Quick & Healthy Vegan Mac & Cheese

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If you’ve never made a vegan cheese sauce using vegetables, then prepare to be amazed! The starchy potatoes, carrots and nutritional yeast combine to make a thick and deliciously tangy cheese sauce. You can add anything you like to this dish to jazz it up, make it more healthy, colourful, protein-rich – get creative and enjoy!

Gluten free
Wheat free
Quick meal
Kids recipe

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Preparation time

10 min

Cook time

30 min

Total time

40

Meal

  • mains
  • lunches

Servings

4

Ingredients

Pasta

  • 300g/3 cups macaroni plus water for cooking (use gluten-free if needed)

Cheese Sauce

(Use this sauce anytime you need a cheesy sauce eg pasta bake, cauliflower cheese, jacket potato, nachos. You won’t believe how delicious and cheesy it is!)

  • 225g /1¼ cup carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
  • 650-700g/4 cups potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 125ml/½ cup olive oil
  • 150ml/⅔ cup water
  • 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp miso paste (optional)
  • 2 tsp salt
  • Pinch of black pepper

Optional extras: black beans, breadcrumbs, fresh chilli, fresh herbs, fresh rocket, fried cherry tomatoes, fried mushrooms, garden peas (add to pasta 5 minutes before the end of cooking time), guacamole, jalapenos, kidney beans, melted vegan cheese, mixed chopped nuts, mixed seeds, olives, onion, paprika, red pepper, steamed broccoli, sweetcorn, toasted or roasted hazelnuts or pine nuts, vegan bacon bits, vegan chicken pieces, vegan Parmesan, vegan sausage, vegan tuna, wilted spinach (add to the pasta a few minutes before the end of cooking time)

Instructions

Pasta

  1. Bring the macaroni to the boil and then simmer according to the instructions on the packet or to your preferred texture.

Cheese Sauce

  1. In a large saucepan, bring the potatoes and carrots to the boil and then simmer until soft (around 15 minutes).
  2. Drain the water and then add them to the blender.
  3. Add all the other ingredients to the blender and then blitz until really smooth.
  4. Add the cheese sauce straight onto the pasta and stir through until fully covered.
  5. Add any of the optional extras or enjoy the dish on it’s own… it’s great either way!
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