Food is memory. Food is lineage. Food is survival.

At Sustainable Action Now, our Recipes category exists not only to highlight sustainable meals, but to elevate the cultural stories behind them.

Today, we spotlight a powerful example of culinary reclamation: Black vegan creator Derrika Denise recreating the dish that raised her — this time with a plant-based twist.

When she took that first bite, it wasn’t just flavor she tasted.

It was family. It was history. It was identity.

And it was proof that sustainability and cultural preservation can sit at the same table.

A Vegan Twist on a Legacy Dish

For many Black families, recipes are inherited without being written down. They live in muscle memory — in the way onions are chopped, in how seasoning is layered, in the scent of a casserole bubbling in the oven.

In this case, the dish at the center of Derrika Denise’s story is a classic meat-and-potatoes casserole — hearty, comforting, and rooted in generational tradition.

Her plant-based version replaces conventional meat with textured vegetable protein (TVP), delivering:

The same savory depth
A satisfying texture
Reduced environmental footprint
A cholesterol-free alternative
A compassionate approach to protein

This isn’t imitation food.

It’s adaptation with reverence.

Why This Story Matters in the Sustainability Movement

Too often, plant-based narratives erase cultural context. They frame veganism as trend-driven or disconnected from heritage.

Derrika Denise’s work dismantles that myth.

By reimagining traditional comfort dishes through a vegan lens, she demonstrates:

Cultural continuity does not require animal products
Black culinary heritage can evolve sustainably
Climate-conscious eating can be deeply rooted in tradition
Plant-based meals can honor ancestral flavors

This is food sovereignty in action.

Who Is Derrika Denise?

Derrika Denise is a prominent Black vegan content creator, food reviewer, and licensed hairstylist based in Los Angeles.

Her platform spans multiple disciplines and audiences:

Vegan Creator & Fine Foodie

She shares:

Gluten-free vegan recipes
Restaurant reviews
“What I eat in a day” features
Food tours spotlighting diverse cuisines

Her cooking style blends indulgence with intentionality — showing that plant-based eating can be joyful, flavorful, and culturally rich.

Cultural Advocate

Derrika frequently recreates traditional dishes with plant-based upgrades. From her mother’s casserole to explorations of Nigerian vegan cuisine in Inglewood, she centers Black culinary history while modernizing its execution.

She has collaborated with organizations like PETA to promote veganism through the lens of Black history and intergenerational tradition.

Licensed Hairstylist & Entrepreneur

Operating under the brand Designs by Derrika, she brings more than 14 years of professional hairstyling experience to her community — demonstrating that sustainability, entrepreneurship, and creativity can coexist.

Fitness & Wellness Advocate

Her content integrates:

Workout routines
Occasional fasting insights
Wellness reflections
Body-positive fitness motivation

For her audience, food is part of a larger holistic lifestyle.

The Environmental Impact of Reimagined Comfort Food

Replacing traditional meat with plant-based protein like TVP significantly reduces:

Greenhouse gas emissions
Water consumption
Land use
Industrial livestock reliance

When cultural staples are reimagined at scale, the sustainability impact multiplies.

Imagine thousands of households making small shifts in beloved recipes.

This is how food systems evolve.

Not through erasure — but through innovation rooted in memory.

Social Media as a Platform for Culinary Justice

Derrika Denise maintains a strong presence across:

TikTok (short-form recipe tutorials and food tours, some exceeding 100k views)
Instagram (high-quality reels of meals and professional hair artistry)
Threads (personal commentary on diversity in the creator economy)

Her voice extends beyond recipes.

She addresses:

Representation gaps in vegan media
Content attribution and creator equity
The intersection of Black culture and plant-based living

This digital storytelling ecosystem matters. It shifts narratives about who leads in sustainability conversations.

Reclaiming Black Food Narratives Through Vegan Innovation

For decades, mainstream narratives unfairly framed traditional Black cuisine as inherently unhealthy. That framing ignored history, structural access issues, and food apartheid realities.

Derrika’s approach reframes the conversation:

Preserve seasoning traditions
Preserve cooking methods
Preserve communal experience
Upgrade ingredients where desired

It is not about abandoning roots.

