Serves 6 to 8-ish
A vegan mac and cheese with no cashews? Ok, let’s just cut to the chase. Or cut to the cheeze, har har. There are a lot of vegan mac and cheese recipes out there, but this sun-dried tomato vegan mac and cheese might just take the noodle. It’s completely nut-free, which is great if you have allergies, but I’m also personally obsessed with it. It just might replace my cashew-based staple mac sauce. Yes, I am covering my cashews’ ears as I say that.
You will never guess the ingredients (except the one in the title), so I’m just going to tell you. Coconut milk, sun-dried tomatoes (in oil), miso, nutritional yeast, and onion powder. That’s it. And it works. The coconut flavor magically transforms when blended with those intensely savory ingredients into something deeply cheesy and complex.
It’s perfect for a full pound of pasta, but the sauce also works as a vegan queso base or wherever your cheesy desires take you. If you’re looking for an allergy-friendly vegan cheese sauce without cashews, this might be your new favorite.
“Hands down the best mac I have ever eaten!” — Kristen
“My 6-year-old super picky eater said ‘all I taste is cheese!'” — Jenn
“I could live on this.” — Jane
If you love this one, check out my full roundup of the best vegan mac and cheese recipes for a creamy, cheesy mac for every mood.
What You’ll Need For Vegan Mac And Cheese Without Cashews
- Full-fat coconut milk for richness and that creamy body. Make sure it’s unsweetened.
- Sun-dried tomatoes in oil for deep, savory tomato flavor. Don’t drain — that oil is going in too.
- Miso for funk and umami. Red miso is what I use. Chickpea miso works for soy-free.
- Nutritional yeast for the cheesy backbone.
- Onion powder for that deli flavor without any chopping.
Tips for the Best Sun-Dried Tomato Mac
Try it as a sauce for veggies. Reader Will used it on roasted cauliflower and said it was perfect. One commenter, Allie, suggested a soft pretzel dip.
No oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes? No problem. Multiple readers have made this with dry sun-dried tomatoes by pouring boiling water over them and letting them sit for 10 minutes to soften, then adding a few tablespoons olive oil along with the rehydrated tomatoes. Works great.
The sauce is generous. It’s enough for a full pound of pasta, but if you have some leftover save it for dipping stuff in.
Reheat with a splash of water or broth. The sauce sets up in the fridge and loosens beautifully when warmed.
Sun-Dried Tomato Mac & Cheese FAQ
Will it taste like coconut? Honestly, no. The miso, sun-dried tomatoes, and nutritional yeast transform it. One reader found it coconut-forward and recommended halving the coconut milk if you’re sensitive to the flavor. Most don’t notice it at all.
What’s a substitute for miso? A tablespoon of soy sauce or tamari plus a pinch of extra nutritional yeast gets you close, but miso really is doing the funk and depth work. Worth keeping a tub in the fridge.
Is this gluten-free? Hells yeah, with a swap. Use your favorite gluten-free pasta.
How did I end up here? You searched for a creamy mac without cashews and the algorithm sent you to the secret coconut one. You’re in good hands.
Sundried Tomato Mac And Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 15 oz can coconut milk
- 3/4 cup sundried tomatoes in oil it was about 1/4 cup of oil, if that helps
- 2 tablespoons miso
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 lb macaroni
- Black pepper and something green to garnish, if ya want
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the macaroni according to package directions. Drain and return the pasta to the pot while still hot.
- In the meantime, add the coconut milk, sun-dried tomatoes (with their oil), miso, nutritional yeast, and onion powder to a blender. Blend until completely smooth and creamy.
- Pour the sauce over the hot pasta and stir until fully coated. Season with black pepper and garnish with something green if you’re feeling fancy.
This was DELICIOUS! All things I had in the pantry, and omnivore husband approved. Topped with some roasted broccoli. Thank you, Isa!
This is a lot creamier than I was expecting. It’s very good. But then again, your recipes are always hits. (Not to sound too fangirly, but I have most of your cookbooks.) Thank you for all you do.
Thank you for all the recipes! I have nearly all of your books 🙂
If some of your fans find only the sundried tomatos without oil, they could rehydrate them by cooking in water plus vinegar for about 10 minutes, drain and 1/4c add olive oil
I made it with dry sun dried tomatoes!!! Because it was all I had 🙂 They were nice and plump, but I added 1/4 cup olive oil and then followed the directions as written. Just threw it all in the blender together. I do have a very high powered blender- so I’ll give it some of the credit. But it came out excellent!!! Just like the photo- nice and creamy. And my family of 4 ate it all up. Another winner!
Eezie cut (to) the cheez. Past times I’ve made curried noodles in coconut milk sauce I had thoughts about how similar it was to my memory of childhood mac and cheese sauce. This one will be tried soon. Hope you are staying safe and healthy. Love your recipes and attitude, and am so glad when you post stuff online. Thanks.
