BEST vegan smoked gouda mac and cheese

The best vegan cheese sauce

This delicious vegan smoked gouda mac and cheese is quick and easy to make. A super creamy, decadent and slightly smokey cashew cheese base is sure to satisfy your comfort food cravings. Dairy free and can be made gluten free.

I probably make this recipe about once a week. It’s perfect for those tiring days when you’ve had enough and you just need a big bowl of comfort food to make the world seem right again.

❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe

• This vegan cheese sauce is a hell of a lot healthier for you than dairy mac and cheese because it contains no cholesterol.
• Made up of simple, healthy ingredients and doesn’t require any store-bought cheese.
• Easy to make for a quick weeknight dinner that even your kids will love.
• Full of good fats from cashews. Cashews have been linked to “ benefits like weight loss, improved blood sugar control, and a healthier heart.” according to health line.
• Great recipe to impress your non-vegan friends. Take this to a pot luck and everyone will be blown away.

🧂 Ingredients and substitutions

• Raw cashews – I love buying these in bulk for a more affordable option. Cashews, when blended and soaked create an amazing creamy base.
• Seasonings – Garlic powder and onion powder are a must.
• Nutritional yeast – this is what give the cheese sauce its cheesy, savory flavor. This is a must-have ingredient.
• Corn starch – this helps to thicken up the sauce even more.
• Liquid smoke – This gives the smoked gouda flavor. You can also use smoked paprika.
• Lemon juice – Helps to balance out the flavors and add a slightly cheesy, tangy flavor.
• Pasta shells – I love the elbow macaroni shells, but use whatever are your favorite. Use gluten free shells to make this recipe gluten free.
• Vegan butter – helps to give a richer, creamier flavor.

👩‍🍳 Expert tips

If you have left overs the next day, when you re-heat this bad boy, add a little bit of water. It thickens up the longer it sits or the more you heat it up.

If the sauce is too thick for you liking, add a splash of water. The longer the sauce is heated up, the more thick it becomes.

You don’t need to soak your cashews over night. You can do a quick soak by boiling some water and soaking the cashews for 10 minutes.

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If you need some extra comfort or decadence, add in a tablespoon of vegan butter when blending the cheese sauce. You can also leave it out and it’s still very tasty and a bit healthier.

🔪 Directions

Make sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the full ingredients list and instructions!

Step one – Boil some water, then pour over the raw cashews. Let them soak for 10 minutes, then drain.

Step two – Cook the pasta in lightly salted water until al dente. Reserve ¼ cup of cooked pasta water, then strain and set aside.

Step three – Blend the soaked cashews with the seasonings and some vegan butter and unsweetened oat milk.

Step four – Add the cheese sauce to a sauce pan and bring it to medium heat. Stir the whole time. The sauce will thicken as it heats up. Once the cheese sauce has thickened, add in the cooked pasta and ¼ cup of reserved pasta water. Stir until noodles are well coated.

❄️ Storing

This lasts about a week in the fridge, in an airtight container, if you can manage to not eat it all in one sitting.

You can also freeze this and reheat it. It will change the consistency slightly, but not too much.

🥦 Serving suggestions

I love eating this with steamed broccoli or peas. It adds some greens to your meal which is always a good thing. Serve this with a side of BBQ tempeh or BBQ tofu and collard greens for a southern meal. This also goes really well with some vegan seitan ribs.

❓ FAQ’s

🧀 More vegan cheese recipes

If you loved this recipe, leave a 5 ⭐️ rating on the recipe card and comment below!

📖 Recipe

BEST vegan smoked gouda mac and cheese

This decadent, insanely delicious vegan smoked gouda mac and cheese is guaranteed to please. Nothing beats a bowl of creamy vegan pasta. Easy to make gluten free as well.

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: kid friendly, mac and cheese, pasta, vegan cheese

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 3

Calories: 452kcal

Author: Maria

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Ingredients

US Customary or Metric

• ½ cup raw cashews
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1½ teaspoon salt
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 1½ cups water
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke or smoked paprika
• ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• 1½ teaspoon corn starch
• 1 tablespoon vegan butter
• 8 oz of dry pasta shells (Use gluten free pasta if wanting to make this recipe gluten free)

Instructions

• Soak your cashews in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. Drain after soaking.
• Bring salted water to a boil on stovetop. Cook the pasta shells. Keep ¼ cup of cooked pasta water and drain the rest. Set pasta aside.
• While the pasta cooks, pour all of your cheese sauce ingredients (everything except the pasta shells) into the blender and blend until smooth.
  ½ cup raw cashews, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1½ teaspoon salt, Juice of ½ lemon, 1½ cups water, 1 teaspoon liquid smoke or smoked paprika, ¼ cup nutritional yeast, 1½ teaspoon corn starch, 1 tablespoon vegan butter
• Pour cheese sauce into a pan on low/medium heat and stir constantly until it thickens (about 5 minutes). To make extra decadent add another tablespoon of vegan butter to cheese sauce and let melt.
• Once cheese sauce is thickened, add the pasta, pasta water and mix it all together. If it thickens too much, add a drop of water until you get the consistency you desire
  8 oz of dry pasta shells
• Add steamed broccoli, salt and pepper if needed and Enjoy!

Video

Notes

When you re-heat this the next day you will need to add 1-2 TBL of water. It gets thick the more you heat it or let it sit.

This goes really well with peas or steamed broccoli

To make gluten free, just use GF pasta.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

BEST vegan smoked gouda mac and cheese

Amount per Serving

Calories

452

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

14

g

22

%

Saturated Fat

 

3

g

19

%

Trans Fat

 

0.02

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

3

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

6

g

Sodium

 

1211

mg

53

%

Potassium

 

414

mg

12

%

Carbohydrates

 

67

g

22

%

Fiber

 

4

g

17

%

Sugar

 

4

g

4

%

Protein

 

16

g

32

%

Vitamin A

 

179

IU

4

%

Vitamin C

 

4

mg

5

%

Calcium

 

32

mg

3

%

Iron

 

3

mg

17

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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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.