We make this baked mac n cheese for any family gathering we have – it’s a huge crowd pleaser and always impresses non-vegans. The cheesy sauce is creamy and delicious, which pairs perfectly with the crispy topping.
For the mac n cheese, you’ll need:
Cellentani noodles
Vegan butter (we always have this brand in our house)
All purpose flour
Rice milk (this is our go-to)
Vegan cheese shreds
Nutritional yeast (we use this brand)
And spices
Top the creamy mac with a mixture of French fried onions, breadcrumbs, and spices and you’ll see why we’re so obsessed.
If you love mac as much as we do, check out some of our other mac n cheese recipes!
Vegan Baked Mac n Cheese
A vegan take on the classic baked mac n cheese. Perfect to bring to the next family party!
Ingredients
For the noodles:
- 1 16 oz box uncooked cellentani pasta*
For the cheese sauce:
- 1/4 cup vegan butter
- 1/4 cup white flour
- 3 cups plain, unsweetened rice milk**
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 1/4 tsp salt add more or less to taste
- 2 cups vegan shredded cheddar cheese or use a combo of your favorites
- ~1 cup cashew cream see notes***
For the topping:
- 1 cup french fried onions
- 1/2 cup vegan Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 1 tsp parsley
Instructions
Prepare oven and cook the noodles:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions for al dente noodles. Strain and set aside (you may want to toss them in a bit of oil to keep from sticking together).
Make the cheese sauce:
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low-medium heat. Whisk in the flour to make a roux.
- Slowly add in the rice milk while continuously whisking. Turn the heat up to medium-high and simmer until thick and bubbly, continuously whisking to ensure there are no remaining lumps.
- Whisk in the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and salt until combined.
- Stir in the cheese and cashew cream*** and cook until the cheese has melted and the sauce is creamy.
Make the topping:
- Blend the french fried onions, breadcrumbs, garlic salt, and parsley in a food processor or blender.
Assemble and bake:
- Pour the cheese sauce into the noodles and mix until combined. Pour into an 9"×13" glass pan.
- Sprinkle the topping evenly over the top. Cover the pan tightly with foil.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes and then take the foil off. Bake for another 5 minutes uncovered, until the topping is golden-brown.
Notes
*If you use another type of noodles in this recipe, you may end up with extra cheese sauce which you can save for later.
**We do not recommend subbing this for another nondairy milk.
***Follow this recipe for cashew cream and use the entire amount that yields from the recipe. You can also substitute this with 1/2 cup vegan cream cheese, if preferred (vegan cream cheese is heavier, so we don’t recommend using a 1:1 substitution).
Yum
Cant wait to make this!
This looks so good! I can’t wait to make it!
Loved making this recipe! Since going dairy free, this is probably the dish I’ve missed the most. The french fried onions are such a good touch. Delish! Have made it several times.
This is seriously the best Mac and cheese recipe out there!! Amazing ?
Amazinggg ?
Definitely a go to comfort favorite since I went vegan a year ago! Easy to make and very delicious!
sounds so so yummy i’ve been looking for a good mac & cheese recipe that doesn’t use cashews!! deff adding this to my list
This was amazing!
YUM!
Amazing!!!
Just made this!!! Awesome
Can’t wait to make this!
Must make!!
My fav baked Mac recipe! The topping is my fav ? My whole family (not vegan) loved it 🙂
Can’t wait to make this! Looks delicious ?
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This was delicious and very easy. Thanks for the recipe.
🥰
Can you substitute any non-diary milk for rice milk?
We prefer rice milk in most of our savory dishes because of its neutral flavor, so we highly recommend sticking to it if possible. If you do need to use an alternate milk for any reason, we would recommend using an unsweetened, unflavored nondairy milk.
What brand of rice milk do you use? This recipe looks yummy!
This is SO yummy! Because I’m allergic to tree nuts, I subbed vegan cream cheese for cashew cream as suggested in the recipe notes. I think the substitution worked well and very much enjoyed this recipe. The addition of french fried onions was a refreshing addition to classic mac and cheese. This baked mac and cheese is a whole new game compared to boiled pasta with a packet of dried cheese powder. Super easy to make and leftovers for days!