This gluten-free dairy-free mac and cheese gets its creamy base from a mixture of pumpkin puree, cashews, and plant-based milk. It’s truly the best lactose-free macaroni and cheese recipe I’ve ever made using only whole foods, including healthy wilted kale!
Ever since my husband started eating less dairy, I’ve been on a constant search for strategies to recreate his favorite childhood comfort foods, since unfortunately for gastro-intestinal purposes, this old standby GF mac and cheese is no longer on the menu.
Pumpkin puree is one of my favorite sneaky ingredients for adding a lot of nutrient density to creamy dairy-free sauces, and it works especially well in condiments that were originally orange-tinged (like this lactose-free queso).
Usually that orange color comes by way of a trashy cheese or a powdered packet in your favorite boxed gluten-free mac and cheese (for the record, mine is Annie’s… but I prefer the white cheddar mac!). So it’s a win win when you can replace the cheese entirely, get that orange pop of color, AND end up with a creamy healthy sauce in your bowl.
Pumpkin mac and cheese for the win!
How to make a dairy-free mac and cheese sauce
Despite growing up in the crunchiest, most granola-y of households, I didn’t encounter nutritional yeast until my adulthood.
The encounter was prompted by this creamy dairy-free artichoke dip, and then a full love affair was born out of these gluten-free cauliflower bites.
If you don’t know what nutritional yeast is (also known in wellness slang as “nooch”), here’s the cliff’s notes: unlike the type of yeast that’s used to catalyze the fermentation process for bread and beer, nutritional yeast is made from sugar cane (not hops) and is deactivated. If you heard the word yeast and immediately started to have candida and sibo nightmares, don’t worry. This is not that kind of yeast, and even if you have a bit of a bad yeast problem, it has no effect on the body.
The reason why people seek out this strange flakey powder—a finely ground cross between wood chips and bonito flakes—is it’s packed with B vitamins, amino acids, and a host of other minerals. As you probably learned in my book The Wellness Project, vitamin B12 is one of the biggest nutrient deficiencies found in Hashimoto’s sufferers. While it’s not naturally produced by nutritional yeast, many products on the market are often fortified with it, making it a very tasty way to eat your vitamins.
And speaking of tasty, the reason so many lactose-free mac and cheese lovers gravitate towards nutritional yeast is because of the flavor—nutty, cheesy, savory. It adds that je ne sais quoi to many dairy-free versions of classic comfort food like macaroni and cheese, including bone broth, gluten-free gravy, and other creamy sauces.
After experimenting, I knew the next stop on my nutritional yeast journey was a creamy gluten-free dairy-free mac and cheese, preferably one that resembled the bright orange goo of my favorite childhood microwavable version.
The best lactose-free milk for macaroni and cheese
To make the dairy-free mac and cheese bechamel base as creamy as possible, I used a combination of cashew milk, which on the richness spectrum, is one of the creamiest non-dairy milks around, and pumpkin puree, which already has an amazing saucy consistency.
Whole raw cashews give the sauce even more body, and lemon juice, miso paste and smoked paprika give the nutritional yeast extra umami, smoke and saltiness.
If you’re low FODMAP or sensitive to cashews, you can easily replace the dairy-free milk with other options like almond, oat, or hemp. Coconut milk also gets brownie points for richness, though some people don’t love that hint of coconut flavor in the background. I usually find when you add enough lemon juice and other savory flavorings, like we do here and in my dairy-free fish pie or gluten-free chicken pot pie recipes, you hardly notice the coconut.
Finally, to replace the cashews entirely in this lactose-free macaroni and cheese, you can opt for soaked sunflower seeds. Cashews get all the attention in the lactose-free world, but there are actually other nuts and seeds that can add similar body to a dairy-free sauce.
What pasta to use in gluten-free mac and cheese
Any short shape gluten-free pasta will work in this recipe. I’m partial to brown rice fusilli since the corkscrew shape will clink nicely to the sauce.
Make sure to only cook the pasta until al dente, usually less time than is called for on the package. You can find more pointers for how to cook gluten-free pasta here – there are quite a few pitfalls to avoid, actually! And there are more gluten-free sauce ideas here.
More dairy-free gluten-free recipes to serve alongside this mac and cheese:
Read on for this delicious dairy-free GF pumpkin mac and cheese recipe!
With health and hedonism,
Phoebe
Dairy-Free Pumpkin Mac and Cheese (No Gluten or Lactose!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cashews
- 12 ounces gluten-free brown rice fusilli
- Sea salt
- Olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 bunch kale stems removed and finely chopped
- 7 ounces organic Pumpkin Puree
- 1 cup cashew milk or other plant-based milk (see notes)
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon white miso or chickpea miso
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs optional
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler.
