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Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan + Gluten-Free)

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This ultra creamy Vegan Green Bean Casserole is a wholesome take on the classic but is so decadent that you’ll never guess it’s dairy and gluten free!

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

When I was a kiddo, I couldn’t care less about eating traditional condensed mushroom soup with MSG, soy protein, and vegetable oil as the third ingredient.

Thanksgiving was about eating three servings of Aunt Dee’s chocolate pecan pie, endless plates of grandma’s sweet potato casserole with toasted marshmallows, and heaps on heaps of classic green bean casserole—french fried onions and all, baby! And guess what? It still is!

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

I may eat allllll the food (and then some) on Thanksgiving, but at least I’m eating real food. That’s what matters.

I may not have cared about the crap hiding in my food back then, but I sure as hell do now. The truth is that I’ve never really tackled Thanksgiving recipes here on the blog. I left it to the experts in years past. My parents always did most of the Thanksgiving cooking since I was always so busy with school and work. But now that I’m a big girl who’ll be hosting my own turkey day before I know it, I decided it was time to buckle down and conquer the casserole.

PicMonkey Collage mushroom

So let’s talk about this Healthy Vegan Green Bean Casserole. The secret is the cashews! Soaking them and then blending them with unsweetened almond milk creates this insanely thick and creamy addition that transforms the mushroom mixture into decadent heaven.

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

For the onion topping, I was inspired by Alton Brown’s Best Ever Green Bean Casserole. The onions are tossed with whole grain breadcrumbs and flour and baked in the oven until nice and crispy. Not only are you using fresh onions as opposed to ones that have been in a can for God only knows how long, but there’s also no extra oil involved!

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

Winner winner chickpea dinner.

Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

Casserole, conquered. I’m kind of sort of super duper proud of this Healthy Vegan Green Bean Casserole recipe. I hope you adore it as much as I do!

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Healthy Green Bean Casserole (Vegan)

★★★★★ 4.6 from 22 reviews
  • Author: Alexis
  • Prep Time: 45 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
  • Yield: 10 1x
  • Category: Side Dish
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Description

This ultra creamy Vegan Green Bean Casserole is a wholesome take on the classic but is so decadent that you’ll never guess it’s dairy and gluten free!

Scale

Ingredients

  • Heaping 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked for 30 minutes or overnight
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or water)
  • 3 medium onions, divided
  • 3 tbsp whole grain bread crumbs (sub certified GF bread crumbs if necessary)
  • 3 tbsp flour (sub certified GF flour if necessary)
  • 2 1/4 tsp salt (divided)
  • 2 lbs frozen cut green beans
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2–8oz packages sliced mushrooms, chopped
  • Pinch ground nutmeg (optional)
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce (sub tamari if necessary)
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine (I used chardonnay)
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Grease a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Place cashews in a bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes or overnight. (If you have a nutribullet or high speed blender, 10 minutes of soaking is fine.)
  3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 475F. Thinly slice two of the onions, setting aside the other onion for later. Combined sliced onions with bread crumbs, flour and 3/4 tsp salt in a large bowl, tossing to combine. Be sure to separate each individual onion piece. Spread onions in an even layer on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray or lined with a Silipat. Spray once again with cooking spray. Bake for about 20 minutes, tossing halfway through. Watch carefully to make sure they don’t burn towards the end of cooking. Once onions are done, remove from oven and lower oven heat to 350F for casserole.
  4. Bring a large pot with two inches of water to a boil. Once boiling add green beans. Bring back to a boil (this may take a while) and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until tender. Drain and run cold water over green beans to stop cooking. Set aside.
  5. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Chop remaining onion. Once hot, ad to pan and cook for about five minutes before adding garlic and mushrooms. Cook for another ten minutes, stirring often. Add nutmeg, soy sauce, white wine, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and pepper. (It will taste salty, that’s ok!). Simmer for about five minutes.
  6. Blend soaked cashews with almond milk in a blender or food processor (I used my nutribullet) until completely smooth and creamy. Set aside.
  7. Stir in cashew cream and 1/4 of the baked onions. Stir in cooked green beans.
  8. Spread mixture into prepared dish. Top with remaining baked onions. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes (if onions are on the crispier side, you can cover with foil for first half of cooking.) Serve hot!

