Description
This is my favorite, go-to recipe for mac and cheese. It’s super creamy and flavorful, making it the ultimate in cheesy pasta. You can use any style of pasta that you like, and customize it further by topping with toasted bread crumbs, a sprinkle of truffle salt or oil, or even stir in minced jalapenos and scallions.
Ingredients
Scale
- 10 to 16 ounces dried elbow pasta, brown rice or wheat
- 2 cups water (or 1 cup water plus 1 cup unsweetened soymilk, for a slightly creamier version)
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 6 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes, divided
- 2 teaspooons granulated garlic
- 1 1/2 teaspooons granulated onion
- 1 teaspooon smoked paprika
- 1 1/4 teaspooons fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspooon sweet or regular paprika
- 4 to 5 tablespoons Instant Clearjel, or as needed to thicken
Instructions
- In a large pot of lightly salted boiling water, add the pasta shells and cook according to package directions until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain the pasta well and transfer to a large bowl. Set aside.
- In the jar of a blender, combine the water, cashews, nutritional yeast, garlic, onion, smoked paprika, salt and paprika. Blend mixture at high speed until completely smooth and no bits of nuts remain. With the machine on low speed, add the Instant Clearjel through the top of the blender jar, blending until ultra smooth.
- Pour the cheesy sauce over the cooked pasta, mixing until the pasta is coated. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Notes
Copyright © 2011 Julie Hasson
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Pasta
