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This vegan Tex-Mex enchilada casserole has layers of corn tortillas, a creamy salsa verde, and a bean & veggie filling! A fresh and hearty weeknight dinner.
It’s time for dinner, and you want something that’s kinda fresh, kinda hearty, kinda wholesome, and definitely delicious. Enter: this Creamy Green Enchilada Casserole! This vegan and gluten-free main is now the dish of my warm-weather dreams. It’s satisfying, it’s pretty colorful, and it keeps me full without weighing me down.
INGREDIENTS + INSPIRATION
This recipe is packed with veggies and flavor, and can be broken down into two main components: the creamy green sauce, and the seasoned bean and veggie filling. Corn tortillas serve as the carb-y dividers, just like pasta sheets in lasagna!
The main inspiration for this recipe is Enchiladas Suizas, which is actually a fusion food in and of itself. Enchiladas Suizas (or “Swiss Enchiladas”) is a classic Mexican recipe that was created once Swiss immigrants came to Mexico. The enchiladas have a creamy green sauce and are traditionally stuffed with shredded chicken – today we’ll use cashews for the cream, and use fresh vegetables instead. Finally, I gave this recipe more of a Tex-Mex flair with added spice from cumin, as well as making this a casserole instead of enchiladas 😉
HOW TO MAKE ENCHILADA CASSEROLE
This recipe comes together in a few simple steps; if you want to cut down day-of cooking time, you can make both the sauce and veggie filling 1-2 days in advance:
- Blend soaked cashews with salsa verde and vegetable broth to make the sauce
- Sauté the garlic and cumin together with the vegetables and beans to make the filling
- Layer: sauce, sliced tortillas, filling, sauce, tortillas, filling, sauce, tortillas, sauce! Top with vegan cheese and bake in the oven until melted
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!
This enchilada casserole has pretty much everything good going for it — hearty layers of tortillas, soaked in a creamy and spicy sauce, and stuffed with fresh and filling veggies? Yeah, I thought so 😉 This is a great recipe for weeknight dinners, weekend get-togethers, or even meal prep. Leftovers will keep well in the fridge, and stay fresh for up to 5 days.
If you’re looking for more Tex-Mex recipes, you’ll also love this Southern Black Bean Casserole, this Salsa Verde White Bean Casserole, and these Vegan Spinach & Mushroom Enchiladas!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
PrintCreamy Green Enchilada Casserole
This vegan Tex-Mex enchilada casserole has layers of corn tortillas, a creamy salsa verde, and a bean & veggie filling! A fresh and hearty weeknight dinner.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 50 Minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6-8 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Oven, Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
For the Salsa:
- 12 oz (355 ml) cups salsa verde, divided 1/2 cup remainder
- 1 1/2 cups cashews, soaked for at least 1 hour in hot water, or overnight
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 2 cups (475 ml) vegan chicken-flavored broth (or sub vegetable broth)
- 1 bunch cilantro, divided
For the Filling and Casserole:
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 red onion, diced
- 3–5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 jalapenos, diced; remove seeds for mild heat
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 8 ounces (225 g) cremini mushrooms
- 1 small zucchini, diced
- 1 cup (130 g) frozen corn, thawed
- 2 15-ounce (425 g) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 ounces (113 g) baby spinach
- 24–26 corn tortillas
- 1 cup (115 g) vegan mozzarella cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Prep: Pre-heat the oven to 375F. Cut around 18 of the 24 tortillas in half and “dry fit” them on the casserole dish, with the straight edges lining the outside. Two tortillas should stack per layer; a whole tortilla can be placed in the center.
- Sauce: Reserve 1 cup of salsa verde and set aside. Add the remainder of the salsa verde, drained cashews, nutritional yeast, broth, and 1/2 a bunch of cilantro to a high-speed blender. Blend for 45-60 seconds, until the cashews dissolve completely and make a thick and smooth liquid. This should make just over 4 cups of sauce.
- Filling: Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Once warm, add the diced onion and cook for 3 minutes; then, add the garlic and jalapeño and sauté for 1 minute. Add the cumin, salt, mushrooms, corn, and zucchini and cook for 3-5 minutes, until the mushrooms reduce in size slightly. Finally, add in the beans and spinach and cook until the spinach has wilted. Set aside.
- Assemble: Spread 1 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish, then place the first layer of (double-stacked) tortillas. Add half of the vegetable filling to the dish, then repeat (sauce, tortillas, filling) once more. Top the filling with the final round of tortillas, the remaining sauce, the salsa verde you set aside, and the (optional) vegan cheese.
- Bake: cover the casserole dish with foil or a lid and bake, covered, on the top rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes, until the vegan cheese has melted. If you’d like the top to be more brown, broil for 3-5 minutes, with the oven door slightly ajar.
- Serve: Remove from the oven and top with the remaining cilantro, or as desired. Slice and serve warm; leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Salsa Verde: I like to make homemade salsa verde when tomatillos are in season, but store-bought will work as well. If you cannot find salsa verde, green enchilada sauce will work too.
