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This is the creamiest and BEST vegan baked mac and cheese, featuring a crispy, buttery cracker topping that perfectly complements the dish. This recipe combines a homemade béchamel, vegan cheddar cheese, and baked sweet potato to create an insanely creamy, thick, and dairy-free cheese sauce!
Originally Published: March 7, 2021 | Updated: March 4, 2024
Why You’ll Love this Vegan Baked Mac and Cheese
Hands down, this is the best vegan baked mac and cheese and a family favorite in my house. This is one of those go-to recipes that I end up making whenever I’m not sure what I want for dinner, and it always turns out to be a winner.
This vegan baked mac and cheese is creamy, crispy, and cheesy, thanks to a combination of a plant-based béchamel, vegan cheddar cheese, and a secret ingredient that you won’t even know is there: sweet potato! Here are few more reasons we love this recipe and you will too:
Emily’s Recipe Notes:
- Flavor: Cheesy, salty, and savory.
- Texture: Insanely cheesy, creamy and crispy thanks to the topping that gets golden brown when baked.
- Difficulty: Easy!
- Picky Eater Approved: This recipe is great if you have picky eaters and you want to sneak some veggies in!
- Affordable: Unlike other vegan mac and cheese recipes, this one doesn’t use any pricey raw cashews or nuts. Instead we are using cost effective sweet potatoes!
Ingredients
Like I mentioned above, this recipe is a little different because it has a super-secret ingredient which makes it lighter than traditional mac. We’re using baked sweet potatoes!
The baked sweet potato adds so much creaminess and the slightest touch of sweetness to the sauce. Plus a bunch of vitamins and fiber. Below are the other ingredients you’ll need to make this easy vegan mac and cheese:
For the Vegan Cheese Sauce:
- Unsweetened Almond Milk: make sure to use unsweetened, unflavored almond milk!
- Vegan Butter: I’m using Country Crock Plant Butter but Earth Balance also works in this recipe. The vegan butter is to make a roux.
- Flour: to help thicken the cheese sauce.
- Vegan Cheddar Cheese: The best vegan cheese for this recipe are Daiya and Violife cheddar shreds. They both melt wonderfully. Violife is a bit saltier than Daiya.
- Baked Sweet Potato: to add creaminess and flavor to the sauce.
- Garlic Powder: to add flavor to our sauce.
- Dried Onion: to add even more flavor to our sauce!
- Salt & Pepper
- Pasta of Choice: I’m using macaroni, but you could also use small shells or elbow noodles.
For the Crispy Cracker Topping:
- Crushed Crackers: I’m using Ritz crackers that I pulsed in my food processor.
- Nutritional Yeast: for some additional salty, ‘cheesy’ flavor.
- Melted Vegan Butter: this is to help crisp up the cracker topping.
Substitutions
- Almond Milk: Any plant milk or dairy free milk will work. Some of my favorites are oat milk or soy milk.
- Vegan Cheddar Cheese: Another plant-based cheese flavor, like mozzarella or Swiss, can be used instead. If you’re not a fan of vegan cheese, it can be omitted from the roux. Just be sure to add about 1/4 tsp extra salt and 2-3 extra tablespoons of nutritional yeast to taste.
- Crackers: Feel free to swap out the crushed crackers for breadcrumbs. Regular buttery breadcrumbs or Panko breadcrumbs will work.
- Pasta: Use a gluten free alternative if you’d like. I’ve made this recipe many times with brown rice pasta and it always turns out delicious.
Helpful Equipment
- Large Pot and Small Pot: for cooking the pasta and making the cheese sauce
- High Speed Blender: To blend up the cheese sauce
- Casserole Dish or Baking Dish: for baking the pasta
Step By Step Guide
Prep the Sweet Potato:
Bake the sweet potato by roasting in a preheated oven at 425F for 40-55 minutes. This can be done in advance.
Blend up the baked sweet potato, salt & pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, nutritional yeast, and half the almond milk in a high-speed blender. Once it’s blended up and super smooth, set the mixture aside.
