This post is sponsored by Pacific Foods. We LOVE their plant-based beverages, especially their Cashew beverage!
Show me someone who doesn’t love Mac & Cheese and I will show you a liar. Kids, vegans, omnivores, picky eaters, everyone loves creamy pasta and cheese. Current company included. If I could eat any food, regardless of calories or fat, it would most definitely be mac & cheese (followed closely by pizza if anyone’s asking.)
This similar love was evidenced to me a few months back at my friend’s rehearsal dinner where we were treated to a delicious buffet of gourmet food & fresh salads. After the first go around, I noticed that our entire table had gone back for a second plate of a single item: mac & cheese. That’s right friends, a table full of presumably adults rushing to get that second helping of cheesy macaroni. Sigh, it’s so, so good.
The beauty of this recipe is that is has half the fat of regular macaroni and cheese, yet tastes just as decedent and creamy. Pureed sweet potatoes and Pacific Foods cashew beverage create a silky, smooth sauce perfect for tossing with hot pasta.
My family LOVES Pacific Foods cashew beverage; it’s so incredibly creamy and if you love the taste of cashew cream in your favorite dairy-free dishes, then you’ll want to try this beverage.
We’ve used it in countless recipes: tomato cashew pasta & cashew chai latte are two of my favorites so make sure to bookmark those after you grab a carton to make this pasta.
I say this so often, because it comes up over and over again in my conversations with other moms. Kids didn’t decide what foods we consider to be kid food- we did that. That also means that we get to rewrite the rules on what we consider to be kid-friendly. This mac and cheese is just that. It’s appealing to everyone, yet healthy enough to be a family-favorite.
This mac and cheese isn’t packed with a pound of cheese; though it’s just as decadent and creamy as any homestyle recipe. Vander thinks this mac and cheese is just about the most delicious thing he’s ever eaten; and I’m more than happy to keep making it for him. That just means BL and I get to enjoy it alongside him.
Dare I say that this mac and cheese is nutritious as well? Because we are using Pacific Foods cashew beverage and not cashews, we save quite a bit of calories and fat– without sacrificing flavor or texture. There’s just so much to love about this pasta.
Pacific Foods plant-based beverage is made with organic and Fair Trade Certified cashews! I love that Pacific Foods supports safe working conditions and sustainable growing practices in the farming communities.
You will need to pick up some nutritional yeast for this recipe, which is easily found at most grocery stores (check the baking aisle) or online. It’s what helps give the macaroni it’s distinctive cheesy flavor and color. You’ll use extras on popcorn, in this chili cheese sauce and hundreds of other vegan recipes.
This sauce comes together fairly quickly, if you make the sauce while you boil the water. Cook the garlic and aromatics together, then add the sweet potatoes. Add the milk and simmer until the sweet potato is softened.
Add everything to the blender, then puree until creamy! Toss with hot pasta and a little reserved pasta water and that’s it. The sauce will thicken a bit as it cools, so if you are serving this later then you’ll need to add a little more milk as you reheat it. YUM. Enjoy friends! xo
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Vegan Sweet Potato Mac and Cheese ! This creamy mac and cheese is so delicious and perfect for kids and adults! Plant-based, delicious and healthy!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 cups peeled and cubed sweet potatoes
- 2 cups Pacific Foods original cashew beverage
- 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
- 3/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 12 ounces elbow noodles
Instructions
- Heat the large skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, the garlic and the thyme and quickly cook for 30-60 seconds until garlic is fragrant, taking care not to burn.
- Add in the salt, turmeric, paprika, sweet potatoes and milk, then reduce heat to low and simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes.
- While the potatoes are cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once the water is boiling, add the noodles and cook until al dente according to the package.
- Add the entire contents of the sweet potato pan to a blender along with the nutritional yeast, lemon juice and mustard. Blend until creamy and pureed.
- Drain the elbow noodles, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water, and return back to the pot. Add the sweet potato sauce and toss to combine. The sauce will likely be thick, so add the pasta water, 1-2 tablespoons at a time until desired consistency is achieved. Taste, adding more salt/pepper as needed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
Keywords: pasta, mac and cheese, macaroni, kid friendly, healthy, vegan
Thanks again to Pacific Foods for sponsoring this post!
I’m with ya on the mac & cheese (and the pizza for that matter!) I often roast and puree butternut squash for my mac & cheese but never have done it with sweetpotatoes. Will probably make this recipe this week (if not in the next few days!)
I hope you do! I’ve made it a few times this week, I can’t stop! I’m a mac & cheese monster 🙂
Sweetpotatoes and Mac & Cheese. Two foods I love! Always love making healthier mac and cheese dishes!
Looks good. I will give it a try!
I assume you are peeling the sweet potatoes at some point (either before or after cooking)?
Yes! Thanks for the correction, updating now- I did peel the sweet potatoes before I boiled them. Thanks Diane, Alex
When you said at the top of the post that even vegans would like Mac and Cheese, I thought, really? But now that I read your recipe, I am convinced of it! Love this idea!
Vegans still LOVE mac and cheese 🙂 This one is sneaky- it taste rich and creamy but is almost fat-free. Just 1 tbsp. of butter in the whole recipe!
shut. up.
i’m making this tonight. seriously
you are amazeballs
I looovvee this idea for using up some of those sweet potatoes!! It’s true, mac and cheese is always such a crowd pleaser no matter how old you are!
Agreed! I hope to be 85 one day and still eating mac and cheese 🙂
I just bought some nutritional yeast and haven’t been sure what to do with it. Now I know! Can’t wait to make this!
Glad you bought some! It’s awesome in just about everything, I love sprinkling it on roasted vegetables and popcorn!
Making this for Sweet Caroline’s 1st birthday meal!! It’s so so good!
★★★★★
Hi thinking about making this but you say this uses a tablespoon of butter in your comments but the recipe does not call for butter. Plus its vegan. Help? 🙂
Hi Michelle- I’m not sure where the butter comment is? I couldn’t find it. However, there is no butter- vegan or otherwise- in this recipe.
When you replied to Katie, you said it only calls for one Tbsp of butter. 4 comments up
Hello I see that it has cashew milk would prefer to usedsoaked cashews but figured I might need to add water if so how much
Hi- yes, you can use soaked cashews and then puree them until creamy- use a 1:1 swap in this recipe
Can I use coconut or almond milk instead of cashew milk?
That should work!
I was desperate for Mac and cheese tonight! I have been vegan for over a year and recently became gluten free, and I am often disappointed with the homemade Mac and cheese recipes I find. I could buy a boxed package of vegan Mac and cheese, but so many of them include noodles that aren’t gluten free. I made this recipe tonight, though I substituted a can of coconut cream instead of cashew milk since that’s what I had on hand, and tossed it all with gluten free noodles. Oh… my… GOSH! I’m already looking forward to lunch tomorrow when I get to have the leftovers. Thank you!
So glad you liked it!