- Other Substitutions: flour tortillas could be used for corn tortillas, if desired. Feel free to swap out or add in extra veggies as you see fit! Pinto beans can be replaced with black beans or white beans.
- Nut-Free: replace the soaked cashews with 1 cup of vegan cream cheese and add an extra 1/2 cup of water or broth to the sauce.
What is the serving and nutrition of this recipe?
★★★★★
So good. So so good! If you’re considering making it, you won’t regret it!
★★★★★
Thank you for the review, Michelle!
This is such a great recipe, easy and with lots of flavor. After the first bite my husband said it was really good and he wanted to eat it every day and he did. So, thank you
★★★★★
Thank you for sharing. Glad you enjoyed it! 🥰
Hi Caitlin, super excited to make this recipe!! If I want to sub tofu for the cashews in the sauce, how much tofu would you recommend using?
Thanks 🙂
I would use about the same as the volume of cashews, so 1 1/2 cups! The sauce will be less creamy, but will still be delicious!
This recipe is amazing. My family just had it for dinner, and it was delicious! Thank you!!
Yay! So glad to hear that 🙂
I just made this for dinner tonight and it is outstanding! My non-vegan husband loved it. Thank you for such a delicious and filling recipe. P.S. – I just got your cookbook, too and am excited to make so many recipes.
Thank you so much, Maribeth! I hope you love the cookbook 🙂
These are amazing! It will definitely be a part of my go to meals! Thank you so much for sharing it with us!
★★★★★
You so so very welcome 🙂
Amazing. I too only did a single layer on the tortillas. Also I don’t care for cilantro so I add 1 teaspoon of coriander to the sauce instead. It’s so good! Love it.
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed it, Cindy!
This was DELICIOUS. I’m so happy I made this recipe! I added a bit of fresh spinach to my cream sauce to make it extra bright green! Didn’t make much of a noticeable difference once it was cooked but the layers when I was assembling were extra pretty in my glass casserole dish. Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe.
★★★★★
Yum! Well you added some extra greens in to, haha
Wow. When I was making the sauce for this and had a taste, I literally said out loud, “HECK YEAH, CAITLIN!” This was sooooo good. I skipped out on the jalapenos because I am a spice weenie, but I do think it needs ~ some ~ spice — I had some salsa on hand that did the trick without being as spicy as a jalapeno. I also did one can black beans, one can pinto – as other commenters have said, you can really get creative with the recipe depending on what’s in your fridge/pantry! But wow. The cilantro is the MVP here. That sauce…. wow…. I’m excited to have this as leftovers for the next few days, and usually, I get tired of leftovers pretty quick!
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Amanda! 🙂
Hi Caitlin! Could this be prepped ahead and frozen? Or would it be best to cook and then freeze to just reheat later? I have a friend who is having a baby soon and want to give them some easy freezer friendly meals!
Great question! I would bake first, then freeze 🙂
So so good! Accidentally forgot to add the nooch and it was still great without it
★★★★★
Glad to hear it was still yummy! 🙂
This is so good! Next time (def. making it again) I will not double stack the tortillas, a single layer would be better.
Thanks for the feedback, Julie! It definitely depends on tortilla thickness, I think it would be great with single stacked as well
Looks amazing! I’m about to make it and noticed there is a zucchini in the picture but not in the recipe. If I add it how much should I use? Thanks!
Whoops, thank you for letting me know! I corrected the recipe 🙂
So good! Super creamy and delicious! Definitely can throw really any veggies in, just make sure they’re not too wet and I think you’d be fine.
★★★★★
This was flipping delicious.
Seriously so good.
★★★★★
WOW Caitlin! It’s hard to choose a favorite of all of your recipes, but this one is definitely up there! I made it for someone who doesn’t really like squash or corn all that much, so I swapped out those ingredients for a couple of bell peppers. This turned out FABULOUS! I couldn’t believe how well it held up, either. You are killing it!
PS- Made a bunch of recipes from your cookbook for some guests I was hosting and they loved them so much they are buying your book. YOU ROCK!
★★★★★
I added a comment about this dish, but I was on my phone and I misclicked, so it went to the next recipe in line. Sorry about that. Anyways, this is the yummiest casserole!! Very filling, creamy, spicy, and just all around an excellent dish. My family has said they would love this on the meal rotation each week. And I have to agree! Thank you, Caitlin, for a wonderful, yummy recipe my whole family enjoys!
★★★★★
Thanks I was just searching for something new to make on Cinco de Mayo day. I live in az, so I can purchase fresh tomatillos are available year round, looking forward to homemade salsa verde!!! Love your vlog, love your cookbook. Thank you for making my first year as vegan fun delicious and easy.
You’ve done it again! This was amazing! I’d make this again in a heartbeat. It was so good… a little spicy, creamy, yet hearty as well. I know my non-vegan family would think this was delicious! Thank you, Caitlin!
★★★★★
This is amazing. I love your blog so much, and this is one of your best recipes ever! It tastes so creamy and indulgent even though it is so healthy, easy and packed with veggies. I can’t wait to make this again!
★★★★★
This is the best review ever! Thanks Kari!