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Prep time
2 hours
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Cook time
15 minutes
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Serves
4 to 6
Author Notes
There are lots of ways to make vegan mac and cheese, believe it or not, but this is the recipe I return to again and again. It's easy, fast, and super creamy—everything a stovetop mac should be. —Gena Hamshaw
Test Kitchen Notes
Bookmark this recipe for a cold, snowy day or anytime you’re craving vegan comfort food. This vegan mac and cheese doesn’t involve any plant-based cheese substitutes; instead, it gets its creamy, cheesy sauce from a mixture of soaked cashews, cannellini beans, white miso, and nutritional yeast. The flavor of the sauce really comes to life with kosher salt. If you’re open to adding it as an ingredient, several grinds of black pepper perk up the sauce, too. You have to love the flavor of umami-rich miso and starchy nutritional yeast to get on board with this version of mac and cheese, but if you do, it’ll change your life.
Pro tip: Before draining the pasta, reserve 1 cup of pasta water and add in a splash or two to the noodles when you combine them with the sauce. The starchy water helps to create a silkier, creamier sauce that coats each noodle completely. Keep adding it, slowly but surely, until you reach your desired consistency.
Want to add cooked green vegetables? Fold them into the pasta just before serving so they don’t become too soggy. Try this recipe with broccoli, peas, leafy greens, or a combination—of course, you can leave the vegetables out altogether if you prefer mac and cheese in its pure, unadulterated form. This dairy-free mac would also taste great topped with breadcrumbs and baked or broiled for some golden-brown crunch!
To bake it, cook the pasta just shy of al dente and mix a few tablespoons of melted butter in the breadcrumbs. Transfer the pasta to a 2-quart baking dish, sprinkle with buttery breadcrumbs, and bake in a 425℉ oven for 25 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs are golden-brown but not burned. —Food52
Ingredients
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2/3 cup
(about 3 ounces) raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours (and up to 8), drained
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1/2 cup
cooked cannellini, great white northern, or navy beans
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2 tablespoons
freshly squeezed lemon juice
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1/2 teaspoon
smoked paprika
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1 teaspoon
ground turmeric
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2 tablespoons
white miso
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1/4 cup
nutritional yeast
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1
small clove garlic, crushed
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1 dash
cayenne pepper
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1/2 cup
water
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12 ounces
elbow pasta or mini shells (whole wheat, gluten-free, and regular pasta are all fine)
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1 cup
cooked green vegetables, such as chopped broccoli or cauliflower florets, blanched peas or chopped asparagus spears, or steamed spinach (optional)
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Kosher salt, to taste
Directions
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Place the cashews, beans, lemon juice, paprika, turmeric, miso, nutritional yeast, garlic, cayenne, and water in a blender and whir until totally smooth. Set aside.
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Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add the pasta. Cook the pasta according to package instructions.
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Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the sauce and fold everything together gently, until the pasta dish is creamy and evenly coated. Adjust seasoning to taste. You may not need to use all of the sauce: If you have some leftover, use it as a dip or as dressing for a grain bowl.
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