TASTEFUL THURSDAY: Dairy-Free Mac & Cheese

Hey All!

This past weekend, we had a little GNO for one of my dear friends from dance, to celebrate her 21st birthday. For the occasion, I whipped up a dairy-free mac and cheese, only hoping it would come out tasting good… and it DID, so much so that it’s making the blog’s cut!

I used these fun shell shapes instead of typical elbow noodles, and Daiya Mozzarella Shreds. A little disclaimer is that I am certainly not a fan of Daiya cheese– I wish I could say otherwise! I just don’t like the taste. But, in this pasta, with the cashews, it was perfect. Of course, you could sub regular cheese!

Vegan Mac & Cheese
serves 6
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups almond milk
1/4 cup raw cashews
pinch nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tsp grapeseed oil
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 cup Daiya Mozzarella Shreds, plus more for topping
6 servings (about 4 1/2 cups dry) shell or elbow noodles

1. In blender, combine almond milk, cashews, nutmeg, salt, and pepper, and blend on high speed until no lumps of cashews remain.
2. In large saucepan over medium heat, combine oil and flour. Whisk quickly, until mixture *just* begins to brown; slowly pour almond milk mixture into roux.
3. Whisk mixture constantly over high heat, until it begins to boil. Boil and stir about 30 seconds; reduce heat to low. Add cheese, and stir well. Allow to simmer, whisking occasionally, about 5 minutes, or until cheese is fully melted.
4. Cook pasta according to package; drain. Add pasta to saucepan, and stir well with a wooden spoon to evenly coat noodles with cheese sauce.
5. Spoon into individual dishes and top with additional shredded cheese. Broil dishes about 1 minute, or until added cheese is bubbly, if desired.