Erin’s Recipe Rundown
Texture: Creamy, silky-smooth sauce with a golden, buttery breadcrumb crunch.
Taste: Savory, cheesy, and comforting!
Ease: Great for beginners. If you can boil pasta, you can make this.
Top Tips: Use raw, unsalted cashews for the creamiest base, and don’t skip the nutritional yeast—it’s what gives that classic “cheesy” flavor.
Best Dairy-Free Cheese: Violife Mozzarella shreds melt beautifully, but any dairy-free cheese you love will work.
Would I Make This Again? No question! This is my go-to dairy-free mac recipe, and no one ever misses the cheese.
xoxo erin
Featured Comment
From Julia: “This is my new favorite Mac N Cheese!!! Wow it turned out so good!! My husband doesn’t like dairy free anything usually, but with this recipe he didn’t even notice!”
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here are a few notes on some of the key ingredients to make this dairy-free mac and cheese. Jump to the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
- Pasta: Use gluten-free elbow macaroni if needed. I love the flavor and texture of Jovial Foods. Cook just to al dente so it doesn’t get mushy after baking.
- Dairy-free cheese: Violife Mozzarella shreds melt really well, but cheddar-style also works if you want a more classic flavor. Use your favorite brand, you just need it to melt!
- Cashews: Stick to raw, unsalted cashews for a silky-smooth sauce. Roasted or salted cashews won’t blend the same.
- Nutritional yeast: Nutritional yeast is a staple ingredient in dairy-free cooking! It added a cheesy flavor without actually needing any cheese.
- Breadcrumbs: Be sure to buy gluten-free breadcrumbs if you want this recipe to be gluten-free and dairy-free. You could also make these homemade gluten-free breadcrumbs!
How to Make Dairy-Free Mac and Cheese
Here’s an overview of how to make this recipe. You can jump to the recipe for the full instructions!
- Cook the pasta: Boil your pasta just until al dente (it’ll finish cooking in the oven.) Drain and set it aside in the pot you cooked it in.
- Soak the cashews: Place raw cashews in a bowl and cover with water. Microwave for 3 minutes to soften quickly—no overnight soak needed!
- Add to blender with seasonings: Drain the cashews and add them to a blender with fresh water, nutritional yeast, and all the seasonings.
- Blend until smooth: Blend on high until the sauce is silky and pourable. It should be the consistency of heavy cream. Add a splash more water if it feels too thick.
- Add cheese/sauce: Pour the cashew cream into the pot of cooked pasta. Add melted vegan butter and your shredded dairy-free cheese.
- Mix to combine: Stir until everything is coated and starting to melt together. The sauce should cling to the pasta and look rich and creamy, but not soupy.
- Spread into baking dish: Transfer the mac to a greased baking dish and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Mix breadcrumbs: In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs with melted vegan butter and a pinch of salt. Stir until evenly moistened.
- Top with breadcrumbs: Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture generously over the pasta. Use as much as you like—the crispy topping adds amazing contrast to the creamy sauce.
- Bake: Bake until the top is golden and the edges are bubbling. Let it cool slightly before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Feel free to sprinkle some dairy-free Parmesan cheese over the topping for extra flavor and cheesy texture!
- I love to serve this mac and cheese with green beans or steamed vegetables. For a truly classic Southern meal, serve with fried chicken, pulled pork, or ribs!
Dairy-Free Mac & Cheese (BEST EVER!)
Do you love mac and cheese, but can’t do dairy? Me too!After LOTS of experimenting over the years this is my all-time favorite way to make dairy-free mac and cheese. I hope you love it too!
Ingredients
FOR THE CASHEW CREAM SAUCE
- 2 cups raw unsalted cashews
- 1 ½ cups water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
FOR THE MAC & CHEESE
- 12 oz elbow pasta gluten-free if needed
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter melted
- 8 oz vegan cheese I use Violife Mozzarella Shreds
FOR THE TOPPING
- 1 cup bread crumbs gluten-free if needed
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter melted
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a large 3 qt or 4 qt baking dish and set aside.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the cashew cream sauce. In a small bowl, cover the cashews with 2-3 cups of water. Microwave on high for 3 minutes to soften.
