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A delicious creamy vegan pumpkin mac and cheese made with roasted pumpkin and cashew milk. This vegan pumpkin pasta sauce is perfect if you are looking for a way to make vegan mac and cheese.
Vegan Pumpkin Pasta
Macaroni with roasted pumpkin pasta sauce is an excellent dish if you are looking for a vegan mac and cheese alternative or want to try out a healthier mac and cheese recipe.
I love to serve it for lunch, dinner, or as a comfort food on cold winter days.
The main ingredients for this vegan pumpkin pasta recipe are:
Roasted pumpkin
Cashew milk, also works with oat milk, soy milk, coconut milk, or any other plant-based milk
Vegan cheese. optional
Macaroni, make sure the pasta is made with semolina and doesn’t contain eggs – you can also use gluten-free pasta
Best Pumpkin for Pumpkin Pasta Sauce Vegan
I suggest using Red Kuri (Hokkaido) Squash or Butternut Squash for this recipe. These are the ones I tried myself, and I know they do taste delicious served together with macaroni.
Check out this visual pumpkin guide to get additional information on which pumpkin to use for which recipe! Feel free to use your preferred kind of pumpkin to make this recipe.
Vegan Pumpkin Mac and Cheese Recipe
- Start with roasting your pumpkin (explained below).
- Meanwhile, roast the cashew nuts. Using and roasting cashew nuts is optional, but gives your plant-based pasta dish an excellent crunch.
- Cook and drain the macaroni or your pasta of choice. Slightly undercook them.
- Blend the roasted pumpkin, onion, and garlic with the cashew milk and spices.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce for about one minute on medium heat until well combined. Optional: add vegan cheese until melted.
- Top it with the roasted cashew nuts and fresh herbs. Sprinkle with nutritional yeast for extra flavor.
How To Roast Pumpkin
- Wash your pumpkin and cut in half. If you are using a Red Kuri (Hokkaido) Squash, you don’t need to peel it. You can eat this pumpkin with the skin on (that’s why this one is my favorite pumpkin). When using a Butternut Squash, you need to cut away the skin first.
- Scrape out the seeds using a spoon.
- Cut the pumpkin in chunks.
- Mix it with olive oil, place on a with parchment paper lined baking sheet, and roast for 20 minutes in your oven. I like to add one onion and garlic for extra flavor.
How To Make This Pumpkin Mac And Cheese Recipe in 10 Minutes
Are you looking for a way to prepare this recipe super quick? Use store-bought or homemade pumpkin puree instead of fresh pumpkin. This way, you can skip the roasting process and save some time!
If so, I can highly recommend adding onion and garlic powder to your season the sauce.
More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love:
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Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
Kitchen Essentials
Ingredients
Roasted Pumpkin
- 10.5 oz (300g) pumpkin (weight without seeds) – see notes , alternative: pumpkin puree
- 1 onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Pumpkin Sauce
- 0.5 cup (120ml) cashew milk, alternative: any other plant-based milk
- 1 tbsp lime, (~ 1/2 lime)
- 1 tsp salt
- 0.5 tsp ground paprika
- pepper
Mac and Cheese
- 7 oz (200g) macaroni
- 2/3 cup (60g) vegan cheese
- 1/4 cup (30g) cashew nuts
- 2 tbsp fresh herbs, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Scrape out the seeds using a spoon and cut the pumpkin in chunks. Peel the onion and garlic. Cut the onion in half. Mix the vegetables with one tablespoon of olive oil and bake them for 20 minutes on a with parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Meanwhile, roughly chop the cashew nuts and roast them. Set aside.
- Blend the roasted vegetables with the cashew milk, lemon, salt, and ground paprika in your food processor until smooth. Season with pepper and more salt if needed.
- Cook the macaroni according to the package directions. Slightly undercook them (~1 minute). Keep 1 cup of the pasta water beside before you drain them.
- After you drained the pasta, place them back in the pot with the pumpkin sauce and the vegan cheese. Cook on middle temperature until the cheese is melted. Add some of the pasta water if it gets too dry.
- Serve your pumpkin mac and cheese with the roasted cashew nuts and a handful of fresh herbs.
Notes
- The best pumpkins for this recipe are Red Kuri (Hokkaido) Squash and Butternut Squash.
- Use pumpkin puree if you are in a hurry. Therefore skip the roasting step and season the pumpkin sauce with garlic & onion powder.
- If you have nutritional yeast at home, add one tablespoon of it to blend with the sauce.
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