Did you know that mac & cheese is one of the most searched vegan recipes on the internet? Probably because it’s a classic, feel-good recipe (I’m on a classic kick, just you wait and see) and one we all grew up with. Honestly, it’s hard to make standard mac and cheese wrong, but it is a little more common (in my opinion, at least) to make healthy mac and cheese made with vegetables wrong.
The typical recipe I’ve seen online for cheese sauce using vegetables is just potatoes, onions, carrots and nutritional yeast thrown in a blender with a small amount of spices and viola! Someone is trying to convince you that blended vegetable soup over pasta is really like the Kraft cheesy mac we all ate as kids…
What I have found to be missing from these recipes is the rich, thick, salty and really tang that real cheese (or a packet of powdered cheese) has. Luckily, with my version of vegetables-turned-to-cheese I’ve added a few more things, refined the spices and have found a flavor that gets you much closer to cheese than the more basic recipes can.
Will it taste exactly like cheese? No, absolutely not; it’s vegetables! BUT it’s damn tasty (enough to impress my non-vegan family and friends) and way better for you than a boxed alternative or a homemade cow’s-milk mac and cheese.
My recipe is the right mix of:
- Acidity
- Saltiness
- Richness
If you try out this recipe, please share it with me by commenting or tagging me in a photo on Instagram @plantsnotplastic. Enjoy!
Easy (Healthy!) Vegan Mac & Cheese Sauce
Equipment
- medium saucepan
- Blender or food processor
- Ladle (preferred)
Ingredients
- 3 medium Yukon potatoes ~3 cups, peeled and rough diced
- 2 small-med carrots chopped
- 3 cloves garlic halved
- 1/4 medium sweet onion chopped
- 1 regular Roma tomato chopped
- 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tsp vinegar white or apple cider
- 1/2 tsp mustard yellow, dijon, etc. - your preference
- ~1 1/2 cups cooking water reserved after cooking
Instructions
- In a medium to large saucepan, combine potatoes, carrot, garlic, onion & tomato
- Fill pan until vegetables are just covered
- Bring to boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes
- Remove from heat and let cool for eat least 5 minutes [note #1]
- Transfer to blend or food processor and add all other ingredients
- Blend until smooth, adding more spices as needed to taste
- Serve by itself as a dip with veggies, over pasta, nachos, chili mac, etc. [note #2]
Video
Notes
- It's easiest to blend the mixture if you let it cool down first. I typically cool mine for 30 minutes before blending. While some blenders/food processors can handle hot foods or liquid, if your blend is airtight it will create pressure while it blend and can cause the lid to "pop" or explode when opening it after blending.
- I typically enjoy this sauce as mac & cheese over pasta with chopped spinach, chili flakes & blended cashews as a topping, or with my Anaheim chili recipe.
I was not really a Mac n’ cheese eater prior to turning vegan and nor have I been since turning vegan just because of how unhealthy all of the alternatives seem to be and I prefer to make healthy vegan meals but I’ll definitely be trying out this recipe in the near future.
That’s great to hear! I do my best to stay away from alternatives also and even avoid the cashew-based cheese sauces, but I make this regularly since it’s just veggies! I hope you enjoy it 🙂