Saw this on the gram and was si excites i happen to have the ingredients. Whipper this up the same and must say im not in love I used a different miso so maybe that was the bummer but i just found just it a little acidic. Also this makes like a half of a blender full, i would half this recipe. No hate love all your other recipes!
Thanks for this delicious recipe! I used sun dried tomatoes that were not packed in oil because that’s all I had. I poured boiling water over the sun dried tomatoes and let them sit for about 10 minutes to soften them first, then added them along with 1/4 cup olive oil to the rest of the ingredients. It turned out great!
Good to know!
Thanks for sharing! I only have dry sundried tomatoes!!
I love this so much! I followed the recipe exactly. It was delicious right away yesterday, and delicious reheated today! Thanks so much for this recipe. All your stuff is great, of course.
This is an amazingly delicious and fantastically simple recipe… thank you so much!
I made this tonight. It was hands down the best mac I have ever eaten! I can’t wait to have kids just so that I can make this for their treat dinner!
Do you have a recommendation for an alternative to miso in this recipe?
I made this exactly according to recipe (using red miso) and it was lick-the-bowl delicious! I added kale and soy curls.
Definitely recommend if you’re craving some salty/umami comfort food. I’m allergic to cashews so I’ve sadly never been able to try a creamy cashew sauce but I prefer this recipe to cheeze sauces where nooch is the main ingredient. This one has a stronger flavor punch than your average nooch sauce.
I didn’t tell my boyfriend what was in it and he guessed beer! Weirdly, it does taste a bit like beer (in a good way, and I’m not even a big beer fan).
The only change I would make when making it again is to start off with only 1 tsp powdered onion and go from there, the powdered onion note was just a little too strong for me.
Absolutely delicious. Made sauce as directions advised, then added more onion powder (which was a white/green blend) and lots of garlic powder. This served as a sauce for cauliflower gnocchi (Trader Joe’s) with simple roasted cauliflower. Really salty, rich flavor. I wouldn’t exactly label it a cheez sauce- however it does the trick in a way that I’ve never tasted in a sauce until making this.
Oh my taste buds just love you! Hadn’t any macaroni so I popped the sauce over spagetti, ah lads it’s just delicious, a hug for my tummy! Love your work, thank you xxxx We’re thinking of you in these tough times, I wish you health I wish you a positive mind & I wish you a heart filled with love. Love from us in Ireland xxx
I have to tell you that since trying this recipe last month I’ve made it probably 4 times. It’s so good. The first 2 times I didn’t have oil-packed sdt so I soaked mine in hot water and then added the olive oil (like some other people) and also threw a splash of the soaking water in (my coconut milk was super thick). Worked out perfectly. This goes really well with lots of crispy sautéed kale and fresh herbs. Thank you so much!!!!
I made this tonight after thinking about it for weeks. I called it “creamy tomato sauce” because my children both think they don’t like sundried tomatoes. My 9yo said “mmm” and ate her whole plateful. My 6yo (super picky eater) said “all I taste is cheese!” It doesn’t have the flavor necessarily of a cheesy sauce but it does have that silky, creamy texture you want. This one is definitely going into our regular rotation. Thank you!!
Extremely delicious. Made it with a chickpea pasta for some protein, and had roasted Brussel sprouts on the side. The crispy green veg played very nicely with the creamy, dreamy, sauce.
I made this tonight with coconut cream (I could find zero coconut milk in my entire pantry) and it turned out awesome! I think this sauce would be equally awesome on veggies or with a soft pretzel.
Soooo yum! Does your new cook book have a listing of how many calories are in each serving?
Made as stated in the recipe however the coconut flavor was overwhelming. Next time would use 1/2 the amount of the coconut milk or add as needed.
Very addictive and one of my favourite meals – I could live on this (& the Oat Raison cookies from Veganomicon) Very easy to make and even easier to eat.
We love all of Isa’s mac and cheese dishes. Yum!
This is the quickest, easiest, yummiest mac & cheeze I’ve ever had! It’s so good and doesn’t taste of coconut at all. Amazing comfort food.
Easy peasy recipe. Made enough for 2 tasty and quick meals with enough leftovers for another 2. Just a tip to use whole or 1/2 sundried tomatoes in jar not the strips as the strips did not have as much flavour.
I also replaced the onion powder with garlic and onion infused oil.(fodmap friendly)
So easy to make and so satisfying! My kids love this recipe.
I made the recipe as written, and it’s lovely. The next time I make it – and this will happen regularly – I will add a bit more nutritional yeast, and I’ll sauté a tsp of chili pepper flakes in a tablespoon of coconut oil and add to the sauce.