Creamy Mac and Cheeze

I know there are a bunch of vegan mac and cheese recipe floating around out there on the internets and in cookbooks. I have tried many of them, but I always keep coming back to this recipe. The inspiration comes from my good friend, Sjanie, in B.C. (my only vegan friend, actually, aside from my blog readers). She was very supportive of my decision to go vegan and she would send recipes as we chatted via MSN Messenger, which I would hurriedly cut and paste, print off, and try out. The original print out is long gone because I started just pitching ingredients into a blender, adjusting as necessary to get the taste and consistency I wanted. I decided to finally measure and write down what went into the blender and share it with you. My kids love this dish slathered with ketchup, Canadian-style.

INGREDIENTS

Makes enough for a family of 5 with leftovers. Cut in half if needed.

- 1/2 cup raw cashews

- 2 tbsp sunflower seeds

- 2 tbsp pine nuts

- 2 cups soy milk

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast

- 1 1/2 cups firm tofu (does not have to be silken)

- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- 1 tsp paprika

- 1/2 tsp garlic powder

- 1 tsp onion powder

- 2 tbsp miso (something mellow)

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 tbsp cornstarch

- 3 cups uncooked macaroni

METHOD

1. Cook macaroni, as per directions, until al dente.

2. While macaroni is cooking, place all other ingredients in a blender and blend for 5 minutes, until very smooth. Make sure all nuts and seeds have been blended.

3. Drain macaroni and return to pot over medium heat. Add sauce and bring to bubbling. Cook, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens and reduces a bit (about 5 mins)

A FEW NOTES

1. I have never done this, but if you like cooked mac and cheese, I think you could add the sauce to the noodles, transfer to a greased casserole, top with bread crumbs, and bake for 30 mins or so (until bubbling).

2. The mac and cheese will be very saucy at first. If you are planning on eating some of the leftovers for lunch tomorrow, remove some mac and cheeze from the pot after it comes to bubbling and store in the fridge. The sauce will absorb into the noodles overnight, but still be creamy when re-heated the next day.