Best is a strong word, but this vegan mac and cheese recipe truly is my favorite and the best I've ever tasted! It's simple to prepare and calls for classic vegan cheese ingredients like cashews PLUS a secret ingredient. The result is the creamiest and cheesiest vegan mac and cheese! It's also gluten-free if you use gluten-free pasta and nut-free with one simple substitution!
What Makes This Recipe Different
In all my vegan years I’ve made more than a few mac and cheese recipes, and to be honest, none of them ever got me excited enough for a repeat visit. I know that sounds harsh, but the only way I know how to write this post is with total honesty.
So let’s get this part out of the way. Vegan mac and cheese traditionally has three major problems:
- too sweet (because of the addition of vegetables for texture and/or color)
- too dry (because cashews and liquid don’t necessarily create a sauce that stays creamy)
- doesn’t taste like cheese
There. Okay, now that we’ve identified our problems we can focus on the solutions!
One caveat: this is a mac and cheese recipe meant to taste as much like its traditional counterpart as possible. I wasn't aiming for "healthy" with this one.
You KNOW I appreciate nutritious recipes. But this mac and cheese? It’s meant to be the best. After taking a bite it should cause you to involuntarily mumble through a mouthful of food, “MmmmmmmmOMG sooooo goooood.” In fact, the entire reason I developed this recipe for our local vegan mac and cheese competition.
Guess what. It won!
Award-Winning Vegan Mac and Cheese
The Asheville Vegan Society holds an annual mac and cheese cookoff every year in March. This was the first year I decided to throw my hat into the ring..... except that when I signed up I didn't yet have my own favorite mac and cheese recipe.
Around that time I happened to see an instagram post by Timothy Pakron (Mississippi Vegan) about his White Truffle Mac and Cheese. As soon as I read the recipe I knew he'd cracked the code. For me, the main takeaway was this: it's 2019, and we now have delicious, store-bought vegan cheese options, which means it's time to rethink our strategy.
When a home cook wants to make traditional, dairy-based macaroni and cheese what do they do? They go to the store and buy cheese, right? They don't try to make their own cheese from scratch (although, if they had to we would probably have a lot more vegans).
So let's rid ourselves of the pressures to make cheese sauce from ingredients like potatoes and carrots (unless of course we're trying to make a healthy mac and cheese, which is great). But for the cheesiest, most traditional tasting vegan mac and cheese, it's helpful to revisit the recipes we're interpreting and start again.
Field Roast, Violife, and Follow Your Heart are experts, so who am I to try to make something that tastes cheesier than what they've accomplished? It feels so obvious to me now! [cue sound of angels singing]
My Favorite Vegan Cheese Brands for this Sauce
After being inspired by Timothy to add store-bought cheese slices to my sauce, I experimented with a few combinations and found my favorite. I like to use one package of Violife Smoked Provolone and one package of Field Roast Chao Original.
I was already a big fan of both of these. In fact, when I'm in the mood for a splurge, Violife's slices are a go-to (plus, where I shop they cost less than Chao). But if you can't find one or both of these, Follow Your Heart's slices are also great; try their Provolone or Smoked Gouda for this recipe.
I decided to use one package of smoked cheese because it adds a little something extra in the savory/umami department without actually coming across as smoky. But if you're sensitive to or don't care for smokiness you can double up on the Chao Original OR use Violife's Mature Cheddar (this one is seriously yummy, and I've used it in this recipe several times).
For a traditional mac and cheese vibe just make sure you steer clear of any flavored varieties like Chao's Tomato Cayenne or Garden Herb.
Oh! But back to the results of the mac and cheese cookoff. Well, I won! And based on the words of the announcer, "by a long shot."
I'm only telling you this because I want you to know exactly how well this mac and cheese was received. Strangers were coming up to me during the event, telling me with utmost seriousness that they needed the recipe.
I was blown away! I mean, I felt pretty confident about the recipe but honestly didn't know what to expect. Of course, I told everyone who asked for the recipe about my blog and that I would be sharing it here soon. Now I have eleven months to figure out how to win again next year. 😉
Ingredients
This is just a summary to give you an idea of the ingredients you'll need. Be sure to scroll down for the full recipe.
- 8 cloves of garlic (yep, eight; I suppose you can reduce it if you don't love garlic)
- 2 Tablespoons vegan butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup raw cashews (If you have a nut allergy, sub your seed of choice or leave them out altogether and add another ½ package of cheese; I haven't experimented with this but have a feeling it will work out just fine.)