Notes

To make this dish ahead of time, make the sauce and the green beans then store in separate containers in the fridge. The next day, bake the onions and combine everything per the recipe.

Disclosure: Whole Foods Market Upper Arlington gave me a gift card to purchase the items used in this recipe. I was compensated for my time. All opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting Hummusapien!

Green Bean Casserole… vegan, gluten-free and super healthy, this rich and creamy casserole makes the perfect Thanksgiving side dish!

Comments

  1. Green bean casserole was my favorite as a kid!y Mimi made the best ever. Yours look fabulous- I wonder if they’d know it was vegan and super healthy?

    Reply

    • What kind of beans did you use to substitute the cashews? Although I’d love to see what the cashews taste like, I have to sub them out for someone.
      Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
      Thanks for the recipe- sounds delish!!

      Reply

  6. Ugh…you genie! I’m all about eating my weight in foods over the holidays and totally don’t care so long as it’s the healthy stuff. My family always did the mushroom soup green bean casserole, so I’m proposing we make your ninja version this year!

    Reply

  15. Thanks for this recipe! I have to be at school until nine o’clock every day this week and definitely wasn’t going to leave my meals up to the cafeteria! Made this once and I’m set for dinner for the week! Awesome!!!

    Reply

  16. What would you suggest for the best cashew and almond milk substitute? I have a milk and tree nut allergic child and was looking for a dairy-free green bean casserole when I came across your recipe – it looks delicious but since it seems like cashews are integral to the flavor I am hesitant to try a substitute. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi Elizabeth! You could definitely use water or rice milk instead of the almond milk. I’m not sure about a sub for cashews, since that’s what makes it so creamy and “normal” seeming. Maybe pureed cauliflower with nutritional yeast? Let me know how it goes!

      Reply

  17. Just made this and everyone loved it! It’s going on the Thanksgiving menu for sure. The only issue is opening a bottle of wine for only 1/4 cup, what are we going to do with the rest of the bottle …… ? ;)

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  18. Oookay … whyyy didn’t I pick up green beans at the store today? Will you believe I’ve never had green bean casserole before?! Before you stare at me in disbelief: hey. I’m German. We eat our green beans either as part of the traditional “Birnen, Bohnen und Speck” or plain as a side for potatoes and meat [or not in my case]. Or – because we’ve expaneded our horizons ;) – in dishes from other cuisines but apparently not the American way? Too bad looking at this deliciousness. Cashew cream is the best and totally addictive. That’s all.

    Reply

  20. After cooking the onions in the oven on a cookie sheet, you later say to add onions to the heated and oiled skillet and add garlic, mushrooms. etc. simmer….
    Then, it says to add the cashew cream mixture and ‘1/4 of the baked onions’.
    If I’m adding the cream mixture to the skillet WITH the onions, how it is I’m adding 1/4 of the baked onions?
    The recipe appears to say to bake them first and then put them in the heated skillet and then..add 1/4 of the baked onions..

    This is clearly me: what am I missing?

    Reply

    • Hi Allison! So the first two onions that you bake for the topping are separate from the onion listed later in the recipe. You bake the first two onions and mix 1/4 of those into the final mixture. The “one medium onion” listed later in the recipe is the one you sautee in the heated skillet before adding garlic. So you’re using three onions total. Does that make sense?

      Reply

  22. This was delicious! Although next time I’ll have to triple the cashew sauce (I’m not sure why but there wasn’t enough to hold it all together) and bake the onion straws for ten min less (they burned in my oven). Can’t wait to make it again!

    Reply

  24. This looks delicious! I can’t wait to make it for my Kind Thanksgiving this Year. Can this be made in advance and then baked the day of?

    Reply

    • Hey there! I actually did this over the weekend. I made the sauce and cooked the green beans then kept them in separate containers in the fridge. Next day I baked the onions and combined everything per the recipe. Worked great! I didn’t want to combine the green beans and sauce ahead of time because I was worried it would soak up too much sauce. Enjoy!

