Mac and Cheese
Everybody needs a GREAT, crowd-pleasing mac and cheese recipe in their arsenal. Especially because we live in the age of TikTok mac and cheese shaming. If you are not on TikTok, there are tons of videos of someone showing the mac and cheese brought to the office party that just looks *off*. I still think that is very mean, though, like at least the person tried?
Okay, so, the key secrets to a successful mac and cheese that happens to be vegan: making a flour + butter roux, using cashew cream, or in my case: my homemade ricotta (DM sometime to order some!), and ONLY use the storebought vegan cheese in the sauce, because it honestly won’t melt on the top like dairy cheese if we’re being honest. And the image of dried, flaked up, cheese will definitely seal your fate in a TikTok shaming.
I’ve made this mac and cheese for my daughter’s baby shower, for my husband’s family’s Thanksgiving, for my daughter’s birthdays, and everyone asks for the recipe! When I hear that from grandmas who have been making mac and cheese for years, that’s the ultimate seal of approval.
You can bake this mac and cheese, or eat it as is. Honestly, I love how insanely sauce-y the stovetop version is, but it’s super sauce-y either way, just more textured when it’s baked.
Ingredients:
1 lb. dried elbow pasta
½ cup butter
½ cup flour
2 cups cashew cream
2 cups nondairy unsweetened milk
6 cups shredded cheese ( I use a combo of VioLife cheddar and mozzarella)
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Steps:
(If you’re baking mac and cheese) Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a 3 qt baking dish, set aside.
Boil pasta, cooking one minute less than package directions for al dente. Drain and spread over a baking sheet, drizzle olive oil over to prevent sticking.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine. Cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Slowly pour in the 2 cups nondairy milk, stirring nonstop, until smooth, ½ cup at a time. Next, do the same for the cashew cream.
4. Keep whisking over medium heat, until the mixture has thickened to a pudding consistency.
5. Stir in the 6 cups shredded cheese, 1 ½ cups at a time. Stir until cheese is completely melted. Add up to 1 cup additional water if mixture is too pastey. Add in salt, pepper, and other spices to your likening.
6. Add cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce and gently fold to combine. If you’re baking the macaroni, spread macaroni and cheese into 13 x 9, 3 quart baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 15 minutes, or until some bubble action is happening. Remove from oven and serve.