Meatless Monday: Vegan Mac and “Cheese”

I was craving the ridiculously delicious mac and “cheese” from my favorite DC vegan restaurant, but didn’t have time to go there, so I decided to whip up my own version using ingredients I had in my cupboard. I have tried it before, using various recipes I had found on the Internet, but have never been very happy with the results (in one case, I was actually disgusted by it!). This version is vegan and gluten-free.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon organic olive oil
• 1 tablespoon organic rice flour
• 1 cup organic almond milk
• 2 tablespoon organic cashew butter
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
• 1/8 teaspoon organic garlic powder
• sea salt to taste
• Pasta, cooked (I used brown rice pasta)

Make a roux by blending the olive oil and flour in a thick-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk for just a few minutes until the oil and flour are evenly mixed together and start to froth. You want to cook out the raw taste of the flour, but don’t let it brown. Next, add the milk a little at a time to the oil and flour mixture, while continuing to whisk. Once all the milk is completely integrated, continue to whisk over the medium heat for another minute, then remove the pan from the heat. You now have a white sauce base.

Next, add the cashew butter, whisking until it is thoroughly blended. Then mix in the nutritional yeast, again whisking until it is well-blended. Season with mustard powder, garlic powder, and salt.

Pour the mixture over the cooked pasta and toss until well-coated. Enjoy!

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