- In a medium heat-proof bowl, cover the cashews in boiling water and set aside to soak for 15 minutes.
- Bring a large pot of heavy salted water to boil and cook the gluten-free pasta until a minute shy of the packaged directions. Drain thoroughly.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large oven-proof skillet. Sauté the onion and garlic over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of a blender.
- Add the kale to the pan and sauté over medium heat until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and toss together with the cooked pasta. Set the skillet aside.
- To the blender bowl containing the onion mixture, add the pumpkin puree, lactose-free milk, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, miso, lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender. Puree the dairy-free "cheese" mixture until very smooth and the consistency of a velvety soup.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the breadcrumbs with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, if using.
- Pour the lactose-free pumpkin sauce over the gluten-free pasta and stir until it coats every noodles. Spread in an even layer and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs, if using.
- Transfer the skillet to the broiler and brown for 5 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling. Enjoy hot, straight from the pan.
Nicole Perry says
The color on this is amazing — so cozy! Have a great time in LA! I was there about a month ago and ate wonderfully :). Here are a few recs; most aren’t new, but they aren’t on your guide, so you might not have checked them out:
Dinette — cute cafe in Echo Park with counter service. There’s only outdoor seating, so go when the weather’s nice (which is I guess is pretty much always in LA). Get the cardamom tea.
Chengdu Taste — in the SGV but really not that far away, especially if you’re coming from the East side/central LA. Crazy good Sichuan food. We tried a ton of stuff, which was all good, my faves were the fish in chili sauce and mung bean noodles.
Botanica — hip vegetable-centric food in Silver Lake done really well (I believe this opened in the last year?). I also went to Kismet (which has a similar vibe) and liked that, but not quite as much as Botanica; that said, would definitely go back, because it was very nearly great, and I think it may have just been an off night.
Otium — I had a couple of fabulous drinks here (can’t comment on the food) before going to The Broad. Gorgeous restaurant, sounds like it has great seafood.
Also, not a restaurant recommendation, but the Cactus Store in Echo Park is so fun and Instagrammable. (Worth checking out if you’re in the area, say after breakfast at Dinette.)
Phoebe Lapine says
Thank you for the incredible advice!! Botanica is top of my list – it hadn’t opened last time I was in town and on the east side! I also went to Kismet and felt a little meh about the whole thing. The food was beautiful, I just don’t go for the uber conceptual stuff. I’d much rather have comfort food! Will definitely check out the cactus store!! xoxo
Reubi says
Made this – delicious and easy! A new favorite I’ll be making regularly ❤️
Phoebe Lapine says
yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed!
Samantha says
I don’t have cashew milk but I do have all the other ingredients…can I make my own or substitute say, almond milk?
Phoebe Lapine says
Definitely! Either would work.
Maria says
SO SO yummy!!! I did cumin and paprika because I didn’t have smoked paprika on hand and it still turned out good. Would’ve added just a little bit more sauce though.
Phoebe Lapine says
yay i’m so glad!
Julia says
Hello Phoebe,
first of all-I love your recipes! I’m considering making this dish tonight (looks delightful) but I was wondering if I could skip the miso? Solely because I don’t have any in the kitchen. I just wasn’t sure if it would make or break the dish?
Phoebe Lapine says
yes no problem! hope you love it!
Jess says
Hi Phoebe, Hope all’s well. Have you tried this with regular dairy (vs nut milk) and maybe some sub for cashews? I want to make it to accomodate a nut allergy but not sure how much I can modify.
Phoebe Lapine says
can you do coconut milk? that’s much thicker, so you should be able to get away with omitting cashews and just using a can of coco instead of the milk
Toni Considine says
My sister is allergic to gluten. So for the holiday this week, I was designated to make macaroni salad. I have made it on occasion before with no problems. It was a brown rice pasta, which i don’t like. This week was my first flop with a gluten-free pasta. I made the macaroni salad and texturally it was awful. When the pasta tasted and tested done to me, it later got hard (as if not fully cooked) after it was drained and cooled. It was as if raw in parts of the pasta., and texture was awful for a pasta. In my opinion it is not edible. Why would this occur and What to do to avoid it in the future? Should we stay away from brown rice pasta altogether? Thank you!
Stephanie says
Would this be low FODMAP if I sub out the cashew milk? Thanks!!!