Serves 8
Time: 1 hour || Active time: 30 minutes
I don’t think vegans ever get sick of Mac & Cheese, or, “Cheeze” or whatever. One of the first recipes I ever tried was from one of my all time favorites, the New Farm Cookbook. It was great for me back then because I always had a ton of people over, and you could make it for a crowd at the drop of a hat. So if you were all sitting around watching Evil Dead 2 on repeat, it was only a matter of time before a magical pot of Mac & Cheese would appear and swallow your soul.
That recipe is still the prototype for many a vegan Mac & Cheese recipe: lots of nooch, garlic, onions and, wait, what’s that? Half a cup of margarine?! This was the 80s and so it wasn’t even non-hydrogenated margarine. It was the real deal – a bright yellow log of pure processed fat. Today we have less ungodly ingredients to work with, but still, I can’t shake the feeling that when I eat those types of Mac & Cheese, I’m eating melted margarine.
So I’ve been toying with different ingredients for the past few years and I’ll probably continue to mess around with it. It’s all about developing flavor and creaminess with ingredients that are still really accessible and really delicious, but also way less processed, and, well really real.
To keep things from being one note, I wanted to build flavor with a few simple methods and ingredients. Like all great Mac & Cheese recipes, this one begins with a roux. Flour is cooked in olive oil, lending a toasty flavor and giving the finished sauce extra body and creaminess. If you’ve never made a roux before then this will be a great skill to add to your repertoire! And speaking of creaminess, cashews are given their standard vegan treatment: a long soak in water and then a horrifying (for them) trip in the food processor, to be pureed until they’re silky smooth.
So I’ve been playing with various ratios and ingredients, and it always comes out good and creamy, but I wanted something different, tangier, more interesting. Cheese is aged, giving it flavor and nuance. There’s always mustard (an ingredient even in the New Farm recipe), miso, lemon…but I hit upon an ingredient that really gave me the depth I was looking for…sauerkraut! Since the average home cook (myself included) isn’t really set up for aging stuff, I wanted something that’s already fermented, and sauerkraut really works.
This mac is my favorite yet! (But that still doesn’t stop me from adding some Frank’s Red Hot.) And of course I don’t totally break with tradition, I used a little turmeric and a touch of nutritional yeast for that telltale yellow that tells you you’re eating “cheeze” not “cheese.”
Recipe notes:
~You really need to blend the beejeezus out of the cashews and sauerkraut. Although it won’t be completely creamy until after it’s cooked, it should still be relatively smooth, with absolutely no chunks, when it comes out of the food processor. I think a Vitamix type thing would work here, too, but I don’t have one myself.
~Make sure that the roux is cooked and toasty before streaming in the veggie broth. It really makes a difference in the final flavor, so get your roux a really beautiful gravy color.
~You can use any smallish pasta. I love to use chiocciole because it can hold plenty of sauce, and I just find the shape pleasing. Small shells or traditional macaroni are both great choices, too.
~To soak cashews, just place them in a bowl and submerge with water. Soak for at least an hour, preferably two, or up to overnight.
~And lastly, the type of veggie broth you use makes a huge difference. If I use my own homemade broth, I make sure it’s super assertive. If you use the type of broth that comes from a powder or concentrate, that is totally cool, just make it a bit stronger than you usually do.
1 lb small pasta like shells, macaroni or chiocciole
1 1/2 cups cashews, soaked (see recipe note)
4 cups broth, divided
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
2 cups sauerkraut
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
Several dashes fresh black pepper
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
First boil salted water for the pasta. Cook pasta and drain. In the meantime, prepare the rest of the recipe.
Place the soaked cashews and 2 cups of the vegetable broth in a food processor and blend until smooth, scraping the sides of the food processor with a spatula occasionally to make sure you get everything. This could take 5 minutes.
In the meantime, preheat a large pan (preferably cast iron) over medium heat. Saute the onions and garlic and a pinch of salt in a tablespoon of the oil, until onions are softened.
Drain the sauerkraut in a sieve, pushing it into the sieve to remove as much moisture as possible. Add to the pan just to heat through, a minute or two.
Transfer sauerkraut mixture to the food processor with the cashew mixture. Once again, puree until relatively smooth. There will be some texture, just make sure it’s not chunky.
