I'm the founder and creator of The Carrot Underground, a vegan food and lifestyle website devoted to classic comfort food made kinder.
Hi and welcome!
I'm Connie, and I'm so happy you're here.
If you've ever wondered whether your favorite comfort foods can be made without meat, dairy, or eggs - and still taste every bit as delicious - you've come to the right place.
I love recreating the nostalgic recipes many of us grew up with, from treasured family heirlooms to restaurant favorites and holiday traditions. My goal isn't to reinvent the foods we love. It's to show that with a little creativity and the right ingredients, we can enjoy those same familiar flavors while making kinder choices for animals and the planet.
My journey toward vegan living began in 1977, long before vegetarian and vegan food became part of everyday life. Back then, finding something to eat away from home was often a challenge. I was frequently the only person at the table who couldn't find a single thing on the menu to order.
So I learned to cook.
Not because I dreamed of becoming a recipe developer, but because I wanted to enjoy wonderful meals with family and friends without compromising the values that mattered to me.
Along the way, I discovered something that still inspires everything I do today: creating delicious vegan food isn't nearly as difficult as many people imagine. In fact, since I'm a little impatient by nature, many of my favorite recipes come together in 30 minutes or less.
Over the years, what began as a personal choice gradually became the vegan lifestyle I continue to live today - one rooted in compassion, creativity, and the belief that food is about so much more than what's on our plates. It's about welcoming people, preserving traditions, creating memories, and gathering around a table where everyone feels at home.
That's the heart of The Carrot Underground🥕
Whether you've been vegan for years, you're simply curious about eating more plant-based meals, or you're cooking for a family with mixed tastes, I hope you'll find recipes here that become favorites in your own home.
I believe the most effective way to protect animals, the planet, and ourselves begins with changing our attitudes and appetites for what we put on our plates.
My foodie roots
Food and hospitality have always been woven into my life.
My mom was a wonderful home cook and hostess. Her father (my grandfather) owned several food establishments, including Los Angeles' first drive-in restaurant with carhop service.
The Moderne Drive In was the epitome of the classic American diner, complete with a soda fountain, frosty malts & milkshakes, burgers, and fries. With wait staff on roller skates, it was the kind of place people picture when they think of vintage drive-ins.
In the 1970s my brother Scott opened Mama Love's natural food drive-thru restaurants in San Diego.
His early concept introduced wholesome, healthier fast food meals decades before they became mainstream.
My family's restaurants may have served different food than I prepare today, but they gave me something far more important than recipes. They instilled a love of cooking, hospitality, and bringing people together around good food.
The pie that changed everything
When my daughter Madison veganized my mom's fabulous lemon meringue pie recipe, that was the moment I realized anything was possible. Beloved recipes can be reimagined plant-based without losing what made them special.
Many of the dishes I grew up with are still part of my repertoire. I've lovingly recreated family favorites like the Moderne Drive In's classic Thousand Island dressing. Mama Love's fantastic veggie soup. My Aunt Velma's old-fashioned applesauce cake and great grandma's potato salad.
Each as delicious as the originals - using entirely plant-based ingredients.
My goal has never been to erase tradition, but to preserve the flavors, memories, and comfort we love. Always aligning them with the compassionate values that guide my life today.
Looking back, it's easy to see that food has always been woven into my family's story. Feeding people well. Gathering around a table. Creating warm, welcoming places where people felt at home were simply part of my upbringing.
A few fan favorites
Today, I share vegan comfort food recipes, baking, holiday dishes, entertaining ideas, and practical kitchen tips. I also write about compassionate living, travel, creativity, aging well, and everyday life.
Some of the most popular recipes on The Carrot Underground include: Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Shells, Mediterranean Lemon Orzo Soup, Spinach Mushroom Quiche, and Gardener's Pie.
Readers also return for Lemon Blueberry Bread, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Classic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. Simple, nostalgic recipes made with familiar ingredients and a vegan twist.
Books & media
I recently published my first two vegan e-cookbooks, Volume One and Volume Two, and have been featured as an expert on vegan cooking, baking, and entertaining in the AARP Magazine, HuffPost, Chowhound, and Mashed. I am very proud that The Carrot Underground is listed in the Feedspot 100 Best Vegan Blogs and Websites.
