This is the healthiest vegan grilled cheese sandwich made with avocado, spinach and sprouts layered between cashew mayo and a healthy homemade cheese sauce! Make this whole food plant-based recipe for the whole family.
Do you love tasty vegan sandwiches? Then you need to try this healthy vegan grilled cheese made with wholesome ingredients.
It’s a classic comfort food turned super nutritious, loaded with crunchy and ooey-gooey textures and really moreish.
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Perfect for anyone on a healthy weight loss journey or for those wanting to enjoy more veggie-rich plant-based meals, our ultimate healthy vegan grilled cheese sandwich with spinach, avocado, tofu, cashew mayo, sprouts and homemade meltable cheese offers something for everyone.
Make more meals vegan-friendly and try our creamy lasagna, mac and cheese or this potato broccoli casserole.
Recipe overview
- Completely WFPB & oil-free
- Perfect lunch or side
- Awesome way to eat your greens
- Easy 10-minute recipe
- Super melty, tasty & crunchy
- Hearty, comforting & so cheesy
Every mouthful is just pure bliss with all of these textures and flavors coming together!
Ingredients needed
- Bread — we like to use whole grain or sourdough bread but pretty much anything goes.
- Zucchini, spinach, avocado, green onion — our veggies of choice for this green grilled cheese!
- Smoked tofu — added flavor, texture and protein!
- Vegan mayo — use store-bought or this homemade cashew mayo
- Vegan cheese sauce — for the healthiest veg grilled cheese ever!
Find the exact ingredients in the recipe card below. We’ll share some adjustment ideas, too!
Get ready to create this healthy vegan grilled cheese sandwich!
How to make this vegan grilled cheese
Grill zucchini and tofu slices in a skillet for 3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3 minutes, then place them on a plate.
Make the meltable cheese following our easy 10-minute recipe or use store-bought slices.
Create the sandwiches by spreading the bottom slices with mayo, followed by folded grilled zucchini, tofu slices and 2 teaspoons of cheese sauce.
Top everything with fresh spinach, green onion, sprouts, avocado and more cheese sauce!
Close the sandwiches with a slice of bread each.
Place your skillet from earlier over medium heat again and once it’s nice and warm, add your sandwiches. No oil or vegan butter needed to make this work!
Press the sandwiches down with a spatula, then cover your skillet with a lid and let it cook for about 3-4 minutes until a golden crust has formed.
Flip the sandwiches and repeat the process, then remove them from the skillet once done.
Serve warm!
Storage & serving
We love our veg grilled cheese sandwiches on their own, vegan soups ranging from broccoli cheese to French onion or tomato soup, potato salad, sweet potato fries or oil-free tortilla chips.
If you want to take this sandwich with you for a portable lunch, let it cool completely until it has reached room temperature. Then wrap it in parchment paper and put it in a lunch box!
You can reheat any leftovers in the toaster oven or in a pan — don’t microwave this grilled cheese.
Tips & substitutions
- Let your pan or skillet heat up before adding your sandwich to allow the fillings to become warm without your bread starting to burn.
- Place a lid on your skillet to help the cheese melt.
- If using store-bought cheese slices, your sandwiches require a longer cooking time compared to using our melted cheese sauce!
- Save time by toasting your bread and topping it with vegan mayo, cheese sauce and raw salad veggies.
- Use a toastie grill to get some deep lines on your grilled cheese sandwich!
- Use your favorite vegan bread for this grilled cheese. In the photos, you see our gluten-free buckwheat bread.
- Make sure to cover the entire slices with enough cashew mayo and cheese sauce, including all of the edges so each bite will be full of flavor.
- Depending on the size of your slices, you may need a larger quantity than what we’ve used.
Suggested swaps
You can omit the smoked tofu or use grilled tempeh instead.
Cut back on the veggie fillings if you’re not too keen on it or replace spinach with your favorite salad greens.
Here’s what else you can add!
More vegan sandwich fillings
- Hummus
- Pesto
- Arugula
- Kimchi or sauerkraut
- Tofu ranch
- Sliced carrots
- Sautéd mushrooms
- Caramelized onions
- Vegan cream cheese
- Almond ricotta
- Cucumber
- Tomato
- Buttery spread
- Jalapeño (fresh or pickled)
- Roasted red peppers
- Peaches, pears or figs
More vegan lunch ideas
We all need some more ideas for plant-based goodness we can make once the midday munchies kick in! Try these next.
- Collard Green Wraps
- Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- Easy Bean Burritos
- Creamy Potato Salad
- Healthy Pesto Pasta
Have you tried our healthy vegan grilled cheese sandwiches and like them? Share with us in the comments below and rate our recipe! You can also Pin it here !
Ingredients
- 6 slices of bread
- 1 avocado peeled, cut into slices
- 1 zucchini cut into ½ inch thick lengthwise slices
- ½ cup fresh spinach 20 g
- 4 oz smoked tofu sliced (about 100 g)
- 1 green onion diced
- 3 tablespoons cashew mayo
- Vegan cheese sauce to taste
- Microgreens or sprouts
Instructions
- Place the zucchini and tofu slices on a heated grill skillet, cook for 3 minutes, then flip over and cook for 3 more minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Lay your slices of bread side by side and spread one tablespoon of cashew mayo onto each of the three bottom slices.
- Continue layering the folded grilled zucchini and tofu slices, then drizzle with about 2 tsp of the melting cheese sauce.
- Top with fresh spinach, green onion and sprouts, then add one more tablespoon of cheese sauce and the sliced avocado.
- Close with a slice of bread and repeat until you have created three loaded green cheese sandwiches.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat and add the sandwiches once it is warm. We usually do this without oil, but you can add some avocado oil or vegan butter.
- Press your vegan cheese sandwiches with a spatula for a couple of seconds, then cover the skillet with a lid and cook for 3-4 minutes until a golden crust has formed.
- Flip the cheese sandwiches and repeat the process, then remove them from the skillet, slice and serve warm.
Notes
- Use your favorite bread for this sandwich and choose from the plethora of delicious vegan sandwich fillings we listed in the article above.
- Feel free to make it an open-faced sandwich with drizzled cheese sauce!
Alena Schowalter is a Certified Vegan Nutritionist who has been a vegetarian since childhood and vegan since 2012. Together with her husband, she founded nutriciously in 2015 and has been guiding thousands of people through different transition stages towards a healthy plant-based diet. She’s received training in the fields of nutrition, music therapy and social work. Alena enjoys discussions around vegan ethics, walks through nature and creating new recipes.
Where to buy Vegan smoked tofu, brand?
they are usually next to any other tofu at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods or even Asian Markets :) we’re located in Germany so I cannot tell you anything very specific, unfortunately.
Sounds delicious however I was told yesterday that I’m not to eat any coconut Products. What can I use instead please?
Thanks
any richer plant-based milk, such as soy or homemade cashew milk, will do! the mixture will thicken thanks to the tapioca starch :)
Looks so awesome!!! I can’t wait to try it out. Thanks Elena! I need to look for other recipes you have for things like this.
this was so delicious, we loved the melting cheese sauce!
Nutriciously is what I have been looking for all this time. Apart from the amazing recipes, the energy of the people behind the Company, give off an air of unselfishness, generosity, and genuine interest for us all which makes for an exciting package. Thank you from my heart!