Easy vegan mac and cheese on the stove
How to make dairy free mac and cheese. The absolute best creamy vegan stove top mac and cheese recipe. Quick and easy vegan comfort food recipe. Kid friendly, easy weeknight dinner idea.
I make this every single week, sometimes twice a week because it’s so easy and comforting and it’s not terrible for you either.
I love to add in some frozen broccoli or peas because this cheese sauce makes everything you eat it with taste like god’s pussy (divinely delicious).
This recipe is
- Easy
- Quick
- One pot
- Vegan & vegetarian
- Dairy free & lactose free
- Creamy
Ingredients
- Raw cashews – This is what we’re going to be using to get the dairy free, creamy base. When you soak raw cashews, then blend them up, they make an amazing cream.
- Garlic & Onion powder
- Nutritional yeast – This is an inactive yeast that comes in yellow flakes. It adds a nutty and cheesy flavor to vegan dishes.
- Dairy free cheese – My favorites are Violife or Chao
- Dairy free milk – Coconut, cashew and oat milk are the best to use. You don’t want to use soy or almond milk because they will leave an after taste in this mac and cheese.
- Peas or broccoli – This is optional but I always love adding in veggies when I can. And what better way to add them in that with cheese and pasta.
Recipe tips
Use your favorite pasta. Mine are shells. If you’re a health Queen, choose whole wheat pasta, or that fun lentil pasta to add some more protein.
Throw in a handful of frozen peas or broccoli.
If you want to up the protein, sometimes I also add some chickpeas or kidney beans to this. I know it sounds weird, but it’s more filling.
If you use the slices instead of the shreds, just chop them up before adding them to the pan. You can also use whatever vegan cheese you fancy, you don’t have to follow my rules. (I hate following rules too)
Use unsweetened plain coconut milk. Like So Delicious green box. I don’t recommend soy or almond milk as it ALWAYS leaves a funky after taste.
If you can’t find that coconut milk, unsweetened oat milk works well too.
Buy your cashews or sunflower seeds in bulk online. It’s way cheaper
Storing and reheating
When you re-heat this, add a few splashes of water or coconut milk. It thickens up as it cools off.
You can heat this up on the stove on medium heat. A microwave works well too.
Store this in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5-7 days.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make this nut-free?
If you’re allergic to cashews, you can easily sub for raw sunflower seeds, or silken tofu.
What vegan cheese should I use?
My favorite cheeses are Violife mature cheddar, or any of their flavors, honestly. Chao is also really good and Daiya cheddar is my last choice, but it’s easy to find and will get the job done
Can I make this gluten free?
Yes! This is very easy to make gluten free. Just make sure you use gluten free pasta shells, gluten free non-dairy milk and gluten free non-dairy cheese.
Make these recipes next:
Dairy free mac and cheese
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw cashews (See notes for nut free options)
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1½ tsp salt
- 1¼ cup unsweetened plain oat milk (See notes)
- 1 cup shredded vegan cheese
- 1 lb dry pasta shells
- Handful of frozen green veggie of choice like peas or broccoli (optional)
Instructions
- Boil water and pour over raw cashews (or sunflower seeds if you’re subbing) – let them soak for 10 minutes while you prepare everything else. Drain them once they’re done. If you’re subbing silken tofu for the cashews, skip this step and just add tofu to the blender with the other cheese sauce ingredients.½ cup raw cashews
- Bring a pot of water to boil and cook your shells according to package. After they're cooked, strain them, but save ½ cup of the water for later.1 lb dry pasta shells
- While shells are cooking, add oat milk, cashews (once they've soaked and drained) nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder and salt to a blender (everything but the shredded cheese and pasta basically). Blend until smooth.½ cup raw cashews, 2 tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp onion powder, 2 tbsp nutritional yeast, 1½ tsp salt, 1¼ cup unsweetened plain oat milk
- Once your shells have one minute left of cooking, add your frozen veggie of choice to the pasta water with the shells. This will cook the veggies without having to use another pot. Drain when done, but save ½ cup of the pasta water.Handful of frozen green veggie of choice like peas or broccoli
- Turn the heat to low on the pan you drained the pasta from and add the cashew mixture, the cup of shredded vegan cheese and ½ cup of pasta water.1 cup shredded vegan cheese
- Stir and let it thicken a little. About one minute. If it gets too thick, just add a splash of the oat milk or water
- After about a minute, add the pasta shells to the pan and mix it all together. Add more salt if needed.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Lactose free mac and cheese
Francesca Stafford
What gets you a closer true Mac n cheese flavor? The silken tofu or the cashew?
Damn tasty vegan
Cashews. That’s how I originally intended the recipe. I provided the tofu or sunflower seeds as an alternative for people with allergies. Hope that helps! Enjoy!
Damn tasty vegan
Cashews. That’s how I originally intended the recipe. I provided the tofu or sunflower seeds as an alternative for people with allergies. Hope that helps! Enjoy!
Francesca Stafford
Great, thank you! I’ll be doing the cashew for sure then 🙂