Veggie filled, high protein and high fiber enchilada casserole! Dairy- free and meatless, but super satisfying and not skimping on flavor! The best weeknight comfort meal when you need something filling and cozy. Prep ahead of time and freeze for an easy frozen dinner when you need a break from cooking.
This enchilada casserole starts with a tofu/ veggie crumble for the filling. It contains a medley of veggies like onion, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms and corn as well as crumbled tofu and black beans for added protein. My latest obsession lately is fava bean tofu which has 25 grams of protein per serving! But regular super firm tofu works great too. Simply drain and use your hands to break it apart into crumbles.
This recipe uses a couple of my favorite specialty seasoning blends- Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle and mushroom umami seasoning. If you don’t have these on hand- fear not! You can totally substitute: For the Mrs Dash Southwest use 1.5 tsp chili powder, 1.5 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes and 2 tsp garlic powder. In place of the mushroom umami you can use a tbsp of soy sauce or liquid aminos. The mushroom umami spice adds a complex savory flavor which really up levels veggie/ meatless dishes.
This recipe includes instructions for making your own enchilada sauce and your own dairy free cashew cheese sauce. I prefer to make my own because I like to control the amount of sodium in the recipe- store bought sauce and cheese typically is higher in sodium. However if you are short on time you can buy store bought enchilada sauce and your choice of shredded cheese. You will need about 1 and 1/2 cups of shredded cheese for the entire casserole.
What’s in Veggie enchilada casserole?:
FOR THE VEGGIE FILLING
onion
mushrooms
zucchini
black beans
corn
tofu
southwest chipotle seasoning
mushroom umami seasoning
FOR THE HOMEMADE ENCHILADA SAUCE
tomato paste
chili powder
cumin
garlic powder
olive oil
wheat flour
veggie broth
FOR THE CASHEW CHEESE
raw cashews
olive oil
mushroom umami
nutritional yeast
lemon juice
water
starch
sprouted whole wheat tortillas
shredded cheese (optional)
simple instructions:
- Saute all of the filling ingredients together.
2. Simmer the enchilada sauce ingredients on the stove.
3. Blend up the cashew cheese sauce ingredients.
4. Layer the enchilada casserole like a lasagna- sauce, filling, cheese, tortilla- repeat!
5. Bake at 350 for 45 -55 mins covered, OR freeze and prep for later. If frozen bake covered at 350 for 1 hr 20-30 minutes.
Veggie enchilada casserole makes a fabulous meal prep recipe and it freezes wonderfully. You can double the recipe and fill up two of these stainless steel meal prep containers. They can go directly from the freezer to the oven! To bake from frozen: bake at 350 for 1 hr 20 minutes covered. Check out the video instructions plus 3 other freezer meal prep recipes on my Youtube channel.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- 1. Heat up a large saute pan with a lid to cook the filling ingredients. Once the pan is hot add the onion and peppers and cook until fragrant. You can saute in olive oil or plain water. Add the mushrooms and zucchini and cook til soft. Add the crumbled tofu and spices and stir. Lastly stir in the black beans and corn. Turn off the heat and set aside.
- 2. In a small sauce pan on the stove add all the ingredients for the enchilada sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Turn off heat and set aside.
- 3. To a high powered blender, add all ingredients for the cashew cheese sauce and blend til smooth. Set aside.
- 4. Assemble the enchilada casserole in a 13 x 9 baking dish. Start with enchilada sauce on the bottom, then layer the filling, cashew cheese and 2 large wheat tortillas side by side. You can cut the tortillas to make them fit a square shape. Repeat the layers until the pan is full. Top with more cashew cheese and shredded cheese on top.
- 5. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes covered. If frozen, cook for 1 hour 30 minutes covered.