My Healthy Twist: Mac n' cheese: the ultimate comfort food

For my very first recipe on the blog I thought I would start with one of my favorite dishes. I decided to try out a vegan macaroni and cheese dish from the blog Oh She Glows. Until this point I hadn't yet found a yummy vegan mac n' cheese dish, but this one is amazing!! My boyfriend, the meat eater, loved it too so I know it's a winner!! I can't believe how cheesy it tastes despite being dairy free. And the best part is there is nothing processed about it. As a vegan I know first hand that a good vegan cheese is hard to come by! Hope you give it a try and enjoy! Share your comments below!

What you'll need:

Ingredients:

Makes 4 - 6 servings

1/2 medium potato, peeled and chopped (about 1/4-1/3 cup)
1/2 large carrot, peeled and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 small onion, peeled and chopped (about 1/4-1/3 cup)
1.5 cups raw cashews
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
4 garlic cloves
6 tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 tsp salt
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp mustard
1 box whole wheat rotini
1 slice of whole wheat bread
1 tbsp Earth Balance or other vegan butter
Paprika, to garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grab a small casserole dish and set aside. In a medium sized pot, add the chopped potatoes, carrots, and onion and fill with water until just covered. Bring to a boil and then reduce to low-medium heat. Cook for about 15 minutes until tender.

Meanwhile, process 1 slice of bread until crumbs form in a food processor. Add in 1 tbsp of Earth Balance and process until incorporated. Place in a small bowl and set aside

Now assemble your cheese sauce ingredients (cashews, almond milk, garlic, lemon, salt, yeast, pepper, mustard) and add just the cashews to food processor. Process until a fine crumb forms similar to corn meal. Now add in the rest of the cheese sauce ingredients and process until smooth.

Once the veggies are cooked, drain and add to cheese sauce mixture in food processor. Process until smooth.

Add your pasta to a medium sized pot and fill with water until the pasta is covered by about 1 inch or so. Bring to a boil and reduce to low, cooking for about 7 more minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water.

In a large bowl, mix together your cheese sauce and drained + rinsed pasta. Scoop into your casserole dish and sprinkle with the breadcrumb mixture. Now garnish with paprika and bake in the oven for 30 minutes at 350F. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley or dried parsley if you’d like.