Craving real mac but wish fake cheese or nutritional yeast weren’t in the mix? Look no further than this easy, dairy-free mac and cheese made with whole foods!
I love dairy. Most especially cheese. I’ve been known to buy a block of cheese and eat all of it in the car before I get home. (I know, not exactly healthy moderation skills practiced there.) And man, oh, man, macaroni and cheese is one of the all-time best comfort foods. I remember a season in my life when I used to work hard all week and treat myself to dairy on Friday night: macaroni and cheese and Ben and Jerry ice cream. Absolutely delicious.
But there have been a number of times in my life when I’ve had to go dairy-free. And, well, when you’re in that kind of a situation, instead of sitting in your pathetic, dairy-free doom and gloom, you just gotta snap yourself out of it and make yourself something delish!
This macaroni and cheese is what I have been searching for for years. Nutritional yeast just wasn’t cutting it for me. And that fake cheese is not exactly good for your body. I finally found what I would consider the best whole foods, dairy-free mac and cheese! When you just need a little southern comfort food in your life, pull yourself out of that sad, dairy-free pit and have some of this!
Ingredients
Cashew cream: This is the star ingredient that gives you that cozy, southern comfort food vibe. Get the super EASY recipe here.
Pumpkin puree: This unexpected ingredient gives the mac a little tinge of color. It also gives this dish a cheesier flavor.
Pasta Shells: I’ve always preferred shells over elbow pasta, but you can use elbow pasta if you want! You can also make this gluten-free by switching this out with rice pasta!
Salt: Sea salt or pink Himalayan salt would be ideal for this recipe. If you use regular table salt, you might have to cut back on the salt a bit. Also, this amount of salt is for unsalted pasta shells. If you add salt to your pasta water, then you might have to add less salt to the sauce.
Black Pepper
Garlic Powder
Red Chili Powder (Optional): This is not American chili powder; it is ground up red chili peppers. Cayenne could probably also work!
Kitchen Supplies You May Need
- a saucepan or pot
- a skillet
- a colander
- a slotted spoon
- a scraping spatula
- measuring cups and spoons
How to Make Easy, Dairy-Free Mac and Cheese
This is so easy you’re just going to be amazed at how fast you can whip it up.
First, cook your pasta shells according to the instructions on the package. Remember that this recipe has been made for unsalted pasta. If you want to salt your pasta, add less salt to the sauce.
While your pasta is cooking, add the rest of the ingredients to a skillet.
After your pasta finishes cooking, drain it and rinse it to cool down the pasta.
Next, place the skillet with the sauce ingredients on the stove and heat it up on low to medium-low heat. Be very careful not to overheat this!!! Don’t turn the burner on and walk away and don’t turn the heat up too hot. Your sauce will turn into a weird texture that won’t mix well with your pasta. All you want to do is heat up your sauce.
Finally, add your pasta shells into the skillet with the sauce and gently combine them together.
How to Make This Macaroni and Cheese Healthier
You can add a lot more pumpkin puree to this recipe. Just keep adding one tablespoon at a time and tasting it to see if you can add more. But it will give it a prominent pumpkin flavor. And this could be a problem for people who don’t really like pumpkin. Lucky for you, I’ve got a tasty trick.
What I like to do is add more red chili powder to “cover up” the pumpkin flavor. I’ve done this and added some chicken in, and my husband doesn’t even realize he’s eating pumpkin. Hehe.
Now, this only works if your eaters like a little spice in their food. If they do, you should totally try this!!
Easy, Dairy-Free Mac and Cheese (no nutritional yeast)
Craving real mac but wish fake cheese or nutritional yeast weren't in the mix? Look no further than this easy, dairy-free mac and cheese made with whole foods!
Ingredients
- 3 cups pasta shells
- water (for boiling pasta)
- 1 cup cashew cream (click here for SUPER EASY recipe)
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree (purchase in a can or make it yourself)
- 1 1/4 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- pinch of red chili powder (optional)*
Instructions
- Make sure you have cashew cream on hand.
- Cook your pasta shells according to the instructions on the package. This recipe was made for unsalted pasta. If you want to add salt to your pasta while cooking it, you will most likely need to add less salt to the sauce.
- While your pasta is cooking, add the rest of the ingredients to a skillet: the cashew cream, pumpkin puree, and spices.
- After your pasta finishes cooking and you drain it, rinse it with water to cool it down.
- Next, place the skillet with the sauce ingredients on the stove and heat it up on low to medium-low heat. Be very careful not to overheat this! Don't turn the burner on and walk away, and don't turn the heat up too hot. Your sauce will turn into a weird texture that won't mix well with your pasta. All you want to do is gently heat up your sauce.
- Finally, add your pasta shells into the skillet with the sauce and gently combine them together.
- Enjoy!
Notes
* This is ground up red chili peppers, NOT American chili powder (like we use to make chili and taco seasoning)
Make it Gluten Free
Use rice pasta shells instead.
Make it Healthier
You can add a lot more pumpkin puree to this recipe. Just keep adding one tablespoon at a time and tasting it to see if you can add more. It will give your sauce a more prominent pumpkin flavor. If you have someone who doesn't like the taste of pumpkin and can handle a tad bit of spice, you can add a couple pinches of red chili powder to "cover up" the pumpkin flavor. Adding in some chicken won't hurt either!
Check out other recipes featuring cashew cream:
Creamy Pumpkin Pie Popsicles (Dairy-Free)
Healthy, Homemade Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino (Dairy-Free)