This is a vegan/plant based version of the Neapolitan Classic Casatiello. This base works perfectly with all kind of vegetables and/or vegan meat and cheese.
Questa ricetta è disponibile anche in italiano
This is my attempt to make a vegan version of one of the Neapolitan Easter classics: Casatiello.
Disclosure: I’m aware that non vegans, especially Italian people from Naples or Campania in general will shake their heads in disappointment for this 100% plant based version, but hey, I’ve been vegan for a while and craving Casatiello is one of the personal needs I had for Easter, and this way even us vegans can enjoy such a delicious dish leaving out the cruelty.
For those new to this dish Casatiello is basically a rich buttery bread stuffed with cheeses, cold cuts and salami that is rolled and doughnut shaped (ciambella). Even the dough itself calls for an animal-based product: suet.
One of the versions I’m about to show you today not only has a suet free bread but it is also an hymn to the vegetables, as in fact I’ve used only vegetables as a filling.
The other one is more on the classic side, and uses meat free products and vegan cheeses.
The dough itself works perfectly well with all kind of vegetables and/or any vegan meat and cheese replacements. So consider it a white canvas to fill up with your favorite plant based products and that’d be your personal recipe for success!
I will of course include how I have prepared the veggies for the filling for those that would like to follow this outcome to the letter, or simply to give you some interesting inspiration.
But first things first: we need a dough, let’s see how to make it.
How to make the dough for Casatiello
To make the dough for Casatiello we will need a bunch of common ingredients:
- flour
- water
- yeast
- salt
- margarine (or vegan butter)
Some versions also call for ground pepper and grated parmesan in the dough, but that’s completely up to you.
First step is to make the “biga” which is basically a sort of starter.
To do so I highly recommend you to use a food mixer because it is both quicker and easier, but no worries if you don’t have one, it can still be achieved with some extra elbow grease.
For our biga we need to mix together with a whisk some flour with some water and the yeast until it turns into a batter like mixture.
Now we have to let the biga proof until it doubles the size. This step will take from 30 minutes up to 1 hour depending on the temperature.
Ideally we want to store it at 25°C covered in cling film. The oven with the light on work perfectly.
After the biga has proved we can add the remaining flour, water and salt and work the dough until it comes off the sides of the bowl.
Now it’s time to add the vegan softened butter one bit at a time and keep mixing the dough until once again it comes off the sides (5-10 minutes on high speed).
Please note: if you’re mixing the dough by hands you might want to incorporate the water and melted butter to the flour one bit at a time and work the dough for at least 15 minutes.
Once the dough is ready shape it into a ball and allow to prove for another couple of hours or until it doubles the size. 
In the meantime we can prepare our veggies. As fillings of the veggie stuffed Casatiello I’ve used:
- Hotdog-style carrots
- Garlic mushrooms
- Sauté peas
- Parmesan-style vegan cheese
…for the carrots...
Dice 1 big or 2 small carrots and sauté in a hot pan with a touch of olive oil, 1 pinch of onion granules, 1 pinch of garlic granules, salt and pepper.
Add 2 tablespoons of liquid smoke, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and ½ tablespoon of agave syrup.
Lower the heat, cover with the lid and cook the carrots until soft but still crunchy (5-10 minutes depending on size).
Set aside and allow to cool completely.
…for the mushrooms...
Cube 150 grams of mushrooms. Heat ½ tablespoon of olive oil in a pan. Add the mushrooms and 1 clove of grated garlic. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until cooked (for around 7 minutes on medium heat). Set aside and allow to cool completely.
…for the peas...
Simply sauté the peas in a drizzle of olive oil with onion granules, salt and pepper for 3-5 minutes on medium heat. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
Alternatively we can use vegan cold cuts and cheeses. In this version I used 150 grams of my Vegan Pepperoni, 150 grams of Meatless Bratwurst (store bought) and 100 grams of my Vegan Mozzarella.
Also, for the "classic" version I garnished the top with 4 egg shaped potatoes, simply boiled in water for 15 minutes (they will finish cooking in the oven and they can be eaten with sauces like salad cream, vegan mayo, etc). 
Assembling the Casatiello
After around two hours our dough should have risen enough to be finally shaped.
To do so firstly we need to coat our board with some flour, then we can take our dough and place it on the flour.
With the hands let’s flatten the dough into a rough rectangle, then fold both ends to the centre as shown in the following picture.
With a rolling pin we can now roll the dough into a rectangle 1 cm thick. Arrange the filling on the dough sheet and grate some vegan parmesan cheese and black pepper on top.
Roll the dough lengthwise to form a big sausage, then transfer on a (preferably round) baking tray in the shape of a doughnut.
Ideally you want to use a savarin/bundt cake tin, but if you don't have one you can just arrange the sausage shaped dough around the edges of a 26cm round tin as shown in the second picture. 
Allow to prove for the last time for at least one other hour (2 would be ideal; we want it to almost reach the top of the cake tin). Once proofed we can finally preheat the oven at 180°C (static) and bake our vegan Casatiello for around 45-60 minutes. If you have a thermometer the inside should be at 100°C (212° F) when ready.
Before enjoying it simply cool it down for at least 15 minutes before cutting slices and serve!
I promise you that all the effort will pay off!
Make sure you let me know what you think about this recipe with a comment at the end of the post.
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Looking for other ideas for your Easter table or a buffet?
Do not miss these Vegan Deviled Potatoes, or these Courgette and Smoked Paprika Pastry Rolls, these unmissable Mediterranean Empanadas, or this Vegan Camembert Cheese, awesome for sharing, and this light and refreshing Vegan Coleslaw Salad!
With all this gorgeous food bites I’m sure your party will be a total success! 
Vegan Casatiello Recipe
Ingredients:
...for the dough...
500 g Bread Flour
250 g Lukewarm Water
100 g Vegan Butter (o Margarine)
8 g Sea Salt
7 g Dried Yeast
...for the filling...
300 gr of Mixed Veggies (cooked) or Meat Free Alternatives
100 g Vegan Mozzarella
50 g Vegan Cream Cheese
30 gr Vegan Parmesan
...to garnish...
4 Potatoes (pre boiled - egg size; optional)
Method:
1. First step is to make our starter (biga): mix together with a whisk some flour with some water and the yeast until it turns into a batter like mixture. Let the biga prove until it doubles the size (at 25°C for 30 to 60 minutes).
2. After the biga has proved we can add the remaining flour, water and salt and work the dough until it comes off the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the vegan softened butter one bit at a time and keep mixing the dough until once again it comes off the sides (5-10 minutes on high speed). Please note: if you’re mixing the dough by hands you might want to incorporate the water and melted butter to the flour one bit at a time and work the dough for at least 15 minutes.
4. Once the dough is ready shape it into a ball and allow to prove for another couple of hours or until it doubles the size. In the meantime we can prepare our cook our veggies or chop the vegan cold cuts and cheeses for the filling.
5. Spread a bit of flour on the working surface and place the risen dough on it.
6. With the hands flatten the dough into a rough rectangle, then fold both ends to the centre.
7. Roll the dough into a 1 cm thick rectangle with a rolling pin.
8. Arrange the cooked vegetables or vegan cold cuts and cheeses on the dough sheet and grate some vegan parmesan cheese and black pepper on top.
9. Roll the dough lengthwise to form a big sausage, then transfer on a (preferably round) baking tray in the shape of a doughnut. Allow to proof for 2 hours.
10. Preheat the oven at 180°C (static) and bake the vegan Casatiello for around 45-60 minutes. If you have a thermometer the inside should be at 100°C (212° F) when ready.
11. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting into slices and enjoy the Casatiello.
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