If you like to prep your meals on Sunday prior to the week beginning, this is a great meal to add to the rotation list. The dairy free cheese sauce (I know, oxymoron right?) is perfect for making ahead and freezing. This way, when you decide to make this dairy free Mac N’ Cheese for dinner one night, all you have to do is cook the pasta and reheat the sauce. At that point, dinner is literally ready in 15 minutes. And when you are cooking pasta, you of course will be using Ancient Harvest’s Supergrain Elbows, right?
Well that is a no-brainer, of course you are! Ancient Harvest has the best texture out there on the market so when you have it for leftovers, it’s still just as good.
You really cannot beat that. And after a long day of chasing the kiddos or at the office, who wants to think about what’s for dinner, let alone actually make it? Since it’s freezable, you are taking steps to healthier eating at night instead of grabbing for the phone and ordering take out.
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Switch up the types of veggies you add to this Dairy Free Mac N Cheese recipe to introduce your little ones to new greens. Try peas, kale, or even spinach in place of broccoli for a nutrient-dense dinner option.
Ingredients
- 1 box gluten free elbows pasta
- 1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
- 1/2 c. cauliflower florets (or use peeled potato)
- 1/2 c. butternut squash, cubed
- 1/4 c. carrots, cubed
- 1/2 c. nondairy milk, unsweetened
- 1/2 c. vegetable broth (I use Better than Bouillon)
- 2 Tbsp. gluten free flour
- 3 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp. mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp. worcestershire sauce (omit for soy free option)
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
Instructions
- In a pot with 2 cups of boiling water, cook the cauliflower (or potato), butternut squash, and carrots until tender (approx. 15 minutes). Drain.
- Cook the pasta as directed on the box. One minute before the cooking time is over, add the broccoli florets to lightly cook with the pasta. Drain.
- In the same pot cooking the veggies, throw in the nondairy milk, veggie broth, and gluten free flour and cook on medium-high heat. Whisk until the flour blends into the milk and becomes thick and bubbly.
- Whisk in the spices, nutritional yeast, and worcestershire sauce.. Cook for another couple of minutes.
- Add the softened veggies and sauce mix into a high speed blender to smooth out OR place the veggies into the pot with the sauce mix and use a hand blender. If you use a blender you will get a smoother sauce.
- Transfer back into the pot and add the pasta and broccoli. Season as desired.
Notes
This sauces freezes so well that you can double the recipe for the dairy free cheese sauce and place half of it into an ice cube tray or a freezer-safe container. Allow to defrost for a quick removal from the container and warm up in a saucepan over medium low heat until heated thoroughly.
This also makes GREAT leftovers. The other day I threw in a small amount of the homemade vegan butter substitute into my leftover dairy free Mac N’ Cheese after I reheated it and it tasted so creamy, buttery, and so dang perfect, I wanted to shout from the rooftops. A recipe’s true test of approval is based off of how well it freezes and tastes as leftovers.
This dairy free Mac N’ Cheese passes the test! Now go stock up on Ancient Harvest pasta and get cooking.
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KENDRA M.
March 13, 2017 at 4:23 pmJust to make sure that everyone is aware, Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies. If you are vegan, try liquid aminos. Its a unprocessed soy sauce made by Braggs. Happy eating!
★★★★
Emma Brown
September 28, 2016 at 2:49 pmMy daughter is lactose intolerant but is a major mac and cheese fan and is always so sad when I don’t get it for her lol. This looks like a great alternative! She’s going to be soooo surprised. Going shipping for ingredients now!
Cara
September 29, 2016 at 2:45 pmYay, I hope she loves it Emma <3
Emma Brown
September 30, 2016 at 6:49 pm?she wouldn’t eat it. It was bland and not normal cheesy lol but my 5yr old ate 2 bowls lol. I added garlic salt and pepper to add more flavor
★★
Victoria Taylor
February 17, 2017 at 4:30 amWhat a great idea with the garlic salt. The recipe is delicious but the garlic salt really adds a little extra flavor.
Karen
November 23, 2015 at 9:48 pmCan I omit Mustard, I can’t have it?
Cara
November 24, 2015 at 6:14 amYes you can 🙂
Kathryn Grace
September 1, 2015 at 4:12 pmWe’re not gluten-free at our house, so I’ll keep my organic whole wheat pasta, but I am going to give the rest of this recipe a try, because I am now cooking for a vegan, or nearly vegan, anyway. Your photo looks so good! I’m hoping I’ll like it too, as I’m trying to cut back on my dairy as well.
Thank you for the recipe.
★★★★★
sh
August 28, 2015 at 10:17 amIs there a substitute I can use for the yeast? Or omit? And if so, do I need to adjust other ingrediants? Thanks!
Bree
October 18, 2015 at 7:39 amNutritional yeast, if you haven’t used it before, is actually not like a bread/brewer’s yeast, it’s a flaky, yellowy substance (similar texture to fish food, if that doesn’t freak you out!) that gives things a nutty/cheesy flavour. Can be found at pretty much any health food or bulk store (Bob’s Red Mill makes some) and is quite inexpensive.
I’d imagine in a recipe like this if you omitted the cheese, worst case scenario you end up without the “cheesy” taste and I’m not sure how else you could easily do that. For colour on cheesy stuff you could easily add some turmeric, but I’m unsure of how else you could get that nice, cheesy taste.
MEredith
August 21, 2015 at 3:31 pmI’m making this and adding some avocado to make it even creamier!!
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:13 amOoooohhh, I like the way you think 🙂
Gene2u
August 19, 2015 at 2:14 pmI forgot to rate.?
★★★★★
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:13 amThank you so much, I really appreciate it!
Gene2u
August 19, 2015 at 2:11 pmIt’s So awesome the awesomeness blew me away! I’m making it right now, the pasta we’re going to do later, so I’m writing this now! It’s so darn good it blew my mind!???
Cara
August 19, 2015 at 5:05 pmWell, THAT just made my day. So happy you enjoyed it! xo
Sandy
August 12, 2015 at 12:05 amI just LOVE how you’ve squeezed so many extra veggies into this dish. So many dairy free mac and cheese options are just pasta with sauce. Going to try this soon for sure 🙂
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:12 amLet me know what you think, Sandy!
Julie
August 11, 2015 at 7:53 pmOh my goodness, this is so yum. Thank you Cara for sharing your recipe. I love the fact it can be frozen too.
★★★★★
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:11 amAnd it still tastes great when you defrost it, score!
Poppy
August 11, 2015 at 3:43 pmThis. Looks. AMAZING! I’m really looking forward to giving this recipe a whirl 🙂
Poppy | http://poppyallanorma.com
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:11 amThank you Poppy! Hope you like it when you try it 😉
Bianca
August 11, 2015 at 10:48 amLove some b-nut squash “cheeze”! I bet it’s even better with that cauliflower in it. I’ll have to make this soon!
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:10 amThe more the merrier! xo
Caitlin
August 11, 2015 at 7:42 ami LOVE all the veggies in here. this is definitely my kind of mac and cheese. i cannot wait to make it.
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:09 amThe best kind of comfort food 🙂
June
August 11, 2015 at 7:21 amThis looks great and not too complicated for a busy night. Just made your pumpkin pie the other night and it was amazing. Also love the photos. Makes you want to make everything you send, which I do!
Cara
August 28, 2015 at 7:09 amJune! This is such a wonderful comment–thank you so much, xo