Easy & Delicious Casseroles
Casseroles are a great way to build a healthy plate at every meal. If you don’t like eating vegetables on their own, combining them with other foods in a casserole is a great way to sneak them into your diet!
This type of meal is baked in a deep and wide baking dish, and they usually combine vegetables, protein, and starches either mixed together or layered.
Casseroles are also usually quick to prepare and have a pretty high yield of 4-8 servings per dish. This makes them a great option for fast & easy meal prep.
Use a casserole dish, Dutch oven, or some other deep, wide baking dish to prepare these example recipes:
Green Bean Casserole
244 calories | 11g protein per serving | 4 serving (adjust serving number) | Full Nutrition Info | 1 hour 20 minutes | Vegan | Vegetarian
Ingredients
2 tbsps Coconut Oil (divided)
1 1/2 cups French Shallot (thinly sliced)
1/2 head Cauliflower (chopped into florets)
5 cups Green Beans (trimmed and halved)
2 cups Mushrooms (sliced)
3 Garlic (cloves, minced)
1 1/2 cups Water
1 tsp Sea Salt
2 tbsps Nutritional Yeast
1/4 cup Slivered Almonds (toasted)
Directions
Add half of the coconut oil in a large skillet and place over medium-low heat. Add the sliced shallots. Stir often to prevent burning for 30 to 40 minutes, or until caramelized. Once the onions are golden, remove from the heat, transfer into a bowl, and set aside.
While the onions cook, steam the cauliflower in a steaming basket until softened and are easily pierced with a fork. Transfer to your blender or food processor and set aside.
Steam the green beans for 6 to 8 minutes or until bright green. Transfer the beans into a casserole dish.
Heat the remaining coconut oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Saute mushrooms for 5 minutes or until softened then add in the garlic. Saute for another minute and remove from heat. Spread half of this mushroom mixture over your green beans in the casserole dish. Add the remaining half to your blender with your steamed cauliflower.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC). Add water, sea salt, and nutritional yeast to the blender. Blend until very smooth.
Pour desired amount of creamy cauliflower sauce into your casserole dish over the green beans and mushrooms. You might not need it all. Smooth with a spoon or spatula. Top with the caramelized onions.
Bake the casserole for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with toasted slivered almonds and enjoy!
Notes
Leftovers Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to four days.
Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie
311 calories | 27g protein per serving | 4 serving (adjust serving number) | Full Nutrition Info | 50 minutes
Ingredients
1 head Cauliflower (chopped into florets)
2 tbsps Extra Virgin Olive Oil (divided)
1 Yellow Onion (diced)
2 Garlic (cloves, minced)
1 lb Extra Lean Ground Turkey
3 cups Mushrooms (sliced)
2 Carrot (diced)
2 stalks Celery (diced)
1 tbsp Italian Seasoning
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 350ºF (177ºC).
Place cauliflower florets in a medium sized saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Let the florets boil until they are soft, about 15 minutes.
While the cauliflower is boiling, heat half of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, cook for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent.
Add the meat, and cook until browned.
Add the mushrooms, carrots, celery, Italian seasoning, and salt. Continue to cook for a few minutes, until the meat is cooked through. Remove from heat.
Drain the cauliflower and discard cooking water. Return the cauliflower to the pot and add the other half of the olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Mash well until the cauliflower becomes almost like a puree.
Transfer the meat mixture to a casserole or pie dish and distribute into an even layer. Top with the cauliflower mash and spread it evenly across the top.
Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Turn the oven to a low broil and broil for 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
Vegan and Vegetarian: Use cooked lentils instead of ground meat.
Beef & Sweet Potato Breakfast Casserole
405 calories | 33g protein per serving | 6 servings (adjust serving number) | Full Nutrition Info | 1 hour
Ingredients
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (divided)
1 1/2 lbs Extra Lean Ground Beef
1/4 tsp Sea Salt (divided)
2 Sweet Potato (medium, shredded)
12 fl ozs Unsweetened Rice Milk
4 Egg
1/4 tsp Dried Thyme
6 ozs Mozzarella Cheese (shredded)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400ºF (205ºC). Use half the oil to grease a baking dish.
Heat the remaining oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef to the pan, breaking it up as it cooks. Drain any excess liquid and season with half the salt. Transfer to the baking dish.
Sprinkle the shredded sweet potato evenly over the cooked beef.
In a bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, thyme, and the remaining salt. Pour the mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle the cheese over top and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.
Let it cool slightly before cutting into squares. Enjoy!
Notes
Leftovers Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days.
Serving Size A 9- by 13-inch baking dish was used to make six servings.
Dairy-Free Use vegan cheese instead of mozzarella cheese.
More Flavor Add garlic when cooking the beef.
Additional Toppings Serve with mixed greens or roasted vegetables.
No Rice Milk Use almond milk, oat milk, or dairy milk instead.
Sweet Potato, Black Bean & Quinoa Bake
311 calories | 12g protein per serving | 6 servings (adjust serving number) | Full Nutrition Info | 55 minutes
Ingredients
3 Sweet Potato (small, peeled and chopped)
2 cups Black Beans (cooked, from the can)
1 cup Quinoa (dry, uncooked)
1 Red Bell Pepper (chopped)
3 stalks Green Onion (chopped)
1 tbsp Chili Powder
1 tbsp Cumin (ground)
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
2 cups Vegetable Broth
1 Lime (juiced)
1 Avocado (diced)
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
In a large baking dish, add the sweet potatoes, black beans, quinoa, pepper, onion, chili powder, cumin, garlic and sea salt. Stir well to combine and then add the broth.
Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes or until the broth has absorbed completely, the quinoa is fluffy and the sweet potatoes are tender. Remove from the oven.
Let the quinoa bake sit for 5 minutes before dividing between plates. Top each plate with lime juice and avocado. Enjoy!
Notes
Baking Dish Use a 9x13-inch dish for six servings.
No Green Onion Use a white or red onion instead.
No Red Bell Pepper Use a green or yellow bell pepper instead.
Leftovers Keeps well in the fridge for up to four days.
More Flavor Top with chopped cilantro, shredded cheese, salsa and/or sour cream.
Pot Pie Chickpea Casserole
616 calories | 37g protein per serving | 3 servings (adjust serving number) | Full Nutrition Info | 35 minutes
Ingredients
8 ozs Chickpea Pasta (dry)
2 tsps Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Yellow Onion (medium, diced)
2 Garlic (cloves, minced)
1 Carrot (large, chopped)
3/4 cup Frozen Corn
3/4 cup Frozen Peas
6 1/4 ozs Cashew Cream Cheese
Sea Salt & Black Pepper (to taste)
1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast (divided)
3 tbsps Almond Flour
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C).
Cook the chickpea pasta according to package directions.
Heat the oil in an oven-safe pan over medium heat. Add the onion, cook for two minutes, then add the garlic and cook for another two minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the carrots and cook for five minutes, continuing to stir. Add the corn and peas and cook for another five minutes. Add the cashew cheese and half of the nutritional yeast. Stir to allow the cashew cheese to melt. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Once the pasta is finished cooking, add it to the pan and stir to combine. Remove from heat and sprinkle the almond flour and remaining nutritional yeast on top. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until just starting to brown. Enjoy!
Notes
Leftovers Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to five days.
Serving Size One serving is equal to approximately 1 1/2 cups.
