Baked Stuffing Mac and Cheese
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner, Comfort Food, Holiday
Cuisine: Vegan, Vegetarian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 8 servings
 
A creamy, rich mac and cheese, with all the warm buttery flavors of stuffing and loaded with fresh herbs and spices, covered in breadcrumbs and baked until crispy.
Ingredients
  • 1 butternut squash, peeled and chopped
  • 1 cup cashews (see notes)
  • ⅓ cup vegetable oil (neutral flavored)
  • ¼ cup almond milk
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp potato starch
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • ¼ cup pickled jalapenos
  • 3 tbsp pickled jalapeno brine
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 box macaroni noodles
  • 2 tbsp butter (for Vegan substitute vegan butter or olive oil)
  • 1 white onion, diced
  • 1 leek, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 portobello mushrooms, sliced
  • 8 oz cremini mushrooms, quartered
  • ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
  • 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 2 tbsp rubbed sage
  • 1 cup water from cooking macaroni
  • 1-2 cups panko breadcrumbs
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. While it's preheating, start on the cheese sauce. Cover the butternut squash with water in a medium size pot. Bring to a boil and then boil until the squash becomes soft. It should take around 15 minutes.
  2. When the squash is softened, drain it and transfer it to a high speed blender. Add the cashews, vegetable oil, almond milk, nutritional yeast, potato starch, garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt, tomato paste, pickled jalapenos, jalapeno brine, lemon juice, and apple cider vinegar. Blend on high until it it's smooth. Set the cheese sauce aside.
  3. In the same pot you cooked the squash in, cook the macaroni according to the directions on the package.
  4. Heat the butter or olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion and leeks until the leeks soften and the onions become translucent, about 5 minutes.
  5. Add in the garlic and mushrooms. Saute for 8-10 minutes until the mushrooms cook down. Add in the basil, rosemary and sage and toss to combine.
  6. Next, pour the cheese sauce into the pan, stir until everything is mixed and then heat it until the sauce starts to bubble. Remove from the heat and pour the breadcrumbs over the top. The entire top should be covered.
  7. Bake for 30 minutes until the top becomes browned.
Recipe by Almost Like Mom's at https://www.almostlikemoms.com/baked-stuffing-mac-and-cheese/