- 2 cups water
- 2 packages vegan cheese slices (as discussed above)
- 1 ½ Tablespoons chickpea miso (or mellow-white, but chickpea tastes the cheesiest)
- 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast (can omit if needed)
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper, optional
- freshly grated nutmeg, just 4 or 5 passes over a microplane
- 1 pound dry pasta of choice
I also like to add one bunch of sautéed lacinato (dino) kale. The only reason it's not pictured here is because the kale available at the store the day I shopped for this post looked terribly sad. So I decided to carry on without it and give you the option for a pure, straight-up mac and cheese with instructions on how and when to add the kale if you choose.
I hope you have a store near you that carries Violife, Field Roast and/or Follow Your Heart cheeses, but if you don't, stay tuned! I plan to test other brands and let you know about substitutions.
And if YOU try this recipe other cheeses, please let us know in the comments below. I would love to hear how it works out for you.
Cheers to the creamiest, cheesiest, and best vegan mac and cheese. I hope you love it!
You might also like:
Ultimate Vegan Mushroom Mac & Cheese
Vegan Pimento Cheese
Vegan Pimento Macaroni Salad
Easy Almond Ricotta
Vegan Stuffed Crust Pizza with Homemade Mozzarella
Vegan Pesto Stuffed Crust Pizza
Vegan Parm 3 Ways
And check out this list of 40 of the BEST Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipes!
The Best Vegan Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsp vegan butter I used Earth Balance.
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup raw cashews (if you have a nut allergy, sub your favorite seed or use an add'l half package of cheese)
- 2 cups water
- 2 packages of any of the following vegan cheese slices, cut into cubes: Violife Smoked Provolone or Mature Cheddar, Chao Creamy Original, Follow Your Heart Provolone or Smoked Gouda (all of these are gluten-free)
- 1 ½ Tbsp chickpea miso
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast, optional Can omit if needed.
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- ½ tsp mustard powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- freshly grated nutmeg, just 4 or 5 passes over a microplane zester
- 1 pound dry pasta of choice
- 1 bunch lacinato kale, chopped, optional
Instructions
- Preheat a large saute pan over medium/low heat (if not including kale, you can use a small pan). Add the butter, olive oil, and garlic to the pan and sauté for about 5 minutes. Lower the heat if necessary so that it doesn't brown.
- In a high speed blender combine the garlic mixture, cashews, water, cubed cheeses, miso, nutritional yeast, vinegar, mustard powder, onion powder, salt, and nutmeg. Blend until completely smooth.
- Heat a large pot of water for the pasta. Salt it generously, and cook pasta according to package directions.
- If including kale, cook it in the same pan used to sauté the garlic. Stirring occasionally, cook the kale over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until softened and dark green.
- While the pasta drains in a colander, pour the cheese sauce into the pasta pot. Stir frequently and cook over medium heat until hot, about 5 minutes.
- Add the pasta and kale to the cheese sauce, and stir to coat. Remove from heat, and let sit 10 minutes. Stir again, serve and enjoy!
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used. We calculate this information using the online calculator cronometer.com. For the most accurate nutrition information we recommend calculating it yourself to reflect the specific ingredients used in your dish.
Nix L
This is definitely the best mac n cheese, and I can't wait to try out more of your recipes! Mine didn't turn out quite as creamy as yours looks in the pictures, so next time I'm going to soak the cashews overnight (I do have a high speed blender, but on the lower end).
Roma
I honestly almost cried after the first bite. After sooo many disappointing mac and cheese recipes (including back when I ate dairy), this is the best mac I have ever made. It tasted like the comforting dairy mac that restaurants make. I threw some panko on top and baked for some extra crisp - heaven on earth! Thank you SO MUCH for this recipe! It has become a staple.
Victoria
I tried this recipe with Miyoko’s cheddar shreds and it was TOO strong. Miyoko’s cheddar is THE best vegan cheddar out there with a sharp taste. So I think with the other umami ingredients (nutritional yeast+miso+cashews+mustard powder etc.) put it overboard.
If you like really strong cheeses with a raunchy taste , like feta, using Miyoko’s cheddar might make you happy. However, if you don’t, like me; then use the recommend vegan cheeses such as Chao and VioLife. My Mom would describe this as “booty cheese.” Not a fan of strong cheese. I’m sure this recipe is good but I’m afraid to try it again (with Chao) for fear of being disappointed again. I appreciate your site Lori!
Lori
Hi Victoria,
I think you'll like it with the recommended cheeses. It's more milky, creamy, and mild with those. I find Miyoko's cheeses to be very strong and much better for other uses!
I highly recommend one package of Chao and one package of Violife smoked provolone, if you can find those. So good!