      Reply

  26. I made a trial version of this to test it for Thanksgiving this year, which I am making kosher (cannot mix meat and milk). After baking the onions and tasting them, I decided to use the Trader Joe’s crispy onions because you just can’t get that same crunch and flavor unless you batter and fry them! However, the cashew sauce was a really nice substitute for the old cream of mushroom. You do miss a little creaminess that can only come from real cream, but the taste was delicious, and it was lighter and cleaner. On Thanksgiving this means more room in the tummy for everything else! Thank you for this recipe! It got thumbs up in the test round, and I’ll be serving it to our crowd!

    ★★★★

    Reply

    • Great call on using TJ’s onions! Baking them at home eliminates the “fried aspect” and there’s no oil, so it makes this recipe a lot healthier without sacrificing flavor. So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Angie!

      Reply

  27. Hate to criticize but this is NOT gluten free. So all of you looking for celiac friendly foods– I will need to modify it. Try sautéed onions/mushrooms with cauliflower simmered in almond milk and spices. Purée the soup and add to a slew of fresh green beans.

    Make your own onion straws in advance coating with a little cornmeal mixed with gf flour and fried, then drained well. You can dry them overnight in a 170 degree oven with door ajar to add overall crunchiness.

    Mix and bake at 350 for about 20 min to time it right as dinner is ready–

    Reply

    • That’s what I’m doing with mine. The pre-baked casserole is INCREDIBLE, so I have high hopes for tomorrow.

      ★★★★★

      Reply

    • Hey there! I actually did this over the weekend. I made the sauce and cooked the green beans then kept them in separate containers in the fridge. Next day I baked the onions and combined everything per the recipe. Worked great! I didn’t want to combine the green beans and sauce ahead of time because I was worried it would soak up too much sauce. Enjoy!

      Reply

  29. I’m wondering the same thing can this be made before hand and then baked day ofWe have 3 separate Thanksgiving to attend trying to make things as simple as possible!
    Ps thanks for the wonderful recipe can’t wait to try it!

    Reply

    • Hey Maggie! I actually did this over the weekend. I made the sauce and cooked the green beans then kept them in separate containers in the fridge. Next day I baked the onions and combined everything per the recipe. Worked great! I didn’t want to combine the green beans and sauce ahead of time because I was worried it would soak up too much sauce. Enjoy!

      Reply

  31. This was seriously the best green bean casserole I’ve ever had! Loved the wine with the mushrooms and this was fairly easy to make.

    Reply

    • Hey there, Apryl! Nope because store-bought cashew mylk is way thinner. This version makes a super thick and creamy base for the sauce. You can however use water instead of almond milk to blend. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  36. ok, as i don’t have any cashews, i am using a jar of dolman carbonara, and sifted some chick pea flour over the top. to do the onions, i ilsliced them, and put them in a bag with some chick pea flour, some water, added some turmeric and peri peri seasoning spice. baked them with a bit of oil, on baking paper. quite yum! but next time i might do yoghurt instead of water, or egg on the onions, which i ate like onion rings and did not add to the casserole!!!!.

    ★★★★

    Reply

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    Reply

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    Reply

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    Reply

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    Reply

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    Reply

  42. I love this dish but when I went vegan I could no longer eat it. I have one question though, do I really need the wine? Can I simply leave it out or do I need a replacement?

    ★★★★

    Reply

    • Hey, Katie! The wine provides a really deep flavor. I actually used 1/3 cup last time I made it (bumped up the 1/4 cup). I haven’t t tried it without the wine so I can’t vouch for the flavor. I got Chardonnay for $3.79 at Trader Joe’s :) Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Hi, Pat! No, unfortunately this won’t work without the mushrooms. They provide most of the flavor (basically a homemade substitute for canned condensed mushroom soup). If you’re not a mushroom fan I’d pass on this recipe. Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Hey, Erin! I actually did this over the weekend. I made the sauce and cooked the green beans then kept them in separate containers in the fridge. Next day I baked the onions and combined everything per the recipe. Worked great! I didn’t want to combine the green beans and sauce ahead of time because I was worried it would soak up too much sauce. Enjoy!

