Spicy Serrano Pepper Vegan Mac
Based off Detox Inista's original recipe, this ups the ante on the spice with serrano peppers as the main star.
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 1½ cup raw cashews, soaked in water
- 2 thinly diced and deseeded serrano peppers
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 14 oz Elbow or shell pasta little less than 1lb or one box of pasta
- handful of paprika for garnish
Instructions
- Soak your cashews for 5 minutes to 2 hours depending on the strength of your blender. Prepare the pasta according to package directions & add a pinch of salt. Then drain and set it back into the pot, off the heat.
- Slice, deseed, and dice your jalapenos and add them to the blender, along with the drained cashews. Combine all other ingredients into the blender except for the paprika (lemon juice, vegetable broth, salt, nutritional yeast, chili powder, garlic, turmeric, cayenne pepper, Dijon mustard.)
- Blend until smooth, scrape the sides if needed. If your blender is struggling to puree the sauce, add a little bit of water and try again.
- Pour the mixture into the pot. Use a scraper to get everything off the sides. Mix well with a wooden spatula or spoon. Top off with paprika and enjoy!
Notes
If you have a high-powered blender, you can do what I do and drop your cashews in water while you prepare everything else. If your blender is a piece of crap like my old one, you should definitely soak them for at least 2 hours so they soften enough to blend.
I always try to wear food gloves while handling peppers and washing my hands immediately after, because these little buggers can STING when I touch my face later.
Make sure to remove the seeds if you can only handle so much serrano peppers, they're the main source of heat in the peppers.
The cup of vegetable broth adds extra depth to the mac and cheese, but if you don't have any on hand, a cup of water will still bring you a delicious dish!