Vegan Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese
Vegan Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese is creamy, easy, delicious, and healthy. You’ll fool all non-vegans for sure! I brought this to a friend’s Thanksgiving this past weekend and almost everyone said, “you’d have no idea there wasn’t any cheese in here.” Just another carb to add to your Thanksgiving day menu! This is a vegan game changer… no doubt.
A couple of my sibs are flying in for my vegan T-day. We have gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan amongst us. I am making this Vegan Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese (with gluten-free pasta), a vegan meatloaf, Tofurkey roast, stuffing with ‘sausage’ (homemade of course), mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy, spinach salad with candied pecans, and an apple pie & pumpkin cheesecake for Thanksgiving. I’m serving a vegan spinach and artichoke dip, some sort of hummus, and a vegan sour cream & onion dip for appetizers. They’ll be LOADS of wine and bubbly throughout the day and well into the evening. If any of us make it up the stairs for bed I will die in utter amazement! I’m carbin’ everyone the ‘f’ up and steering us into booze-ville. If we end the night with garage games I’ll be pleasantly surprised; though I won’t be holding my breath.
I didn’t anticipate shooting this pasta so these are all of the pics I have. I brought this Vegan Pumpkin Mac n’ Cheese, fresh flowers and herbs from my garden, and a bottle of pomegranate mimosas with pom seeds to my friend’s house. She hosted an awesome soiree and it was SO great to see her, as I’ve not seen her since I moved back to OR last year. Thanks for the hospitality, Bethany! 🙂
- 16 oz pasta (I used cellentani)
- 1/3 cup raw and unsalted cashews
- 1 small butternut squash - steamed and de-shelled
- 3 Tbl nutritional yeast
- 1/2 a 15 oz can of pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp of thyme
- 1 veggie broth cube (I used the equivalent with Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Broth)
- 1 small onion - diced
- 2 cloves of garlic - diced
- Oil for pan
- Boil water for pasta and cook when ready
- Heat a pan and cook onions for 3 minutes
- Add the garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes ( like mine slightly browned)
- In a high powered blender (I use my Vitamix) add the onion/garlic mix and all other ingredients other than the pasta
- Blend until smooth
- Poor contents of the blender over the drained pasta and mix well (add water if needed)
- Done!
- Amazing dish for Thanksgiving! Also, I LOVE a good hot sauce on any mac n' cheese. If we are sympatico, go nuts!
- White wine: Chardonnay
- Red wine: Barbera
Creamy Vegan Macaroni and Cheese!
Creamy Vegan Macaroni and Cheese! is my most favorite comfort food. This is a mac n’ cheese recipe for vegans and non-vegans alike. It’s crazy creamy, flavorful, and (drum roll please)… healthy! Don’t let that scary word deter you. I promise you that this kinda health will only bring you happiness. In a mouth watering, drooling, gimme some more, can’t stop won’t stop, this is the food bomb of the year, melt in your mouth, orgasmic kinda shit, kinda way. I know, I’m setting the bar high, but this will deliver. My kiddo, when asked what he wants for dinner, at least 3 days of the week begs me for “vegan macaroni and cheese puhleeeasse, mom!” Even the meat eating, vegan sceptic hubby thinks it’s incredible. His vegan fearing mother is coming for a visit from Scotland soon and he’s asked me to unknowingly feed her loads of yummy vegan food and drop the “V” bomb on her after she’s scarfed it all up. Now, this just feels wrong, but hey, it just might still happen. However, he can drop that dirty lil’ “V” word, not me. Judge us if you will. 😉
Creamy Vegan Macaroni and Cheese! is the perfect lunch or dinner for all walks of life. I recommend saving some of the cheese sauce on the side so that if you actually have left overs the following day you can pour on some new sauce before reheating, otherwise it will be a bit dry like a ‘real’ mac n’ cheese. I used my fabulously beautiful and buttery crooked neck heirloom squash from my garden, however, you can use any yellow squash. That all being said, go get cookin’ into your carb coma! *IMPORTANT: Be sure you have someone to roll you from the table to the bed. This mac n’ cheese don’t mess around, aight? 😉
- 2 1/2- 3 yellow squashed - sliced
- 1 C vegetable broth
- 1/2 C nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 2-3 Tbl flax seed (optional - but hey, so healthy, why not?!)
- 1 Tbl garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1/3- 1/2 C raw and unsalted cashews
- 1 lb pasta
- Salt to taste
- Preheat oven to 400f and then roast squash until soft (about 25 minutes)
- Meanwhile, boil your choice of pasta and set all other ingredients in a blender (I use my Vitamix)
- When squash is done, place in blender with other ingredients and blend until creamy and smooth
- Pour over pasta and done!
- You will have extra sauce for another round of pasta! Make 2 lbs for a party size. Also, save some sauce if you will have left overs the following day when reheating. It will be too dry without extra sauce when reheating like a 'real' mac n' cheese.
- Beer- American style brown ale
- White wine- Dry riesling
- Red wine- Grenache