Make The Vegan Cheese Sauce:
In a small saucepan, you’ll want to melt the vegan butter. Once it starts bubbling, whisk in the flour. It should form a paste-like consistency. Make sure to cook this mixture for about 2 minutes. This is to get the raw flour taste out and make the flour safe to eat.
Next, slowly pour in the remaining non-dairy milk, while continuing to whisk the mixture. Keep on whisking consistently for 3-5 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken. Be sure not to let the dairy-free milk boil!
Once thickened, add in the vegan cheddar cheese (or vegan mozzarella shreds). Stir the mixture until the cheese is mostly melted.
Then, add the melty cheese mixture to the sweet potato mixture in the blender, and blend it up on high until combined and super smooth. This should make about 4-5 cups of cheese sauce.
Make the Noodles & Bake:
In a large pot of salted water, boil the noodles for 2-3 minutes less than the package directions state.
Drain and pour 3/4 of the cheesy sauce on the cooked macaroni. Mix the sauce with the cooked pasta.
Transfer to a baking pan greased with vegan butter or olive oil. Mix the crushed crackers, nutritional yeast and melted vegan butter together in a small bowl.
Then sprinkle the crackers on top. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Serving Ideas
Once baked, the vegan mac and cheese is ready to be served in individual bowls or on plates. As mentioned earlier, it’s a good idea to drizzle some of the reserved cheese sauce over the top for added creaminess and flavor. Season with black pepper and salt to taste, and consider garnishing with fresh chopped parsley or basil for a pop of color and freshness.
This vegan mac and cheese recipe is comforting main dish but can also act as a perfect side dish for summer barbecues, picnics or special occasions like Thanksgiving. Below are some ideas for dishes to pair it with:
- Stuffing Casserole
- Vegan Roast Dinner
- Vegan Ribs
- Crispy Tofu Nuggets
- Vegan Sloppy Joes
- Three-Bean Salad
- Vegan Coleslaw
- Vegan Burgers
- Grilled Tofu Steaks
Storage
This mac and cheese recipe yields approximately 5-6 servings, making it perfect for meal prepping or enjoying leftovers. To store, cover the mac and cheese casserole pan and refrigerate for up to 2-3 days.
Or, you can freeze the mac and cheese in an airtight container for longer storage.
Helpful Tips For Amazing Vegan Baked Mac
- Bake the Sweet Potato Ahead of Time: The sweet potato can be prepared a few days in advance to make this recipe super fast and easy on weeknights.
- Simmer the Vegan Cheese Sauce Until Thickened: Make sure to cook the vegan cheese sauce for a sufficient amount of time. Skimping on the simmering time will result in a thinner sauce that doesn’t adhere to the noodles as effectively.
- Season with Salt and Pepper to Taste: The vegan cheese, butter, and nutritional yeast all contribute sodium to the sauce. However, the amount of sodium can vary depending on the brands you use. To achieve the best flavor, adjust the seasoning by adding salt and pepper according to your preferences.
- Save Some Sauce for Serving: As the pasta tends to absorb some of the sauce overnight in the refrigerator, having extra sauce on hand makes sure that your mac and cheese remains creamy and delicious.
these create the best flavor & texture!
FAQ
This recipe makes about 4 cups of cheese sauce. You’ll use about 3 cups in the recipe and you should have about 1 cup remaining.
This extra 1 cup is great to pour on top of the mac and cheese after it finishes baking. Baking can sometimes dry out the pasta, so if you like extra saucy mac and cheese it’s always nice to have more sauce.
If you refrigerate your leftovers, the sauce will also absorb into the pasta a bit. I like to add this extra 1 cup of sauce to my pasta the next day.
While I think this recipe is the best with sweet potatoes, you can substitute roasted butternut squash instead. The sauce will be less orange and the flavor will be a bit different.
You could also try substituting the same amount of roasted carrots, however, I have not tried this and cannot guarantee results.
