VEGAN MAC N' CHEESE

Many people think of mac n' cheese as comfort food.  Mac n' cheese can be made in some many ways, from pre packaged to basic to gourmet.  I grew up eating cottage cheese with bow ties noodles.  This remains one of my comfort food.

This recipe is not first vegan mac n' cheese I have made.  I have made it using nutritional yeast which is used as a substitute for cheese.  The nutritional yeast was combined with other ingredients including garlic, dry mustard, flour and milk.  This recipe is nut based - cashews and almonds.  I prefer this recipe versus the one that used nutritional yeast.

In making this recipe, I first soaked the nuts for two hours in water.   It softens the nuts and they actually expand.  I also halved the ingredients to make the casserole serve two instead of four.  The servings were quite filling and likely the nuts and olive oil make the dish satisfying.   Both the DH and I enjoyed this dish and I will make it again.

Just out of the oven.

Eating my mac n' cheese after a salad.

Vegan Mac n’ Cheese

INGREDIENTS:

3 – 3 1/2 cups of dried pasta (about 10 ounces).  Use short pasta such as macaroni, bow ties, short penne

SAUCE:

1 ½ cups almond, coconut or soy milk

¾ cup raw cashews

½ cup raw almonds

3 tbsp lemon juice

1 clove garlic

2 tsp arrowroot powder or corn starch

1 tsp sea salt

½ tsp onion powder or dehydrated onion flakes

¼ tsp dry mustard

1 cup water

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (optional but adds richness)

BREAD CRUMB TOPPING:

½ to 1 cup dried whole grain bread crumbs

½ to 1 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Lightly oil an 8 X 12 inch baking dish.

Cook the pasta per the directions.    Once the pasta is almost tender, fully drain but don’t rinse the noodles.  Put the noodles back into the pot.

While the pasta is cooking, the sauce can be prepared.  Using a blender, add half a cup of the milk (reserve the rest) and the rest of the ingredients for the sauce.  Blend the ingredients until the mixture is very smooth.  Add the remaining cup of the milk and blend.  Pour the sauce over the noodles in the pot and combine.  The mixture will look very runny but it will thicken up while it is baking.  Pour the noodles into the casserole dish.   

Prepare the topping by mixing the bread crumbs and oil in a small bowl.  Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top of the casserole.   Cover the casserole with a lid or a piece of tin foil.  Bake for 17 to 18 minutes.  Remove the lid or foil and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes.   You don’t want to over bake the casserole as it will get too dry.  Serves 4.

 Adapted from 'Let them eat vegan' by Dreena Burton