For years we went without green bean casserole, thinking it couldn’t be made gluten and dairy free. Now we know better! This creamy vegetable side dish is loaded with flavor thanks to two secret ingredients. Enjoy this Gluten Free Vegan Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving or any time you want to punch up your side dishes!
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Why I Love This Gluten Free Vegan Green Bean Casserole
This will be the FIRST year in years and years that we will have a green bean casserole due to food allergies. I just didn’t think I could find one that would be creamy and dreamy enough without using gluten and dairy.
Boy, was I wrong!
The creamy sauce is based off of a French mustard sauce by the famed Ina Garten, so you know it’s going to be good.
The way to get a really flavorful sauce is a few things: caramelized onions, browned mushrooms, deglazing the pan with white wine, and then using my secret ingredients: both dijon mustard and stone ground mustard. I don’t know other recipes that use mustard, but it gives it such a nice flavor, without tasting too “mustardy”. This will give your vegetables such a good taste and it will stand out from bland green bean casseroles!
And, for those of you who don’t like mushrooms or onions–I have a trick in the recipe, so read on!
How is this a gluten free green bean casserole?
My son has a wheat allergy and my husband has a gluten intolerance. So, it HAS to be gluten free. I was worried about not having that crunchy, classic topping…BUT…the sauce is so great, I really think it’s fine without it. With the topping gone, all of the rest of the ingredients are naturally gluten free in and of themselves, so bye bye gluten!
If you don’t need it to be gluten free, but just dairy free, feel free to use whatever French Fried Green Beans you prefer on top.
What if I want a topping on my gluten free green bean casserole?
As you can see in my pictures, I opted for no topping. I live in a small town, and try as I might, I could not find gluten free French fried onions. If I had been more patient to wait for the mail, you can buy Sprout’s Gluten Free French Fried Onions on Amazon. But, I just HAD to get this recipe out to you guys ASAP for your Thanksgiving menu planning.
If you can’t find any and you still want a topping, you could always do a homemade panko crust with crunched up rice chex or by crushing potato chips on top.
What if I don’t like mushrooms and onions in my green bean casserole?
Want to know a secret? My kids don’t like mushrooms or onions either. But guess what? They eat them unwillingly. Here is a mom hack for you: go ahead and caramelize the onions and brown the mushrooms because it gives the sauce AMAZING flavor. Don’t skip this! But, when the sauce is all done, before stirring in the green beans, blend the sauce WITH the onions and mushrooms in a quality blender, like a Blendtec, that will make it ultra smooth. The sauce will be smooth, have all that flavor and no one will be the wiser and you won’t have to hear whinny kids complaining about the mushrooms and onions. WINNING!
How is this a vegan green bean casserole?
This green bean casserole is vegan because I use olive oil to sauté the vegetables instead of butter. And then, for the creaminess I use a soy based cream cheese. Therefore–there’s no dairy, eggs or meat products in the recipe.
I prefer soy based cream cheese like Tofutti or Go Veggie. We can’t have nuts, but I would bet Kite Hill (made from almonds) would work as well.
If you can only find the Tofutti sour cream instead of the cream cheese, that can work as well!
What if I can’t have soy in my green bean casserole?
If you need this casserole to be free of the top 8 allergens, and cannot have soy as my original recipe stands, swap out the soy based cream cheese for a coconut based cream cheese like Daiya. Coconut is not a tree nut, so it will still be top-8-free.
Do you have more allergy friendly Thanksgiving recipes?
Well of course this food obsessed blogger has more Thanksgiving recipes! In fact, I have an ENTIRE THANKSGIVING MENU for you. It has a turkey, sides and pies–literally everything you need top to bottom. Be sure to check it out!
Do you have a video showing how to make this vegan gluten free green bean casserole?
Yes I do! I show a quick overview on my TikTok video below. I hope it gives you a good feel for what it’s like to make this start to finish. Enjoy!
@allergyawesomenessA ##glutenfree & ##dairyfree ##greenbeancasserole that’s creamy & dreamy! ##foodallergy ##veganthanksgiving ##glutenfreedairyfree ##gfree♬ original sound – Megan Lavin
Gluten Free Vegan Green Bean Casserole
For years we went without green bean casserole, thinking it couldn't be made gluten and dairy free. Now we know better! This creamy vegetable side dish is loaded with flavor thanks to two secret ingredients. Enjoy this Gluten Free Vegan Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving or any time you want to punch up your side dishes!
