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This Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Mac and Cheese is loaded with buffalo spiced roasted cauliflower, gluten-free macaroni noodles and gets
Confession: I don’t watch the Super Bowl.
Other confession: I DO love eating all the Super bowl inspired foods.
So in the spirit of tasty game night foods, I bring you this vegan buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese. Which I’m going to enjoy eating on Super Bowl Sunday curled up on the couch probably watching the latest comedy special on Netflix (or anything else that is not the Super Bowl…)
Either way, this recipe is great for any occasion. Game night, Weeknight dinner, Weekend cozy lunch…whatever! You do you friends!
I’m so excited to share this recipe today because this is like mac and cheese gone wild. We’re taking vegan mac and cheese, and giving it a big punch of flavour with some hot sauce, and layering it with roasted bits of buffalo cauliflower, then baking it off with a breadcrumb topping. #YAS.
How to make buffalo cauliflower:
Buffalo cauliflower has become so popular and there are a few different ways to make it depending on your preferences. For one, you can batter it up (like I do in this bang bang cauliflower recipe) and then bake it up so each piece of cauliflower has a nice battered crispy coating. You can also batter up the cauliflower and fry the florets in a pan with oil so they get super crispy. (Though a bit less healthy)
But for today’s recipe, we’re going with just simple roasted buffalo cauliflower. Why? Because we’re going for simple and healthy here. (But if you prefer to do one of the above options, more power to you!)
To make the buffalo cauliflower, simply roast the cauliflower florets and then toss them in some Frank’s red hot sauce. Then they go back in the oven for additional 10 minutes and we’re done! The roasted buffalo cauliflower is delicious on it’s own, so you can definitely make some extra to serve on the side.
A few notes on the recipe:
This vegan buffalo cauliflower mac and cheese is really simple to make, which is why I love it so much!
Once the buffalo cauliflower is prepared, all you have to do is layer it up in a baking dish with your cooked macaroni, tossed in the creamy vegan “cheese” sauce. The sauce is made with a base of raw cashews (make sure to use raw unsalted cashews!) and nutritional yeast to give it that umami flavour.
If you’d like to get a little more fancy you can add some shredded cheese (vegan or non-vegan, whatever works for you) to the cheese sauce too for a little extra pop of flavour!
I use whole-grain gluten-free macaroni for this recipe, but you can use any type of pasta/shape of pasta you like! Shells, fusilli, and penne also work great for a mac and cheese!
I use Frank red hot sauce in this recipe, which isn’t particularly spicy, but if you’re not a fan of spice and still want to make this mac and cheese, just leave out the hot sauce from the cauliflower and the sauce and you can make this into a vegan roasted cauliflower mac and cheese instead!
More mac and cheese recipes to try
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese
- Vegan Jalapeño Popper Mac and Cheese
Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Main
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This vegan mac and cheese is loaded with buffalo cauliflower for a mac and cheese that packs a punch!
Ingredients
Buffalo cauliflower
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 cup Frank’s red hot sauce
Cheese sauce
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked in hot water for 1-4 hours (or overnight)
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp Frank’s red hot sauce
- 1/2 tsp salt
Other ingredients
- 250 grams macaroni, cooked according to package directions (or pasta of choice)
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- salt and pepper to taste
- breadcrumbs to top (optional)
Instructions
- Make the buffalo cauliflower: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking pan with parchment paper. Toss the cauliflower in olive oil, salt and paprika and scatter on the pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven, toss in the hot sauce, then place back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes.
- Make the cheese sauce: Drain the cashews and add to a high-speed blender with the water, nutritional yeast, hot sauce and salt. Blend on high until smooth and creamy.
- Putting it all together: Heat the olive oil in a pan on medium-high heat then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the cheese sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes while mixing. Add the macaroni and mix together until combined, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper if needed then layer the macaroni and buffalo cauliflower in a baking dish. Top with breadcrumbs and place in the oven on broil for 1 minute.
Notes
Top off this mac and cheese with some fresh cilantro!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 recipe
- Calories: 360
- Sugar: 1g
- Fat: 20g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 8g
- Protein: 13g
If you tried this Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Mac and Cheese or any other recipe on the blog let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment/rating below! Be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook for even more deliciousness!
Hello! I have cashew milk already and no raw cashews – do you think I could make this recipe subbing that for a part of the sauce? Do you have any adjustments you would recommend along with that? Thanks so much.
Hi Alli, it’s hard to say since I don’t know how thick your cashew milk is. If it’s cashew milk from a carton it’s likely WAY more watered down than the homemade cashew milk in the recipe. A better substitute would be coconut milk (from a can) that is higher in fat and much thicker.
My husband & I loved this! Will definitely be making again & again.
thanks for the review Megan! Glad you both enjoyed 🙂
This is one of our favorite recipes. My boyfriend requests is almost weekly. Thanks for a great recipe!!
Thanks for review Katie! So happy you both love the recipe 🙂
Followed the recipe as directed and we loved it. Leftovers reheat well and I can’t wait to make this recipe again.
Thanks for the review Jill! So happy you loved the recipe!
Hi
Would this freeze well
Thanks
Hi Katherine, this recipe does not freeze well and is best enjoyed fresh!
It was good but I thought the cheese was rather bland (without the hot sauce). Next time I may try using miso instead of nooch. Trying to find something for my kiddos who don’t like spice.
Admittedly, yeah, I think the hot sauce is what makes it great! And miso is a good idea – more of an umami flavor than nooch can have 🙂
Made this tonight and it was delicious! I was amazed that such a thin sauce got so nice, thick and creamy. Definitely a repeat.
Thanks for the review Chelsea! Glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
I love this recipe! I’ve always been weary of making cashew cheese, but this was very simple. I actually only boiled the cashews for maybe 35 minutes and they blended up really nicely. I also used 1 cup of water and half cup of oat milk to see if it would make it a lil creamier. Thanks for sharing this recipe 🙂
Thank you for the review Allison! So happy you loved the recipe! 🙂
Super yummy and easy recipe! The cheese sauce is probably one of the best I’ve tried!
Thank you for the review Mina! So happy to hear you liked the recipe and the cheese sauce!
This may sound silly but I am no mathematician yet I am trying to count calories and nutritional values in what I eat. What exactly is an 1/8 of the recipe in cup conversions? An ounce???
Hi Shannon, I’m not sure. If you make this in a baking dish you can just cut out 1/8th of the recipe!
Shannon, 1/8 c is approximately 2 ounces. Hope this helps!