Macaroni and No Cheese by Kim Campbell in The PlantPure Nation Cookbook.
From Kim: This is a great kid-friendly recipe. The cheese sauce is butternut squash and cashew–based, which gives it a slightly sweet flavor. I typically put peas in this dish but have also been known to add onion, spinach, or even a few mushrooms.
Yields: 6 servings | Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
1 cup cooked and mashed butternut squash
¼ cup raw cashews
1½ cups nondairy milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
½ tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
12 ounces macaroni noodles (brown rice or whole wheat)
1 cup peas
½ cup panko bread crumbs
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Place the cooked butternut squash, cashews, milk, cornstarch, nutritional yeast, Dijon, garlic powder, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a Vitamix or other high-powered blender. Blend until smooth and creamy.
3. Transfer to a saucepan over medium heat and whisk until thickened. If you prefer it thinner, add water.
4. Cook the pasta noodles according to the package directions.
5. Combine the pasta noodles, sauce, and peas in a casserole dish, and sprinkle with the panko bread crumbs.
6. Bake, uncovered, for 20–30 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly.
Kim’s Hints:
• Using frozen butternut squash is a huge time-saver.
• It’s a good idea to soak your cashews for a few hours and rinse if you do not have a high-powered blender such as a Vitamix. This will help give you creamier results.
• You can add other vegetables such as spinach or broccoli.
• Try adding Mexican Spice Blend to the sauce and green chiles and red kidney beans to the macaroni—now you have a chili mac dish!
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I just decided to move my life to a more vegetarian diet. I am on a fixed budget with just social security and have several health issues. I drove an OTR truck for over 20 years and gained weight until I got type 2 diabetes and could not drive anymore. I went through major depression and gained even more weight to a high of over 880 lbs. I went to find out about lapband surgery and was told I would have to lose several hundred pounds to qualify for the surgery. I got mad and over several years lost down to 480 lbs. My doctor is 7th Day Adventist and has been on me about becoming vegetarian for health reasons so I decided to. I am so confused about the different types of vegetarians some eat chicken or fish, some eat eggs, some eat dairy, some eat both eggs and dairy, and some are totally vegan. What are the health issues of the different types? I am leaning toward an ovo-lactose where eggs and dairy are okay but everything else is plant-based. Any information you can give me would be helpful. Tony J.