowl like layers, but each dish is generally made separately.

Casseroles though are so much simpler. Just assemble them and bake. It works out perfectly when you dont want to use 4 pans and when you don’t want to stand in the kitchen the whole time while entertaining. The problem that can happen is that sometimes it can be difficult to predict what taste and flavor the final casserole will have. No worries there. Julie’s book helps you make the perfect casseroles every time!

The book has chapters on Vegan Casserole Pantry, tips and tricks, One dish Appetizers, Skillet Casseroles, Old favorites and new Twists, Pasta Casseroles, Vegetable Casseroles, Dessert Casseroles and Sauces, Basics and Toppings. I decided to make the Spinach Florentine because it looks so perfectly creamy and dreamy.

I also made the Chili Mac casserole. who wouldn’t. The spicy chili and creamy Mac. I was planning on making the truffle Mac and cheese as well. It was one of those weeks where the only thing I wanted was some from of pasta. What can I say :). Clearly I was in a hurry to take pictures and eat it all because I missed adding crushed tortilla chips on top.

I am eyeing the Sundried Tomato Quiche with Hash brown crust (yum), Jambalaya, loaded nacho fries(every weekend!), Skillet Chilaquiles(made a variation of these for breakfast), Enchiladas, Tamale Pie, bumble-berry cobbler and so much more.

Julie covers the gravies, sauces and toppings in the last chapter and that chapter needs to be on the kitchen counter. The simple sauces work in many recipes in so many ways.

Julie is the author of Vegan Diner and Vegan Pizza, both are popular comfort food books.

The Publisher is giving away a copy of the book to one of the blog readers! Please enter the giveaway at the end of the post. Also get the recipe for the delicious Spinach florentine below.

This month is going to be full of giveaways 🙂

I added Julie’s buttery topping to our Vegan Spinach Florentine Casserole. The crisp buttery top also keeps the pasta moist.

Creamy Spinach Florentine

Ever since I was a child, I have adored creamed spinach. This casserole totally reminds me of the stuffed spinach crèpes I would order as a teenager at this little crèpe restaurant near our house. I could never get enough of them. This casserole doesn’t disappoint, with a luscious creamy sauce, spinach, and some dry sherry thrown in for good measure.

Serves 4

8 ounces dried shell pasta or macaroni
1 (10-ounce) bag frozen spinach, thawed
1 recipe Almost Alfredo Sauce (see below)
3 to 4 tablespoons dry sherry, depending how strong of a sherry taste you like
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1 teaspoon granulated onion
3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 recipe buttery crumb topping

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish.

In a large pot of lightly salted boiling water, add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Don’t overcook the pasta, especially if you’re using one that is gluten-free. Drain the pasta well and transfer to a large bowl.

Drain most of the liquid out of the spinach by gently squeezing it, but don’t squeeze it completely dry. Add the spinach to the pasta, along with the sauce, mixing until the pasta is thickly coated. Add the sherry, Dijon mustard, nutritional yeast, granulated onion, and nutmeg, stirring well. Add salt and pepper, and adjust seasonings to taste. Scoop the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until hot and slightly bubbly around the edges. Remove from the oven and serve.

Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free oat flour in the sauce and gluten-free pasta (my favorite here is brown rice macaroni).

Almost Alfredo Sauce

Although this isn’t exactly a true alfredo sauce with loads of cream and butter, it is an all-purpose creamy white sauce, which works really well in so many recipes. There are a number of variations for it, from adding truffle oil to white wine. It’s so versatile, that it may just become your new secret sauce.

Makes about 3 cups

21/2 cups plain unsweetened soymilk
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup raw unsalted cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
3 tablespoons oat flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
11/4 teaspoons fine sea salt, or more to taste
1 teaspoon granulated onion

Method:

In the jar of a blender, combine the soymilk, water, cashews, nutritional yeast, oat flour, cornstarch, salt, and granulated onion. Blend the mixture at high speed until completely smooth and no bits of nuts remain. If you don’t have a big blender, blend the mixture in two batches.

Transfer the mixture to a large saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer, whisking continuously. Once the mixture comes to a simmer, reduce the heat slightly and cook, whisking continuously until thickened, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Tip: Use a good-tasting unsweetened soymilk for this sauce, as the flavor really comes through. If you’re using a high-speed blender, you can skip the soaking step for the cashews and just use them dry. Add a little extra water to blend if needed.

Variations:

To make a truffle sauce, to the blender jar add 1 to 3 tablespoons truffle oil to taste and reduce the granulated onion to 1/2 teaspoon. Add a few sprinkles of freshly grated nutmeg.
To make a white wine sauce, replace 3/4 cup of soymilk with an equal amount of white wine.
To make this sauce lower in fat, reduce the cashews to 1/3 cup.

Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free oat flour.