Vegan Black Pepper Mac and Cheese with a light potato carrot cheese sauce. Free of dairy, egg, corn, nuts. Can be made soy-free and gluten-free with gf pasta. 30 minute meal. Add cashews to make a thicker creamier sauce. Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipe.
More Mac n cheese! Cannot have enough mac recipes right.
Veggie cheese is all over the web recently. So I made some my way. No prep needed, no mashed potatoes needed. Cook the potatoes and veggies you want to use for 15-18 minutes. Blend, boil with pasta, done. Easy and simple.
And black pepper oh my. I don’t know why I haven’t added this much pepper to my mac before. It tastes amazing! more pepper= more fun.
This is a light sauce. For a creamier sauce, add sesame or pumpkin seeds or cashews. Use whole grain pasta or gf pasta to preference. Add more veggies in the cheese sauce or add with broccoli and use less pasta. Variations are endless. The veggie cheese sauce is one of those sauces that either one loves or doesn’t (as seen on the interweb on the many variations of the sauce) just like the butternut sauce mac :).
This missing scroll bar is annoying. Has anyone’s wordpress editor scroll bar disappeared with the WP 4.2 upgrade?
More Macs and Pasta recipes from the blog.
- Masala Mac and Cheese Vegan Recipe
- Cauliflower Alfredo, Spinach, artichoke Lasagna
- Pumpkin Sage Pasta with Pumpkin Cream Sauce and Crispy Sage
- Instant Mac and cheese mix in a jar
- Nacho Mac and cheese Casserole
Video:
Recipe Card
Vegan Black Pepper Mac and Cheese with Potato Carrot Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups (562.5 ml) water
- 1 medium potato about 1 cup or use 3/4 cup mashed potatoes
- 1/3 cup (42.67 g) chopped carrots
- 4 garlic cloves or 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp chopped onion or use 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 (0.5) green chili optional
- 1/2 (0.5) medium tomato chopped
- 1/2 to 1 tsp prepared mustard
- 2 tsp soy sauce or liquid aminos
- 3 to 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 to 3 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil omit to make oil free
- 1/3 tsp (0.33 tsp) paprika
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) sriracha optional
- 3/4 tsp (0.75 tsp) or more salt
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) white pepper
- 3/4 to 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper divided
- 6 to 8 oz (6 oz) elbows pasta cooked to preference
- 1 cup (91 g) broccoli chopped small
Instructions
- In a skillet, add water, potato, carrots, garlic, onion, chili and tomato. Cover and cook over medium-high heat for 17 to 19 minutes or until the potato is very tender and breaks easily. (add 2 Tbsp cashews for creamier sauce). Cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta to aldente. (in parallel with the above step if you like).
- Add the potato carrot mixture to a blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth. taste and adjust salt and spice.
- Transfer to the pan over medium heat. Add salt, white pepper, 1/3 tsp black pepper. Mix in. Bring to a boil. Carefully taste and adjust salt, cheesiness (add more nutritional yeast if needed).
- Add the cooked pasta and broccoli or other veggies. Mix in. Cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until the sauce comes to a good boil and thickens.
- Let it sit for 5 minutes. Mix in the rest of the freshly ground black pepper (1/2 to 2/3 tsp). Sprinkle more pepper if you wish and serve/
Video
Notes
If you like your broccoli and veggies a bit cooked, add them to the pasta pot, 5 minutes before the pasta will be taken off heat. Drain both and keep aside. Dont like carrots? Use zucchini Nutritional values based on one serving
Nutrition
Kymber
I’ve been using this recipe for years and just realized I better leave a review. This is my FAVORITE vegan cheese sauce recipe, and I have tried several different recipes!! I basically know it by heart by now. It is amazingly delicious and versatile. I absolutely love that it’s made with stuff I usually have on hand, and if you’re lacking one ingredient you can usually leave it out and it’s still fine. I’m going to use it to make a broccoli cheddar soup tonight!
Vegan Richa Support
yay! so glad you enjoy!
