Salt-baked potatoes are stuffed cheesy roasted red pepper sauce, steamed broccoli and chives. This recipe is dairy-free, nut-free, super satisfying, flavourful, and of course vegan!

I make a wide variety of things for our dinners, always trying to shake things up and to prepare vegetables in new ways. It’s kind of my job, right (lol)?! But HONESTLY. I always just want loaded baked potatoes (or a heaped plate of roasted potatoes is fine too), pizza, and giant bowls of pasta. I’m a woman that enjoys her carbs and comforts, what can I say. I know what I like!

I have a few pasta recipes posted here, which is highly reflective of our real life. I always feel meh about sharing pizza recipes because I normally just make up some version with red sauce, roasted and raw veg, all the salty/hot things (olives, sundried tomatoes, pepperoncini), and a heavy sprinkle of some vegan “parm” or a drizzle of a creamy cashew-based sauce. It’s the same every time and there are soo many recipes for pizza dough on the internet already. But baked potatoes with stuff inside? I haven’t really gone there yet. Sweet potatoes don’t count ;)

To launch into this exciting but also familar territory, I went with a fairly classic flavour combination. Crispy baked potato, cheesy roasted red pepper sauce, steamed broccoli, chives, lots of pepper. I am a fan of also consuming the skin of the potato, especially when prepared using the salt-baked method that I’ve described here. The skin gets golden, crispy, and yes also salty. Perfect for encasing some oozy cheesy sauce and tender broccoli.

This larger recipe happens to include my go-to vegan “cheese” sauce. This version is made with sunflower seeds, but I also enjoy it with cashews. It’s perfect here, but also amazing with pasta. You could even stir in some diced canned green chilies to use it as a queso kinda thing. Bonus tip: the sauce is even creamier and almost “stretchy” if you blend in a peeled and thoroughly boiled potato. You have to let the motor of the blender run for a while to really activate the starch, and it’s so worth it! I left the potato out of this recipe because the sauce is being poured INTO a potato so…

This is highly make-ahead friendly. The sauce will keep in the fridge for about a week. If you pre-cut your broccoli florets at the beginning of the week, this recipe just needs some oven time, a little steam on the broccoli, and a re-heat of the sauce. Perfect for getting other things done while dinner finishes in a hands-off kinda way. I hope that you love this one as much as I do! Carbs forever.

Salt-Baked Potatoes with Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce & Broccoli

Salt-baked potatoes are stuffed cheesy roasted red pepper sauce, steamed broccoli and chives. This recipe is dairy-free, nut-free, super satisfying, flavourful, and of course vegan!

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 50 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Servings 4

Ingredients

Potatoes

• 4 standard baking potatoes (Russets)
• 1 tablespoon avocado or other heat-tolerant oil
• sea salt, to taste

Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

• 1 teaspoon avocado oil
• 1 shallot, chopped (or ½ of a small onion)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
• 1 roasted red pepper
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 ½ tablespoons mild miso (I used a chickpea-based one)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon gluten-free tamari soy sauce OR coconut aminos
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 cup hot water
• sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
• hot sauce, to taste

Assembly

• 4 cups broccoli florets (from roughly 1 bunch)
• chopped chives, for garnish

Equipment

• Blender

Notes

• My Russet potatoes were freshly dug and not as large as standard supermarket ones, hence why you see 2 in my photos as one serving.
  
• I kept this recipe nut-free with the sunflower seeds, but if you have cashews on hand and prefer those, feel free to use an equal amount. Just remember to soak them for at least an hour.
  
• Freshly roasted peppers or ones from a jar are both great!
  
• DEFINITELY try the cheesy roasted red pepper sauce on pasta for a mac and cheese vibe!
  
• My smoky and crunchy coconut bacon would be incredible on top of these!

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Scrub and dry the potatoes and prick them a few times with the tines of a fork. Brush the potatoes with oil and place them on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the salt over the potatoes, rotating the potatoes for even coverage. Bake potatoes for 45 minutes, or until the outside is golden brown and crispy, and also tender when poked with a paring knife. Keep warm until ready to serve.
• While potatoes are baking, prepare the cheesy roasted red pepper sauce. Heat the teaspoon of oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring often, until soft and slightly translucent, about 4 minutes. Transfer the shallots and garlic to an upright blender. To the blender add the sunflower seeds, roasted red pepper, nutritional yeast, miso, lemon juice, Dijon, tamari, smoked paprika, water, salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Blend the mixture on high until smooth and creamy, about 3 full minutes. Add more water by the tablespoon if necessary. Scrape the sauce into a small saucepan and keep it on low heat on the stove until you’re ready to serve.
• Steam or boil the broccoli florets until tender but still bright green, about 5-6 minutes.
• To serve: Place a salt-baked potato on your serving plate. Cut the baked potatoes down the middle lengthwise. With a fork, pry them open and lightly mash the cooked insides, keeping the potato’s shape intact. Season the flesh with a bit of salt and pepper. Pour a quarter of the cheesy roasted red pepper sauce into the potato. Top the potato with a quarter of the broccoli, some chopped chives, and extra ground black pepper. Serve immediately.

Author: Laura Wright

Course: Main Course, Sauce, Side Dish

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: all seasons, broccoli, chives, dijon mustard, fall, flaky salt, garlic, hot sauce, lemon, miso, nutritional yeast, potatoes, roasted red peppers, sea salt, shallots, smoked paprika, spring, summer, sunflower seeds, winter