Healthy Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with a twist! The veggie filled 'cheese' sauce is silky & glossy with a lovely hit of black pepper. Stirred through tender macaroni & chopped broccoli it makes the perfect family meal & can be on the table in a little over 30 minutes!
This Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with Black Pepper & Broccoli is from the book Vegan Richa's Everyday Kitchen: Epic Anytime Recipes with a World of Flavor by Richa Hingle, creator of the blog Vegan Richa.
Richa's blog and books are personal favourites of mine. I don't follow many blogs because I don't have much free time for cooking other people's recipes, but on the odd occasion that I do, I find myself turning to her recipes. I like my food full of flavour and they never disappoint.
Vegan Richa's Every Day Kitchen is her second book and the recipes in it are mouthwatering. She really does know how to pack a flavour punch. I am excited by every single one of them and had the hardest time deciding what recipe to share with you today.
This Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with Black Pepper & Broccoli decision came about at the last minute. I had been leaning towards tacos, but you know when those mac and cheese cravings hit and you just can't let it go?
Well I couldn't let it go. I am ruled by my stomach after-all ????
So here we are.
Richa calls this recipe Black Pepper Cheesy Mac and Broccoli in her book. I changed the name slightly here for SEO (or pleasing Google) purposes. It is such a tasty recipe. I want it to be seen by as many eyes as possible...I mean just gaze upon this cheesy deliciousness...
I already have my own Baked Vegan Mac and Cheese recipe, so I did hesitate, but they are really different. Plus you can never have too much Vegan Mac and Cheese, right?!
This Dairy Free Mac and Cheese is full of flavour (and hidden veggies) and the added broccoli and generous twist of black pepper really take it to the next level.
How do you make Dairy Free Mac and Cheese?
INGREDIENTS & FULL INSTRUCTIONS PLEASE SEE THE RECIPE CARD AT THE END OF THIS POST
STEP 1
The sauce is made by simply simmering the ingredients in a pan until the veggies are tender.
STEP 2
Blend it all up.
I wouldn't be without my Blendtec blender (<<<affiliate link).
It makes the smoothest sauces, but if you don't have a high powered blender, because everything is cooked down with water in a pan first and pretty soft you should still get great results.
STEP 3
Cook the blended sauce over a medium heat for a few minutes, then stir it through the cooked elbow pasta and broccoli.
Done.
Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with Black Pepper & Broccoli is served!
What can you expect to find in Vegan Richa's Everyday Kitchen?
This Dairy Free Mac and Cheese with Black Pepper & Broccoli is just one of the many gorgeous recipes in Vegan Richa's Everyday Kitchen
Here are the chapters with details of what you can expect to find in each:
- PEANUT BUTTER & COCONUT- um a whole chapter of peanut butter and coconut filled recipes???? ???? I must admit that my head was buried here the longest... There are all kinds of delicious sauces, curries, soups, noodle and fried rice dishes.
- SWEET & SOUR - All kind of sauces including Sweet and Sour, Teriyaki, Kung Pau, Hoisin and recipes to use them all in.
- MASALA & SAAG - Perfectly spiced pastes, sauces and recipes to use them in like Lentil Balls in Masala Sauce and Berbere Tofu Bowl with Couscous.
- BUFFALO & FIRECRACKER - This is where things get hot. There's everything from Firecracker Cauliflower Bites to Buffalo Chickpea Pizza with White Garlic Sauce.
- BURGERS & MORE - Everything from a simple Black Bean Burger to Baharat Chickpea Burgers and Lentil-Quinoa Loaf with Spicy Glaze.
- BOWLS & HANDS - Bowls like Turmeric Lentil Fritters Bowl, sauces, wraps, soups....
- DEEP-DISHING - The most amazing sounding pizzas, sauces, lasagna, bakes and macs.
- BREAKFAST FOR LUNCH - Chilaquiles, frittatas, flatbreads, fritters and Samosa Stuffed French Toast.....????
- ON A SWEET NOTE - oh my goodness. So many lovely sounding desserts. 21 in total. No skimping on the sweet stuff here. You'll find everything from cake to pudding to cookies.
- EVERYDAY BASICS - Pizza dough, parmesan, bread, chutney, tofu, flatbreads...
- MY EVERYDAY KITCHEN - A look inside Richa's pantry and lots of useful info about the ingredients used throughout the book.
If you would like to buy your own copy of this wonderful book it is available in book stores or from Amazon here.
