An easy vegan mac and cheese recipe with a deliciously creamy dairy-free cheese sauce. This vegan mac and cheese comes together in a few simple steps making it the perfect weeknight comfort food.
12 oz elbow or shell noodles of choice (I used brown rice noodles)
1 cup diced russet potato
1 cup diced orange or yellow carrots
1/2 cup raw cashews or sunflower seeds
3 cups vegetable stock or filtered water
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon sea salt + more to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (optional – makes it thick and velvety)
To make the cashew cheese sauce: Combine the potatoes, carrots, cashews and vegetable stock in a medium saucepan. Bring the liquid to a boil for 10 minutes.
Add the hot liquid to a vented high-speed blender. Add in the nutritional yeast, lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Blend until smooth. If using the arrowroot starch, add this in and blend again. The sauce will thicken the longer it sits.
Cook the noodles to al dente according to the directions on the package. Drain noodles, then add back to the pot. Pour in the cheese sauce and mix to coat. Serve immediately.
The cheese sauce can be made in advance and heated on the stove before adding to the cooked pasta. I recommend making a full batch of cheese sauce and making the pasta fresh instead of keeping leftover pasta. However, you can keep the mac and cheese in an airtight container for 5 days.
Find it online: https://nourishedbynutrition.com/vegan-mac-and-cheese/