Thanks for letting us know how yours turned out.
Nicole O
HOLY MOLY. This Mac and cheese is the ABSOLUTE BEST MAC AND CHEESE!!! I CANNOT believe it. It tastes not only exactly like a regular Mac and cheese, but it even tastes like a fancy white cheddar Mac and cheese. This exceeds all expectations. I truly can’t believe it, nor can my husband who isn’t vegan. Thank you SO Much for this recipe. I used a package of chao and a package of violife mature cheddar. Added 1/4 tsp white pepper and the nutritional yeast as mentioned. Just amazing. Thank you!!! 😊😋
Lori
Nicole, you just made my day! I love this so much, and it's especially awesome that even your non-vegan husband is impressed! 🙌 Thank you so much for the feedback!
Rita Casassa
What is chickpea miso and where do I get it? Can I omit this ingredient?
Lori
Hi Rita,
Yes, you can omit it if needed. Chickpea miso is a fermented product that has really nice salty and umami flavor. It's like traditional white miso but made with chickpeas instead of soybeans. It's refrigerated, and you'll usually find it near tofu in the grocery store. It is sort of a specialty product, though, so not all stores will have it.
Feel free to omit it. You can always add another pinch of salt to the sauce if you like.
Ginny Bates
My DH is Southern gentleman from TN. (We live in SC now.) He loves his mac and cheese. We went vegan about 18 months ago when he was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease. He now feels much better and his lab values have steadily improved. Hooray! We are 65+ years old and both of us are good cooks. Replacing cheese has been a hurdle - like it is for so many who want to give up animal products.
I have tried numerous "cheese" sauces: with potato and carrots, with cashews and cauliflower, with oats and who-knows-what-else. This is the BEST!!!!! I did use more nutritional yeast because the brand we like is UNfortified and has a lighter flavor. We think the fortified ones taste too much like B vitamins. I don't know which brand you use.
Two questions: Do you think this will freeze, perhaps whizzing in blender upon thawing? Have you figured out a way to thicken it enough to mold and slice? DH loves grilled cheese sandwiches.
Thank you for reading and MANY, MANY THANKS for this great recipe!
Lori
Hi Ginny, good for you two, going vegan! 😀 I'm thrilled you loved the cheese sauce. That's a good question about freezing. If you mean just the sauce without the pasta in it, yes I think that might work. It will probably be a bit gloopy and inhomogeneous after thawing, but re-heating it should fix that.
As far as a sliceable cheese, no I haven't gotten around to that yet! Of course, you could just go with Violife cheese on its own, which we LOVE. But it won't be garlicky and quite as flavorful as this sauce. Turning this into a sliceable cheese is a really great idea. I'll start pondering! Thank you, Ginny.
Ginny Bates
Lori, I'll be looking for that post on best cheese sauce turned to best slices! Thanks for thinking about this idea and, hopefully, experimenting.
Lisa
Wow!!! I made this, and it tastes just like the real deal using dairy items. Great job. It’s been 3 days and I just warmed up some that was leftover and it still tastes creamy. Next time I make nachos, I’m going to use your cheese sauce. Thanks so much for sharing!
Lori
Yeah! Glad you enjoyed it, Lisa. Thanks so much for the comment!
Emily
Amazing, so delicious! Exactly what I've been missing since going vegan 🙂
Lori
So glad, Emily! Thanks for the awesome feedback! 😀
Nikki
Absolutely my favorite Mac and cheese! I served this during the holidays and I sometimes make it for myself just because! Love it. Thank you!
Lori
That's awesome, Nikki! Thank you for the feedback. 😀
Christie
I feel like I'm missing something, but how much pasta?
Lori
Hi Christie, i probably made it confusing by listing out the ingredients within the post, but if you scroll to the actual recipe card you’ll see the pasta near the bottom of the list, 16 ounces.
Allie
The best vegan Mac & cheese I've ever had! Also tried the cauliflower gratin, was also very good. New to your site, anxious to try some of your other recipes. Thank you
Lori
Allie, thank you for the awesome feedback! 😀 I'm so glad you loved the mac and cheese and so glad you're here!
Carly
I was cleaning out my pantry/fridge and made a loose version of this for one. I didn’t follow proportions exactly and was missing some ingredients, but either way it turned out truly amazing. I had no miso, but added soy/coconut aminos and felt like it added some good umami flavor. Thanks for a great recipe!
Lori
That's awesome, Carly. Way to go, making it work with what you had on hand. 😀 So glad you enjoyed it!
susan
Definitely kid worthy and for the kid in all of us!
Lori
That's right! Thanks, Susan.