Baked Vegan Mac and Cheese
Perhaps the best vegan Mac and Cheese you will ever eat! Macaroni tossed with a creamy vegan cheese sauce and baked with a topping of crispy Panko breadcrumbs - plant-based comfort food at its highest level!
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Servings :
Calories : 817kcal
Ingredients
Mac and Cheese
- 7 oz (200 g) medium shells pasta or other short pasta, see notes
- 1 tbsp vegan butter or margarine, olive oil
- ½ tsp thyme fresh or dried
- ¼ cup (20 g) panko breadcrumbs
Vegan Cheese Sauce
- 1 cup (150 g) raw cashew nuts
- 1 ¼ cup water
- ⅓ cup (20 g) nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp mustard
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper or chili powder
- ¼ tsp ground smoked paprika or regular paprika
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 395°F/200°C.
- Cook the pasta in boiling salt water according to the packet instructions until al dente. Drain and set aside. Don't overcook, the pasta will bake for an additional 10 minutes!
- Heat the butter in a small saucepan. Add thyme and panko and roast until golden brown and fragrant. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, add all ingredients for the cheese sauce to a blender and blend until creamy.
- Toss pasta with cheese sauce and pour into a baking dish (6 x 9 inches | 15 x 23cm). Sprinkle with the toasted panko breadcrumbs.
- Bake it for 10 minutes in the preheated oven. The vegan cheese sauce thickens quite a bit during baking.
- I love to eat this Mac and Cheese straight out of the baking dish. Enjoy!
Notes
- Cashew Nuts: It's not necessary to soak the cashew nuts if you have a high-speed blender. However, if you have a lower quality blender, soak them for about 10 minutes in boiling water (cook some more pasta water and carefully pour it over the cashews once boiling).
- Pasta: I love using shells to make this recipe. They are randomly filled with awesome tasty cheese sauce. Other pasta to use: Elbow Macaroni, Pipe Rigate, Cellentani.
- Panko: I highly recommend using panko for this recipe. Those Japanese breadcrumbs are coarser and crispier than regular breadcrumbs. However, if you don't have panko at hand, replace it with regular breadcrumbs.
- Keeps fresh for 2 days. Store it in an airtight container or in the with plastic wrap covered baking dish (easiest to reheat) in the refrigerator.
- Reheat: 10 min in the preheated oven (395°F/200°C).
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Nutrition
Calories: 817kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 34g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 1405mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 5g