This is one of my favourite comfort foods. The creamy, cheesy sauce is a delightful blend of cashews, potato and carrot with earthy spices and nutritional yeast for cheesiness. It comes together quickly and easily in under 30 minutes and you can make it in one pot so it’s #vanlife friendly. It’s nothing crazy, but it tastes luxurious.
½tspturmeric ground - optional - mostly for colour
1tbspapple cider vinegar
½Cplant milk - I use soy
½Cnutritional yeast
1 tbspvegan butter - optional
Instructions
In a large pot, cook the macaroni until al dente (about 8 minutes), rinse in warm water, drain and set aside. Meanwhile, prepare your veggies and other ingredients.
In the same (empty) pasta pot, bring about 1.5L water to the boil and place in the potatoes, carrots, onions, cashews and 1 teaspoon of salt. Continue to boil for 15 mins until the potatoes and carrots are soft.
Drain the vegetables and cashews, retaining 1 cup of the broth. Place the cooked vegetables, cashews and broth into a blender (or if using a stick/immersion blender, I do mine straight in the same saucepan to reduce dishes). Add in the remaining 1 tsp of salt, garlic powder, paprika, turmeric, apple cider vinegar, plant milk, nutritional yeast and butter (if using). Blend on high speed until smooth.
Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. Place the pasta and sauce back into the saucepan and mix through, reheating until it’s at your optimal serving temperature (low heat only - do not boil). To serve, sprinkle with a little smoked paprika. Delicious with hot sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
Vegan mac and cheese leftovers can be placed in a container or covered and kept in the fridge for up to 3 days. However, I find it’s best fresh. If you are expecting leftovers or are meal prepping, I would suggest keeping the sauce and the pasta separate and then reheating separately before serving. You may need to add a little water or non-dairy milk to the sauce to get it going.
creamy pasta, mac n cheese, macaroni, macaroni and cheese, one-pot pasta, pasta