Y’ALL.
Easy dairy free cauliflower mac and cheese is in the HOUSE and it has got me all 😭 over here because I’m so excited to share it with you.
A good recipe for mac and cheese is never something you should keep to yourself.
I mean, you can MAKE mac and cheese and keep it for yourself – that’s pretty standard practice around our house. But the recipe, well that’s something that get’s better the more you spread around the cheesy-comfort-in-a-bowl LOVE.
I have to be honest with you, this is not reaaaaal mac and cheese. Like the kind with noodles and actual cheese. But I’m guessing you already figured that out because you’re smart like that.
I just knew you would get understand where I’m going with this one 😉
This is a cauliflower dish dressed up like mac and cheese for those days when you just really neeeeeed some comfort food in your life, but want it to include veggies, too.
And also spoiler alert – the sauce doesn’t taste exactly like cheese, really it’s more reminiscent of cheese. But I’m pretty sure it’s about as cheesy as you can get without being actual cheese. And it does satisfy exactly the same thing that real cheese does.
Is that weird? Maybe. Awesome? Absolutely.
Especially when draped over tenderly steamed cauliflower and loaded up into a bowl for all the comfort and joy a bowl of food can bring to the table.
This sauce, which really is the most glorious part about this recipe – in all of it’s cauliflower cashew goodness, can pretty much be summed up as… MAGIC.
Sincerely delicious magic.
It is creamy, decadent, and flavorful. It kind of looks like velveeta cheese (right?!) but tastes not like velveeta (#better).
But this recipe makes it taste better than velveeta will ever taste.
Which brings us to the age old question…
what’s in the sauce?
ALL THE YUMMY THINGS!
- Steamed cauliflower
- Raw cashews
- Nutritional yeast
- Lemon juice
- Dijon mustard (trust me on this one!)
- Turmeric (for that cheesy color)
- Garlic powder
THAT’S IT! See.. I told it it was magic.
It turns out that when you blend all these simple ingredients together they turn into the type of thing that you will make up recipes for just because you legit want to eat it with EVERYTHING. For the rest of your life. Seriously.
I’m thinking:
- Nachos
- Loaded baked potatoes
- Making it into queso dip
- Using it as a base for broccoli “cheddar” soup
- Etc etc etc 🎉
Get ready for cauliflower cashew cheese fest 2017 😛
But before we get too far down the yellow cheese road, let’s start with this cauliflower mac and cheese. Because the household that has eaten three batches of it in the last week wants you to try it too.
Want more easy veggie recipes? Check out these favorites!
- Lemon Garlic Roasted Asparagus {paleo + whole30 + vegan + keto}
- Charred Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Caper Basil Tahini Sauce {paleo + vegan}
- Roasted Delicata Squash with Fried Shallots Herbs and Brown Butter Yogurt Sauce {gluten free}
Did you make this recipe? I would love to know how it turned out for you! when you rate my recipes and leave feedback it helps me continue to improve. you can leave me a comment below, or snap a picture and post it to instagram with the tag @nyssaskitchen or hashtag #nyssaskitchen! xo
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Easy Dairy Free Cauliflower Mac and Cheese {vegan + paleo}
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: about 4 servings 1x
Description
Easy dairy free cauliflower mac and cheese is the most delicious way to satisfy your comfort food cravings!
Ingredients
for cauliflower base
- 1 very large head of cauliflower or 2 small heads
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- black pepper
for cauliflower cashew cheese sauce
- 1/2 cup cashews, soaked in hot water
- 1 cup very soft cooked cauliflower (reserved from 1st step – cauliflower base)
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/3 cup hot water + more as needed
for garnish
- paprika
- black pepper
- fresh herbs
- any additional add-ins (see notes)
Instructions
- Soak cashews in boiling water for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the cauliflower.
- Cut cauliflower into equal, bite size pieces.
- Bring about 1/4 inch of water to a boil in a large, shallow pan. Add 1/4 tsp salt and cauliflower florets.
- Turn heat down to medium high, cover and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes so, until fork tender but not falling apart.
- Remove all but 1 cup of the cauliflower using a slotted spoon. Set aside to drain in a colander or on a cutting board lined with a towel. Cook remaining cauliflower for another 3 or so minutes, until very soft, and falling apart. Add more water if the water in the pan starts to evaporate too quickly and pan is becoming dry.
- Move soft cooked cup of cauliflower to a blender or food processor along with soaked and drained cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, mustard, garlic powder, turmeric and sea salt along with the first 1/3 cup of hot water. Blend on high until smooth, adding more hot water if needed. You want the final consistency to be pourable, but still thick. I only ended up adding about 1 additional tablespoon.
- Wipe out skillet that you used to steam cauliflower and heat to medium heat with 1 tsp olive oil. Add drained cauliflower florets back to the pan along with 1/4 tsp salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Stir to coat in olive oil and salt and pepper.
- Pour sauce over cauliflower, toss gently with a spatula to coat. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Top with a little cracked black pepper, paprika and fresh herbs if using. Serve hot, but can be made ahead and easily re-heated.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 15 min
- Category: dinner
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: american
Joanne says
Delicious Thanks for sharing. ❤️❤️❤️
Nyssa Tanner says
So glad you liked it!
Ashley says
I can’t stop making this!