- Drain and rinse the softened cashews. Place the cashews, 1 ½ cups fresh water, nutritional yeast, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, pepper and paprika in a blender. Blend on high, until very smooth and creamy. The consistency should be that of heavy cream, add a little more water if needed.
- Once the pasta is cooked and drained, pour it back into the cooking pot. Pour in the cashew cream sauce, melted vegan butter and dairy-free cheese. Mix to combine.
- Pour the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- In a small bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, melted vegan butter and salt. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta. (NOTE: You don't have to use all the breadcrumbs, just as much as you like!)
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
RECIPE NOTES
- DAIRY-FREE CHEESE: Any brand of dairy-free shredded cheese will work. My favorite cheese to use is Violife Mozzarella shreds! You could also use dairy-free cheddar cheese shreds, if you prefer.
- CASHEWS: Be sure to use raw, unsalted cashews in this recipe for best results.
- Feel free to sprinkle some dairy-free parmesan cheese over the topping for extra flavor and cheesy texture!
- To Make Ahead: prepare the recipe up until the baking point and then cover with foil. Store in the fridge until you’re ready to bake, up to one day ahead.
- To Store: Cover leftovers tightly and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave or oven until warmed through.
- To Freeze: Let the baked mac cool completely, then wrap tightly in foil or transfer to an airtight freezer container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating at 350°F until hot and bubbly.
Nutrition
Calories: 392kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 914mg | Potassium: 167mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 540IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 2mg
This post was originally published in April 2023. It was updated with new photos and instructions in July 2025.
Violife recently changed their ingredients to include lentils and it no longer melts or tastes as it should. Any recommendations for another dairy free cheese?
Hi there, thanks for your question! If you want to try a non-cheddar, Miyoko’s Pourable Mozzarella Cheese could work really well, but it’s harder to find! Otherwise I’d try Daiya Cheddar Cheese Shreds, which are easy to find.
Hi, I was wondering if I could use an immersion blender to blend the cashews. I do not have a blender.
Thank you,
Hi Joyce, an immersion blender may work if the cashews are soft enough, though you’ll most likely have to blend longer. We hope you enjoy the mac & cheese!
I’m wondering if I could make this meal ahead of time up to before baking, then freeze it to bake for the first time later. How would this affect baking time and preparation?
Hi Alysa, for the best make-ahead results we recommend either prepping it up to the baking point, covering in foil, and refrigerating for up to 1 day before baking or baking the dish, letting it cool, then wrapping it tightly to freeze for up to 3 months. You can then thaw it overnight in the fridge and reheat at 350°F. We hope this helps!
The absolute best dairy free mac I have ever made/tried. My husband requested this as his birthday meal for the rest of time!! This became my base recipe and I try out new iterations all the time.
Yay! We’re so pleased to hear this recipe has become such a go-to for you and your husband! Thank you for taking the time to share your positive experience with us, Naomi.
I had to make a dairy-free entree for a family member and stumbled across this recipe. I was skeptical about the ingredients (cashews?) but I followed the recipe exactly and it’s delicious, packed with flavor, and the texture is perfect. No one could believe it was dairy free. I will add this dish to my regular rotation so we can enjoy it often.
Yay! We’re so glad you loved it! Thank you for taking the time to share your positive feedback with us!
I can’t decide which I like more: the deliciously creamy sauce or the crunchy bread crumbs! This mac and cheese is fantastic!
This is my new favorite Mac N Cheese!!! Wow it turned out so good!! My husband doesn’t like dairy free anything usually, but with this recipe he didn’t even notice!
Can’t believe this was dairy free mac n cheese! We all loved it! The crumbs on top added were delicious!!