A silky smooth, lusciously creamy, Vegan Cheese Sauce that is nut free, gluten free and really low in fat. Whip it up in minutes in your blender!
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Oh my word … This super easy Vegan Cheese Sauce is going to change your life.
Well, maybe that’s a bit extreme, but it’s seriously good and it’s nut free and gluten free and also really low in fat.
There aren’t many nut free vegan cheese sauces around. Cashews tend to be used on repeat for creamy sauces in the vegan world and although they make a really tasty, glossy, yummy sauce that I love, hey, sometimes there are times when you could use a recipe without them.
Maybe you have guests with allergies, maybe you don’t want to spend an arm and a leg on a bag of nuts (cashews aren’t exactly cheap!), or maybe you are trying to be good after eating your way through an entire cookbook for the past 5 or 6 months! 😂
Um … that would be me ….
Whatever the reason you want a nut-free vegan cheese sauce, I’ve got you covered, because this recipe is just perfect for any of the above occasions.
So, what’s the deal exactly?
This recipe came about when I had some leftover silken tofu and many random packets of almost finished spaghetti and linguine that I wanted to use up. That along with a very strong craving for cheesy, spinachy pasta.
So the silken tofu got thrown in a blender along with some other random things and magic happened. I didn’t expect it to be anything special but as soon as I tasted it I knew I had to share it.
It’s a super simple Vegan Cheese Sauce, made in seconds, and it’s luscious, smooth and creamy and can be used in any recipe where you want a thick, creamy, cheesy sauce. And did I mention it’s got no nuts, no gluten and no fat in it? I did but I feel the need to repeat myself.
Because it’s made from silken or soft tofu, it is super, super velvety and smooth. So much more so than a nut-based sauce and it tastes lighter.
It’s a basic, simple sauce that is totally yum, and ready for you to do whatever you like with. Me, I made a really quick and easy creamy mushroomy, spinach spaghetti type recipe which I am for sure going to recreate to share with you too because it was so good.
The possibilities are endless though. I’m thinking:
- cauliflower cheese
- mac and cheese
- lasagna
- dips
- pasta bakes
- cheesy soups
- loaded nachos
- drizzled on all the things
You get the idea.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CHEESE SAUCE
SEE MY VIDEO FOR A VISUAL GUIDE. FOR INGREDIENTS & FULL INSTRUCTIONS PLEASE SEE THE RECIPE CARD AT THE END OF THIS POST
This simple, Vegan Cheese Sauce couldn’t be easier to make.
Here’s what you need:
And here’s how it’s done:
STEP 1
Put all of the ingredient in a blender or a food processor and blend. (That is incidentally actually another good thing about this recipe. Because everything in it is super soft, you don’t need a fancy pants high powered blender to make it super smooth. Any blender or food processor should be able to take care of it).
STEP 2
Warm it gently through in a pan on the stove top or use in any recipe calling for cheese sauce.
That’s it. It’s the easiest sauce ever!
This Vegan Cheese Sauce is:
- Super quick and easy to make
- High in protein
- Really low in fat
- High in protein
- Nut free
- Gluten free
- Really tasty
- And ready and waiting for all of your many cheese sauce needs!
A NOTE ON NUTRITIONAL YEAST
Please be sure to use a good tasting nutritional yeast for this recipe. All nutritional yeasts are not created equally. Some brands taste a lot better than others.
I personally do not like Bob’s Red Mill nutritional yeast, even though I love all of their other products. I do not recommend you use it in this recipe as you won’t get the intended cheesy flavour. It’s ok used in small amounts but in a recipe where you use a lot like this it will make a big difference to the overall result.
My personal favourite is Hoosier Farms and an added bonus is it’s super cheap too. It comes in a massive tub that lasts ages. I get mine from Amazon. It looks like this (tap the pic to go right there):
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Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce (no nuts!)
Ingredients
- 10.5 oz / 300 g silken or soft tofu
- ½ cup / 35 g nutritional yeast , make sure it's a good tasting one
- 1½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika , or chipotle powder
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsweetened milk of choice , soy milk gives the best result tastewise
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until completely smooth.
- Warm the sauce through gently in a pan on the stove top before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Bonnie says
I can’t wait to try this! I made vegan ricotta for the first time and it was delicious. I miss my broccoli mac and cheese!
A Virtual Vegan says
Hope you enjoy it. I highly recommend you try this mac and cheese recipe too if you like broccoli in yours. https://avirtualvegan.com/dairy-free-mac-and-cheese-black-pepper/
Clare says
Can you freeze the leftover cheese sauce ?
A Virtual Vegan says
I haven’t tried freezing it, but I think the texture would probably change a bit because of the tofu. It might go a bit grainy. It will keep in the fridge for 4 -5 days though.
Carol says
Dear Mel, hi..
This looks super yummy… and a wonderful change from all the cashews! Mel, you mention the Hoosier Hill brand of nutritional yeast that you enjoy using… wanted to ask you your thoughts on using Bragg’s nutritional yeast. I’ve also tried the NOW brand, which I love all of their nuts, but found their nutritional yeast to be not as ‘cheezy’ tasting as Braggs. Do you recommend Hoosier over Braggs?
Thank you for your good help… i’m looking forward to making your great recipe soon!
Thanks too Mel for all the delicious cruelty-free recipes you share with us… very grateful.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Carol and you’re welcome! I personally am not a fan of Bragg’s NY either, although it is better than Bob’s Red Mill. The Bragg’s one comes in a tiny pot too and works out really expensive if you use a lot like me. The Hoosier Farms one is great in taste and is super cheap compared to any others too.It comes in an absolutely massive container. I haven’t actually tried the Now Foods one though so can’t compare it to that one.