Home » Diet » Vegan » Vegan Jalapeno Popper Mac And Cheese
Jump To Recipe 19 reviews posted Oct 31, 2018 by Jessica Hoffman
This vegan jalapeno popper mac and cheese is the ultimate creamy & delicious mac and cheese recipe. Made with a creamy cashew sauce and filled with bits of jalapeno pepper for an extra kick!
This post is in partnership with Carrington Farms.
Today is a special day. Because today is the day for vegan jalapeno popper mac and cheese. That’s right. We’re doing creamy cheesy cashew sauce loaded up with garlic, onion, jalapenos, tossed together with macaroni, topped off with coutrons and then broiled to perfection.
Drooling yet?
Vegan Mac and Cheese – Comfort and Health Food?
This is one of those recipes that falls under the category of ultimate comfort food. I’m talking bundle up in a big sweater, sit by the fireplace (or if you don’t have one like me, lighting a candle totally counts.) and eat a big bowl of mac and cheese. (Then when you’re done why not make a big bowl of vegan pumpkin alfredo?#carblife)
Although this is comfort food, this is one of those ‘sneaky’ comfort food recipes that is secretly still pretty healthy. The base of the sauce is made from raw cashews (healthy) and gets tossed up with garlic, onions and
A few notes on this recipe:
This vegan jalapeno popper mac and cheese starts off with a creamy cashew sauce and vegan cream cheese. If you can’t find vegan cream cheese at your local grocery shop, you can just omit it from the recipe entirely.
The sauce will be partially prepared in the blender, and then gets finished up in a pan. The sauce will be quite liquid after blending-don’t worry! It will thicken up a lot in the pan and become rich & creamy.
One of my favourite tricks to making any pasta recipe extra creamy is to reserve some pasta water to add back to the sauce. For this recipe, set aside 1/2 cup of pasta water before draining the pasta. (Trust me on this one!)
This mac and cheese
This vegan jalapeno popper mac and cheese is:
- Made with naturally & healthy ingredients
- Can be made gluten-free or whole-grain (whatever pasta you like!)
- Makes the ultimate healthy comfort food!
Vegan jalapeno popper mac and cheese
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star4.9 from 19 reviews
- Author: Jess
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: American
Description
Say hello to the ultimate comfort food! This mac and cheese is the best!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked in water overnight then drained
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tspdijon mustard
- 1/2 tspsalt
- 1/2 tsppepper
- 1 tbsp avocado oil (or vegetable oil)
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 jalapeno peppers, seeds removed and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp vegan cream cheese
- 250 grams pasta of choice (I used gluten-free cavatappi)
- 1/2 cup of crounons or gluten-free croutons, crushed
Instructions
- Add the cashews, water, nutritional yeast, dijon mustard, salt and pepper to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
- Heat the avocado oil in a pan on medium-high heat, then add the onion and cook for 2 minutes.
- Next, add the garlic and jalapenos and cook for another minute.
- Reduce heat to medium and add the cream cheese and cashew sauce to the pan, stirring until everything is well incorporated.
- Add the pasta and 1/2 cup of pasta water to the pan and mix everything together, letting cook for 2-3 minutes until thick and creamy.
- Transfer the mac and cheese to a baking dish and top with the crushed croutons.
- Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes (keep a close eye on it!) until browned.
- Remove and serve.
Notes
Salt your pasta water to give your pasta some extra flavour! If you can’t find vegan cream cheese you can just omit it from this recipe.
Nutrition
- Calories: 395
- Sugar: 4g
- Fat: 21g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 13g
This post contains affiliate links which means I will make a small commission if you purchase through those links. I only recommend products that I know, trust and love!
This post contains affiliate links which means I will make a small commission if you purchase through those links. I only recommend products that I know, trust and love!
30-Minute Meals Gluten Free Popular recipes Recipes Vegan Winter
posted by Jessica Hoffman on October 31, 2018 (updated June 29, 2021)
58 Comments Leave a Comment »
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58 comments on “Vegan Jalapeno Popper Mac And Cheese”
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Camille Zinsmeister — Reply
Your recipes are simple and easy. Enjoyed the watermelon pizza. IT was Very refreshing .