Wipe out the pan that you sauteed the onions in and preheat it over medium heat once again. Add 3 tablespoons of oil, along with the flour. It should become a gooey clump. You’re now making a roux! Add a little bit more olive oil if necessary. Toast the roux for about 15 minutes, until it smells toasty and turns a medium brown. Stir practically the whole time so that it cooks evenly.
Now stream in remaining 2 cups of broth, whisking constantly so that it doesn’t clump. Whisk until thick and smooth, about 2 minutes.
Stream in the cashew sauerkraut mixture, and whisk until well incorporated. Add the tumeric, black pepper, nutritional yeast if using, salt and fresh lemon juice. Heat through and stir occasionally, allowing the mixture to thicken.
Preheat oven to 350 F and lightly grease an 11 x 13 casserole with olive oil.
Add the cooked pasta back to the pasta pot and pour in the sauce. Taste for salt and pepper. Mix to coat, then transfer to the casserole dish. Cover casserole with tin foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove tin foil and bake an additional 5 minutes. Serve hot!
That was sooooo good! My hubby hates sauerkraut but loved this! And so does my two-year-old. Now she won’t be nagging me for grandmothers mac&(real)cheese anymore! though next time I’m thinking of addingsome vegetables. I’m thinking steamed broccoli would go nice with it… can’t wait till next saturday.. maybe i’ll make that mac and shews night!
Thanks again.
Yes, steamed broccoli is an awesome addition. I like to steam really lightly and it the broc in a layer inside the casserole. So add half the pasta, then the broc then the rest of the pasta on top and bake as usual.
I’m excited to try this – cashew cream has long been one of my favorite bases. It’s amazing in lasagna too! my favorite is kale lasagna with a cashew/artichoke cream.
This is really interesting. I’ll admit, I was really disappointed when I tasted the sauce before baking; I’d put so much faith in the crazy sauerkraut idea. But now that I have it in front of me, with every bite I’m more and more excited. It’s not perfect, I don’t think (though I didn’t toast the roux very long and forgot to soak the cashews), but I’m having a flashback to a hazy memory at an Italian restaurant. This is good. I’ll be trying it again. Maybe with more nooch? Some roasted garlic?
Oh, I think I figured it out. There’s a distinctly ricotta vibe goin’ on here. This could be interesting…
Unfortunately during preparation, my 25 y/o Regal La Machine (which is not made any more – and I know why) had a tantrum and lost a fair amount of the creme through various crevices. No matter, threw it into my $40 crappy HB blender, added some macadamia nuts I had leftover to fill in and it was all good. (Vitamix & Cuisinart FP on wish list for b’day).
I *love* that this has no Earth Balance in it. What’s the function of the sauerkraut? I didn’t taste it in there, but was thrilled with how it came out. Husband liked it better than my normal go to mac & cheese. Thanks again for another kick-ass recipe.
Laura,
I live in Taos too and love this recipe.
Barley
I used sauerkraut in a mac and cheese for an old Food Network Friday, but not for the same reasons as you, we were veganizing this http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/reuben-mac-n-cheese-recipe2/index.html Matthew thought the stringy bits of kraut were melty stringy cheese! I can’t wait to see how it works blended in.
Tried it last night and loved, loved it! So creamy and yummy. The addition of saurkraut was truly inspired as it gives it the tangy, cheezy taste and added fiber and antioxidants. I think if I didn’t know I would not think that there was kraut in the casserole. Thanks Isa!!
SO GOOD!! Thank you Isa, this is a fabulous recipe!
Okay, so I made this last night. Isa, you rule. I mean, damn. Holy hell this was so good my boyfriend and I each had thirds. Yowza. We had steamed broccoli and hot sauce with ours, too. Yummy. I think the sauerkraut is the ingredient vegan mac and cheese has been missing all its life.
Isa, this stuff is fucking awesome. Valentine’s Day mac and shews with maple pecan pie is the best idea I’ve ever stolen from you.
I made it, everyone said it was good (I did take it to the potluck, the omni potluck!). But… It just wasn’t right. Then I added some Bragg’s Liquid Aminos. I really think that completes it, at least for me. Next time you make it set aside a bite or two and try it with a little liquid aminos. Other than that little tweak (well and some curry powder, but that’s just how I make everything) it was really great!
OMG this was the shit!