These are a few of the articles I have been featured in:
- Mashed 6 Things To Bring To A Dinner Party And 5 To Avoid
- AARP The Magazine Celebrate Carrots With These Clever Recipes
- AARP The Magazine Flavorful, Protein-Packed White Bean Recipes
- Huff Post There's No Exact Substitute For Eggs -But These Are Close In A Pinch
- Chowhound 15 Mistakes You're Making When Creating An Original Recipe
- Chowhound How To Use 14 Popular Herbs To Their Full Potential
- Chowhound 18 Staple Ingredients You Need For Vegan Baking
- Apartment Guide Top Football Game Party Ideas to Score Big with Your Guests
- USA Today Ted Lasso Shortbread Biscuits Recipe
- CNN 6 inexpensive ways to eat healthy at home
Animal advocacy
Compassion for animals has always been deeply connected to my work and my life.
I was honored to work alongside the best selling author and animal rights champion, Cleveland Amory, in the rescue of domestic, wild, and exotic animals, including hundreds of feral goats and burros.
I've also helped care for starving and abused captive tigers, lions, and leopards . One of the most rewarding (and terrifying) things I've ever done.
I'm extremely proud to have served on the Board of Directors of the Zambia-based Nsefu Wildlife Conservation Foundation. NWCF is an anti-poaching organization working to protect elephants, lions, and endangered wildlife from extinction.
I have been a featured guest on the Coexist podcast, where I shared my personal experiences as an animal advocate and vegan recipe blogger.
My artsy side
I spent many years working in art and design as a commercial and fine artist, interior designer, consultant and instructor.
I've also managed and owned art galleries and am married to the most gifted artist I've ever known.
Food Styling & Photography
My creative background still influences the visual style and atmosphere of everything I create. Like art, I believe food should be beautiful and appealing.
Based in San Diego, California, I develop, test, style, and photograph my recipes in my home kitchen. Every recipe image features real food I've prepared using the recipes and ingredients I share with readers.
My photography reflects the way I actually cook and serve food at home. I favor warm woods, everyday dishes, natural settings, and my own kitchen rather than standardized studio backdrops. I want the food to look inviting, but also real and approachable.
The recipe photography on The Carrot Underground is my own and features real food I've prepared and photographed, not AI-generated representations of the finished recipes.
Outside the kitchen
When I'm not working on new recipes, you'll likely find my husband John and I at the beach or sampling wonderful vegan food in unexpected places. One of the happiest surprises of my life was discovering stand-up paddle boarding in my 50s. Proof that it's never too late to fall in love with something new!
FAQs
What is my favorite recipe?
Easy answer - my mom's fabulous lemon meringue pie. Yes, it's vegan and it's pure lemony-licious bliss!
How did The Carrot Underground get its name?
When my children were young, I kept a journal called The Carrot Underground: Raising Compassionate Kids in a Carnivorous World. Years later, rediscovering that journal inspired the name of this website. The rest is history!
How to work with me & The Carrot Underground?
I love collaborating with like-minded people and brands! If you have a product or service that would be a good fit for my readers and followers, let's chat! There are many ways we can work-together, including sponsored posts, reviews, social media, backlinks, guest blogs, affiliate links, promotions and newsletters. You can see my media kit here. Let's explore the possibilities! [email protected]
What advice would I give to encourage other people to be vegan?
After starting my journey to veganism more than four decades ago, I've learned the most effective way to influence change is living by example. By modeling the goodness of vegan living through the foods we eat, the products we consume, and the way we treat animals, our actions speak volumes about the positive aspects of being compassionate human beings.
If you'd like to read more about the experiences and values that shaped my decision to live vegan, you can also visit my article, Why I Became Vegan.
Whether you've been plant-based for decades, are simply curious about eating more compassionately, or are trying to cook for a mixed table of vegans and non-vegans, you are warmly welcome here.
I'm so glad you found your way to The Carrot Underground🥕
Classic comfort food made kinder
Thank you kindly . . .
Connie Edwards McGaughy is a San Diego-based vegan recipe developer, cookbook author, and founder of The Carrot Underground.