HOW TO COOK PERFECT RICE IN THE INSTANT POT

A Vegan Mac and Cheese that you don’t need to feel guilty about! This healthy mac and cheese contains hidden veggies but it is so creamy and delicious that you’d never know. And it’s ready in under 30 minutes from start to finish!

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Mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food!

Growing up macaroni and cheese wasn’t something we had very often, but when we did, usually on the coldest Tasmanian winter nights my brother and I would lick the bowl clean.

As I got older I fell out of love with mac and cheese. I found it sickeningly rich, so I stopped making it.

But this vegan mac and cheese is something different altogether. It has, for the most part, all the comfort of the original, but it is a whole lot lighter and 100 times more waistline friendly.

The secret? Well, there’s no cheese for a start, in this mac and cheese. Secondly, it is loaded with veggie goodness – cauliflower, potato and butternut pumpkin (butternut squash).We’ve all heard of cauliflower mac and cheese but the addition of butternut pumpkin adds a lovely golden hue and a subtle sweetness to counter the slight bitterness of cauliflower.

It even looks like a certain well-known brands all too familiar yellow cheese sauce. Completely devoid of chemicals and food colours this dairy free cheese sauce looks rich and cheesy. And it tastes it too. Ok, almost.

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Nutritional yeast, smoked paprika and miso give the sauce depth, and a squeeze of lemon adds that slight acidic note found in cheese.

The best part, though, is that it is a cinch to prepare! Dinner will be on the table in under 30 minutes from start to finish.

love pasta?

Be sure to check out my two most popular vegan pasta recipes – my Creamy Mushroom One Pot Spaghetti and my Mushroom Bolognese.

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get the recipe (or watch me make it in this quick video)!

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Vegan Mac and Cheese

A Vegan Mac and Cheese that you don’t need to feel guilty about! This healthy mac and cheese contains hidden veggies but it is so creamy and delicious that you’d never know. And it’s ready in under 30 minutes from start to finish!

 Servings 4

 Calories 530 kcal

 Author Jennifer Schmidt

Ingredients

• 200 g potato (7 oz) choose a floury/starchy variety instead of waxy potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 100 g cauliflower (3 1/2 oz), chopped
• 200 g butternut pumpkin (squash) (7 oz), peeled and chopped
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tbs shallot roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 1/4 cup nuritional yeast
• 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs white miso (note Australian tbs are 20ml so if you are based outside of Australia use 1tbs plus 1 tsp)
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 300 g macaroni (10 1/2 oz)
• salt and pepper to taste
• baby spinach or rocket (arugala) optional

Instructions

1. Place the potato, cauliflower, butternut pumpkin, garlic, shallot and cashews in a saucepan and cover with as much water as needed so that the vegetables are covered. Add a little salt to season and bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes until fork tender. Do not drain.
2. Place in a blender with 1 1/2 cups of cooking water with the all the rest of the ingredients except the macaroni. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. 
3. While the sauce is blending bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Once boiling add the macaroni and cook according to packet directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water. 
4. Toss the pasta with the sauce until well combined. Add some of the reserved pasta water if you'd like slightly looser sauce  Add your favourite greens (if using) and serve.

Recipe Notes

This recipe makes 4 generous serves maybe even 5. Depends on how hungry you are 🙂

I used Sebago in this recipe but if you can get go for Russet.

IMPORTANT: If you over cook the pasta you will find that the pasta will absorb the sauce. This recipe should provide more than enough sauce to counter this. In fact, it will look like too much sauce, but the pasta will absorb some of this. I do however recommend if not eating immediately covering the pasta with a layer of extra sauce so that the sauce doesn't dry out. If it does, a little olive oil or water stirred through will help slacken it.

Left-over pasta can be frozen and reheated, however, it will have absorbed some of the sauce. This recipe is best eaten straight away.

Nutrition Facts

Vegan Mac and Cheese

Amount Per Serving

Calories 530Calories from Fat 135

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 15g23%

Saturated Fat 2.45g12%

Polyunsaturated Fat 2.5g

Monounsaturated Fat 8.7g

Sodium 711mg30%

Potassium 711mg20%

Total Carbohydrates 80g27%

Dietary Fiber 6.7g27%

Sugars 6.2g

Protein 19.66g39%

Vitamin A201%

Vitamin C38%

Calcium7%

Iron22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet