Mac n Cheese – an absolute American classic and the ultimate comfort food recipe. Well, if we are honest, then the orignial recipe version unfortunately has nothing to do with comfort food, in the conventional sense of “digestible”. The popular American classic, whose main ingredients are macaroni and cheese, is absolutely no lightweight. Personally, for me the classic version is simply too much of everything. Too much cheese, too much cream and in the end too much fat in just one meal. This makes them anything but digestible for me, but rather a guarantor for a subsequent food coma starre.
That’s why I thought it’s time for a healthy interpretation of this popular classic. I prepared my recipe without any cheese or cream. Nevertheless, you won’t miss anything in terms of taste, because this sauce is a real highlight. Maybe you’re wondering whether this can work at all? Of course, the question is justified, because cheese is exactly what the recipe is all about in the end. However, how well the whole thing works in the vegan version and how delicious the end result is, you should definitely see for yourself. I was surprised myself, but immediately there and away and super enthusiastic.
Mac n Cheese without cheese, without cream, without butter…
The recipe came up last week quite spontaneously. Somehow, as always at this time of the year, I had some pumpkin puree left over. I also felt like making noodles. Nothing simpler than combining both, seasoning with spices and “baking over”. Some of you have watched me preparing it on instagram and have been eagerly waiting for the recipe ever since.
These Mac n Cheese are made super fast, taste a dream and at the same time so healthy because of the pumpkin puree. For the preparation you only need 4 ingredients (without spices), namely pumpkin puree, some olive oil, cashew cream and a garlic clove. And believe me, even without cheese and cream, this Mac n Cheese recipe will be super creamy. You will definitely not miss cream and cheese in this recipe.
My tip for healthy Mac n Cheese…
Use pumpkin puree instead of cheese (even looks similar) and homemade cashew cream instead of cream. Finally the whole thing is seasoned with a strong pinch of nutmeg. For the extra nutty and crunchy taste I added some ground almonds and cashew nuts as topping. That’s really all it takes for a healthy and delicious Mac n Cheese recipe. Without a subsequent food coma, that’s exactly what I call comfort food at its best.
What do you think about it? Do you want to give it a try?
Mac n Cheese with pumpkin | Healthy & made fast {vegan}
Zutaten
- 1 Hokkaido pumpkin
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tbsp. thyme (fresh or dried)
- 100 ml cashew cream (or any plantmilk of your choice)
- sea salt
- black pepper
- grated nutmeg
- 500 g noodles
- 1 tsp. curcuma powder
- 50 g almonds
- 50 g cashews
- 1 dried chilli pepper
Anleitung
- Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet. Remove the seeds from the pumpkin and cut into small pieces. Then simmer with some water and 2 teaspoons curcuma powder for about 10 minutes until the skin is soft. Allow to cool and puree pumpkin pieces with a hand blender.
- Peel and chop the garlic clove. Heat olive oil in a pot. Steam the garlic clove in it. Add thyme and pumpkin puree and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in cashew cream and grated nutmeg. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
- Grind the almonds, cashews and the dried chilli pepper together. Pour the pasta into an ovenproof mould. Add the pumpkin sauce and top with the almond cashew mix. Bake at 180 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.