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
So glad you enjoyed it!
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Carly — Reply
Honestly this is my absolute FAVORITE vegan Mac & Cheese – and I’ve tried many and am a #1 Mac fan. I’ve made this recipe dozens of times and it’s always a hit. Thank you so so much for a simple and tasty meal with such unique and delicious flavors!
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Thank you so much Carly!! I’m so happy this is your favourite! 🙂
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Brenda Walkky — Reply
Can you make any of this ahead of time?
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Hi Brenda, you could- but this recipe is definitely best made and served fresh. If you want to do some prep-work ahead of time I’d recommend preparing the sauce and cooking the pasta and then when you want to serve it prepare the rest of the recipe.
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Chris King — Reply
Very good and simple. The cream cheese def adds a layer and is worth it.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Happy you enjoyed Chris!
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Jennifer Reidy — Reply
Amazing! Oh my goodness, this is a go to around here! My husband LOVES spicy things and I love cheesy things so this is a perfect combo! AND my son can eat this too!
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
So happy you loved the recipe Jennier!
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Laura — Reply
This sounds really good! What brand of vegan cream cheese do you recommend? I’m fairly new to trying vegan recipes and foods. Thanks!
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Hi Laura, i like the brand kite hill foods (it tastes honestly REALLY good!) If needed you can also just leave it out of the recipe entirely. Still delicious without it!
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Lily — Reply
Wow!!! Honestly so good this is one of my absolute favorite recipes now! I switched it up a bit because I like things really spicy so I added a ton of red pepper flakes, and added vegan butter, vegan shredded mozzarella, and almond milk instead of water to the sauce and it was so incredible.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Thanks for the review Lilu! So happy you enjoyed 🙂
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Jessica — Reply
It is so yummy. It doesn’t have a really deep flavor though. I blend a bulb of roasted garlic in the cashew sauce. It really elevates it.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Glad you enjoyed the recipe Jessica!
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Jenni Copeland — Reply
Question, I just came across this recipe and want to make it right now. Is it absolutely necessary to soak the cashews? Wondering what happens if I don’t.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Hi Jenni, yes it is necessary! Soaking the cashews softens them and allows them to blend up into a cream. If you don’t soak them, you won’t end up with a cashew cream which is essential for the recipe
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Dana Sawalha — Reply
Just made this! YUMMY great recipe, super easy!
as a trick instead of soaking cashews for 24 hours/overnight, I boil the cashews in water with a squirt of lemon juice, then cover and let it sit for 15 minutes. It was extremely creamy
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Glad you ejoyed the recipe Dana!
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Natalie Ebsworth — Reply
Sooo good!!
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Lucy Goode — Reply
This was fantastic! I was worried that the sauce seemed very thin when I was blending it, but has luckily read the comments. Couldn’t believe how think and lovely if went once heated. Definitely will make again!
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
So happy you enjoyed the recipe Lucy 🙂
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Casi — Reply
Made this for dinner tonight and quickly have added it to our rotation! Every single kid likes it!!!! Thank you
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Thanks for the review Casi! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, SO thrilled it was a crowd pleaser! 🙂
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Eve — Reply
If I make this recipe and keep in in a crockpot for the day will it keep the right consistency and taste?
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Anna Oppermann — Reply
The taste should remain the same, but I’m not sure about the consistency! The pasta may just be a little softer than normal. Let me know how it works out if you end up trying it in a crockpot!
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Marrok — Reply
We really enjoyed this dish. I was worried about the consistency of the blended cashew, but it turned out just fine. Excellent with some hot sauce on top!. This made our “repeats” list for sure!
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Sarena — Reply
Looks great. Can I freeze this dish?
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Hi Sarena, this recipe is best enjoyed fresh and doesn’t freeze well.
