I have perfected this recipe over the last few months and it's dead tasty and even cheese enthusiast tell me it's delish, which is a real achievement to be honest! Buuut I usually cook it at work in bulk so I've tried to work out quantities for around 4 people. Please don't shoot me if the ratios are slightly off!
You will need:
For the sauce (will feed around 4)
1 cup Carrot
2 cups Potato
1 cup Sweet potato
1 White onion
5 gloves of Garlic
2 tbsp Dijon Mustard
2 tbsp Tomato purée
1/2 to 2/3 of a cupo Nutritional Yeast (you can find it in most health food shops, don't be put off by its fish food appearance hahah)
1/2 cup Soy/oat milk
1 tsp Smoked paprika
Salt & pepper to taste
Fresh Sage (approx 30g) - but dry is ok too if you don't have fresh just add 2 tbsp
1 cube/ 2 tsp of stock
oil (I usually use cold pressed rapeseed)
Macaroni approx 80g per person - if it's just for one you can refrigerate/freeze the sauce perfectly fine ! Macaroni usually takes around 8-10 minutes to cook so don't forget to put it on to boil!
Equipment:
1 chopping board
1 ladle
1 peeler
1 garlic crusher
1 sharp knife
1 liquidiser
2 large pans
1 jug/bowl
Method:
Start by peeling and chopping the carrot, potato and sweet potato into roughly the same size cubes, put in a pan and bring to the boil with some veggie bouillon/stock for approx. 20 minutes
Meanwhile in another pan add the peeled and chopped onion and sauté in some oil for a few minutes on medium heat
Then add in the garlic (peeled and crushed)
After 5-10 minutes add the mustard, tomato puree, nutritional yeast and some stock water from the boiling veg using the ladle
Add a generous pinch of salt and the smoked paprika and keep stirring
The mixture will start forming a paste so add the soy/oat and keep mixing
The veg should be ready to drain soon so drain (keeping the stock in jug) and put the veg in the liquidiser and blend until smooth and creamy
Add the blended veg into the other pan and mix well
Add the sage (chopped) and a little more salt and black pepper and have a taste- you can add some more nutritional yeast if you think it needs to be 'cheesier' and if the sauce is too thick add some stock water to loosen it up a little.
I don't bake the Mac 'n' cheese but instead leave it runny and gooey to really replicate that cheeses consistency. I then add a spoonful of caramelised red onion and red peppers and dust with cashew parmesan to finish
Toppings:
Caramelised red onion and red peppers
1 red onion
1/2 a red pepper
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp if balsamic
Pinch of salt
Water
Start by finely chopping up the veggies and first sautée the onion for a few minutes
The add the garlic (crushed if possible) and red pepper
Once the veg has started to soften and a little water, the salt and balsamic and let it reduce down for 15-20 minutes on low-med heat
Keep stirring and add more water if it gets too dry as you want to create jus to add to the top of the mac 'n' cheese once it's dished up
Cashew Parmesan:
Blitz together
1/2 a cup cashews
1/2 a cup of nutritional yeast
1/w tsp of salt
1/2 tspn of garlic powder
1 tsp of oregano