Creamy Carrot Casserole Recipe (Vegetarian/Vegan Holiday Side Dish)

This delicious carrot casserole is our go-to recipe to bring to a holiday party!  Whether for Thanksgiving, Easter, or 4th of July, these carrots are a major crowd-pleaser hit. Creamy and delicious, these baked carrots are an easy way to sneak vegetables onto a packed holiday plate.

We brought these carrots to a friend’s house for a holiday potluck, and we didn’t have ANY leftovers to bring home!  We should have doubled or tripled the batch. These creamy baked carrots are absolutely delicious, sweet and savory, and are so good you won’t believe you are eating veggies.

This Creamy Carrot Casserole is

• Garlicky
• Warm
• Sweet
• Herby
• Vegetarian (with an easy vegan option)
• Can easily be made gluten free
• Great for make-ahead holiday prep!

Comfort Food Holiday Side Dish Recipes for the WIN!

This creamy carrot casserole with Ritz cracker topping is the tastiest, coziest dinner meal. It’s perfect for a hearty meal for the family, and also great to make for company if you are having guests for dinner. It makes a great holiday meal as well. The oven does most of the work, so you can enjoy hands-off time while you prep appetizers or a salad!

What’s In These Creamy Carrots in the Oven?

• Carrots – I got these carrots from my Misfits Market box – they sell all organic produce at a super discounted price, and it’s purchased direct from the farmers. We get Misfit Market boxes every month and love picking out our favorite seasonal produce for delivery.  You can get $10 off your first box by clicking here!
• Classic Mayonnaise: I like to use this classic mayo to keep this recipe plant-based, but you can use whatever mayo that you would normally use in recipes. If you don’t normally like mayo, try my homemade dairy-free version… it’s creamy but still plant based.
• Garlic Cloves
• Garlic Powder: Also a major pantry staple ingredient that gets used in our house daily! I love this garlic powder and add it to a lot of recipes that I would use fresh garlic in too.
• Onion Powder: adds a delicious and savory flavor to this dish as well, and the onion powder pairs nicely with the garlic flavor.
• Herbes de Provence: my favorite spice blend! This French blend has a mix of rosemary, thyme, sage, and savory for a wonderful and complex flavor.
• Butter
• Ritz/Butter Crackers – I like to keep it traditional with these classic Ritz butter crackers for the perfect crumbly topping for these carrots!  If you’re looking for a gluten free cracker to use, these are a great GF alternative.
• Salt and Pepper
• Steamer Basket Insert – I steamed my carrots with one of these handy pot inserts… if you don’t have one, I’d highly recommend!  We use ours all the time to steam fresh vegetables all year long, and they’re inexpensive too!

Make Baked Carrots Vegetarian for a Healthier Holiday Side Dish

This vegetarian garlic baked carrots recipe is a simple way to get extra veggies on your plate. I’m all about making recipes plant-based when I can. Vegetarian cooking does NOT have to be bland, boring, or flavorless… It’s quite the opposite when done right.

By building meals around vegetarian pantry staples and swapping in a few plant-based ingredients you can make healthier meals for you and your family.

I made a list of my 125 favorite vegan pantry ingredients that we use on a weekly basis, and check out all my vegetarian recipes here that are on The Herbeevore. These easy and healthy recipes are fantastic meatless meals for your table.

How Do I Make This Oven Baked Carrots Casserole?

1. Set oven to 375 Fahrenheit
2. Steam the carrots: Bring about 2 cups of water to a boil, add a steam insert, and steam the carrots for 6-7 minutes or until softened.  You can also pressure cook them for 2 minutes, and quick release the pressure.
3. Reserve 1 cup of the carrot cooking liquid, and drain the rest.
4. Transfer carrots to a large 13×9 baking dish.
5. Mix the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.  Add the 1/2 cup of reserved carrot cooking liquid to thin.  Pour over carrots.
6. In that same bowl, combine melted butter and cracker crumbs. Spread evenly over the top of the carrots.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated through and bubbling at the edges.

Dietary Modifications

• To Make These Vegan, replace the mayonnaise with a vegan option, use plant-based butter, and use a vegan cracker to top.
• To make these Gluten-Free make sure you use a gluten free cracker for the crumble topping (or skip it all together). Also ensure any mayonnaise or spices used are certified gluten free.

More Healthy Vegetarian Holiday Side Dishes You’ll Love!

Irresistible Artichoke Dip (Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten Free)

Pot Luck Greek Salad with Homemade Vinaigrette (Vegan, Gluten Free, Party Recipe)

Oven-Baked Marinated Veggie Kabobs (Gluten-Free, Vegan, Party Food)

Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes (Vegan, Gluten Free, Dairy Free)

Classic Coleslaw (Family Recipe, Gluten Free, Vegan Option)

Get the Same Ingredients for These Creamy Baked Carrots Casserole

As always, if you make this healthy meatless holiday carrots recipe be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe, and tag me @theherbeevore on Instagram so I can feature you.  I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!

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Creamy Carrot Casserole

Kelly Jensen

This creamy carrot casserole with cracker topping is a healthy & irresistible side dish for a holiday brunch or dinner party!  Easy to make ahead and prep ahead of time - a classic vegetarian holiday side for Thanksgiving for Christmas.

5 from 5 votes

Print Recipe Pin Share Tweet

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Holiday Recipe, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Canadian

Servings 12

Calories 182 kcal

Equipment

• Large Pot
• Steamer Basket Insert
• Mixing Bowl
• 13x9 Baking Dish

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 3 lbs carrots sliced diagonally into coins
• 2 cups water save 1 cup of carrot cooking liquid
• 1 cup mayonnaise use plant-based if vegan
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 4 cloves garlic minced/pressed
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon herbes de provence
• 1 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup Crackers use Ritz crackers for a vegetarian, or dairy free for a vegan version

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Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 375 Fahrenheit.
• Steam the carrots: Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add a steam insert, and steam the carrots for 6-7 minutes or until softened.  You can also pressure cook them for 2 minutes, and quick release the pressure.
• Reserve 1 cup of the carrot cooking liquid, and drain the rest.
• Transfer carrots to a large 13x9 baking dish.
• Mix the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, onion powder, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.  Add 1/2 cup of reserved cooking liquid to thin (if you need the sauce thinner, add 2 tablespoons of water at a time until desired consistency is reached).  Pour over carrots.
• In that same bowl, combine melted butter and crushed cracker crumbs. Spread evenly over the top of the carrots.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbling at the edges. Serve and enjoy!

Video

Notes

Save Money on Fresh Groceries & Pantry Staples!

I get all the fresh produce for my recipes from my garden and from Misfits Market - they sell produce & pantry staples (even wine!) at a super discounted price. We get Misfit Market boxes every month and love picking out our favorite seasonal produce for delivery. You can get $10 off your first $30 box by clicking here! 

Give Misfits Market a look if you haven’t tried it yet, I highly recommend it!

Nutrition

Calories: 182kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.03gCholesterol: 8mgSodium: 426mgPotassium: 390mgFiber: 4gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 18979IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 58mgIron: 1mg

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