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Courtney R — Reply
Easy and delicious! I was really impressed. I did add a little more crushed croutons and a sprinkle of vegan parm but I can tell it wasn’t necessary.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Thank you for the review Courtney! So glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
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Amanda — Reply
I was worried at first that I did something wrong, as the sauce was funnier than I thought it would be in the blender. But by the time it was all cooked, it came out thick. Thank you for the recipe!
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Amanda — Reply
I just blended the sauce in the blender. I am surprised because it’s very watery. Is that normal? I am wondering if I should even continue with the recipe or if something is wrong.
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Jessica Hoffman — Reply
Hi Amanda, yes the cashew cream isn’t a thick mixture. It cooks down quite a lot
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Natalie — Reply
Hey Jess, I love this recipe! So tasty and perfect amount of spice!
Did you have any suggestions for me to make it a little more creamy next time? ☺️
Thank you!-
Jess — Reply
Thank you, Natalie! If you’d like to make it even more creamier add an extra 1/4 cup of cashews to the recipe. This will make it more rich and creamy!
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Kacey — Reply
I made this tonight! Not only was it incredibly tasty, but easy, pretty quick and able to prep ahead of time. She hit all her marks: Cheesy. Spicy. Carby. Comforting.If I could give it 6 stars I would.
I swapped 1 tsp of white miso for 1 tsp of dijon with umami in mind. Rabbit and Wolves has a Jalapeño popper pizza with bacon style marinated mushrooms that I think will make an appearance in my next batch. I know there will be many!
Thanks for the awesome recipe!-
Jess — Reply
Hi Kacey, thank you so much for the review! I’m SO happy you loved this recipe so much, it’s one of my favourite comfort foods!
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Kristin Dillehay — Reply
I made this for dinner tonight and it was really good (and easy)! I used two jalapeños and seeded them as directed in the recipe. I would use three jalapeños next time, or maybe use two but not seed one of them. As it was, the recipe was not very spicy at all, but it was still quite tasty! Will definitely make it again.
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Jess — Reply
Hi Kristin, thank you for the review I’ glad to you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂 You can definitely leave the seeds in or add some more jalapenos if you love spice!
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Jenna — Reply
Any suggestions for a cashew replacement for a tree nut allergy?
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Jess — Reply
Hi Jenna, you can use coconut milk instead of the cashews and water!
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Candice — Reply
Is there sodium info for the nutrition section?
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Jess — Reply
Hi Candice, I’m sorry we don’t calculate the sodium for the recipe! You can easily adjust this based on how much salt you add you the recipe.
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Lucy — Reply
Seriously SO yum and comforting! I love the Jalapeno as an addition (I add hot sauce to everything so this saved me a step hehe) ?? DELISH!
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Jess — Reply
Thank you so much for the review Lucy!
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Bo — Reply
This looks insanely comforting! All about that pop of spice too, saving this recipe and will report back once I’ve eaten the whole dish to myself. #livinmybestlife
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Jess — Reply
Thanks so much Bo! The little bit of spiciness from the jalapeno is soooo good!
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Laurel — Reply
This Mac recipe sounds AMAZING! This really does sound like perfect Fall food: spicy, creamy, carby…. perfection!
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Jess — Reply
Thanks so much Laurel! It’s definitely the perfect (healthier) comfort food for Fall!:)
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Bianca Zapatka — Reply
This Mac and cheese bake looks super delicious, Jess! Love the crisp crust on top of the creamy pasta ?
Lots of love,
Bianca ❤️-
Jess — Reply
Thank you so much Bianca! Nothing better than a creamy pasta 🙂
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Ela — Reply
Vegan Jalapeno Mac and Cheese?! Yes, please! This dish looks so comforting and delicious!
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Jess — Reply
Thanks Ela! Nothing like a little spicy kick in a mac and cheese:)
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Sarah | Well and Full — Reply
I LOVE that you added jalapeno in this recipe, that’s such a fun twist on mac and cheese!
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Jess — Reply
Thanks Sarah! I LOVE jalapenos and they go so well in a mac and cheese!!
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