It is about strengthening them.

Recipe Spotlight: Vegan Meat-and-Potato Casserole (Inspired Adaptation)

While every family recipe is personal, here is a sustainable framework inspired by the concept she revived:

Base:

Textured vegetable protein (hydrated and seasoned)
Roasted potatoes
Caramelized onions
Garlic and smoked paprika

Binder:

Plant-based cream sauce or dairy-free béchamel
Nutritional yeast for umami depth

Topping:

Mashed potatoes or thin-sliced potatoes
Optional dairy-free cheese alternative

Bake:

375°F until golden and bubbling

The goal is not duplication — it is emotional resonance.

And when that first bite brings back memories, you know it worked.

Derrika Denise’s Vegan Soul Kitchen: Reclaiming Comfort Food Through Plant-Based Power, Gluten-Free Innovation & Cultural Legacy

At Sustainable Action Now, our Recipes category exists to elevate food that nourishes both body and identity. Today’s feature spotlights one of the most compelling voices in plant-based comfort cuisine: Derrika Denise — a Los Angeles-based vegan creator redefining soulful classics with gluten-free flexibility, culinary precision, and cultural intention.

Her recipes do more than substitute ingredients.

They preserve memory.
They protect heritage.
They modernize tradition without erasing it.

And in doing so, they represent a sustainable blueprint for the future of food.

Why Derrika Denise’s Approach Matters in Sustainable Food Systems

Plant-based eating often gets framed through wellness or climate statistics alone. Derrika Denise expands that lens.

Her work demonstrates that:

Veganism can honor Black culinary history
Gluten-free options can coexist with comfort food indulgence
Traditional recipes can evolve without losing emotional resonance
Sustainability becomes stronger when rooted in culture

Through viral TikToks, high-quality Instagram reels, and long-form recipe walkthroughs, she brings plant-based soul food into mainstream conversation — without diluting its identity.

Let’s examine some of her most popular creations.

1. Mom’s “Personal Black History” Casserole

A Tribute Dish That Raised Her

Created for Black History Month in collaboration with PETA, this layered casserole is more than comfort food — it is culinary storytelling.

Structure & Technique

Base Layer:
Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) sautéed with:

Bell peppers
Shallots
Garlic
Soulful seasoning blends

TVP delivers protein density while mimicking the heartiness of traditional meat fillings — significantly reducing environmental impact.

Middle Layer:
Vegan shredded cheese, melting into savory depth.

Top Layer:
Creamy mashed golden potatoes — her preferred variety for texture and richness.

Finish:
Bake until heated through. Broil until bubbly and caramelized.

The result: A nostalgic, deeply satisfying casserole that honors generational flavor profiles while aligning with sustainable, plant-forward values.

2. Simple Vegan Baked Mac & Cheese

The Fail-Proof Soul Food Classic

Mac & cheese is sacred in many households. Veganizing it without sacrificing texture or creaminess is a culinary test.

Derrika passes it with authority.

The Sauce Foundation:

Unsweetened almond milk
Vegan butter
Vegan cheddar cheese

Essential Seasonings:

Garlic flakes
Onion powder
Onion flakes
Sea salt

Technique That Matters:

Boil elbow pasta in salted water with a spoonful of vegan butter.
Fold half the thick cheese sauce directly into the pasta.
Pour remaining sauce over the top.
Bake at 400°F for 20 minutes.

This layering technique ensures interior creaminess with a baked golden finish — the structural hallmark of true baked mac & cheese.

For sustainability advocates, this dish offers:

Lower greenhouse gas emissions than dairy-based versions
Reduced cholesterol
Flexible gluten-free pasta substitutions

3. Lion’s Mane Mushroom “Steak”

Elevated Vegan Fine Dining

Lion’s Mane mushrooms have become one of the most compelling whole-food meat alternatives due to their fibrous, steak-like texture.

Derrika’s preparation elevates them into high-end vegan cuisine.

Method:

Press Lion’s Mane mushrooms in a hot cast-iron skillet with grape seed oil.
Cook ~5 minutes per side until flattened and browned.

