Okay, so I know vegan mac and cheese has been done before. I mean, who wouldn’t want to make a vegan version of America’s favorite comfort food? But when I told my husband that I wanted to do a vegan version of mac and cheese, he was like “who’s Mac?”. Apparently America’s favorite comfort food hasn’t made it over to this side of the pond yet. So this recipe is for my Spanish peeps who may not be familiar with the magic of vegan mac and cheese.

There are lots of different ways to do vegan mac and cheese: vegan cheeze, cashew cream, and this one that I’ve seen kicking around the internet using pureed potato, carrot and onion. The problem I have with that recipe is the nearly half cup of margarine. Ewww, is that really necessary? I love the rich creaminess of avocado and it adds just the right amount of natural fat to this recipe

So you may be thinking, doesn’t that turn the sauce green? Yes, it does and that’s what the turmeric is for. You don’t have to use turmeric if you don’t mind a slight green tinge to your mac and cheese, or you can use anywhere from a half to a full teaspoon of turmeric until you get the colour you want. Contrary to what a lot of chefs say, you can taste turmeric so I would suggest adding a little at a time and tasting it along the way. The sauce will get progressively more neon orange the more turmeric that you add, but don’t worry, once you mix it with the pasta it will look decidedly less radioactive and more like something you want to eat.

Mac and Cheese

Yield: Serves 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Everyone's favorite way to make vegan mac and cheese!

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Ingredients

• 1 package (500 grams) pasta
• 1 large potato (270 grams), peeled and chopped
• 1 medium carrot (65 grams), peeled and chopped
• 1 small wedge of onion (60 grams), peeled and chopped
• ½ cup raw cashews (85 grams)
• 2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• ½ an avocado
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• ½ - 1 teaspoon turmeric
• Parsley, for garnish

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to the package directions until al dente.
2. Soak cashews in hot water for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain.
3. Bring water to boil in a small pot and boil the potato, carrot and onion until soft.
4. When the vegetables are soft enough to blend, put them into a blender or food processor along with the remaining ingredients except the turmeric and parsley. Blend until smooth. Begin adding turmeric until you reach a colour you are happy with. Taste it as you add the turmeric because it will change the taste slightly.
5. Pour the sauce over the pasta and mix well. Taste and adjust the salt. Serve garnished with fresh parsley.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 434Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 722mgCarbohydrates: 68gFiber: 8gSugar: 4gProtein: 16g

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