A normally unhealthy dish gets a whole food based makeover. This vegan sharp white mac and cheese bake is as creamy and delicious as it’s dairy counterpart!
Let’s talk cheese sauce. After the huge success of my original Ultimate Cheese Sauce, magic in the kitchen happened again and my Sharp White Cheese Sauce was born. This one has been just as popular so far, which makes me do a happy dance, Elaine style (Seinfeld reference for all my fans out there). I love when I can create a healthy version of a traditionally unhealthy dish. No bloating for me!
Ultimately it comes down to the fact that I love food, as if that wasn’t apparent, but furthermore, I love good food. I only eat what tastes amazing, and when we made this diet change I was not going to settle for less than absolutely delicious. And I’m here to tell you that this new vegan white mac and cheese bake is definitely not less.
I can make almost anything plant based!
When I made the sauce, I was trying to recreate the flavor from a mac and cheese at a favorite restaurant of ours. We were with some friends that ordered it and literally almost passed out from how good they said it was. The very first thing I thought was “I can make this, without all the unhealthy stuff.”
Disclosure here, I had to try a bite in order to know what I was going for. I couldn’t create something I had never tried, but one bite was all it took for me to know for sure that it could be done. So off I went to make the impossible possible. I was going to create a creamy baked sharp white mac and cheese with a crispy topping all using vegetables, no oil, no dairy, and a gluten-free topping. No pressure there!
I knew the sauce I could definitely do since I had my original vegan cheese sauce already solidified in the books. I simply used the white versions of the veggies from that sauce, and played with the different spices and seasonings.
But making a baked pasta that stayed creamy and did not dry up, plus have noodles that were not mushy, was a challenge. Plus having a gluten free crispy topping without added oil or butter was not going to be easy. After a few trials with the sauce, I figured out how to keep this mac and cheese bake creamy and al dente. Done.
Hemp seeds are such a great whole food fat!
Now enter Manitoba Harvest and their email to me about partnering up for a post using their Hemp Hearts…I immediately knew what I was going to do. Hemp hearts, other than being one of my favorite things ever, have an amazing whole food fat content that when pulsed with things give the appearance of added oil or butter.
Bake it and crispy magic happens. I use Hemp Hearts in my hemp almond parmesan all the time and it’s awesome! I knew this recipe needed those little bits of heaven for the crispy I was going for.
Side note, although this post is sponsored by Manitoba Harvest, I have loved their products and used them long before they even know who I was, plus I only endorse things I love here.
It’s magic I tell ya!
This is the perfect main meal, holiday side, or “put stretchy pants on, sit on the couch and gorge” type of recipe. Not saying I do that, but you know, in case that’s your thing 😉 I’m happy to report that I have served this to our friends and they can not believe it has no dairy.
This is my ultimate success. Like a magician plays tricks on the eyes, I play tricks on the palate. Your mouth says yes this is cheese…but I say it’s actually veggies mixed ever so carefully with other flavors to give you the illusion instead. Vegan white mac and cheese in disguise.
So, now your job is to experience this illusion. Better yet, serve it to your friends, family, guy off the street (no wait don’t do that, it could be dangerous) and DON’T tell them it isn’t dairy.
If you really want a laugh, just leave it be. And every time they come over and tell you that they could NEVER give up dairy, giggle a bit because you know something they don’t 😉
- Sharp White Cheese Sauce
- 1 1/2 cups water or water from cooking veggies
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon mustard seed powder (take out or use less if you don't want it too sharp)
- 3/4 teaspoon chickpea miso (see notes in sharp white cheese sauce recipe)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 24 ounces your favorite pasta
- 1/2 cup hemp seeds (I used Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts)
- 2 slices toasted bread use gluten free for gluten free recipe
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
Make cheese sauce according to recipe.
After it’s blended, take a spoonful and eat it because it’s so good. Then add the water, extra apple cider vinegar, mustard seed powder, chickpea miso and salt.
- Blend again. It will now taste much stronger and be watery, but this is ok. When baking, it loses a bit of flavor and creaminess so this will make sure that it is perfectly sharp and creamy after baked.
- Put all crispy topping ingredients into a food processor. Process until well combined.
