Day 316.
After making up a large batch of homemade cheese sauce powder, we decided to try it out first on a simple mac and cheese, without any mix-ins. This is intended as a vegan substitute for boxed, orange powder sauce mac and cheese.
Kid-Friendly Vegan Mac and Cheese
Adapted from The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions.
Ingredients
- 1 pound macaroni noodles
- 1/2 cup Homemade Vegan Cheese Sauce Powder
- 1 cup water or dairy-free milk
Directions
Boil noodles according to package directions and strain. While noodles are in colander, heat cheese powder and water or milk over medium heat (I do this in the pasta pot, but you could also use a separate small saucepan) for about 5 minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken. Return noodles to pot and toss to coat.
The Results
The kids went crazy for this mac and cheese. I thought it was OK, and my husband didn’t like it much. But I suppose that’s to be expected from a kid-friendly mac. For me, the nutritional yeast flavor was pretty dominant and that’s definitely an acquired taste. If you’re a fan of the semi-cheesy nutritional yeast taste, you’ll like this one, too. If I make the mix again I might reduce the yeast a tad in favor of a bit more powdered cashew so the nuttiness comes out a bit more.
Kristi is a former newspaper reporter and editor who is now a vegetarian mom, married to a meat-eating dad and parenting two undecided kids. Join the family on our journey creating whole foods recipes to suit our blended-eater lifestyle. 
