This vegan spoon bread, also known as Mexican corn cake, is an amazing side for dinner or even brunch! Super simple to make and a great cornbread alternative.
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There used to be this Mexican restaurant called Don Pablo’s that served spoon bread. Now, we had no idea what spoon bread was, but once you tried it, you couldn’t go back to the restaurant without ordering more than one spoon bread order. Now of course, this wasn’t vegan spoon bread.
We wanted to recreate this dish, one because Don Pablo’s is no longer a restaurant, but also for those that have never had this, especially now being vegan. There is a lot of butter used, so the original recipe definitely isn’t vegan.
What we ended up creating was what we think is even better than the original version and we truly hope that you will love it.
If you love cornbread, you will love this recipe!
Also in our research it appears that this is a traditional Mexican dish. Sometimes it is referred to as Mexican Sweet Corn Cake or just Corn Cake, while a traditional name appears to be Tomalito. It is likely from this dish that the original restaurant we had it at got the idea.
VEGAN SPOON BREAD INGREDIENTS:
Below are notes about the ingredients before we get into the full recipe located lower in this post on how to make these vegan Mexican corn cake:
- corn flour and cornmeal – the base of the dish is a mixture of corn flour and cornmeal. The combination of the two leads to a fluffy, light and airy texture that will make you wonder what other amazing creations you can make to combine these two things together
- vegan butter – The richness of the dish is what we get when we add vegan butter and yes it’s a lot of it.
- vegan milk – any plant based milk will work, we do recommend that you use unflavored and unsweetened non-dairy milk
- creamed corn – this is the canned corn that is not just the kernels. Do not get them confused, because the dish will not be the same if you only use the kernels
- vegan cane sugar – we are using vegan sugar. to learn more about why your sugar may not be vegan, read our post here.
- canned coconut cream – this is the thick part on the top of canned coconut milk. Some locations have where you can buy just the coconut cream as well. Our favorite brand is actually the Good & Gather brand from Target
- baking powder – helps the dish rise and asks as the leavening agent
- kosher salt – just a little in the dish to really make those flavors pop
- agave and/or vegan cheese for topping – Either and or both will help take the dish to the next level
Substitutions and Variations:
- corn flour and cornmeal – You can sub masa harina for the corn flour, but we recommend using the cornmeal
- vegan butter – We highly highly highly recommend not subbing this. You can use some applesauce if trying to reduce, but we have not tested this and cannot confirm if it will work. Alternatively, if you just can’t get vegan butter where you live you could try subbing with coconut oil
- vegan milk – water could be subbed if needed
- creamed corn – do not substitute this
- vegan cane sugar – coconut sugar could be subbed in equal parts
- canned coconut cream – any non-dairy milk could be subbed here, but we would recommend trying to find a thicker one like Extra Creamy Oat Milk
Frequently Asked Questions for Vegan Spoon Bread:
There’s no wrong answer here. Typically for dinner or brunch as a side. However, it could be a snack, dessert, or even breakfast side!
Make sure to use a soy free vegan butter like Flora or Earth Balance soy free. Other than that just sub the coconut cream for any other non-dairy milk. We would recommend trying to find a thicker one like Extra Creamy Oat Milk
We do not recommend omit all of the vegan butter. While we haven’t tested it, you could reduce some of the vegan butter with maybe applesauce, but the dish need the fat and richness.
Spoon bread is like the bread pudding version of cornbread. It’s more moist and much lighter. It’s not a handheld version and you eat it with a fork or a spoon.
This dish will last 3-5 days in the fridge in an air tight container. After that it begins to loose its moisture and dry out.
Yes! Let cool completely and then place in a freezer safe container. Use within 3 months. Let thaw completely before reheating.
You can place into the microwave for 30-60 seconds or you can place into the oven at 350 degrees F for 8-12 minutes or until heated throughout.
Place the dish inside a water bath and then cooking helps for the steam released to slowly and evenly cook the spoon bread instead of very quickly rising and potentially falling. You will find a much more enjoyable vegan spoon bread this way.
What other vegan meal ideas could I serve this with?
Honestly, this can go with so many dishes, but here are a few that we think you will love!
- Sheet Pan Vegan Cauliflower Fajitas
- Easy Cheesy Crispy Vegan Black Beans Tacos
- Vegan Cauliflower Tinga Tacos
- Grilled Vegan Jackfruit Tacos
- Tofu Taco Crumbles
- Vegan Cheesy Gordita Crunch (Taco Bell Copycat)
- Vegan Lentil Tacos with Spinach and Feta
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🥳 Get the Full Recipe
Vegan Spoon Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan butter, softened
- ⅔ cup corn flour (masa harina could be subbed)
- ½ cup vegan milk, unsweetened, unflavored
- 1 cup creamed corn
- ⅔ cup vegan cane sugar
- ½ cup cornmeal
- ¼ cup canned coconut cream (thick part on top of canned coconut milk – can sub with another dairy free milk if needed)
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For serving
- vegan cheese
- agave
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 8×11 casserole dish. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add butter and beat for 3-5 minutes or until fluffy and lighter in color.
- Add in corn flour and dairy free milk. Beat again just until combined.
- Add in corn, sugar, cornmeal, coconut cream, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat on low just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Pour batter into prepared dish and cover with foil. Place dish inside a 9×13 dish (or larger) and fill ⅓ of the way with water.
- Very carefully carry and place inside oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.
- Served topped with vegan cheddar cheese and/or agave.
Hi, can this be made a few days ahead?
Yes, it can
This is EXACTLY what I’ve been looking for. As some else above mentioned, this was a thing at El Torito in California. You could even buy a mix in the grocery stores but it doesn’t seem to be available any more. First cold day I’m making vegan chili and THIS!
Yes, can’t wait to hear what you think!
Can you make this in a muffin tin?
Yes, reduce the cook time though!
Don Pablo’s (RIP) was one of my favorite places to go, I was in love with their spoon bread/corn cake! I found a great non-vegan dupe a few years ago but I wanted to share the deliciousness with my vegan friends. I couldn’t believe my luck when I found this! I’m not a great baker but this was so easy to follow and the best part was it tasted EXACTLY like DP’s. Thanks so much for sharing this!
I’m so glad someone else share’s in my love of DP’s spoonbread! It was amazing and that’s why I had to recreate this when we went vegan! Happy you enjoyed
I’m in a similar boat but I’m the one who’s on a plant based diet and the corn cake I’ m wanting to dupe was from el torito in California (it’s a chain so possibly not the most authentic but it was delicious). I can’t wait to make this recipe!!!
Hope you love it
This was AMAZING! Soooo much better than I could have imagined. I followed the recipe mostly, was a little short (2 tbsp) of butter and went with masa harina. Perfection.
So glad that you enjoyed it!
Simply deliciouz
Glad to hear