It’s fall. It’s cold. It’s gravy time. Unless you’re in a part of the world where it’s not fall, nor cold, in which case, I would argue that it’s still gravy time. And this here gravy I’m about to tell you about is worthy of pouring on pretty much everything. Not just because it’s lip-smackingly tasty, which it is, but because it’s about the most deceptively healthy thing you can scarf down.
What I’m about to show you may not compute at first, but trust me, this is math you will want to eat.
Yes, my friends. Red lentils + rolled oats + raw cashews + salt + onion powder + pepper = gravy. Protein-packed Vegan White Gravy, to be more mathematically accurate. Oh, you need video proof that this works? Here you go:
Or perhaps you are satisfied with a still life photo.
This is white gravy. It pours like gravy, it tastes like gravy, it IS gravy. But it doesn’t have any oil, butter, milk, or anything that comes from an animal.
To make this gravy, all you do is cook red lentils, oats, and cashews until the lentils are soft. Then you add the onion powder and salt, and blend it up until it’s gravy. That’s it! Oh, and then you add a bunch of pepper because yum.
Obviously you should drown a plate of vegan mashed potatoes in this stuff, and I just so happen to have a recipe that’s spud perfection. And because this gravy has so much going for it nutritionally speaking, you can have a big ol’ plate of mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner and not feel the least bit guilty about it!
Comfort food lovers, meet your new best friend.
Protein-Packed Vegan White Gravy
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup red lentils
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup raw cashews
- 4 cups water
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper (white or black), or more to taste
Instructions
- To a medium saucepan, add red lentils, oats, cashews, and water.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a medium simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes or until lentils are completely soft.
- Use an immersion blender to blend right in the pan, or remove to a blender and let cool for 5-10 minutes before pureeing. Be careful to leave a vent opening so the hot liquid doesn’t explode all over you.
- Return mixture back to the pot, then whisk in onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a medium simmer until the gravy thickens (3-5 minutes).
- Turn off heat, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sounds delicious‼️BTW…,does your husband give out his bread recipe? Also sounds delicious. Wow‼️5 pounds in one week‼️Amazing‼️The combination of lots of water and vegetables really speeds up the weight loss. Keep at it and know how much I enjoy your week to week progress.
Oh Beth, you’ve done it again! Pure genious, utterly delicious and sooo good for us. We’re absolutely gob-smacked here and just can’t get enough of this gravy. Reckon mushrooms would be great in it too. Is there any law against having it two (or three, or four…) days in a row!! Lol. Thank you so much for another great recipe.
Ok I’m just going to go deflate my head now. 🙂 There is no law against having this gravy every darn day if your heart desires it. I have actually considered making it in a huge stockpot and freezing several batches for gravy on demand. Think I might just do that, actually. In any case, I’M gob-smacked (what a great word) that you all love it so much. And YES, mushrooms would be amazing in it. I’ve made it with my vegetable meat substitute seasoned like sausage and mixed in with the gravy. And then poured all over biscuits. I can’t wait to share that recipe. <3
Hi Beth — I just posted on the mashed potatoes and how wonderful they are but they are especially outstanding with this gravy — omg, I could eat this gravy all by itself! Superb flavor. Yahoo! Thanks!
Thank you so much for letting me know! I’m so so excited that you enjoyed this so much. I’ve been making it a lot lately myself! Confort food in this cold and gloomy weather. 🙂
Um, you are a stinking genius!! How do you come up with this stuff? Can’t wait to do the potatoes and gravy for my husband!! And I love your shirt!
So delicious! Especially with your white gravy! I just started my whole food plant based diet about 3.5 weeks ago and I’ve been craving dairy. This recipe made 10 small servings for me and I froze most of it so I can have it anytime I want! The only thing I had to do outside of your recipe was add some liquid to the cauliflower mix in order to get the blender blending. I used about 1/8th of a cup of the potato water that was boiling while I was blending up the cauliflower mix. Thank you for sharing!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Amy! <3 I love the idea of freezing it for later. You’ve also reminded me that I need to make a batch of the gravy, I have been craving it for a while. So many recipes, so little time. 🙂
I haven’t made this yet but it looks soooo good! I am presently looking for a sauce for green bean casserole. (I’d add mushrooms) Do you think it would then be similar to cream of mushroom soup?
Thanks!
Hi, Linda! I’d give my vegan broccoli casserole a try, but use the green beans instead of broccoliVegan Broccoli Casserole! This gravy could possibly work too, but I haven’t tried it. 🙂 Please let me know if you try it!
I wasn’t sure how this would all come together, but I was impressed. Thanks for a great recipe!
I made this it turned it great ! I did have cashews so I used sunflower seeds and added garlic powder , Italian seasoning , turmeric and miso!
This sounds amazing, but my husband is allergic to lentils. Any suggestion on substitutes for the lentils?
Hi Beth! I’m super interested in trying out this recipe but am allergic to cashews. Is there something else you would recommend in place of the cashews? Thank you!
Amazing Gravy, it is as good as any normal gravy I have had, no one would know it is plant based
This is absolutely wonderful. I added a cup homemade wfpb italian “sausage” and folded it in to serve on top of mashed potatoes. Everyone loved it, and no one could guess that it was not a cream based, flour thickened gravy (for those still longing for that!). Thank you for this new staple for us.
I found your recipe for vegan white gravy just yesterday, and was intrigued. I made a 1/2 recipe to see if I would like it, and I really do. It is delicious. I’m searching often for recipes that will encourage my wife, who has a more narrow range of palate that me, to eat more plant-based foods.
Now to try your mashed potatoes to go with it.