Easy Faux Cheesy Mac
Vegan Mac & Cheese
Vegan | Serves 6 (as a side)
Hosting a friendsgiving with a vegan guest attending? This recipe will satisfy all your plant-based, dairy-free, and even non-vegan besties. The perfect addition to your Thanksgiving table – creamy and faux cheesy vegan mac and cheese.
Not only is it simple and quick to make, you probably have all the ingredients in your kitchen already! It’s packed with veggies but tastes like cheesy goodness (win!). Voted best dish at my Friendsgiving, this mac and cheese will be the talk of the season.
Feel free to play around with the salt, pepper, panko and spices! I prefer my mac and cheese to have a little kick, so taste and add accordingly. Please also note this recipe is not an exact science! Go ahead and add those heaping cups and spoonfuls! I think the saucier the better!
Ingredients:
1 lb dried macaroni (or your preferred pasta shape)
1 ¼ cup peeled & diced yellow yukon potatoes
⅓ cup peeled & diced carrots
½ cup chopped onion
⅓ cup chopped shallots
1 clove minced garlic
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
¾ cup saved water from pot of boiled potatoes
Heaping ½ cup raw cashews
⅓ cup coconut milk
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
Juice of ½ lemon
2 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
½ cup Panko
Garlic Salt (to taste)
White pepper (to taste)
equipment:
Blender or food processor
Step 1
Bring a pot of salted water to boil (for the noodles)
Step 2
Peel & cut potatoes and add them to another pot of cold water. Salt & bring to boil.
Let cook for about 15 minutes, or until fork tender.
Step 3
Add pasta to the other pot of boiling water and cook al dente, according to package instructions.
Step 4
While the potatoes and pasta boil, peel and cut carrots, onion, & shallots.
Step 5
Saute carrots, onion, and shallots in a drizzle of olive oil. Once onions are translucent, add garlic and saute until all veggies are nicely browned.
Step 6
Drain pasta and potatoes (keep the potato water!) and set aside.
Step 7
Add soft potatoes, veggies, potato water, cashews, coconut milk, nutritional yeast, lemon, salt, cayenne pepper and paprika to the blender. Blend until smooth. Taste and add more salt and spices accordingly.
Step 8
Pour sauce over cooked pasta and mix to coat all noodles.
Step 9
Mix together ½ cup of panko, drizzle of olive oil, a dash of garlic salt, white pepper and nutritional yeast in a small bowl.
Step 10
Pour mac mixture into a baking dish and top with panko mixture. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes and broil for about 3 minutes to get the top crispy!