My husband and I LOVED it, devoured it, and all but made love to it…
This is the most incredible mac and cheese I have ever eaten in my life, vegan or pre-vegan. My sauerkraut-phobic hubby ate like three quarters of a casserole dish of this stuff of his day off while I was at work. Hat’s off, Isa! You’ve done it again! 🙂
aw, snap! The rumors are true: this is amazing. I don’t think sauerkraut haters will detect the kraut-ness (in response to some of the above comments.) I too was a Farm Cookbook loyalist and was making their full-fat recipe for many years before discovering some lower fat versions.
We’re holding the inaugural Baltimore Vegan Supper Club at mi casa in March. It’s going to be soul food themed, and this is definitely going to be on the menu.
This sounds amazing, I can’t wait to try it! I’m a sauerkraut lover, so this sounds right up my alley. Your comment about the broth was interesting, as I’ve been making some of my own lately, but find it hard to gauge how flavorful or assertive it is. Any tips on that or would you care to share your broth recipe?
I made this and it was so incredibly good. Can’t believe it is missing all that fat. Cheers.
It still has a lot of fat, just not the gross kind!
I was a little scared of this, not being a sauerkraut fan, but holy crap it’s amazing! Tastes like a vintage cheddar. I’m throwing out my other mac ‘n cheese recipes.
Decided to try the vegan challenge for one week. This recipe was my first try at vegan cooking and WOW! I would devour this even if I wasn’t trying to go vegan. I didn’t use all the sauce, it was a little much. I also topped with vegan bread crumbs which gave it a nice little crunch. I will definitely be making this one again. Mmmmm
Recipe looks interesting, I will try it one of these days. One question — use raw cashews?
Don’t use roasted, but they don’t have to explicitly say “raw” on them. Whatever is at the bulk bins should be fine.
Hi!!
This was a badass recipe…SO GOOD. I just made it today; added a little Smoked Hungarian Paprika (actually like 1 TBSP) and a couple drops of liquid smoke and it was killer. Very similar to mac ‘n cheese made with gouda…nice and smoky.
PS I love Veganomicon!!! I use it all the time.
I was so excited to make this… and then disasters struck. Yes, multiple kitchen catastrophes occurred while making this. Of course, they were all operator-error and had nothing to do with the recipe.
The upside is that this turned out so well! I have never like mac and cheese or mac and “cheese” but I could not get enough of this. Totally worth the major clean-up (nobody wreaks havoc in a kitchen quite like me!).
Oh my god. The mac ‘n’ shews are in the oven now (with a layer of broccoli), and OH MY GOD. We had to save a few bites of mac and sauce to eat while it’s cooking because otherwise it never would have made it into the oven. Thank you for once again revolutionizing vegan cooking.
An ingredient I use in my cheezy sauces to give them that fermented/aged edge is fermented bean curd, which comes in jars and you can find in asian markets. Try it!
I just made this for lunch. Couldn’t even get it in the oven….just eating spoonfuls right out of the casserole dish. This is fantastic. And the sauerkraut is absolutely necessary. Yes…..this!!!!
I have yet to attempt a vegan mac & cheese. This recipe is definitely the most intriguing I have seen. I may just have to try it 🙂
Um, yum!! I love the cashew sauce on raw pasta but some nights just really want cooked rice pasta, goes better with a glass of Frey wine. Also, cashews don’t have the same packaging as Daiya Cheeze!
Had this tonight along with some Buffalo ‘fu (used the marinade from A. F. R.) and steamed broccoli. You can’t really taste that it’s sauerkraut at all. It’s super yummy! Very reminiscent of the baked mac’n’cheese I used to make with lots of “real” sharp cheddar way back when. We loved it! We have tons (and tons, and TONS) of leftovers. The 8-person serving size is very generous, especially if you serve it as a side dish. We’ll be taking leftovers to school (hubby and I are both in college full-time) at least twice this week, and I’ll be able to put a couple of servings in the freezer as well. I will definitely make this again. Might add more nooch (we really love the nooch in this house) and maybe even a little more kraut.
Thanks Isa for the recipe! It’s delish!
I’ve never really liked Mac & Cheeze (not a huge nooch fan), but this recipe is awesome! My spouse (vegetarian), my mother-in-law (cheese allergy), and some omnis all ate and enjoyed it. They said it didn’t taste like cheese but was really yummy (to me, it tasted a LOT like cheese).
Thank you so much, Isa! I haven’t enjoyed Mac & Chees/ze for years!
