Here’s a vegan leek gratin for the feast! Thanksgiving in the U.S. is this week, and the holidays are just around the corner. It’s time to bookmark this creamy, crispy, gooey gratin recipe so you can wow all your dinner guests!
The sauce is made from a base of potatoes and other seasonings. It’s kinda similar to a bechamel and uses the same technique as the nacho cheese that you know and love!
See how easy it is to whip this together in the video below, or keep scrolling for the full recipe!
Check out how gooey, saucey, creamy, and cheesy this guy is! Don’t you just wanna grab a spoon and dig in?! It also makes a great dinner for any occasion, not just Thanksgiving.
vegan leek gratin
This gratin has a delectable cream sauce, tender leeks, and a crispy smokey topping!
Ingredients
filling
- 2 white potatoes, peeled & diced (about 2 cups diced)
- 3 large leeks
- 3 garlic cloves
- 3 tbsp vegan butter + 1 tbsp
- juice of 1/2 a lemon
- 1 C nondairy milk
- 1/2 C low-sodium vegetable stock
- 1/4 C nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp ground mustard
- 1/4 tsp ground sage
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
topping
- 2/3 C bread crumbs
- 1/2 C vegan smoked gouda, shredded
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- fresh dill springs, as garnish
Instructions
- Bring a pot of cold water to a boil with the diced potatoes. Cook until very tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking prepare the leeks by trimming off the excess green parts from the top. Remove any excess tough or outer parts that might not look so fresh around the bulbs. Trim the root end off the bottom of the bulbs and then slice in half lengthwise and wash off dirt and debris from between the layers of the bulb.
- Pat dry and coat your baking dish and the leek halves with 1 tablespoon of vegan butter.
- Drain potatoes from the boiling water and add to a high-powered blender with garlic cloves, remaining 3 tablespoons of vegan butter, lemon juice, non-dairy milk, vegetable stock, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, spices, and salt and pepper. Blend on high until very smooth.
- Pour 1/3 of the sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Arrange the leeks in the baking dish. Then pour the remaining sauce over top and even it out. The leeks will be fully coated in sauce.
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Combine the topping ingredients together except the dill, and sprinkle over the top in an even layer.
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If your dish is quite full to the top edge place a baking sheet on the bottom rack of the oven and place the gratin above on the middle rack. This will catch any bubbling sauce that might over flow. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling.
Recipe Notes
Depending on your oven you might need to move the dish to the top rack for another 5 to 10 minutes to get the top more crispy and brown.
7 thoughts on “vegan leek gratin”
Stores near me don’t carry any smoked gouda blocks/slices. Did find a store that carries Miyoko’s smoked farmhouse, would that be an accceptable substitute?
ya you could use that! We don’t get it in canada yet
Hello Lauren!
I’m excited to try this recipe. I noticed that your blogged and printed recipe does not have the oven temperature. Your video does say 425F so that’s what I’m gonna go with.
Where does the video say 425? Has anyone tried that and verified it?
Must try recipe for anyone, Thanks for sharing
We’re fasting for Easter here in this period. I couldn’t have imagined that I could make such a delicious recipe during this time. Lauren, you definitely managed to inspire me with this vegan leek gratin. Thanks!
We followed the recipe very well. It tasted nice, the topping was dry, the leeks didn’t cook and the eating experience was off. The dog liked it.