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh green beans, washed & trimmed
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup halved and thinly sliced yellow onions (approx. 1 onion)
- 8 oz halved white button mushrooms
- 2 Tablespoons dry white wine
- 9 ounces dairy free cream cheese (see post above for options)
- 1 clove garlic (1/2 tsp minced)
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon whole-grain mustard
- 1 tsp dried parsleyÂ
- S&P to taste
- 1/2 cup broth (if you only need it dairy free, then do beef, that will give the richest flavor. If you need it to be vegan, use vegetable.)
- OPTIONAL: Gluten free French Fried Onions
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Boil water in a large pot to a boil.
3. While the water is heating, wash and trim green beans.
4. Place washed green beans in the boiling water and cook until they're bright green, around six minutes.
5. While they cook prepare a large bowl with ice water. Once the green beans have cooked, quickly transfer them to the ice bath to cool. Once cooled, drain and transfer to a large mixing bowl.
6. Over medium heat, place an oven proof skillet. Add the two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender.
7. Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook until the mushrooms are golden and the onions are caramelized.
8. Add the mushrooms and onion mixture to the mixing bowl with the green beans. Toss and then set aside. (Remember, if you don't want the onions and mushrooms in the final dish, set them aside to blend them with the sauce, don't mix them with the green beans. See post above!)
9. Make the sauce by adding the white wine to the pan, scrap up any browned bits left in the pan (that's the good stuff!). Next add the garlic and cook until fragrant (about 1 minute). Then add both kinds of mustard, cream cheese and dried parsley. Add the broth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Turn off the heat.
10. Add the mixed green bean, onion, and mushroom mixture to the pan and coat in the sauce.
11. Stir until everything is heated through. Add additional broth if you like it a little thinner.
12. Feel free to add on gluten free French fried onions for the last 5 minutes, if you can find them (I rarely can, but live in a small town, see post above.)
13. Serve warm. Keep cooled leftovers in an air tight container for 2-3 days. Great for Thanksgiving or any Sunday dinner.
*If you need this done faster, you can substitute two cans or drained green beans instead of cutting and blanching fresh ones.
**UPDATED TO ADD: Previously it did not have the broth, but I like it creamier and added this step. You can add a half cup of vegetable stock. If you're not vegan, and making this only to be dairy free, beef stock is especially rich and good.
Notes
Check out the rest of my Thanksgiving Menu for Food Allergies!
*If you don't want onions and mushrooms in the final dish, set them aside once they've caramelized and browned. Make the recipe as follows.
Once you've made the sauce, scrape the sauce into a blender, and add the onions and mushrooms. Blend until smooth. Place the blended sauce back in the oven safe skillet, and toss in your green beans.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 185Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 163mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 4g
DON’T FORGET TO PIN THIS SO YOU DON’T LOSE IT. BE SURE TO ALSO CHECK OUT MY OTHER ALLERGY FRIENDLY PINTERST BOARDS WHILE YOU’RE THERE!
Hi! I’m Megan, a mom to four kids, two with multiple food allergies & one with EOE. I’m a published cookbook author that constantly tweaks recipes to make them allergy friendly–it’s an addiction. I share every recipe & tip with the hope that they help you as you manage your food allergies & dietary restrictions. You can still be awesome, even with food allergies!
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Britt
Do u think this would work making everthing ahead of time and mixing sauce/green beans for the oven later. I am going to be traveling 2 hrs for Thanksgiving and would love to be able to just warm for 20 min/ add topping when I get there. If so, do u think it’s ok to do the oven part in a glass casserole dish instead of a skillet?
Megan Lavin
Hi. I’d just make it like normal (not putting onions on top if you’re doing that) and reheat it when you get there. Reheating it for 5-10 minutes won’t hurt anything.
Martin
Aldis gets gluten free french fried onions every year during their season! I stock up and use your recipe!
Megan Lavin
Awesome. So good to know. Thanks for sharing that for other readers to find. I don’t have Aldi out here on the West Coast and so wish I did!
Michelle
Excellent. This will be added as a holiday favorite recipe.
Megan Lavin
Thank you Michelle. That mean a lot to be included in someone else’s tradition. 🙂
Elize
Does the recipe work with regular dairy cream cheese? Thank you!
Megan Lavin
Yes! It should 🙂 Happy cooking.