Compound Vegan Butter:

Blend vegan butter with:

Minced garlic
Fresh dill
Lemon zest
Thyme

Place the butter medallion atop the mushroom and transfer the skillet to a 375°F oven for 5–7 minutes.

The butter melts into the mushroom’s natural fibers, creating a rich, umami-forward entrée that rivals traditional steak experiences.

This is plant-based luxury without livestock agriculture.

4. Holiday Cornbread Dressing (Vegan + Gluten-Free)

Festive Flavor Without Compromise

Holiday tables often feel inaccessible to those navigating plant-based or gluten-free diets. Derrika’s dressing bridges that gap.

Core Ingredients:

Crumbled cornbread (gluten-free optional)
Sliced King Oyster mushrooms
Bell peppers

Vegan “Cream of Chicken” Alternative:

Coconut cream
“No-Chicken” bouillon base

Binder:

Just Egg (plant-based egg alternative)

Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes until set.

Mushrooms provide savory depth traditionally achieved through poultry drippings. The result is festive, inclusive, and climate-conscious.

5. Sticky Date Cake

Decadence, Reinvented

Sustainability does not require abandoning dessert.

This gluten-free sticky date cake combines indulgence with thoughtful ingredient swaps.

The Cake:

Date spread
Gluten-free flour
Vegan egg substitute
Vanilla

Sticky Sauce:

Boil together:

Vegan salted butter
Vegan heavy cream
Brown sugar
Cinnamon

Serve warm with dairy-free vanilla ice cream.

It’s rich. It’s nostalgic. It’s entirely plant-based.

Cultural Sustainability: The Bigger Picture

What distinguishes Derrika Denise is not just her technique — it is her lens.

Her work:

Centers Black culinary traditions
Integrates gluten-free accessibility
Celebrates heritage while embracing innovation
Highlights diverse global cuisines
Advocates for representation in vegan spaces

She demonstrates that sustainable eating does not erase identity. It can amplify it.

Environmental Impact of Veganizing Soul Food

Shifting staple dishes from animal-based to plant-based can significantly reduce:

Methane emissions
Land use
Water consumption
Supply chain strain

When culturally beloved recipes are reimagined sustainably, adoption becomes organic rather than imposed.

That is how food systems change.

The Future of Sustainable Comfort Cuisine

If we want plant-based food systems to scale equitably, they must:

Respect regional traditions
Be accessible across income levels
Reflect diverse communities
Maintain indulgent flavor profiles
Offer gluten-free inclusivity

Derrika Denise’s body of work accomplishes all five.

Sustainable Action Now’s Takeaway

The evolution of sustainable cuisine will not be led by trend alone.

It will be led by creators who:

Protect memory
Preserve culture
Embrace innovation
Expand access

Derrika Denise’s vegan soul kitchen represents that evolution.

From layered casseroles to gourmet mushroom steaks, from baked mac & cheese to sticky date cake — she proves that sustainability can taste like home.

And when sustainability tastes like home, it lasts.

Why Sustainable Action Now Is Elevating This Story

Our Recipes category exists to:

Highlight climate-conscious meals
Center diverse culinary voices
Showcase food as cultural storytelling
Bridge sustainability and lived experience

Derrika Denise’s recreation of a dish that raised her exemplifies all four.

This is not just plant-based cooking.

This is heritage, adapted.

This is sustainability, personalized.

This is memory, made modern.

The Future of Sustainable Food Is Cultural

If we want plant-based eating to expand globally, it must:

Reflect community identity
Honor ancestral knowledge
Remain accessible and affordable
Celebrate flavor without compromise

Creators like Derrika Denise are building that bridge in real time.

And in doing so, they are redefining what sustainable cuisine looks like.

Take Action

Explore plant-based reinterpretations of your own family recipes.

Support Black vegan creators who are reshaping the narrative.

Choose one comfort dish this month and reimagine it with sustainability in mind.

Because sustainable food is not about abandoning who we are.

It is about carrying our history forward — consciously, compassionately, and creatively.