Outward & Inward Beauty

Butternut Squash Mac ‘n Cheeze

Hubby says he loves it.  He went back for seconds.  “Yay”!

If you’ve ever been afraid to try a “vegan” Mac ‘n Cheeze” you have to try this one.  This will be one of my favorite go to meals.

I found this recipe over at Oh She Glows.  Angela Liddon has a real winner here.  It is nut free and if you use rice noodles also gluten free.  Angela writes “she’s made many different vegan cheeze sauce recipes. The initial ones weren’t what I would consider spectacular, but with trial and error I’ve made recipes that not only satisfy my cravings, but make me crave the new recipes instead of actually craving cheese itself.”

Mac N Cheeze VeganAnd so, with that endorsement, I decided to give this recipe a try.  I actually went out and purchased all the ingredients the day I read her post.  Well, here it is fresh out of the oven with my pics.  It not only looks gorgeous on the table, is truly delicious.

THIS WILL BE ONE OF MY “GO TO MEALS”.

I absolutely lOVE LOVE LOVE this, and yes it satisfies just as much as dairy cheese.  I opted to add my green vegetables as a salad (or whatever green I have on hand) on the side.  Next time, I’ll probably add broccoli to it while it bakes.  I wanted to try it “naked” so I could get the full flavor.  I also can tolerate wheat so I opted for whole wheat noodles (notice I’ve changed Angela’s recipe to reflect that).

Having said that I do want to add that it would be even more scrumptious with some dried minced onion, or even fresh onion (though I wouldn’t want to “water down” any of the sauce) and even MORE nutritional yeast.   Don’t get me wrong, it was wonderful just the way the recipe was written, but for my tastebuds, I’d add those things. And maybe even a bit of fresh minced garlic.

I lined my casserole dish with parchment paper so the noodles wouldn’t stick. I think that was a lifesaver for cleanup.
Below is Angela’s recipe from OH She Glows … “well done Angela”

Yield: 4 servings or 1.5 cups of cheeze sauce

Ingredients:  My amendments are in green

  • 1 fresh butternut squash* (peeled and chopped) or 1 cup canned butternut squash
  • Extra virgin olive oil, S & P
  • 1 tbsp Earth Balance (or other non-dairy butter replacer)
  • 1 cup unsweetened & unflavoured almond milk (or use rice or hemp milk if nut-free)
  • 1 tbsp arrowroot powder (or cornstarch) – I used cornstarch
  • 5 tbsp nutritional yeast (my tastebuds preferred more, but it was delicious as written)
  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt (or to taste) & ground black pepper, to taste
  • 4 servings brown rice macaroni (8oz or half a 16oz package) makes 3 1/4 cup cooked (I used whole wheat)

Mix-ins of choice (e.g., kale, spinach, broccoli, peas, pumpkin seeds, etc) (I had mine on the side)

1. Preheat oven to 425F.   Line a casserole dish with tin foil.  Mix chopped squash with EVOO, S & P. Roast for about 40 minutes, uncovered, or until tender.

2. Meanwhile, prepare the cheeze sauce in a pot on the stove top. Add Earth balance over low-medium heat.
In a bowl, whisk together milk and arrowroot powder (or cornstarch or flour) until clumps are gone. Add into pot and whisk. Stir in remaining ingredients (nutritional yeast, Dijon, garlic, S & P) and whisk over low heat until thickened (about 5-7 minutes or so).

3. Cook your pasta according to package directions. The sauce makes enough to cover 4 servings of pasta.

4. In a blender, blend the sauce with 1 cup of roasted squash (or if using canned, simply stir 1 cup into the pot).

5. Add cooked, drained, and rinsed macaroni into pot, along with cheeze sauce & mix-ins. Heat and serve.  I lined my casserole dish with parchment paper for easier cleanup later.  This is absolutely optional.

Note: A 3.5 pound squash made 5 cups cooked squash, so you will have about 4 cups leftover.   (Yay, you can make it 4 more times)