I do not recommend leaving the flour out. The flour is necessary for thickening the sauce. Without it, the cheese sauce will be too runny.
Yes, you can substitute another plant-based milk in this recipe. I’m using almond milk because of its neutral flavor. You could try oat milk, rice milk, or soy milk instead.
I do not recommend using coconut milk, since the flavor will be overpowering in the sauce.
More Vegan Pasta Recipes
- Creamy Vegan Alfredo
- The Best Vegan Basil Bechamel Lasagna
- Homemade Butternut Squash Ravioli
- Vegan Baked Ziti
Vegan Baked Mac and Cheese
Rate this RecipeIngredients
Pasta:
- 1 lb dried macaroni, small shells or elbows
- 1 tbsp vegan butter
Cheese Sauce:
- 2 cups baked sweet potato, 420g – about 2 medium sweet potatoes (see notes)
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 2 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk, divided
- 3 tbsp vegan butter
- 5 tbsp all-purpose flour, 40g
- 2 heaping cups vegan cheddar cheese, Daiya or Violife (or shredded vegan mozzarella)
Crispy Topping:
- 1 ½ cups crushed round crackers, 90g – like Ritz
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp melted vegan butter
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9×13″ casserole dish.
- Cook the pasta 2-3 minutes less than instructions on the package indicate. Once cooked, stir in 1 tbsp vegan butter to coat all the pasta, this helps the pasta from absorbing too much sauce while baking. Set aside until your sauce is ready.1 lb dried macaroni, 1 tbsp vegan butter
To Make the Sauce:
- Add the baked sweet potato, pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, nutritional yeast and half the almond milk into a blender. Blend on high until smooth. Leave the mixture in the blender and set aside.2 cups baked sweet potato, ¼ tsp black pepper, ¾ tsp salt, 1 tsp onion powder, ½ tsp paprika, 1 tsp garlic powder, ¼ cup nutritional yeast, 2 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk
- In a small saucepan, melt the vegan butter. Once bubbling, whisk in the flour. It should form a paste. Cook for 2 minutes.3 tbsp vegan butter, 5 tbsp all-purpose flour
- Slowly pour in the remaining almond milk (about 1 ¼ cup), while continuing to whisk. Whisk the mixture consistently for 3-5 minutes until it begins to thicken. Do not let the almond milk boil.2 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk
- Once thickened, add the vegan cheddar cheese. Whisk the mixture until the cheese is mostly melted.2 heaping cups vegan cheddar cheese
- Add the cheese mixture to the sweet potato mixture in the blender. Blend on high until combined and super smooth. This should make about 4-5 cups of cheese sauce (see notes).
Assembly:
- Add ¾ of the cheese sauce to the cooked pasta. Stir to coat all of the noodles.
- Pour the mac and cheese into the prepared casserole dish.
- In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the cracker topping. Sprinkle the topping onto the mac and cheese in the pan.1 ½ cups crushed round crackers, ¼ cup nutritional yeast, 2 tbsp melted vegan butter, ¼ tsp salt
- Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top. Spoon the remaining cheese sauce on top of individual servings when ready to serve.
Recipe notes
- Preheat the oven to 425F. Wash and poke holes in your sweet potatoes. Lay them on a parchment-lined baking tray. Bake at 425F for 40-55 minutes. Let cool before removing the insides.
- This recipe makes about 4 cups of cheese sauce. I recommend pouring 3 cups (or ¾ of the sauce) onto the pasta and reserving the remaining 1 cup to add to your pasta once baked.
- This remaining 1 cup of sauce is also great to add to leftovers the next day. The pasta will absorb some of the sauce overnight in the fridge, so it’s nice to have extra.
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I don’t like sweet potatoes but this recipe is amazing!! I added more black pepper, white pepper, a little more salt, and some lemon juice to bring out the flavors. This dish is easily a new favorite. Thank you! 🙂
Thank you so much, I’m glad you enjoyed it! Lemon juice sounds like a great addition, good idea!
Creamy and delicious 🙂
👍👍