Recipe
Dairy-Free Mac and Cheese with Black Pepper & Broccoli
Author:Ingredients
- 600 mls / 2 ½ cups water
- 1 medium potato , peeled and cubed
- 50g / ⅓ cup carrots , chopped
- 4 cloves garlic , chopped, or use 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 3 tablespoons onion , chopped, or use ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ small green chile (optional)
- 1 small tomato , chopped
- 30g / ¼ cup raw cashews , or macadamias (or 1/4 cup pepitas to make nut-free)
- 225g / 2 ½ cups broccoli , chopped
- ¾ teaspoon prepared mustard
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce , or tamari (or coconut aminos to make soy-free)
- 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , omit to make oil-free
- ¾ teaspoon salt , or more to taste
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon sriracha sauce (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper , or to taste, divided
- 10 - 12 ounces cooked elbow pasta , gluten-free if necessary
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, combine the water, potato, carrots, garlic, onion, chile (if using), tomato, and cashews. Cover the skillet and cook 18 to 20 minutes, or until the potato is very tender. Let the mixture cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the broccoli and cook for 2 minutes. Drain the broccoli and set aside. Then cook the macaroni as per the instructions on the packaging. Usually it's for around 8 - 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can add the broccoli to the cooking pasta pot in the last two minutes.
- Combine the potato mixture (along with its liquid), mustard, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, oil, paprika, and sriracha (if using) in a blender. Blend for 1 minute, let the mixture rest for 1 minute, and blend again until smooth.
- Transfer the mixture to the saucepan over medium heat. Add the salt, white pepper, and ½ teaspoon of the black pepper, stirring to combine. Add some additional water to adjust the consistency if the sauce is too thick.
- Bring the sauce almost to a boil. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Add the elbow pasta and broccoli. Stir to combine, cover the saucepan, and cook for 3 minutes. Let the mixture sit for 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon black pepper. Sprinkle some more pepper on each serving, if desired.
Maria says
Literally hadn’t planned to make this recipe tonight but under pressure to produce a dinner in a short space of time I plucked this one out. I have to say it’s one of the nicest mac and cheese recipes I’ve made. A lot of other ones have either been too claggy or too sweet but this one was really lovely. I didn’t have broccoli so just added some frozen peas and sweet corn at the end and I added fake bacon sprinkled on the top. It was a real hit with everyone so I will definitely make this again
Angela says
Just wondering if I could make this a day ahead. Thank you
A Virtual Vegan says
You could for sure. It reheats quite well. You would likely need to add a little milk or water to it when reheating to loosen it up again though as sauces like this tend to thicken up once they've cooled. If it were me, I would make sure the macaroni was very slightly undercooked. The same with the broccoli. Then when you reheat it, they won't get soggy. Hope that helps!
Kerstin Decker says
this is by far the absolute best Mac and Cheese. Made it yesterday for the evening meal . My hubby loved it. He had some for lunch today and said it was even better today. So today I am trying this out for some cheesy potatoes. Mel, Thank you!!!!!!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm glad you both enjoyed it. I bet it will be great with potatoes!
Rita says
This was a winner for both my 2-year old and friend who is an omnivore.
I didn't have a tomato so I subbed about a tablespoon of tomato paste, which worked well- and used black pepper since I didn't have white. Thanks for a great recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm really pleased you all enjoyed it Rita!
Celery says
Wow. I love this recipe. A great help as a I started with my vegan journey.
Chitra sundaram says
Going to try this. Can I omit cashews and use almonds.
A Virtual Vegan says
Almonds aren't as creamy when blended up. If you do use them, I suggest soaking them in water for a while first to soften them up. Hope it works out!
Christine says
I have been trying to ease myself into a vegan lifestyle and have been searching for recipes that I actually enjoy. I have to say, this is delicious. Even my husband liked it, and he is quite picky. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
You're welcome. I'm so glad you both enjoyed it Christine!
Paula says
This was really good. The sauce would be excellent on tacos, potatoes, in enchiladas and over rice.
Martine says
Hi,
There is only mention of cooking the macaroni (elbow pasta) for 3 minutes at the end. Does it need to be cooked before adding it to the sauce?
Thank you
Martine
A Virtual Vegan says
I am really sorry about that. I just checked and that step is missing from my copy of the book and the PDF they gave me to use here. How strange. I was obviously on auto-pilot when I made it and didn't even notice! Basically you just need to boil the macaroni as per the packet instructions in the water you cook the broccoli in. I have just added that step in the recipe so it should be clear now.
Kathy Maultsby says
I didn't add the last 1 tsp. of pepper and it was still too peppery. Maybe that was the white pepper? Anyway, otherwise it was very good. If I make this again, I think I will use a little less water when cooking the potato, etc. Also It might be good baked with a crunchy topping - maybe bread crumbs or some flax seed meal. Also, I may add more veggies with the broccoli. Sorry to sound so negative. My husband like thing spicier than I do and he really liked. And I'm always looking for different "cheese" sauces. So this is a keeper.
richa says
Thank you for the wonderful review Mel! thats one good thing about books, dont have tot think about seo :)
The mac looks fabulous!!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thanks Richa, and yes, SEO is the bane of my life! It's a great recipe. I've made it twice since! Best of luck with your book. I'm sure it's going to do very well!
Laura Morris says
Thank you very much!
A Virtual Vegan says
You're welcome. Enjoy!