Hi and welcome!
I'm Connie Edwards McGaughy, a longtime vegan recipe developer, cookbook author, and creator of the vegan food and lifestyle blog The Carrot Underground🥕 based in San Diego, California.
From my coastal Southern California kitchen, I share nostalgic and classic comfort food recipes recreated with plant-based ingredients, along with practical tips for compassionate vegan living.
My path toward plant-based living began in 1977, long before vegetarian and vegan food became part of everyday culture. Back then, eating differently often meant figuring things out as you went. Restaurant options were limited, ingredient labels weren't especially helpful, and I was often the only person at the table who couldn't find a single thing on the menu to eat. Learning to cook wasn't just enjoyable for many of us - it was often the only way to eat well.
Those early years shaped the way I still think about food today.
Over time, what began as a personal shift gradually grew into the vegan lifestyle I continue to live today - one rooted in compassion for animals, creativity in the kitchen, and the belief that the foods we love most are rarely just about ingredients.
That belief became the heart of The Carrot Underground🥕
I created this space to show that many of the comforting, nostalgic recipes we treasure can still feel familiar, celebratory, and deeply satisfying without harming animals in the process.
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 fabulous home cook and hostess, my grandfather owned food establishments -including the first drive-in restaurant with carhop service in Los Angeles. My brother Scott later opened Mama Love's natural food drive-thru restaurants in San Diego during the 1970s. Feeding people well, gathering around a table, and creating welcoming spaces were simply part of the world I grew up in.
Years later, when my daughter veganized my mom's amazing lemon meringue pie recipe, I knew anything was possible. With enough care and creativity, many beloved traditional recipes can be reimagined plant-based without losing the spirit of what made them special in the first place. Comfort food should still comfort. Holiday meals should still bring people together with warmth and tradition. A beautiful pie should still feel like a beautiful pie.
Today, I share vegan comfort food recipes, baking, holiday dishes, entertaining ideas, kitchen tips, and occasional reflections on compassionate living, travel, creativity, aging well, and everyday life.
Some of the most popular recipes on The Carrot Underground🥕 include comforting, plant-based classics like Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Shells, citrusy & satisfying Mediterranean Lemon Orzo Soup, savory Spinach Mushroom Quiche, and hearty Gardener's Pie. Readers also return again and again for cozy baked favorites like Lemon Blueberry Bread, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, and my 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, and have been featured as an expert on vegan cooking and baking in the AARP Magazine, HuffPost and Chowhound. I am very proud The Carrot Underground is listed in the Feedspot 100 Best Vegan Blogs and Websites.
💚 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, 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
Before focusing full-time on recipe development and food writing, I spent many years working in art and design as a commercial and fine artist, interior designer, consultant and instructor. That creative background still influences the visual style and atmosphere of everything I create. Like art, I believe food should be beautiful and appealing. I love to share simple tips for creating eye-catching dishes from preparation to plating.
When I'm not in the kitchen working on new recipes, you'll likely find me 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!
? FAQ's
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 started a journal called The Carrot Underground - Raising Compassionate Kids in a Carnivorous World. In it, I wrote about the challenges my kids faced as the only vegetarian/vegan students in their school. Years later, I ran across the journal tucked away in a drawer and was inspired to create a vegan recipe blog, titled The Carrot Underground. 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 longtime vegan recipe developer, cookbook author, and creator of The Carrot Underground, based in San Diego, California.