Vegan Baked Mustard, Cabbage and Potato Casserole (For a Very Snowy Day!)

 

The snow day we're having today (nearly five inches) means casserole time. I try really hard to not become a casserole queen in the winter. (Oh, don't think I couldn't.) It's almost too easy--the casserole. Sort of like the slow cooker, there aren't a lot of failures in either. (Well, the mush factor can nip you in the butt if you aren't careful with slow cooking, but pay even a little attention to what you're doing and you will be feasting on some good grub with very little work.)

I love anything that comes out in one pot. I remember casserole dishes my mom and grandmother would make and the seemingly zero failure rate they had. I mean, nearly anything we had in the kitchen was up for grabs and might show up in a casserole: peas, carrots, onions, green beans, corn (of course), tomatoes, potatoes--the list goes on. And nearly all of the combos were delicious. Okay, maybe I didn't love tuna casserole, but there were enough peas and carrots for me to dig my way around and NOT have to consume the icky tuna fish. (The cleaning of the glassware afterward, not so fun--but that's why we always had a scratchy iron scrubby thing by the sink my entire childhood!)  

I get Heidi Swanson's newsletter (101 Cookbooks) and open every single email because I know I will be in for a treat or better yet, will be inspired to try something new! A few weeks back I opened it to find her Baked Farro Pasta recipe. This dish called to me on every level. First, the cabbage. I love cabbage. (Love it so much I've been known to open a can of sauerkraut and eat it straight out of the can!) Then there were leeks (I happen to love leeks as much as cabbage and though I had zero success growing them last year, I will try growing them again this year!), and mustard. Mmmm, mustard. Finally, the potato layering (potatoes actually out rank cabbage for me)--but you get my point. Along the same lines as this recipe was the arrival of my new Dorie Cookbook, Around My French Table and her recipe for: Gerard's Mustard Tart. Well, say no more. Mustard. Tart. Oh please. I went right to the mustard thing bypassing all sweets in the French Table index to seek out this. Which, long story short, brings me to my own version of them both--Heidi's recipe and Dorie's recipe (or should I say, Gerard's). Because I took something from both and made one using only what we had on hand and made it vegan--I thought I'd share my version (which is really quite easy to adapt to any preference you may have). Say you want to add sliced apples to this--I think that would work nicely. Or say you want to add capers or olives--that would also work well. This made an excellent leftover the next night! (Not the prettiest picture once it baked!--but really, really good!)

The view from our window right after I had gone out and fed the birds this morning. The birds actually wait for me to feed them because I literally stick out like a sore thumb when I wake up in the morning, stumble out the door to get the paper in my pink robe and then to let the kids out. I can hear the bird calls across the backyard. Right after the seed goes in the feeders, we have this bird craze--the cardinals are my favorite. There are over a dozen different kinds of birds: cardinals, finches, chickadees, woodpeckers. I made my own suet cakes for the woodpeckers this week--they devour it in about an hour. It's crazy, but I love 'em!

Vegan Baked Mustard, Cabbage and Potato Casserole

2 large potatoes (sliced as thin as you can get them--I used a mandolin)
3 large leeks (sliced 1/2 inch thick to the green part, rinsed really well in a bowl of water, then drained)
3/4 head of cabbage cored and sliced as thin as you can get it, or shredded
5 cloves garlic chopped
2 tabelspoons stone ground mustard
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
3 cups veggie stock (separated out--2 cups first, then the last cup for pouring over the casserole)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups thick, short pasta (whatever you have on hand would work, even broken up no-bake lasagna sheets)
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
S & P to taste
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/3 cup shredded vegan mozzarella cheese
*one Granny Smith apple thinly sliced, optional

Preheat oven to 400. Lightly spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick spray. If you are using a short pasta, cook and drain this according to package directions. Set aside. Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saute pan over medium heat and add the leeks and cook for about five minutes--until they begin to soften. Add the garlic and saute a few minutes longer. Next, add the sliced cabbage one handful at a time. After first handfull, add the two cups of stock and cider vinegar. Continue adding the cabbage and cook until all cabbage is wilted. Next, stir in the seasonings. Turn the heat off and add the mustard to the mixture. Toss the mixture around to coat everything with the mustard. Now, layer the casserole. For layering the casserole: first place a layer of the pasta on the bottom, then a layer of the cabbage/mustard over that, then a layer of the potatoes and apples (if using), then add a dollop of tofu cream cheese over the layer of potatoes/apples. (I just dropped a teaspoon of the cream cheese every few inches). Repeat the layering, ending with a potato layer and a dollop of the tofu cream cheese. Now, pour the last cup of the stock over the casserole and last, sprinkle over the top of it the nutrtional yeast and vegan mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes. Test the potatoes for doneness by sticking a fork into the top. Remove from oven. Allow to cool about ten minutes before slicing.