- Cook pasta for only about 2 minutes. You will be baking this so this prevents mushy noodles. Although it doesn’t seem like a long time, if you overcook then your noodles will end up mushy after baked.
Once pasta is done, drain and rinse well to prevent too much starchiness in the baked dish.
Return to the pot and mix in cheese sauce.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until crispy on top. Start checking at 10 minutes to ensure your pasta doesn’t overcook. I made this with a gluten free ancient grain pasta made from brown rice, quinoa, amaranth and corn. Different pastas cook differently so make sure to check it starting at 10 minutes.
- Promptly stuff into face without getting burned, this is best hot from the oven!
- This makes an extra sharp artisan style baked mac and cheese, but if you want it more mellow then leave out the extra sauce ingredients and simply add the water to the original white cheese sauce recipe.
- The crispy topping makes on the more side, this way you can decide if you want a thicker layer or thinner layer. Keep leftovers for next time.
- Tips to prep ahead: Make cheese sauce and crispy topping.
- Baby/toddler food idea: This can be baked a little longer for baby and pulsed into a smooth or chunkier food. If baby is new to foods, you can also leave out the extra spice/seasoning ingredients in the sauce and it will be less sharp.
jill conyers says
This looks amazing Sophia. I might have to add this to my Christmas dinner menu. Pinning for holiday menu planning 🙂
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you Jill! It’s on my Christmas dinner menu for sure. Let me know if you try it!
Mel @ The Refreshanista says
Oh my gosh, YUM. I’m hungry now 😉
veggiesdontbite says
Ha! Thanks Mel!!
Angie S says
I will absolutely be making this!!! How weird is this – I’m the only one in our little family of four that LIKES mac n cheese – of any kind. A bunch of freaks, I tell ya! More for me!!!
veggiesdontbite says
What?! That’s fabulous, more for you! LOL! Thank you so much and help you enjoy!
Liz says
I have to agree that you are a magician. You are the most creative vegan recipe-maker out there. And I love you for it. Can’t wait to make this one.
veggiesdontbite says
Ha! Thank you so so much Liz! I so appreciate your kind comments. I try hard to be creative, well because I have 3 young kids and they keep me on my toes! LOL
Linda @ Veganosity says
I can’t wait to make this, Sophia! And I love how you used hemp hearts for the crispy topping. I eat a few tablespoons every day.
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you Linda! I adore hemp hearts too! Let me know if you try it!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
That hemp seed topping is such a good idea! My goodness…..I really don’t think you could give a better comfort food to the soul and tummy <3
veggiesdontbite says
Its such great comfort food! Thanks Rebecca! And the hemp seeds are my favorite!
Alex says
Looks amazing! Can’t wait to give it a try!
veggiesdontbite says
Thanks Alex!! Let me know if you do!
Jenn says
This might be my favorite recipe of yours yet! And that’s saying quite a lot! You are right, it is SO hard for healthy sauces to not dry up, but I can’t even believe the creaminess that is this dish! Unbelievable! I already bought all the ingredients to make the cheese sauce, so I now I have to decide if I want to make regular mac and cheese (that is clearly not regular at all) or this baked version. OMG, the stress of decisions!! 🙂
veggiesdontbite says
Don’t stress! Mac and cheese to the rescue!! Thanks so much lady, and let me know what you decide!
Cadry says
Now, that is a thing of beauty! In the name of science, I think it’s important to try every vegan mac and cheese possible. This one is going on the list immediately.
veggiesdontbite says
In the name of science you must. What kind of blogger would you be if you didn’t investigate all possibilities. 😉
The Vegan 8 says
OMG, I’m so sorry my friend for taking so long to comment….with this whole cookie craze, I had completely forgotten. Anyways, holy moly this looks like the definition of comfort food! Seriously, I love that first photo so much and basically think I could eat an entire casserole of this! I cannot wait to try this!
veggiesdontbite says
Don’t you be sorry!! That’s so silly! Mac and Cheese Bake is here to stay whenever you want it, today, tomorrow, next month, daily such as I do…LOL I devoured much of this so I totally understand the craze. Thank you so much for your sweet comment!