Shannon says
Omg this is amazing!! My partner is not a normally a fan of cauliflower but I know when he tastes this, he will LOVE it!! Thank you 🙂
Nyssa Tanner says
Yesss !! Love it so much. I have to agree that cauliflower is definitely up-leveled when paired with as much “cheesy” sauce as you can handle! 🙂
Janet McDonald says
Absolutely delicious, and so easy to make!! Thank you!
Nyssa Tanner says
So happy you enjoyed!! 🙂 Thanks for making and sharing a comment!
Kristy says
What can be substituted for the mustard and cashews if you’re strict AIP?
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Kristy! The mustard could be omitted, but unfortunately I haven’t tested any substitutes for the cashews in this recipe. Maybe coconut milk or coconut cream? You might want to check out this recipe – https://meatified.com/dairy-free-cheese-sauce-aip/ or this one – https://foodbymars.com/home/2020/best-dairy-free-cheese-sauces/#wprm-recipe-container-7862 for some modification ideas!
Britney says
I’ve had the hardest time with dairy free substitutes. I honestly hate them all : (
This is the first recipe I tried where it actually reminds me of cheese. This has been added to the recipe book for future meals!
Thank you SO much!
Nyssa Tanner says
Ahh YAY! That makes me so happy to hear! So glad you enjoyed + thank you for dropping me a note with your feedback! Hope you continue to enjoy 🙂
Fi says
This was so delicious, thank you for the recipe! I love mac and cheese but it drives my stomach insane, this dairy free version was so tasty. My boyfriend told me he’d be happy to eat it every night, so that’s a big thumbs up from him too! I added some mushrooms to the pan just before the cauliflower in step 7 and it was divine! Thanks again <3
Nyssa Tanner says
Yayy! So glad that you and your honey enjoyed it and that it satisfied your mac and cheese craving 🙂 The additions of mushrooms sounds SO good. I’ll have to give that a try next time I make it.
Joe says
I dont see any macro information. Can you supply serving size with carbs and fat please?
Thank you
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Joe, I’m slowly adding nutrition information to older posts. Just updated it for this one! You can now see the macros below the recipe card. Enjoy.
Linda Wilson says
Loved it and am making it again, I add macaroni to it and it’s amazing
Nyssa Tanner says
Ohh what a good idea! Love it. Thanks for commenting and making the recipe! 🙂
Katie says
This was so good! I added a little cayenne for personal preference but otherwise didn’t need to change a thing! Thanks for the recipe
Nyssa Tanner says
Yay yay! You’re so welcome. And I love that you added an extra kick of spice!
Daniel says
Can you use Organic Cashew Butter instead of soaking the nuts?
Nyssa Tanner says
I haven’t tried this myself, but it could possibly work. Definitely would need to use raw cashew butter, otherwise it won’t really emulsify the same way. If you try it I would start with maybe 1/3 cup raw cashew butter and 1/2 cup boiling water for step 6. Let me know if you give it a try! ☺️
Bonny says
Hi Nyssa – you mentioned you can make this sauce ahead and then reheat – is it also possible to freeze this and use later?
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Bonny! You know I haven’t tried freezing and thawing the sauce before. I imagine it would work, but there’s a chance it would separate and need to be re-blended before using. Let me know if you try it!
Johanna says
Wonderful recipe! Do you have any suggestions what I can substitute the nutritional yeast with?
Nyssa Tanner says
Thanks so much Johanna! Nutritional yeast is what really makes this dish taste “cheesy”, so substituting could be a little tricky, but if you do eat dairy you could try about 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese. For some plant based options you could try coconut aminos / tamari, or else look for a mushroom powder / seasoning blend – Trader Joe’s actually has a mushroom seasoning powder that’s delicious (but I would double check to make sure it doesn’t have nutritional yeast in the ingredients!) I would love to know how it turns out for you if you give it a try! 🙂
Kels says
Awesome recipe! Can’t wait to try it out!
Is there anything I can substitute the cashews with or can I omit the cashews?
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Kels! Thanks so much. Unfortunately the cashews make up the bulk of the sauce, so omitting them isn’t really an option. I haven’t tried any substitutes, but have considered testing a version that uses sunflower seeds instead of cashews. No guarantees though bc I have yet to try it! The texture may not be as creamy. I’ll be sure to be in touch if I have a chance to test it out
AJ says
This may be a silly question. But do you keep the water boiling for the 30 minutes or just bring to a boil and then soak for the cashews?
Can’t wait to try this!
Nyssa Tanner says
Not silly at all! Just bring to a boil and then soak the cashews in the hot water 🙂 I hope you love it! One of my faves ☺️☺️
Sarah says
I am allergic to garlic. Should I sub onion powder! Thanks❤️
Nyssa Tanner says
Yes that would be a great substitute! ☺️
Sherry says
So so good. I was craving comfort food and this hit the spot. Absolutely delicious.
Nyssa Tanner says
Yes! So glad you loved it! Healthy comfort food is the best
Rene says
Amazing!!! Totally curbs my Mac and cheese craving. One of the most “realistic” recipes I’ve tried. I went heavy on the Dijon and added some green peas and broccoli. This recipe will be on repeat.
Nyssa Tanner says
Ahh so awesome!! That’s what I was going for with the recipe for sure – a healthy option to satisfy the mac n cheese craving I’m so happy you loved it and the addition of green peas and broccoli sound perfect
Eytan Bernet says
This is so good I need to make it on a regular basis…
Nyssa Tanner says
Glad you love it, Eytan! ✨
Nyssa Tanner says
You’ll love it!