Vegan Macaroni & Cheese (Made with Homemade Cashew Milk!)

oh, it was so good.

I’ve been so curious about making cashew milk. Such an intriguing idea, soaking cashews for a few hours, blending, and voila! Cashew milk! It just seems too easy! How would it taste? Is it good to cook with? Is the texture funky? My first try at using cashew milk worked wonderfully! I used my mom’s recipe for Mac & Cheese that uses a bechamel sauce and breadcrumbs. She even made this for my birthday one year and put candles in it because I LOVE MAC&CHEESE that much. Making this with cashew milk was a breeze and was much richer and creamier than using other alternative milks.

Cashew Milk

• 1 cup RAW cashews
• Pinch of salt
• 3 cups water

Place cashews in a bowl with enough water to cover. Let soak for at least a couple hours (overnight is best!) Place cashews in high-quality blender and slowly add water. For a thicker, creamier substance, add less water. I used about 2 cups water for the sauce, but for regular cashew milk, add 3 or 4 cups. I didn’t add any sweetener, but if using for drinking or sweet dishes, add a couple tablespoons of maple syrup, honey or agave nectar.

Vegan Macaroni and Cheese

White Sauce (Bechamel)

• 2 tbsp vegan butter (Earth Balance!)
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1 cup cashew milk, heated
• Salt/Pepper to taste
• A few dashes of garlic powder 🙂
• 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (used Daiya here)

i'm always looking for a reason to show off my pyrex 🙂

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and add flour.  With a whisk, stir flour until well mixed. Let cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly, but be careful not to let burn. Slowly add the hot cashew milk and continue stirring. Bring to a boil and keep stirring as the sauce thickens. Add spices. Lower the heat and let cook a couple minutes more. Remove from heat and stir in shredded cheese. Set aside.

Macaroni & Cheese

• 9 oz dry whole wheat noodles (sure, you can use macaroni, but other noodles work just as well!)
• 2 cups cheese sauce
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup freshly made breadcrumbs

Boil noodles until al dente per your instructions. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Pour boiled noodles into a 1 1/2 qt casserole dish and pour the cheese sauce over. Gently mix until well incorporated and spread cheddar cheese and breadcrumbs over the top.  Bake uncovered for about 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly! EAT.

Notes:

• Homemade mac and cheese is just so far superior to boxed. Reading through this recipe, you will see how it really isn’t hard at all to make a great homemade version that you can pronounce all the ingredients of! Slightly more time consuming, but completely worth it instead of using powdered cheese crap in a box 🙂
• Need more cheesy-ness? Add a couple of tablespoons of nutritional yeast to the sauce. It will give it a nice yellow color and that “cheesy” nooch flavor!
• In the mood for something spicy? Add a bit of cayenne pepper to the bechamel and throw in some chopped jalapenos.
• Pair with a side of lightly steamed broccoli and some Pinot Grigio!

Cashew milk? I LOVE IT. I have grand plans for this delightful homemade milk! Fettucine Alfredo would be GREAT with this! So many possibilities. I’m inspired!

At the advice of a couple of my co-workers and my piqued interest, I’ve been reading up on CANNING! We are going to have a ton of heirloom tomatoes once they all ripen and I don’t want them to go to waste. We also joined a local Fruit CSA and will have tons of apples and peaches soon! Canning has always made me a bit nervous because it seems like so many things can go wrong! And now, at higher altitude, EVEN MORE CAN GO WRONG. BUT! I will prevail. Working at a library is wonderful because I have so many great resources right in front of me. I literally have about 3/4 of our collection of cookbooks checked out…I’ll return them eventually…If anyone has general advice/words of wisdom on canning, please share! 🙂