Vegan Mac and Cheese
Updated May 7, 2020
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
FOR THE MACARONI AND CHEESE
Kosher salt
4 ounces raw, unsalted cashews
¾ cup unsweetened almond milk (or other unsweetened nut milk)
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ large yellow onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
¾ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ teaspoon mustard powder
Black pepper
½ cup nutritional yeast, plus more to taste
5 teaspoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
16 ounces elbow macaroni or medium shells
FOR THE PANKO TOPPING (OPTIONAL)
1 cup panko bread crumbs
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for greasing
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
Kosher salt and black pepper
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 to 6 servings)
83 grams carbs; 622 calories; 14 grams monosaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 22 grams fat; 11 grams fiber; 497 milligrams sodium; 29 grams protein; 7 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, add the cashews to a large nonstick skillet and heat over medium, stirring frequently, until fragrant, toasty and slightly golden, about 4 minutes. Transfer cashews to a blender and add the almond milk. Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel.
- Step 3
Add the oil to the skillet and heat over medium. Add the onion, garlic, onion powder, ground turmeric and mustard powder, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until onions are very tender, 8 to 10 minutes, lowering the heat as necessary to avoid scorching. Remove from the heat, stir in ½ cup nutritional yeast and the tamari, then transfer to the blender.
- Step 4
Blend the cashew mixture on high until thick and creamy, about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed. (This works best with a high-power blender, but any blender will work — just keep blending the mixture 1 to 2 more minutes after the mixture looks creamy; it will emulsify further.) You should have about 1 ½ cups.
- Step 5
Cook the pasta according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water. Drain pasta, then return cooked pasta to the pot. Stir in the cashew cream, then add the pasta cooking water ¼ cup at a time until you achieve desired sauciness. Season to taste with salt, pepper and additional nutritional yeast, if desired. Serve immediately. (The sauce thickens significantly as it sits. If it starts to coagulate, or if you have any leftover macaroni and cheese, stir in a splash of the remaining pasta cooking water to loosen.)
- Step 6
If you’d like a little crunch on top, prepare the optional panko topping: Heat the broiler. In a small bowl, add the panko, olive oil and 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast. Pinch the mixture together gently to combine thoroughly; season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Step 7
Transfer the prepared macaroni to a lightly oiled 9-by-13-inch baking dish, arrange in an even layer and sprinkle the panko mixture on top, if using. Transfer to the oven on the shelf nearest to the broiler and broil until just golden on top, about 2 minutes. (The panko toasts quickly, so you’ll want to keep an eye on it.) Serve immediately.
Private Notes
Comments
A bit dry but doubling the sauce ingredients works great, especially as pasta soaks up the sauce overnight. Have been searching for easy and delish vegan mac and cheese and this is it!
According to Natural News, it takes some 2,000 gallons of water to produce one gallon of Cow Milk, roughly twice as much as that required to produce a gallon of Almond Milk.
@JN, oat milk requires very little water and has a low environmental impact. I also think it is really good!
I made this with cashew butter which made it very quick and easy to prepare. It wasn’t bad but I found the turmeric to be the dominant flavour and it was too strong. I used even less than what was recommended. I would make this again but omit the turmeric and maybe add in some apple cider vinegar to give it a slight tangy note.
The flavor is delicious!! I appreciated the Rec to add lemon juice and make extra sauce. It was easy, but I did end up making a mess out of my kitchen! The only other change I made was rather than toasting and blending nuts, I just added a few spoonfuls of plain almond butter (no sugar). Worked great (in our opinion!). The panko was a great add. Will definitely put this in the rotation.
Lovely!