      Reply

  45. Wow! I made this for thanksgiving and my family loved it! I’ve never tried a cashew sauce aND I’m excited to use this again! Thank you so much for sharing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  46. This green bean casserole is so much better than the one I grew up eating! My vegan family loved it and I was proud to contribute a delicious dish to our Thanksgiving Dinner! Thank you!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  47. Loved!!! Used red wine instead of white……….hey its the only thing we had at home, and my vegetable averse 2 year old even ate some. Winner recipe!! Thanks.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  49. I made this last night for a new year/Hanukkah dinner and it was a huge hit!! The only thing different I did was use fresh green beans and kept it in its long form. Also, I drained the mushrooms so it wouldn’t be mushy. So good!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  51. I made this and it was delicious!! Thank you for the recipe. My husband doesn’t like mushrooms so just
    left them out. Will make again !! : )

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  52. I’m using your recipe to make my families spinach casserole. Love the gluten free and vegan aspects.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  59. I’ve heard so many people complain about green bean casserole here in the south. I personally love it and anything that can make it healthy I welcome with open arms! Looks awesome and I’m stoked to try it out.

    Reply

  60. Made this recipe for my family’s thanksgiving dinner this year and it was a huge hit! We usually just make the typical Campbell’s soup recipe. I’m not even a mushroom fan but the sauce base was so delicious I’m going to modify it to turn it into an actual soup recipe! So happy to have a good recipe from scratch, especially one that is dairy and gluten free! Highly recommend. My only note is to keep a close eye on the onions, I managed to burn my first batch so the second time I cooked them on lower heat (however, my parents have a double oven that I’m not used to using, so I think the issue was mostly from the temperature not being accurate when you have both running at once.) Thanks so much for an amazing recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

Trackbacks

  47. […] In den USA wird das Erntedankfest Thanksgiving als großer Feiertag begangen, der dieses Jahr auf den 1. Oktober fällt. Als Amerikanerin ist dieser Anlass auch bei uns ein Tag, an dem die ganze Familie zusammenkommt. Traditionell kommt dabei Turkey – also Truthahn – auf den Tisch, aber als Vegetarierin macht es mir auch großen Spaß, meine Liebsten zusätzlich mit gesunden Alternativen zu überraschen, wie etwa einer veganen Kasserole mit grünen Bohnen. […]

    Reply

  52. […] In den USA wird das Erntedankfest Thanksgiving als großer Feiertag begangen, der dieses Jahr auf den 1. Oktober fällt. Als Amerikanerin ist dieser Anlass auch bei uns ein Tag, an dem die ganze Familie zusammenkommt. Traditionell kommt dabei Turkey – also Truthahn – auf den Tisch, aber als Vegetarierin macht es mir auch großen Spaß, meine Liebsten zusätzlich mit gesunden Alternativen zu überraschen, wie etwa einer veganen Kasserole mit grünen Bohnen. […]

    Reply

  59. […] It’s not Thanksgiving to me without green bean casserole. It’s a staple, and that doesn’t have to change just cause you’re vegan! This version get its creaminess from cashews, AKA vegan cooking magic. No one will even realize this is vegan (and gluten free!) Check it out here! […]

    Reply

  67. […] https://www.hummusapien.com/healthy-green-bean-casserole-vegan/ This green bean casserole was definitely everyone’s favorite dish. Replacing cream of mushroom soup with fresh mushroom and cashew cream was genius! I used canned green beans (because I’m a loser and prefer canned to fresh.) I also replaced the onions with store-bought French fried onions (because I had 15 hours of cooking, who am I Martha Stewart?!) and only sprinkled them on top of 3/4 of the dish so my boyfriend’s dad could have some. It was sooo creamy nobody believed it was vegan! It was better than any green bean casserole I had in my pre-vegan days, for sure. […]

    Reply

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