Thanks! Yeah, I’m not sure it tastes like cheese, but it’s creamy and yummy and that’s all that counts.
I was looking for a yummy cheeze recipe… the cashews really appeal to me, they have such a wonderful creaminess. I can’t wait to try this! 😀
Sweet barking Jesus, I’m going to make this with kimchi.
What do you think of using plain unsweeted yogurt [like Wildwood makes] instead of the kraut? Would that give the same tangy fermentedness?
I LOVE sauerkraut! I’m not a fan of onions, but this looks very good! Thank you for posting the recipe.
http://vegonaledge.blogspot.com
this looks so yum. another thing that adds a little tang to cheezy sauce is a little ketchup. sounds gross, but it works.
Just made this today! In fact, it is still hot out of the oven, but it didn’t stop me from burning my mouth to try it. It’s good. Really really really good. It’s a lot of work, but worth it since it makes a ton. I only did a half recipe for fear that I might sit and eat a whole pan in one sitting.
I made this tonight. It’s delicious! When should the tumeric be added? And how do I avoid the pasta from drying and sticking together in the colander while I am prepping the rest of the ingredients?
Oops, I added the tumeric to the directions. Add it once you add everything to the roux. I try to time the pasta to be ready pretty close to when the sauce is, that way it doesn’t stick together. But rinsing it under cold water briefly helps it not to stick together.
Oh yes. Oh hell yes. I have never been very interested in mac & cheese recipes, cos like, yeah, marge overload, and a totally not worth it marge overload. But this, changes everthing. Xx
How kind and generous of you to share this recipe. I am really trying to limit my fats; I think vegans are coming to realize that even vegan diets with too much fat are just not healthy. I don’t eat a no-fat diet like McDougall, etc., but I do limit the amount of fat I eat – not avoid it totally.
Thank you for your book and your generosity in sharing these scrumptious recipes. you rock!
What a great twist on the traditional vegan mac and cheese. Sauerkraut! I have to try this. Thank you.
This is truly amazing. I mean I have a shedload of it (cooking for only myself- freezing the rest pre-baking, I’m hoping it will survive it).
Question: What would be the best way to reheat it? Oven? Microwave? Any opinions from anyone who has reheated it?
I just saw another mac and cheese recipe earlier this week. It also had cashews, but it used potatoes and carrots instead of roux and sauerkraut. I’ll be experimenting with them both. Thanks.
sauerkraut!? I’m so intrigued!! I make a “fancy mex” version without the kraut – I saute red peppers and black beans with my “cheese” sauce and add a pinch of chipotle pepper… I can’t wait to try this version!
Yeeeeess. Just made and ate this. I love sauerkraut and cashew and so was super exited to see this recipe. Thank you!
@ KissWithAFist – when I reheat mine, I usually heat a little broth or unsweetened soy milk with a little oil in a sauce pan…. it gets really dried out otherwise.
oh wow this was great! i’m normally not a kraut fan but it was awesome in this! thanks so much.
Wow!!! This really worked. I LOVE MY VITAMIX!! With that dandy machine making this is effortless and fast, less than a minute to blend the cashews and kraut. We had to omit the yeast due to a guest’s allergy. We found that a dollop of Dijon mustard helped make up for that. So next time we’ll add some Dijon to the mix.
One interesting thing is that the dish smells a lot more like pickles than it tastes. In the oven and on the table I was afraid that the kraut taste would overpower. But it didn’t. This recipe makes a whole lot so we’re saving to reheat for tomorrow when the weather will once again be cold and rainy. Thanks for the recipe, my yeast allergic guest was thrilled!!
I made this and it was awesome. I am set up for home fermentation, so I used our homemade kimchi instead of saurkraut. I also added a head of raw, chopped broccoli and 8 oz. of sauteed white mushrooms. I used only 1 cup of cashews in the interest of reducing fat. (Mushrooms were cooked in 1/4 tsp of oil and 2 tbsp white wine before adding).
This was amazing! I was suspicious, but had to try it. So glad I did! Thanks!
This sounds ridiculously delish. I’m a big mac & ‘shews fan, but never would have thought to put sauerkraut in it, no matter how much I love ‘kraut. Can’t wait to give this a go!
I wonder if my non-vegan kids would enjoy this? It’s sounds so good. The ingredients are so interesting that I don’t think I have a choice…I must make it. Thanks!