You know how I feel about throwing the word “best” out there when it comes to food. Often, I’ve been disappointed by what I deemed to be a lackluster recipe, but this one is a go to that every non-vegan friend goes crazy for and asks us to make over and over. I made sure to include the word “baked” as well as this is the type of old fashioned mac and cheese you get in the south, not the cooked pasta with a cream sauce thrown on it from the box kind. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place for that type of mac, but this is when you want to impress people who think vegans live on lettuce and sticks and you want to wow them. I’ve even had more than one friend say that they preferred this over regular mac and cheese and if you knew my crowd, you’d get that it was high praise.
Basics of what you’ll need
You’ll need elbow macaroni of course, but you could make this with shells or corkscrew pasta. I prefer the traditional shape, but do what you feel. Unsweetened milk is essential. I prefer soy, but you could use any alt milk provided it doesn’t have too strong of a flavor and is completely unsweetened. (Don’t ask me how I know what vanilla flavored mac and cheese tastes like.) For the vegan cheese, there are so many good ones out there that you could use one or a combo of your favorites, but make sure they’re “cheddar” style for that authentic taste. I used one pack of Violife cheddar and about half a pack of Daiya. Nooch or nutritional yeast is also a key ingredient and you can get it in bulk or Trader Joes has a well priced bagged one available.
Once you cook it for a bit, you should get a thick sauce that looks like the one above.
Now, it’s ready for the oven!
This Spike seasoning is a go to in the Big Box Vegan household. If you don’t have it, you could just use another seasoned salt or even plain salt, but if there’s a secret ingredient in this recipe, then this would be it. You can buy it at a lot of natural grocers or get it on Amazon which is where I buy the big boxes of it because we use so much! Link at the bottom of the page if you cannot find it in a store near you.
Some ideas for amping it up:
- Serve it as a base for chili mac (highly recommended!).
- Add crumbled vegan bacon or bacon bits on top.
- Make a mac and cheese bar with various toppings.
- Make it as a side for Thanksgiving. Move over stuffing, mac is back in town.
- Serve it on a veggie burger.
The Best Vegan Baked Mac & Cheese
8
servings30
minutes30
minutesLiterally the best baked vegan mac & cheese you’ll ever eat.
Ingredients
1 lb of pasta (elbow macaroni is the classic go to shape)
2 tbsp vegan margarine (I use Earth Balance, but you could use Miyokos if you’re feeling fancy or even just olive oil)
1 onion, medium sized diced
2 tbsp all purpose flour (don’t use whole wheat as it does not bind as well. If you must make it gluten free, you could use arrowroot powder mixed with some water)
3 cups of unsweetened soy milk (you could use another alt milk, just make sure it’s unsweetened and that it does not have a super strong overpowering flavor)
4 tbsp prepared mustard (I prefer the classic yellow, but I have used dijon as well as spicy brown)
1/2 tsp Spike seasoning (trust me, buy some Spike, but if you just don’t have it, use seasoned salt or even plain salt, but the recipe will suffer – link at bottom of page)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt (1 tsp for the pot of boiling water to cook the pasta, and 1/2 tsp for the sauce)
1/4 tsp ground pepper (or to taste)
12 oz vegan “cheddar” style cheese (pre-shredded or shred your own)
5 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
10 dashes of hot sauce
Sweet paprika (to sprinkle of top before baking)
Directions
- Heat oven to 375º.
- Put a pot of water on to cook the pasta. Once boiling, add 1 tsp of salt and cook the pasta for 5 minutes or until it’s just al dente. Remember, the pasta will continue to cook in the oven once assembled.
- Melt the margarine in a large heavy pot, and add the chopped onion and cook until translucent. Cook low and slow and do not let it brown. Once cooked, add the flour and cook for a few minutes to cook off any raw flour taste. Add the soy milk, mustard, seasonings and cook for about 3 minutes or until thick and bubbly on low heat. Add the cheese, nutritional yeast and hot sauce to finish the sauce.
- Add the cooked pasta to the cheese sauce and adjust any seasonings. If you like more salt and don’t have hypertension, go for it.
- You can transfer it to a greased baking dish if you’re feeling fancy or just cook in the pot you made it in if it’s ovenproof.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until bubbly and golden brown on top. Cool slightly and devour.
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I’ve been vegan for over 30 years so I have a bit of experience with the vegan cheese evolution as well as the vegan mac and cheese promise to bring me back to my childhood. (Not usually successful). Most recipes require soaking cashews, which I am willing to do but not very good at planning for. And let’s be honest, cashew based cheese sauce doesn’t always do it. So I happily tried this one Sunday before our world locked down and I feel like I finally found the perfect vegan mac and cheese recipe, especially if you typically have some vegan cheese on hand. Yes, it takes more time than a boxed product but it is worth it. And no cashew soaking!
The first time I tried the recipe, I made it as-is and it was great! Even my British husband, who did not grow up with the mac and cheese gene, loved it. My only personal preference was to use less mustard the next time but I think I have an extreme sensitivity to the taste of mustard so that is just me. And I would have preferred a different cheese. I only had daiya at home.
The second go around I used 365 brand of vegan cheese, which I do really like, but for some reason it didn’t melt completely. Problem solved with a quick trip to the vitamix. I liked it this way, making a very smooth sauce. I would do that again. I didn’t use mustard at all and think it needed it so I will try a teaspoon next time. (I will get the amount perfect for me eventually but if you are fine with mustard, go with the recipe as written; this is just a weird personal thing, most likely).
Give this a go, you will not regret it. This was my first time having baked mac and cheese (can you tell I grew up with THE BOX?) and it definitely adds a nice texture. Oh, and this is REALLY great the next day.
Thank you for this awesome review! I’m so glad it cut the mustard. Lol but seriously, mustard is definitely a personal thing, so I hope you find the balance that’s right for you. ⚡️🧡⚡️ Kreg*
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