Ⓥ Vegan Kitchen: Fancy Mac 'n' Cheese Ⓥ

I like to think of this recipe as an "adult" mac 'n' cheese--meaning let's add a little extra umph, some veggies, and other goodness. ;) 

I have made this sauce with just pasta for my younger brothers before as well and they loved it--and they are picky boys, so I consider this recipe rather kid friendly as well. 

vegan / gluten free/ refined sugar-free/ healthy

Fancy Mac 'n' Cheese 

Enough Pasta for 4 servings--I like to use a brown rice spiral pasta, but anything works.  

For the Sauce:

1/3 cup Rice Flour (or any other flour)

3 Tbsp Coconut Oil

3-4 cups Water

1 heaped tsp Miso 

1 1/2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tbsp Tamari (or Braggs)

1/2 tsp of Garlic Salt

1 tsp Salt

1/3 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp ground Mustard 

dash of Black Pepper

1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast

1/2 cup Daiya shreds

1/3 cup Sunflower Seeds, soaked in water so that they are just covered

1 head of Broccoli, chopped 

Tofu Mix:*

1/2 block firm Tofu, crumbled

2 Tbsp Tamari

1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast

dash Chili Pepper, Cumin, Black Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook the pasta according to instructions on package. (depending how long your pasta takes to cook, start cooking accordingly ;)) 

For the Sauce:

While you soak the sunflowers, make the sauce.

Combine the flour, oil, miso, tamari, and vinegar together in a medium sauce pot and simmer on medium heat, stirring fairly often--until it starts to brown. Once the mixture has browned, slowly start to add water and stir consistently. Add the spices and continue to stir until your sauce is nice consistency. Add the daiya at the end. Let cool. 

In a high-speed blender (I use my blendtec, because they are amazing and use my blendtec for everything), add the sunflower seeds and sauce and blend until perfectly creamy. Add more water if necessary to get your desired consistency. 

Add back into the pot and leave to simmer on low heat. 

While cooking the sauce, if you can manage multi-tasking then make the tofu and broccoli. 

Simply sauté the tofu in tamari and spices, stirring so that it doesn't stick but allow it to brown and really soak up the flavour. 

*You could also just add in veggies dogs or faux meats of some sort, but I love the ease of cooking tofu and the better health factors. 

*I also love making tofu balls instead if you have the time. 

Add the broccoli to the tofu towards the end so it gets nice and tender but not overcooked. 

Add everything together in one large pot--you can probably use the pasta pot if you used a big one. 

Serve! Enjoy! 

Makes 4-5 servings. 

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Ⓥ Vegan Kitchen: (Raw) Zucchini Cashew Alfredo Pasta Ⓥ

As I mentioned last week: sooooo many zucchinis (from our garden)!!! One of my favourite things to do with fresh zucchini is to keep it raw and make pasta! Super delicious and because you keep the zucchini raw you're also keeping all of it's amazing nutrients--plus nothing tastes better than zucchinis right from your own garden (or if you don't have a garden, shoot for local as it will too be amazing ;)).

Okay, so here is a super simple, easy, and divine raw dish to keep your summer sizzling and your tummy happy! 

(Raw) Zucchini Cashew Alfredo Pasta

Pasta:

1 large, or a few small Zucchinis, spiralled into long thin "pasta" shapes.*

Sauce:

1 cup Cashews (soaked for 10 minutes or longer)

1 cup Water

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 Garlic Clove

1 Heaped Tbsp Nutritional Yeast

1 tsp Salt

dash of Black Pepper

pinch of oregano (optional)

*Zucchini Pasta Preparation: 

Maybe you are fortunate enough to have an awesome spiralizer, but if you don't (and you don't want to fork up $40 or so for one) then there is a small investment alternative: a Julienne peeler! Ours cost us $12 and it works like a charm. It may take a little more time than a speedy machine, but I like the preparation process anyways, and it really doesn't take very long at all to use one of these amazing peelers. Oh, plus you get awesome thin beautiful "pasta" zucchini! ^_^ 

Sauce:

Place ingredients in a blendtex, vitamix, or even a food processor and blend until smooth. Takes approx. 5 minutes in a food processor. If you own a blendtec or vitamix then you can warm it up slightly too (and it only takes about a minute! Did I mention I love my blentec??! ;)) 

Add a little more water if necessary, or to get your desired consistency. Taste test if needed. 

Serve over your zucchini pasta, top with chopped avocado and you have a delicious heavenly meal that's super good for you!  

Makes approx. 2-4 servings.

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Ⓥ Vegan Kitchen: Vegan Cashew Alfredo Sauce! Ⓥ

I am absolutely falling in love with the versatility of cashews! They are truly amazing and you can do so much with them, particularly in vegan recipes calling for a cheesy substitute. They work perfectly, especially if you have the right recipe. You've already seen the "Mac n Shews" recipe, so here is another one! :)

Cashew Alfredo Sauce:

1 cup Cashews (soaked for 10 minutes or longer)

2 cups Vegetable Broth

2 Tbsp Olive Oil (or other oil)

1/2 tsp Salt

dash of Black Pepper

Place ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Takes approx. 5 minutes. 

Heat and Voila!

If you want to thin it out more you can add a little water, add it slowly so you don't add too much. This makes the recipe go a little further as well. 

My favourite recipe to do is to make this with chopped up Broccoli, Kale, and Zucchini. Heat up the veggies in the sauce for about ten minutes until the veggies are lightly cooked. Top over pasta or eat by itself. Amazing! :)

Makes approx. 2-4 servings depending on what you're making it with. 

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