Serves 4
Total time: 30 minutes || Active time: 15 minutes
Chipotle Mac & Cheese! Okay? I probably don’t need to say anything else, you’re already rummaging through your pantry for a can of chipotles and some cashews to soak. Mac & Cheese is, after all, the ultimate comfort food. A box of macaroni might as well come with sweatpants, a cozy blanket and an entire season of Mad Men DVDs.
This version is creamy, of course, but also spicy and smoky. But what really sets it apart is how EASY it is. That’s ALL CAPS and throw in an italic EASY.
1) Boil some macaroni 2) Throw some stuff into the blender 3) Put it all together. 4) There you go. I roasted some brussel sprouts, too (as I do), but you can add any manner of veggie; steamed kale, grilled asparagus, sauteed zucchini…you get the picture. I do highly recommend the brussels, though, because they roast away effortlessly, and you are free to prepare everything else. Oh, and of course, they’re also super delicious.
The only thing that’s a little fussy is getting the seeds out of the chipotle. But follow my notes below and you shouldn’t have any problems.
Happy macking, everyone!
Notes
~ The reason we’re removing the seeds, in case you’re wondering, is that seeds are really spicy. With the seeds removed, you can use more chipotles, thus getting more smoky flavor without all the heat.
~ Update! If you’d like to make this was blanched, slivered or sliced almonds, go for it! People have been reporting back that it works well.
~ For a non-spicy version, try one roasted red pepper (homemade or from a jar) in place of the 4 chipotles.
~ I love a milder miso here. I used chickpea, but mellow white would be nice, too. The kind of miso you use will determine the saltiness, and so I suggest salting to taste before and after adding it to the macaroni.
Ingredients
1 lb brussels, quartered
1 tablespoon olive oilFor the sauce:
1 cup cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours
4 chipotles, seeded (see note)
1 cup vegetable broth
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
2 tablespoons miso (I used chickpea miso)
Salt to taste
Directions
To make the sauce: Drain the cashews and place all sauce ingredients in a blender and blend away until completely smooth. Scrape down the sides with a spatula to make sure you get everything. Depending on the strength of your blender this could take from one to five minutes.
When the macaroni is tender, drain it in a colander. Immediately place it back in the pot you boiled it in and stir in the sauce. Place pot on low heat and stir for 3 minutes or so, until the sauce is thickened a bit and everything is deliciously creamy. Taste for salt, toss in the brussel sprouts and serve!
(In the pic I put some extra chipotles in, but that was just for show. Unless you like things REALLY spicy you can skip that.)
omg this looks delish! I just got back from the supermarket, but I think I might have to go back out for sprouts and chipotles…
Any veggie would be good! Do you have a roasted red pepper? That would work instead of chipotles.
When you say chipotles do you mean canned? This looks SO good!
Yep!
I will try this for sure. The pin option does not work for me 🙁
I know! I need to get that fixed. Thanks for telling me, though. I’m going to just pin it manually.
Don’t have miso. In another of your recipes, the Butternut Alfredo, I used Dijon mustard instead of miso and it worked great. Not sure if that’s the best option here…any thoghts?
That might be ok! But not 2 whole Tablespoons. How about 2 teaspoons mustard plus 2 tablespoons extra nutritional yeast?
This looks great. I really do need to stock up on raw cashews. I’ve had good luck subbing cashew butter for some things, but probably not a whole cups worth.
I don’t think I will be able to find canned chipotles, but I do have a chipotle paste kind of thing. Do you think this will work, and how much?
I’d take it slow…maybe a teaspoon at a time. And test for spiciness.
Isa here in uk we don’t have chip-o-thingys! Are they chillis? So, I can use some chilli peppers? Or sweet red peppers, would that work?
You mention *not* soaking cashews, but I don’t see anything about soaking cashews. I assume that’s what the recipe calls for? Any specifics… Overnight? Warm water?