Lucie says
Gosh, Sophia, how do you make pasta with white sauce look so incredibly irresistible?!! <3 anyway, I can't wait to try this recipe. I'm intrigued by the combination of chickpea miso and mustard seeds plus anything with a hemp based topping must be a winner 🙂 amazing job as always!
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you Lucie! The miso and mustard powder give it that sharp bite I was going for. It’s such a great combo. I am loving the challenge of making all these cheese sauces and serving them to others who can’t believe there’s no dairy!
Mandy says
Oh, mama!!! I’ve already got my stretchy pants on and in desperate need of this delicious mac!! You’ve totally outdone yourself, my friend! It’s been decided, we’re making this next week and I CAN’T WAIT!!
P.S. – I love the Seinfeld reference!!
veggiesdontbite says
Ah! I can’t wait either!! You’re going to love it. I can’t begin to tell you how many trials I did to get this to STAY creamy after it was baked and to have these noodles al dente. If you use different pasta then just start checking until the doneness is good for you. It’s SO good, served it to some family and they were shocked it had no dairy! And I’m glad at least one person gets my reference. LOL!
Mandy says
OMG!!!!!!! Like I said on IG, you totally NAILED the flavor of this sharp cheese sauce!!!! We all went back for seconds and I cried a little when the leftovers disappeared today. Such an amazing recipe that we’ll be making over and over again…and I’m already brainstorming other ways to use your sauce. Oh, and that topping for this bake was unreal! Just amazing!
veggiesdontbite says
This comment makes me so so happy!! I am thrilled that you like it so much. We are having it as our main Christmas dish for sure. I use the sauce on SO much! Just be sure to use the original recipe and not the one with more liquid like on the bake recipe. I can’t wait to hear how you use it!
Miss Polkadot says
No words for how badly I want this. I’m hoping it’s safe to serve my very vegan-skeptical family because this needs to happen in my life. A few questions: how many would you say this serves? And is the miso critical for the flavour? Because I can’t get it in the small town I live in.
One more thing: You really are the vegan sauce queen! I would never have come up with a recipe like this.
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you so much for your sweet comment! I have served it to many non vegans and they all loved it. I truly hope your family agrees! As for the miso, I have to say that it is pretty important in achieving that sharp taste. You will still get the creamy flavor without it but for that added sharp cheesiness it’s important. If you can’t get it at all, then definitely try without it. I would guess that you’d need a little more salt though as miso has some saltiness to it. I have never tried it without the miso so not quite sure of the result, but please let me know if you try it!
Terri Cole says
Is 24 ounces of uncooked pasta correct? That just sounds like a ginormous pot of pasta!
veggiesdontbite says
Hi Terri! I used 3 bags of the TruRoots ancient grain pasta and each bag is 8 ounces. It makes a full 9 x 12 pan as the recipe states, so feel free to cut in half if you want less food!
Terri Cole says
Thank you! I just wanted to make sure I was reading it right.
veggiesdontbite says
No problem! Let me know if you try it out!
Jenn says
I made this the other night and the whole family LOVED it!! I am amazed at how creamy it is even after baking! That is hard to do with a vegan sauce. Amazing! It was even creamy the next day when we ate the leftovers. It’s wonderful just the noodles and sauce (because I did make myself a tiny bowl of it this way to try before sticking it in the oven, but the crunchy topping and crunchy edges of the pasta after baked takes it over the top! So yum!!
veggiesdontbite says
Wow Jenn! Thank you so much for the awesome comments! I’m so so happy you guys liked it so much. It’s always the best comment to read when the whole family loves something I created!
Alex says
Something strange is happening. It looks like at least two ingredients are missing. The cheese sauce has seasonings, but nothing that will give it bulk. I tried looking on both firefox and chrome. Can you tell me what I’m missing? This is what I’m seeing.
• Sharp White Cheese Sauce
• 1 ½ cup water or water form cooking veggies
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon mustard seed powder
• ¾ teaspoon chickpea miso
• 1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
• 24 ounces your favorite pasta
Then it segues into the topping recipe.
veggiesdontbite says
Hi Alex! I just redesigned my site and the links are the same color as the text, I’m working on changing that now so that people can tell they are links! SO, in this recipe “Sharp White Cheese Sauce” is actually a link to the cheese sauce recipe! Click on it and it will take you there. So sorry, working on this issue now!! Let me know if you have any other questions!
