Sharon – Page 8 – Bit of the Good Stuff

Creamy Vegan Mac and Cheeze (30 minute recipe)

Published on December 14, 2019September 24, 2025 by Sharon2 Comments

I’m so excited to be sharing today’s recipe with you… it’s for a creamy vegan Mac and Cheeze that’s really simple and quick to make. When I first made the sauce, I was amazed at how good it tasted, especially considering how basic the ingredients are (and that it doesn’t contain any cheese!) I had a hard time stopping myself from spooning the whole lot into my mouth straight from the blender!

And not only is it delicious, but it’s healthy too! For me, this Mac and Cheese is comfort food at its finest. It’s been a winner with my family and I hope you enjoy it too!

There are a number of ways to make plant-based alternatives to dairy cheese sauce. For example, you can blend potatoes or squash with vegetable broth, or you can make a béchamel-style sauce with plant milk and vegan ‘cheese’. Over the years, I’ve experimented with them all, however to this day, blended cashews remains my favourite (it’s the one I use for the cauliflower Mac ‘n’ Cheeze recipe in my cookbook).

It is also probably the easiest vegan ‘cheese’ sauce to make. It’s simply a case of throwing the ingredients in a high speed blender and whizzing smooth.

And what I especially love about this sauce is that it tastes decadent and creamy, yet it’s packed full of nutritional goodness! Cashews are a great source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, plus they provide protein, fibre and minerals, such as magnesium and manganese.

Another secret ingredient in the sauce is carrot. Not only does the carrot enhance the colour and flavour of the sauce, but it provides an abundance of antioxidant betacarotene (which the body converts into vitamin A).

The savoury ‘cheesy’ flavour in the sauce comes from nutritional yeast flakes, which also happens to have an amazing nutrient profile. It’s especially rich in protein, B vitamins and zinc. Here in the UK, the most common brand of nutritional yeast flakes available in our larger supermarkets and health food shops is the Marigold Engevita Nutritional Yeast Flakes.

The onion powder also adds an incredible ‘cheesy onion’ flavour. It’s amazing stuff! Sadly, at present, onion powder isn’t available in UK supermarkets, but you can buy it from independent health food shops or online. (I buy mine from the zero waste jars in Harvest, Bath).

For this dish, a pasta tube or twist is best as it helps hold onto the sauce. You could either use a wheat pasta or one of the many gluten-free pastas now available.

Recipe Card

Vegan Mac and Cheeze

This vegan Mac and Cheeze is really simple and quick to make. Not only is it delicious, but it’s also packed full of nutritional goodness. For me, this is comfort food at its finest!

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Hands-on Time 15

Total Time 25

Course Dinner

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Ingredients

Pasta

▢ 400 g / 14 oz pasta

Instructions

Place the cashews in a heat proof bowl. Pour on boiling hot water and leave for 10 minutes to soften, then drain.
In a large pan, steam the carrot for 10 minutes, or until just soft (the thinner you slice the carrot, the quicker it will cook).
Remove the steamer from the pan, top up with boiling water and cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and return the pasta to the pan.
Meanwhile, place the cashews and 1 cup of water in a high speed blender and whizz until smooth. Add the remaining sauce ingredients – the cooked carrot, nutritional yeast, vinegar, onion powder and salt – and blend until silky smooth. Taste test, and add a touch more seasoning if desired.
Pour the sauce into a small saucepan and gently heat through, stirring regularly. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and return it to the pan. Add the sauce and stir through.
Serve the pasta in warm bowls alongside your favourite green veggies*.
Any leftover sauce can be stored in the fridge for up to five days. It is also freezable. It thickens up over time, so whisk in a splash more water when re-heating.

Notes

*My family’s favourite greens to serve with this dish are either roasted broccoli or Cavolo Nero (aka Lacinato kale), mushrooms and onions sautéed in soy sauce. We prepare the side dish while the carrots are steaming.

Keyword Dairy-Free, Easy Vegan Meals, Family Friendly, Gluten-Free Option, Oil-Free, Vegan Dinners, Vegan Pasta Dish

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Nutritional Breakdown

N.B. The above values are estimates. The actual nutritional values will vary depending on the brands and ingredients used.

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If you make this Creamy Vegan Mac and Cheese (or any other recipes on our blog), I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I always love to see your creations! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.

With love,

Sharon xx

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Family-Size Festive Mince Pie [Vegan]

Published on December 5, 2019September 24, 2025 by Sharon3 Comments

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* This recipe was first published in December 2017. The page was updated in December 2019

Hello everyone! I hope your preparations for the festive holiday are going well. Hopefully you’ve been a bit more organised than me. As usual, I’ve left a lot of shopping and food preparation to the last minute, so today – Christmas Eve – is going to be one very busy day for me! However, before I crack on with the preparations, I thought I would share one last recipe on the blog before 2017 comes to a close. The recipe is for a giant-sized mince pie, which is just perfect for sharing with friends and family this season. I’ve already made three of these pies in the past week, and no doubt I will making more in the lead up to the New Year.

During the festive season, my family loves to have home-made mince pies for dessert, drizzled in custard or cream. However, while they taste delicious, individual mince pies do tend to look a bit lost on dessert plates and aren’t what I would consider ‘special enough’ to serve to dinner guests. To resolve this, I’ve played around with my favourite mince pie recipe and created a family-sized pie instead, which can be sliced and served on a plate with a more appealing presentation.

It took a couple of attempts with different pastry quantities and baking methods, but I’m really pleased with how it finally turned out. The pastry is lovely and crisp; it’s robust enough to slice without crumbling and, most importantly, it has been given the thumbs up from the recipe testers in my house.

I used my favourite organic mincemeat for this pie, which is made by Meridian. For the flour, I used Doves Organic White Spelt flour. For a while now, spelt has been my flour of choice for pastry-making. Personally, I find it gives pastry a nicer taste and texture compared to plain (all purpose) flour. As an added bonus, I find that some of my friends that generally avoid gluten/wheat, can tolerate spelt. It does make me wonder whether it’s specifically modern wheat that’s causing tummy issues for a lot of people.