Whoops! I will update (2 hours or up to overnight)
@ Jade T – ( or anyone else in the UK)if you shop at Sainsburys or Tesco you can find chipolte paste in the super fancy ingredients section. It’s less that £2 a jar. They’re easy to miss as the jars are really small. However, the paste is strong so only add a little at a time. You will be amazed at just how gorgeous this stuff is, I still seem to be putting it in everything.
I am going to make this! I want to have it on record, but can’t pin it…?
Yes, pin button is brokeded. Getting it fixed! No idea why it broke.
I love fast and easy! My meals, I mean. This looks delicious. Do you think sweet white miso would work? That’s all I’ve got in the fridge.
Yes!
I need this in my mouth and belly. I can’t wait to have a kitchen again!!
i think i might be one of the only people who doesnt really like the flavor of chipotle. i might make this without the chipotle. the combo of mac n cheese plus brussels sounds amazing though! i cant pass that up!
I wrote this comment elsewhere (maybe I’ll add it to the notes), but you can use a roasted red pepper in place of the chipotle. From a jar is fine!
AMAZING! I have everything for this already in my kitchen! Might need to make it for supper tonight….
Just made this, but didn’t want to run to the store so used roasted broccoli instead of brussel sprouts and tahini/ soy sauce in place of miso and no chipotles. It turned out fabulous! The sauce is so creamy and easy. My nonvegan friend also loved it and couldn’t believe it was cashew based. Thanks for sharing this awesome recipe!
Hello, I’ve made several of your recipes, all delicious as I’m sure this will be! I’ve never heard of chickpea miso – that must be a special-specialty item! I just looked it up and discovered it’s less salty than regular miso – thanks for introducing me to this. And thx also for the cashew boiling tip for the inevitable “oops, forgot to plan…” moment! I’ll try this recipe with grilled sprouts or cherry tomatoes on my little George Foreman as I don’t turn my oven on all summer! Ps…I use the Fasta Pasta and it’s fantastic for making up to four servings of pasta in the microwave, a real time and summer-heat saver.
Holy macaroni, this looks INCREDIBLE (totally worthy of all caps). Cashew-miso-macaroni sauce sounds quite possibly like the greatest concoction in existence. Cannot wait to make this.
I am eating this right now! Thanks so much for this great recipe! It’s a little spicier than I expected but I absolutely love it.
Woohoo! Thanks for the quick feedback!
Oh, Isa, this looks and sounds amazing. I wish I had a bowl in front of me right now!
This sounds soooo good!! Love this idea!
made this as soon as i saw it. so creamy and amazing and the perfect amount of spice. thanks!!!
wow! looks great! i’m allergic to cashews so i’m going to try raw peeled almonds instead, can’t wait, thanks so much! 🙂
Oooh, please let me know how it comes out with the almond sub. Thanks!
I made this tonight! It was good. I accidentally used one pound of cashews instead of one cup and adjusted the recipe accordingly. Oops! Leftover delicious sauce.
Yum! It was easy and comforting, as promised! Thank you. I added some red pepper slices in the roasting pan and only used one whole chipotle pepper to suit my tastes. We loved the roasted Brussels sprouts. Great inspiration! I will keep this one handy!
This is dreamy. I’m making it this week! And I know it will be good because you’re The Best.
Aw, shucks.
My oven broke so I might try this with Pan fried Brussels Sprouts. Also thanks for the boiling tip. I kinda suck when it comes to prep work.
I will never get the Brussels sprouts love. They are evil. 😉 Love macaroni cheese, though!
I agree, I really dislike Brussels sprouts.
Just made this, following recipe to the letter. Absolutely perfect! Make sure you’ve got a good rubber spatula, ’cause you won’t want to leave ANY of this sauce in the blender. Delicious.
I don’t even know if Chipoles are available is new zealand! and nutritional yeast is expensive =(.
@nottinghamkate…. thank you! Before coming back on here tho I found some dried whole chipotle peppers on ebay. Can’t wait to try them!
mmmmm, eyegasm, no doubt to be followed in quick succession by mouthgasm and tummygasm!
