One of the things that has surprised me the most with vegan cuisine is how I’m able to create similar flavours and textures that I used to enjoy while eating animal products. The goal, for me, is not to aim for the vegan dish to taste exactly the same, but to try to bring out something about the non-vegan dish that I really enjoyed, like a rich sauce or a thick chocolaty pudding. This doesn’t apply to all foods however, I have no desire to create a dish that has the texture of meat because I just don’t crave that texture or taste anymore. It really just depends on the food!
[Butternut Squash Mac n Cheeze: Two Ways]
One of the things I’ve always loved about Mac ‘n Cheese is that it’s comforting and creamy. When I make a vegan version of Mac ‘n Cheese, I’m not trying to create a carbon copy, but a dish that gives me that same type of comforting feeling when I eat it.
Over the past couple years, I’ve found that I can create dishes that satisfy my cravings without having to sacrifice. I crave the new dishes that I make, instead of the dishes I used to eat. Now that I’m used to this lifestyle I rarely feel like I’m missing out. The only time I feel left out is when I am eating at a non-vegan friendly restaurant, otherwise I have so many choices the hardest part is trying to decide what I will eat!
One thing I don’t always enjoy about vegan cooking and baking is the often long ingredient list that is required to make some recipes. The recipes tend to involve more creativity, more spices & seasonings, and other ingredients to achieve that outcome that I’m looking for. It’s not necessarily a bad thing per say, but sometimes I just want a quick and dirty recipe that I know I can whip up within a minute’s notice.
This 5-ingredient cheeze sauce is one of those quick and dirty recipes that I know I will keep coming back to again and again! It’s hands down the easiest cheeze sauce I’ve made and it doesn’t require a food processor or other special kitchen tool. Just a stove top and a whisk…gotta love that!
Oh She Glows
Low-Fat Vegan Cheeze Sauce (updated version)
This is the Lexus of all the cheeze sauces I’ve made to date. It’s extremely smooth, buttery, and comforting!
Yield: 2/3 cup
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup unsweetened, unflavoured almond milk (or more as needed to thin out)
- 6 tbsp nutritional yeast (Bob’s Red Mill makes one in natural food section of most grocery stores or bulk food stores)
- 1 tbsp Earth Balance or other non-dairy buttery spread
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour (or other flour)
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1. In a skillet or pot, melt the Earth Balance over medium heat.
2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour and milk until all clumps are gone.
3. Add milk & flour mixture and nutritional yeast to pot and whisk well. Reduce heat to low-medium.
4. Add Dijon, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste and whisk frequently until the sauce thickens up, for about 5 minutes. If it’s still too thin you can add more flour to achieve the thickness you desire. To reheat: reheat in the microwave or on the stove-top (add a splash of milk if it’s too thick) and whisk well. Store in an air-tight container for up to 5-7 days.
Just 5 ingredients and just as delicious as the other sauces I’ve made!
I first made this sauce a couple weeks ago and we’ve been enjoying it a lot! I’ve poured it into pasta, on vegetables, sandwiches, etc. It’s so silky and delicious, you really have to try this. You could also get creative and add some herbs or spices to it to change it up quite easily.
Yesterday, I also made a fantastic lunch with it…
more on that recipe tomorrow!
The Quick & Dirty 7-Ingredient or Less Challenge
Speaking of short ingredient lists, I thought it would be fun to challenge myself to create more vegan recipes with as few ingredients as possible. Quick & Dirty recipes if you will!
My goal is to create more recipes with 7 ingredients or less that don’t require a lot of time or even special kitchen tools. It’s going to be tough, but I’m really excited for the challenge!
I’m curious, what’s your biggest cooking or baking hurdle? Long ingredient lists, hard to find ingredients, special kitchen tools, not enough time?
Leave me a comment below if you have any recipes in mind that you’d like ‘condensed’…no pun intended!
{ 182 comments… read them below or add one }
Expensive ingredients!!
I love chia seeds, nutritional yeast, larabars, etc, but they can pretty unfriendly to the ‘ole wallet. Worth it, but still :)
I’m making this sauce tonight! I tend to shy away from recipes that have too many steps. I know lasagna is easy to make but I find it a pain in the butt.
My trouble spot always comes with asian dishes – LOVE them, but so many steps!
I just made this and I AM DYING! this is better than even IKEA mac and cheese!
I used:
-arrowroot for the flour
-powdered soy milk and water for the milk (i think gave even more creamy consistency)
-olive oil for the earth balance
-and smothered some gluten free pasta with it!
Turned out incredibly and so easy! I’ll definitely be making this again soon!
I just made this and its the best cheezy sauce I’ve had yet, thank you thank you thank you!
Utterly divine. Thank you!
OH.MY.GOODNESS. SO amazing!!! I am seriously spooning it out of the pot!
haha I did too! :)
Your 5 ingredient sauce was amazing! I made it for Mac and Cheese today and my 3 year old had two bowls!!! LOVED IT! Thank you for not only sharing amazing recipes, but also easy and super yummy recipes!!
I am so glad you posted this quick and easy cheeze sauce recipe. I have been looking for easy recipes to make when I am busy with full-time work and school this fall, and this has just been added to the list :-)
I finally bought nutritional yeast and am ready to make that cheeze sauce!! :)
tempting to try with coconut flour…
My biggest cooking/baking hurdle is kind of tied between not knowing how. I can read a recipe but sometimes I can’t follow it because I’ve never really learned to cook so I don’t know what a lot of the words mean (and if I ask my sister what more than four or so means she takes over and does it for me).
