Vegan Cheesy Broccoli Hash Brown Casserole

This cheesy broccoli hash brown casserole is made with vegan nacho cheese and frozen hash browns.  It’s great for a non-sweet breakfast, lunch, as a side dish, or you can add a salad to the meal and make it your main course.  Also, the cheese sauce can be made in advance for the meal to come together quicker.

Making Vegan Cheese Sauce

The cheese sauce is pretty much my nacho cheese sauce with a reduced amount of dairy-free milk to make the casserole a little more firm.  Whoever came up with the cheese, broccoli, potato combo is a genius!  I like to use potatoes in my cheese sauce for the bulk of the base so it’s not completely reliant on high-calorie cashews.  The carrot helps with color, a slight sweetness, and adds more bulk to the sauce.  I still add cashews to the base because of the nice velvety smooth texture it gives the dip, without them, the potatoes just don’t give the same consistency.  

Soaking Cashews

There are so many different ways to soak cashews!  If you have a high-speed blender you can probably get away without soaking them, but soaking still helps to soften them up.  I prefer to just cover them with water and place in the fridge overnight.  If I forget, I’ll soak them for any amount of time I can get.  If it happens to be in the morning, I’ll just measure off the cashews, cover them with water, and leave them on the counter until dinner.  If it’s right before dinner, I’ll cover the measured out cashews with hot water and soak until I need them.

Substitution for Pickled Jalapeños to Vegan Nacho Cheese

The pickled jalapeños add so much flavor to the cheese, I really wouldn’t recommend skipping them.  They add a nice mellowed out spiciness and give some complexity to the sauce.  They're great on sandwiches, nachos, and even pizza. 

If you skip them because you just don’t think you’ll use them again (I understand I do that all the time with recipes) then try adding your favorite hot sauce to the casserole when serving.  My family’s favorite for vegan cheesy concoctions is Frank’s Red Hot.  The hot sauce will still give some heat and a slight vinegar flavor that cuts through the cheese sauce nicely.

Tips on Adding Broccoli to Vegan Hash Brown Casserole

No need to cook the broccoli beforehand, chop it into small bite-size pieces so it cooks while in the oven.  Since they get slightly cooked in the oven, they still have a slight crunch which gives a nice contrast in texture in the dish. 

Frozen Hash Browns

Look for frozen shredded potatoes that don’t contain oils or seasonings.  If they can’t be found then shred about 15 ounces of scrubbed clean potatoes, leaving the skin on for more nutrients.  Russet potatoes are best and use a food processor with a shredding disc for ease. 

To prevent soggy potatoes, rinse the shredded potatoes in a bowl of cold water to remove some of the starch, drain, then squeeze out the excess water from the shredded potatoes.  Try to squeeze out as much as you can.  Then proceed with the rest of the recipe for this vegan broccoli casserole.  This method takes quite a bit more time and dishes so it's pretty worth it to use frozen hash browns if you can find them.

Need More Vegan Cheesy Recipes?

• Vegan Baked Potatoes with Cheese and Broccoli
• Vegan Nachos

As always, I hope you enjoy this recipe for vegan cheese broccoli casserole.

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