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By Lisa Esile, MS Last Updated:
Macaroni and cheese, aka mac and cheese, is the ultimate comfort food, and just because you’re whole-food, plant-based doesn’t mean you have to go without! Scrumptious vegan cheesy sauces can be made using veggies like potato, sweet potato, cauliflower, or butternut squash as the base. Add plant milk, herbs, spices, and other flavorings for a creamy vegan mac and cheese that’s packed with goodness. Here are a few of our favorite plant-based mac and cheese recipes. Try one today!
Broccoli adds a pop of green, and fresh thyme adds a lovely depth of flavor to this creamy butternut squash sauce.
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This easy potato-based “cheese” sauce features cashews for creaminess, turmeric for color, and garlic and nutritional yeast for flavor. No fancy ingredients required.
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Cauliflower and potato form the backbone of this simple sauce, while a blend of nutritional yeast, mustard, and white wine vinegar mimic cheesy flavors.
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This family-friendly mac and cheese with chili leanings combines two favorite dishes, to delicious effect. It’s so simple, too: Pasta is cooked with canned tomatoes, beans, and seasonings, allowing the flavors to permeate throughout, while peas and carrots add extra bulk. Drizzle a cheesy potato-based sauce over the top and voilà; dinner is served. Notes a fan: “I just made this tonight and it is delicious.”
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Feeling spicy? Cashews, tahini, and red bell pepper create a rich-tasting sauce in this vegan mac and cheese, while jalapeño pepper and chile powder pump up the heat.
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This creamy mac and cheese is ideal for when fresh supplies are low. The cheesy plant-milk sauce is thickened with potato flour and oat flour and flavored with nutritional yeast, white wine vinegar, mustard, and garlic powder. Bonus: It’s ready in 30 minutes!
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The smooth, creamy texture of sweet potato makes it a perfect base for vegan cheese sauce, with grated nutmeg and dried rosemary balancing the sweetness to perfection.
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The creamy, slightly tangy Vegan Queso Sauce used for this mac and cheese is a reader favorite. The secret ingredient: roasted red peppers.
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This decadent mac n cheese recipe is inspired by Southern cuisine and makes for the perfect dish to share at a potluck. Tangy-sweet pimientos are blended into the dairy-free cheese sauce to create a luscious texture and taste so you end up with an indulgent, grown-up version of your favorite childhood meal.
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Lisa Esile is an author, illustrator, blogger, vegetable gardener, and whole-food enthusiast with a special fondness for potatoes. She has a master’s degree in human nutrition and is passionate about showing people how to live happier, healthier lives. She is the author of Reach Your Big Calm and the co-author of Whose Mind Is It Anyway? Find her on Facebook.
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Comments (5)
I would love to make any and all of these vegan Mac and cheese recipes; however, I can’t eat nutritional yeast. I love it, but it doesn’t love me! I have Crohn’s disease and nutritional yeast triggers my symptoms. Do you have any suggestions for substitutions? Thanks you!
I found this article with substitution ideas for nutritional yeast. I hope it is helpful: https://cleangreensimple.com/article/nutritional-yeast-substitutes/
How interesting and sad that you never received a reply.
Thank you for the delicious recipes!
I love mac and cheese – always have and always will