That’s tied with hard to find ingredients. Except my hard to find ingredients are not so hard to find for a lot of people. I live in a small town that is really tough on vegetarians, let alone vegans. We have small health food store that sells some of the stuff (but only in really small amounts, like they seriously only seem to get Vegannaise in three jars a time) and the international aisle at the local Walmart that has stuff like miso but other than that you’re mostly out of luck. Actually there is a Trader Joes in another town near here. Near, that is, if you define near as two and half hours by highway away.
I finally made this sauce, and paired it with macaroni noodles (garnished with fresh ground pepper, paprika, and the last of my summer tomatoes on top) !! It was so delicious. Vegan mac and cheese is my favorite comfort food, and having this easy go-to sauce means I will be eating it all the time now! Thank you so much!
I made this sauce for the first time last night and used it with penne rice noodles, steamed collards, sauteed onion and smoked tempeh all put into a bowl with the cheeze sauce on top. FANTASTIC!! The BF loved it. I’ll be making it A LOT in the future!
This recipe rocks! I added 1/4 tsp chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and put it over black beans and diced zucchini and red pepper. Repeat worthy! Thank you!
I can’t wait to make this! i only have sweetened almond milk so I hope it turns out alright! :D
I didn’t have onion or garlic powder to hand so used a veg stock cube instead, came out perfect!!! Thanks so much! So quick and easy! :)
Hi! Do you think soy milk would work in place of the almond milk? I have nut allergies.
I cant see why not :)
The Soy milk was a success. This sauce is really yummy!
I am gonna make this in a few weeks. I have not made any sauce with cashews and was dread the idea of doing it. I want something easy and this sounds perfect. I am new to vegan so I am looking stuff up like crazy. If the didn’t have vegan dairy stuff i am not sure what i would have done.
Can I make this in the mirowave or do I have to do it in a pot on the stove? I bought all the stuff today and am gona make it either way I was just wondering and I am excited thats its simple and no food processer and I plan on putting it on spagetti squash. Please get back to me soon. I will then follow up with what I think after I eat it.
Just made the ‘cheese’ sauce, used olive oil instead of the “butter” was really yummy. Thank you!
This sauce is delicious. My biggest cooking hurdle is not being able to find special ingredients. I live in South Africa in a smallish town. So some ingredients I can’t find at all and some I can only find in speciality shops in bigger towns. But there are more and more things available and more shops selling health food online.
MMMMMmmmmm!!! I just made this on a whim and it is delicious I am eating it right now on top of a huge bowl of white rice and broccoli! :)
Yea this is awesome sauce, very cheezy!:)
Made it today for my low-carb vegan lunch dish (spaghetti squash masquerading as angel hair pasta hehe)
Oh my god! This recipe is just amazing, truly delicious. I have one little question though… Would it work if I replace the butter by olive oil? Thanks!
I replaced the almond milk and flour with almond milk yogurt and used this sauce for vegan scalloped potatoes. I’m pretty pleased with the result. Thanks for the recipe!
Love the idea of the cheese sauce. I’m making the transition to vegan, not because of a philosophy, but because I’m a cancer survivor and want to eat a wholefood plant-based diet. Giving up meat and most dairy for wonderful vegetables, fruit, grains, etc….no problem, but cheese is really a hard one. I lived in the UK for 15 years and used to eat the full fat French cheese, some so strong, they would make your eyes water…ha, ha. So using things like this cheese sauce in dishes; also the vegan Parm cheese recipes look interesting, combining nutritional yeast with nuts in the food processor. I used to use a lot of Parm cheese. Any dieas?
Hi Mary, I just posted a almond parm recipe on a b’nut squash recipe. Here it is if you’d like to check it out: http://ohsheglows.com/2012/09/24/roasted-butternut-squash-with-kale-and-almond-pecan-parmesan/
Thanks Angela. Sounds really great. I just happen to have most of these ingredients, so will try this tonight. Talk to you again soon.
What is the shelf life of the cheese sauce. How long will it stay in the Fridge….can it be frozen for later?
it should last a few days in the fridge (make sure you whisk it well when reheating as it can clump). I dont know if it can be frozen. Goodluck!
This recipe is awesome, simple and cheap! The kitchen smells delicious when I make it. It is now a regular staple here: we use it on these nuggets (joythebaker.com/2012/10/broccoli-potato-nuggets/) and on pasta. I’ll have to try it on pizza too.
Oh my goodness, this cheezy sauce is A-MAZ-ING! I modified the recipe some based on my likings and subbed extra virgin coconut oil for the Earth Balance. I added in some more garlic powder (I like garlic!), mild chili powder, a few dashes of low sodium soy sauce and a few sprinkles of smoked paprika. I made a double batch for a bake with green peas, salad savoy and brussels sprouts and it was yummy. Thanks for the great recipes all things vegan and all things cheezy!
Love this! Just made gf vegan Mac and cheeze. I kindof improvised on the crunchy topping and baked it. Thanks!
Hummmm tonight.. over cauliflower, or penne noodles..?? decisions, decisions.
This cheeze sauce has helped to curb my dairy cravings, and is so easy to make! Thank you for this recipe, it’s amazing. Bookmarked it for regular use.
So I just learned that I’m allergic to milk, eggs, wheat, and yeast. My absolute favorite meal has always been macaroni and cheese but with my newly found allergies, I cannot have this. I was so excited when I found that you could make an “uncheesy cheese” sauce but it seems that every recipe has yeast in it. Can you come up with a cheesy recipe with no cheese and no yeast? I would be forever grateful to get a version of my favorite meal!
Hi Jenn, Have you tried a cashew cheese sauce? They are quite cheesy tasting and you can often do without the nutritional yeast.
This is really tasty and easy! The only thing is that both times I made it, it’s been very mustardy. I don’t know if the Dijon I’m using is really strong or if it’s supposed to be this way.
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