This vegan po boy is a messy sandwich that’s popping with flavor. It’s stuffed with breaded cauliflower, tossed in a Cajun seasoning mix, and finished with a drizzling of spicy vegan mayonnaise.
Last week I shared some of my go-to, no-frills meals. Today I'm continuing that theme with the new cookbook by Kathy Hester, The Easy Vegan Cookbook.
You may already know Kathy from her blog, Healthy Slow Cooking, or from her four previous cookbooks.
Her newest tome features 80 recipes that have busy families in mind. With an emphasis on whole vegetables, many of the recipes are gluten-free, soy-free, and oil-free as well.
Plus, most of the ingredients are readily available in any grocery store. Forget about visiting every specialty market in town. Easy is right. With this one, it’s wholly unnecessary.
The Easy Vegan Cookbook includes make-ahead staples, soups, stews, pastas, main dishes, stir-fries, sandwiches, and more.
The book is loaded with large color photos, which I always appreciate in a cookbook. They were taken by Ann Oliverio, who continued the concept of simplifying by using a minimalist design that puts all of the emphasis on the meals themselves. The backgrounds are stark white, allowing the eye-catching food to speak for itself.
One recipe that appealed to me right away was the spicy cauliflower vegan po boy.
A po' boy is a Louisiana-style submarine sandwich. It's typically stuffed with some kind of meat, like fried seafood. However, Kathy turns to cauliflower instead for the filling.
Breaded in a mixture of flour and cornmeal with Cajun seasonings, it's topped with a spicy mayonnaise. The cauliflower is baked instead of fried, and while the cauliflower is cooking, the spicy mayo comes together quickly.
The breading calls for a Cajun seasoning blend. (The recipe is in the book.) However, I used Slap Ya Mama seasoning instead since I already had it in the pantry. (I also reduced the salt in the recipe since Slap Ya Mama has salt in it already.) Finally, I substituted burger buns for French bread.
This vegan po’ boy is a messy sandwich that’s popping with flavor, but still feels light instead of gut-bustingly heavy. Thank you to Kathy & her publisher for letting me share the recipe!
If you try this recipe and love it, let me know! Leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It truly makes my day and is such a help!
📖 Recipe
Spicy (Or not) Cauliflower Po' Boy
Ingredients
- ½ head cauliflower broken into florets
- ½ loaf French bread soft, cut into 4 pieces depending on loaf size
DRY MIX
- ½ cup white whole-wheat flour or regular whole wheat
- ¼ cup cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon Cajun Seasoning Blend
- 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
WET MIX
- 2 tablespoons nondairy milk unsweetened
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce not-too-hot vinegar-based, such as Texas Pete or Louisiana Hot Sauce
SPICY MAYO
- ¼ cup vegan mayonnaise or Cashew Sour Cream
- 1½ teaspoons garlic Tabasco or the hot sauce you used in the wet mix
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray a large sheet pan with oil (or line with parchment paper). Set aside.
- Combine the dry mix ingredients in a small mixing bowl and the wet ones in a separate bowl. Toss the cauliflower florets in the wet mixture then transfer to the dry mixture and coat well.
- Spread the florets on the sheet pan and roast for 20 to 30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes. Cook until the cauliflower is tender and is easily pierced with a fork.
- While the cauliflower roasts, mix the mayo ingredients together. If the French bread is fresh there is no need to toast it, but if it's getting dry, go ahead and toast it.
- Spread a thick layer of the spicy mayo on both sides of the bread, then layer with the cooked cauliflower. You can top with more hot sauce, lettuce and tomato.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of The Easy Vegan Cookbook for review. The thoughts and opinions are totally my own.
Hannah
That looks *real* good. I get jealous when I see recipes like this because I rarely get to make them. Cauliflower is the one vegetable my husband doesn’t like! Poor guy has tried so many times. I eventually put him out of his misery by eliminating it from our menus. However, when we have cook-for-ourselves nights I often make something with cauliflower. I’ll have to remember this for next time!
Cadry
I do the same thing! I often plan my lunches around what David doesn’t like, and when I’m out for the night, he cooks things that I’m not as into like sweet potatoes. (I think sweet potatoes are okay, but David could eat them once or twice a week.) I hope you get a chance to make the cauliflower po’ boy!
An Unrefined Vegan
Now that’s a sandwich! Yummy review, Cadry!
Cadry
Thanks, Ann! Great job on the photos in the book, as always!
Little Vegan Bear
Yum! I am so into crumbing and coating things right now, this looks delish.
Cadry
Crumbing and coating does make food more fun. BTW, I ended up with quite a bit extra of the flour mixture. Of course, sizes of cauliflower varies, but I could easily have cut the amount in half. Although, if you’re coating and crumbing things anyway, you can always repurpose it for something else!
Shell
I have a head of cauliflower in the fridge waiting to be eaten! This looks delicious.
Cadry
Great, I hope you enjoy it!
Kathy Hester
Thank you so much!
Cadry
My pleasure! Thanks for sharing your terrific cookbook.
Caitlin
Yum, that looks sooo good! 🙂 I have never actually had a po boy but now I want one of these!
Cadry
I don’t know if I’d had one before now either, but I’m always game for a monstrous sandwich. 🙂
Tracey
YUMMY!
Cadry
Thanks, Tracey!