Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

The recipe here is my holy grail. I make this at least once every week. It is so easy, so creamy and cheesy and delicious. I just cannot get enough. I've tried vegan mac and cheese recipes before, and I promise you that this one is the real deal. 

Not only does it taste like mac & cheese and look like mac & cheese, but it also nutrient dense, containing ingredients like nutritional yeast which contains vitamin B12 - an important vitamin that can be difficult for vegans to get enough of without a supplement. Nutritional yeast is what gives the mac & cheese it's cheesiness, however the pumpkin gives it a great texture, colour, and is full of fiber, great for heart health. I guess it is possible for something this delicious to be healthy as well!

*serves 2

Ingredients

140g macaroni noodles

2 tbsp oil

1 1/2 tbsp flour

1 cup cashew milk

1/2 cup pureed pumpkin

3 tbsp nutritional yeast

2 tsp garlic salt (or 2 tsp garlic powder + 1 tsp salt)

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp turmeric

Dash cayenne pepper

Chili flakes for topping

Chopped parsley for topping

Directions:

Put 6 cups of water on the stove in a medium/large pot and boil. Once boiling, add macaroni and cook until al dente.

Heat oil over medium heat & whisk in flour until incorporated and smooth. Add Cashew milk and pumpkin and whisk until thickened. Next, add garlic salt, ground mustard, black pepper, onion powder, turmeric, cayenne and nutritional yeast and whisk again until creamy. Now taste and add more salt and pepper to your liking.

Combine cooked pasta and sauce to a pot & stir. Serve with chili flakes and chopped parsley.