Smoky Vegan Macaroni and Cheese
This recipe is based on a recipe created by vegan chef Jerri Hastey (Jessica Chastain's mom). I saw it in a magazine (can't remember which one), made a couple of tweaks to suit my tastes, and BAM. This is good. Careful - it's addictive!
Ingredients:
- 1 sweet potato
- 1 medium white or yellow onion, diced
- 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 box of quinoa rotini pasta (8 oz.)
- 1/4 cup vegan buttery spread
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh nutmeg, grated
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 2 tablespoons sriracha chili sauce
- 8 oz. Daiya cheddar shreds
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
- pepper to taste
- nutritional yeast to garnish
Preparation:
- Heat oven to 400 degrees. Pierce the potato several times with a fork, place it on a baking sheet lined with foil, and bake it until tender - about 45 minutes. Peel the potato and set it aside.
- In a mixing bowl, toss together the mushrooms, onions, olive oil, liquid smoke, and about 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Place on a baking sheet and cook for 10 minutes, stirring once. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- While mushrooms are cooking, boil pasta per package directions until it is al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.
- Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mash the sweet potato until it is smooth. Add pasta water, 1 teaspoon salt, vegan buttery spread, nutmeg, onion powder, lemon juice, non-dairy milk, sriracha, and Daiya cheddar shreds, and stir until smooth.
- Fold in pasta, onions, and mushrooms.
- Bake, covered, in a lightly greased baking dish for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Sprinkle with nutritional yeast and serve!