Karen
This was unbelievably delicious. I added frozen peas along with the broccoli. Yours are my go-to for recipes these days. Can’t wait to get your new book.
Vegan Richa Support
Yay! I’m excited for you too – I hope that you enjoy it
Ramona
Fantastic!!! I added a wee bit of vegan cream cheese but that’s it. Great recipe.
Vegan Richa Support
nice addition
Richa Bhardwaj
I have used your recipes every now and then. I saw it first time on Facebook and instantly got interested because of the name (as we share the same name). Yesterday, I made this mac and cheese and it was a hit in my family. I have tried other mac and cheese recipes too (definitely 4 times if not more) but they were not this successful. Today while searching on your website for something to try cooking today, I got a chance to read about you. You are such an inspiration. You have gone through a lot but it never stopped you to do what you love. I am so glad I am following you and trying your recipes, not only because they are inspired by Indian cooking but they are so easy to make.
Thanks for sharing your wonderful creations.
Vegan Richa Support
excellent to hear
Lindsay
I can’t find white pepper anywhere. Will the recipe turn out okay if i only use black pepper?
Richa
Yes
B Walker
I followed the recipe fairly closely but reduced the amount of water that I boiled the vegetables in quite a bit. I only used 1.5 cups of water, and figured I would use pasta water to thin it as needed, but turns out it was thin enough for me without any extra liquid. I did add the cashews for exra creaminess, and instead of using any siracha or jalapeno, I added a dab of vegan chipotle mayo, figuring this would add some spiciness and smokiness, and therefore I omitted the oil, too, since this stuff is mostly oil anyway.
Any feedback on whether or not you think this (cheese sauce only, not pasta) will freeze well? I’m the only vegan in our household and 4 servings of pasta in a row is a bit much for me.
Thanks for the tasty recipe!
Vegan Richa Support
sure – the sauce will freeze just fine. i’ve even frozen cooked pasta separately as well
Priyanka
I love your recipes, have tried so many and all of them were hit.. I am planning to try Black pepper Mac n cheese this weekend and I do not have nutritional yeast. Is it okay if I skip it?
Richa
Yes. Add in 1/2 tsp ground mustard
Surbi
Super delicious! Super easy! Will definitely make again!
Eliminated the chili pepper and sriracha to make it less spicy for the kids (added sriracha in my own bowl because that is yum).
Also subbed miso for the soy sauce as someone suggested.
Vegan Richa Support
love the sriracha also. Thanks
Sruthi Muralidharan
I made this today. Gorgeous recipe, never making mac and cheese any other way ever again.
Dave Big Chief
I’d swap the water for a 3 1/2 cups plant-based milk — it makes the sauce looser and creamier. Also swapping the soya sauce with 2 tsp white miso has more umami. If you want more of a cheese taste add 1 tsp lactic acid and half the lemon juice. Consider soaking the cashews for a few hours…
Anjali
Thank you thank you thank you. I made mac and cheese without any real cheese….i am sooooo in love with the taste. Loved it!!!!
Katherine
Five years later, I still make this cheese sauce all the time. I’m about to make it for dinner right now, I never get tired of it.
Vegan Richa Support
wow! That’s half a decade
Julia
I like this a lot. I usually use a recipe with coconut milk but this is an exceptional alternative when I don’t have any on hand. Other than the green chillies, which I omitted along with the sriracha, I have all these ingredients stocked at all times so it can’t get any more convenient than this. I will say it has a spice to it so I would probably cut back on the paprika and black/white pepper for anyone who is sensitive, and omit the green chillies and sriracha like I did.
Yvette
Thank you for sharing this very tasty and comforting vegan recipe!! I truly enjoyed it!! I added turmeric for some added color but it was already tasting great! Paired it with black beans & rice and collard greens. It was simply fantastic!!
arti
truly awesome.
vegan comfort food at its best,…did not even miss “regular ” cheese
thanks @ Richa
Richa
thanks!