Alex says
Thanks so much; that did the trick. I’m going to try this next pasta night.
veggiesdontbite says
Awesome Alex!! Let me know how you like it!!
Shari says
Sophia, this mac and cheese is outrageously delicious! I knew I had to make it when you posted it on Facebook today. I almost got lazy and didn’t make the crispy topping, but thank goodness I did. That is what really pushed it over the edge and gave it the “wow” factor. Thank you!
veggiesdontbite says
Hi Shari! Thank you so so much for the awesome review! I’m so happy you loved it as much as we do. I can’t even tell you how many trials I did to get that creaminess even after it was baked and perfect the sharp flavor I was looking for. My family was WAY over mac and cheese, LOL! And yes, the topping is so yum! Look for more recipes coming using that combo. Thanks for being here and trying my recipes!
Diana says
Sophia this was awesome! I didn’t have yellow carrots or pepper so I subbed orange carrots and red pepper. It obviously turned it orange not white but oh my goodness it was fabulous! I used brown rice elbows and they were perfect. The crunchy topping was so good! I made a double batch because I knew it would be delicious so now I have a jar full to sprinkle on everything! My neighbor has recently become vegan for health reasons so I can’t wait to bring her a piece! She’ll faint!
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you so so much Diana!! It really doesn’t matter the color as long as it taste good! I’m so thrilled you liked it and I cannot wait to hear how your neighbor fainted. LOL!!
JD says
This is one of my favorite meals. Perfect for the holidays. I like it with a tad less mustard powder but I typically dont like the mustard flavor abd still like some here.
CL says
Can regular yellow miso be used instead of chickpea miso
veggiesdontbite says
Hi! Yes, if you read through some of the comments I have had a few people make it with other miso varieties. Depending on how sharp the flavor of your miso is, you may need more or less. Chickpea miso has a pretty strong taste. I would start with a little and work your way up until you get the flavor you like! Hope it goes well!
Srivani says
Had this recipe bookmarked for ages. Finally made it tonight. WOW! Definitely one of the best Mac and cheese recipes I’ve ever made… and I’ve made lots! The cheese sauce is awesome. We served some extra sauce over some broccoli/cauliflower that was served on the side. The 4 year old and 11 month old both LOVED this! Thanks you.
veggiesdontbite says
Wow!!! Thank you so much for the rave review. I am so happy you love this as much as we do! I love dipping cauliflower in the sauce too! Be on the lookout because in the new year I have a new mac and cheese coming that is equally as delicious!
Jazmine Brokaw says
Hello. This looks SO good! I definitely want to try. I was looking at the recipe though and I am a little confused about the White cheese sauce. I scrolled through the comments to see if I could find an answer. I see you told one lady that the words “Sharp White Cheese Sauce” is actually a link to how to make the sauce. But I am not able to click on that. It’s the same format as the rest of the words.
Sharp White Cheese Sauce
1 1/2 cup water or water from cooking veggies
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon mustard seed powder
3/4 teaspoon chickpea miso
1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
24 ounces your favorite pasta
Crispy topping (makes about 2 1/4 cups):
1/2 cup Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts
2 slices toasted bread use gluten free for gluten free recipe
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
That is all I see, and it won’t allow me to click on any of the words.
Can you please help?
veggiesdontbite says
Hi Jazmine! So sorry, I am changing over to a new recipe card plugin and it erased all my links and didn’t translate everything well. I am slowly going through and fixing all the recipes but had not gotten to this one yet. I just fixed it up for you! The link should be working again. Thanks so much and hope you like it!
Amy says
Is mustard seed powder the same thing as ground mustard?
veggiesdontbite says
Yep!!
Laura says
Yum! Just tried this today and loved it. Thank you! Since the miso has raised a question or two: I used red soybean miso but stuck to the amount recommended in recipe – still had great flavor.
veggiesdontbite says
Thank you so much for letting me know Laura! I am thrilled you liked it! And thanks for the miso update. Good to know that red works!