Vegan Mac and Cheese with Butternut Squash Noodles
So creamy you will never guess it's a healthy, vegan mac and cheese! Use butternut squash noodles to keep it gluten and grain free and only 6 ingredients!
Servings 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp Extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1/2 Cup Onion diced
- 2 lbs Small Butternut squash peeled, seeded and spiralized with Blade B. (This is about 4 of squash total before prepping, or just over 1 1/2 lbs once peeled and seeded)
- 1 Cup Roasted salted cashews soaked in water overnight (140g) * (read notes)
- 6-7 Tbsp Nutritional yeast to taste **
- 6 Tbsp Unsweetened almond milk
- 1 - 1 1/4 tsp Salt or to taste ***
- Generous pinch of pepper
Instructions
- Heat 2 tsp of the olive oil up in a VERY large pan on medium/high heat, reserving the rest of the oil for later.
- Add in the diced onions and cook, stirring frequently until golden brown and soft. Add them into a high-powered blender (I used a Vitamix.)
- Add the remaining 2 tsp of oil into the pan, and turn the heat down to medium. Add in the spiralized butternut squash and cook, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are wilted and fork tender, about 7-10 minutes.
- While the noodles cook, drain the water from the cashews and then toss the cashews into the blender, along with the yeast, almond milk, salt (read notes) and pepper.
- Blend together until smooth and creamy, scraping down the sides as necessary. The sauce should be pretty thick!
- Pour the sauce into the pot with the cooked noodles, and toss just to evenly coat the noodles.
- DEVOUR.
Notes
*I buy my cashews pre-toasted. Toasting them is really important to add flavor to the sauce. If you don't buy them toasted, then simply bake the cashews in a 350 degree oven until lightly golden brown, about 7-10 minutes. Do this BEFORE you soak them overnight!
** Mr. FFF and I couldn't decide if we liked 6 Tbsp or 7 Tbsp better. So, start with 6 Tbsp, taste and add an additional if you want more.
***This needs a fair bit of salt to really bring the flavor. I liked it best with 1 1/4 tsp salt, but I do know that I like my food on the salty side, so I recommend starting with 1 tsp, and then adjusting to taste once blended together.
** Mr. FFF and I couldn't decide if we liked 6 Tbsp or 7 Tbsp better. So, start with 6 Tbsp, taste and add an additional if you want more.
***This needs a fair bit of salt to really bring the flavor. I liked it best with 1 1/4 tsp salt, but I do know that I like my food on the salty side, so I recommend starting with 1 tsp, and then adjusting to taste once blended together.