In light (or should I say dark) of the cold Isla Vista nights, there comes a time when you have to stop ordering takeout and dive into a new recipe. This hearty pasta dish will leave you more than satisfied. My vegan mac and cheese is a recipe I perfected in high school, and although I’m not vegan anymore, I continue to make it. It’s healthy, delicious and won’t leave you with a crippling stomachache afterward. It won’t give you a post-dinner crash and you’ll keep coming back to it. 

Whether you’re vegan, lactose intolerant or just want to try something new, this recipe suits all. Trust me, it tastes a whole lot better when your carnivorous housemates aren’t lurking nearby telling you how “strange dairy-free cheese is.” 

This vegan mac and cheese is sure to warm you up and satisfy your tastebuds.

What you’ll need: some sort of fat (oil or vegan butter), a milk substitute (I like almond milk, but any vegan milk works), your favorite type of pasta (I used rigatoni), fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste. You’ll also need a generous amount of paprika, onion powder and garlic powder. And, most importantly, the crucial ingredient: nutritional yeast. 

Now, don’t worry —  nutritional yeast is much more appealing than the name makes it sound. It’s a coarse powder with a nutty, fragrant, salty taste, and it will replace the cheese flavor in this recipe. It can be found in most grocery stores  —  I get mine from Trader Joe’s  —  and it will only set you back about four to five dollars. 

The nice thing about this recipe is that it’s very student and budget friendly. Not only is it kind to the wallet, but it’s also conducive to the typical “student fridge” many of us are familiar with. There’s no need to worry about the shelf life of most of these products, and they definitely won’t stink up your fridge. Almond milk seems to last a century and all the other products can be stored in a cool, dry area. 

So, hopefully by now I’ve persuaded you to give this recipe a go. This recipe serves one, but simply double or triple the ingredients if you’re sharing with friends (or for yourself, I’m not judging). 

Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons vegan butter or oil (your choice of fat) 

2 teaspoons flour 

4-5 cups almond milk (or any preferred plant-based milk) 

Salt and pepper, to taste 

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder 

1-2 teaspoons paprika (for color and flavor) 

2 cups nutritional yeast 

1 cup vegan cheese (optional, for topping) 

Fresh parsley, for garnish 

Your favorite pasta (I used rigatoni) 

Note: This dish will take approximately 45 minutes to cook

Instructions: 

Prepare the sauce base: 

Melt 2 tablespoons of your chosen fat (vegan butter or oil) in a pan over medium heat. Be sure not to burn the butter (vegan butter doesn’t brown as well as real butter). 

Once the butter is nearly melted, add 2 teaspoons of flour. Use a spatula to mix it into a dough-like consistency. This will help cook out the bitter taste of the flour. 

Add milk and thicken the sauce: 

Slowly add 4-5 cups of plant-based milk, depending on how thick you want the sauce. Turn the heat down to a simmer. 

As soon as the milk hits the pan, grab a whisk and start gently whisking, breaking up the dough. Keep whisking until the milk and flour mixture come together and the sauce starts to thicken (a process known as gelatinization). 

This can take up to 10 minutes, so don’t rush  —  patience is key! This sauce is often known as a Roux or a Bechamel — if you’ve made one of these before, it’s essentially the same procedure here, just all vegan. 

Season the sauce: 

Once the sauce has thickened slightly, add salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika. The paprika will give the sauce an orange color, making it resemble a cheese sauce. Add 2 cups of nutritional yeast and stir to combine. The nutritional yeast is quite dense and will thicken your sauce considerably, which is why I caution with the words “thickened slightly.”  Let the sauce continue to warm on low heat while you prepare the pasta. 

Cook the pasta: 

Preheat your oven to 425°F (220°C). 

In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil and add plenty of salt  —  it should taste like the ocean. Once boiling, add your pasta and reduce to a simmer. Follow the pasta’s package instructions, but turn off the heat a few minutes before the required time if you like your pasta al dente. 

Assemble the mac and cheese:

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and return it to the pot. Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir to coat. Transfer the saucy pasta to an oven-safe dish. If you’re using vegan cheese, sprinkle some on top, then place the dish in the preheated oven for no more than 5 minutes, just to melt the cheese. 

Add finishing touches: 

Remove the dish from the oven and let it cool slightly. Chop up some fresh parsley and sprinkle it on top of your mac and cheese for a fresh flavor boost. The final step is to enjoy your new favorite comfort food!

A version of this article appeared on p. 10 of the January 30th, 2024 print edition of the Daily Nexus.

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