I’m allergic to nuts. Do you recommend a substitute for the cashews?
@kung pow tao, what about sunflower seeds? Blend extra long. I am making this obv. Anything spicy-vegan-mac pretty much has my attention
We have sprouts, we have chipotles, we have macaroni, and I believe we have cashews. What could go wrong? Hopefully nothing, since I will be pressed for time this evening, and this looks quick.
So Yummy!! Probably the BEST vegan mac n’ cheese recipe I’ve tried!! I omitted the sprouts (didn’t have them) used grilled broccoli and the chipotle (don’t like spice, but I used a small dash of cayenne pepper) and it was still amazing! Can’t wait for lunch leftovers!
This looks AMAZING! I have chipotle in a can that I have used before. I will take Isa’s advice and add it slowly as to not burn my taste buds off. Where can I find vegan miso? All the miso I have found in Asian markets seem not to be vegan.
HI! New to the vegan cooking shindig- and never cooked w cashews. Are those raw or roasted? Salted or not?
Just so long as they don’t say “Roasted” you’re good to go. They don’t have to say raw, but it’s ok if they do. Salted, in this case, would be fine.
I cam here to comment about how I can’t find chipotle peppers here in the Netherlands (*cries*), but I’m glad to see the roasted red pepper option mentioned! Makes it even more pantry friendly since I never end up using the whole can of chipotles when I can get them from the states. Can’t wait to try this!
@KZCakes thanks for the sunflower suggestion. I’ll try it.
Where do I find miso? I must be looking in the wrong part of the store. Would Whole Foods have it?
This is REALLY good. Just had it for lunch. I think the miso adds such depth that I didn’t expect.
I read this at lunch while planning my weekly menu, so I re-did it to include this for tonight! I never make the cashew based sauces because I cannot remember to soak, so I am so excited to try the quick-soak method tonight! Gotta love spicy miso cheesiness, especially when Brussels sprouts are involved!
Sorry – this might be bad form but for the sake of vegan friends helping each other out if you have nut allergies maybe try this cauliflower sauce: http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2013/05/cheesy-cauliflower-sauce.html
BTW – Found out that miso is vegan but miso soup in restaurants may not be because they add Dashi – fish product.
Hey there, does anyone by any chance know if i can use this miso here: http://www.amazon.de/Shinjyo-Miso-Miso-Suppenpaste-Shiro-Packung/dp/B0049NT5RS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370292999&sr=8-1&keywords=miso
instead of chickpea miso? In Germany it apparently doesn’t exist.. Another question, i am new to this whole vegan cooking (baking is no problem :D), so is the nutritional yeast absolutely necessary?
Is there a substitute for it?
Btw, thank you so much for the amazing recipes, it has made me going vegan so much easier 🙂
Any light miso will work! And the nutritional yeast isn’t totally necessary.
I poured this over a pot of brown lentils and oven roasted broccoli. I halved the recipe, so the sauce isn’t too thick, but it is delicious! And the upside is I still have most of my can of chipotles left to make more. Yum!
NOTHING went wrong! It turned out beautiful. The only change I made was to use only 2 chipotles instead of 4. Can you forgive me? 😀 The kids liked it too! (That’s always a plus; they are learning that vegan food does NOT have to be dull!)
That’s cool! Especially if the kids don’t love spicy food.
Isa…you’re amazing. This is delicious!!!:) I’m fairly new to consistent “veganism” and I’m just now starting to really get into the cooking stuff, and your website is awesome. Right now this sauce is sitting in my blender and the Brussels and noodles are waiting to get married, but I’ve never had such a good cheese sauce substitute!:) so happy! It tastes like the real thing! Thanks!!!:)
Absolutely Awesome!!! Did not have miso so I used the dijon and extra yeast flakes. Also used a jalepeno from the garden. Great sauce!!!!
I just made this with 4 chipotles and it was way too hot. Had to keep adding water. Next time I will only use 2 peppers. Had to throw it away I couldn’t eat it. Trial and error.