Totally Vegan Mac and Cheese (Gluten and Soy free, too)

I have been meaning to make a mac and cheese for my little one that's dairy-free, because that used to be one of his favorite foods to eat before this whole diet change...but, I just never got around to it.  But a dear friend asked me for advice on how to make mac and cheese, and I decided I had better get off my butt and actually make some!  There are so many different recipes out there, many of which call for nutritional yeast.  I have no problems using it, but I kept thinking, can't I simplify this and just make a cheese sauce with our Daiya cheese? Daiya cheese actually has a pretty decent recipe on their website, but once again the nutritional yeast...I opted to make a typical bechamel type sauce as my base and adding the 'cheese', like I would have done prior to our dairy-free days. :) Enjoy!

Mac and Cheese

8 oz gluten free pasta
2 1/2 cups Daiya cheddar style shreds
2 tablespoons soy-free margarine
2 tablespoons gluten-free flour blend
2 cups So Delicious Original Coconut Milk or other dairy free milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup gluten free bread crumbs (I save the hills of my bread to make crumbs, and freeze or dry them)


Cook pasta until firm al dente (we used shells that required 14-16 minutes to cook, I cooked them ~11 minutes, you don't want to overcook the pasta or it will fall apart in the oven). Drain thoroughly when done. And place in a greased 8x8 pan.


Preheat oven to 350F. In a saucepan melt the margarine, then added the flour and mix to make a roux.  Stir in the milk, and heat until thickened.  Stir in pepper and cheese, and cook over medium-low heat until cheese is melted and well incorporated.  This will only take about 2 minutes. Pour cheese sauce over the pasta and cover this mixture with bread crumbs.  Bake for 20-25 minutes.